The year in health: From Kate Middleton to norovirus, the top 10 wellness stories of 2024

This year, the Yahoo Life team published hundreds of stories about health and wellness. We spoke with people who use pet strollers, reported on the “dumb phone” trend and highlighted potential kitchen hazards. We talked to experts about COVID-19, colds, allergies, bird flu and seasonal flu and researchers about the latest developments on vaccines, disease prevention and treatment advancements. We offered wellness tips on making the most of your walk, how to sleep longer and eat better. We covered trends like “dirty soda,” “girl dinner” and “sexy water” and debunked a few — like Celtic sea salt and chin straps — too. But of all the articles that we produced, the following stood out the most. From royal cancer intrigue to young adult health concerns, here are our top 10 original articles of 2024, ranked by page views.

10. A big year for the stomach bug

There’s been an unusually high number of outbreaks of norovirus in 2024, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, so it tracks that Kaitlin Reilly’s story about avoiding the highly contagious stomach bug was a top performer. Her reporting found that the best trick to staying healthy is a simple one: Wash your hands and be sure to scrub them with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds (or about the length of the birthday song). If you do get sick, hydration is key to recovering.

9. More middle-aged adults are dying from strokes

If knowledge is power, then this article provides helpful insight into some scary statistics. Between 2012 and 2019, the number of adults between ages 45 and 64 dying of strokes rose by 7%, followed by a further spike of 12% between 2019 and 2021, according to an August CDC report. As Rebecca Corey wrote, experts point to a few culprits. Rising rates of risk factors, including high blood pressure and obesity, are contributing, as are sedentary lifestyles and unhealthy diets. Missed doctor appointments and unrecognized symptoms may also contribute to higher rates of stroke and death from it among under-65s. By eating heart-healthy diets, aiming to get 150 minutes of exercise a week, controlling blood pressure, getting annual checkups and knowing the signs of stroke, middle-aged people can reduce their risks now and in the future.

8. King Charles underwent cancer treatment

In February, King Charles III was diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer (just weeks later, Kate Middleton announced that she too was undergoing cancer treatment). Buckingham Palace never revealed what type of cancer Charles was battling, instead calling it a “separate issue of concern” that was discovered during a procedure for a “benign prostate enlargement.” A palace spokesperson later clarified that the king did not have prostate cancer.

7. Sydney Sweeney called out body shamers

From reproductive rights to diet culture and the “tradwife” phenomenon: Conversations about women’s bodies showed no signs of slowing in 2024. And 27-year-old Sydney Sweeney’s body has been put at the center of cultural conversations over and over again. However, the Euphoria and Anyone but You breakout star hit back at commenters who criticized her figure in a photo of her in a bikini taken by a paparazzo. Posts about the photo of Sweeney “ignited a deeply depressing but all-too-familiar discourse,” Zeynab Mohamed wrote in her Substack. “When [Sweeney] looks polished on Instagram, she’s accused of being fake. When caught candidly by paparazzi, she’s criticised for being too real.”

6. Luigi Mangione’s reported back condition, explained

Mangione, the 26-year-old who was arrested and charged with murder in the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, allegedly made social media posts about spondylolisthesis, a back condition in which a vertebra slips out of place. The injury, which was aggravated by surfing, was “completely devastating,” according to a Reddit account that appears to belong to Mangione. For people with spondylolisthesis, “if the nerves are pinched ... putting weight on your spine can hurt a lot,” Dr. Uzma Samadani, a Minnesota neurologist specializing in spine surgery, told Natalie Rahhal. “It is an excruciating pain, and it doesn’t go away with conservative management.”

5. Severe storm safety

In the U.S. in 2024, there were 17 severe (meaning losses exceeded $1 billion) storm events, four tropical cyclone events, one wildfire event and two winter storm events as of Nov. 1, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. That may be why our guide to storm safety was one of the year’s top stories.

4. Stay safe in the skies

Injuries due to turbulence are still rare, but they’re becoming more common as incidents of severely rough air rise, according to a study from the University of Reading in the U.K. Bruises, broken bones and concussions due to midair bumps may sound alarming, but for most passengers, they’re likely preventable. Korin Miller rounded up experts’ best advice for how to stay safe in even the worst turbulence. The main takeaway? Stay seated, with your seat belt on.

3. How 'Sopranos' star Drea de Matteo saved her family from financial ruin

Financial health matters too, and Drea de Matteo found that out firsthand. After vaulting to fame as Adriana La Cerva on The Sopranos, the actress pumped the brakes on her career in order to spend more time caring for her children and childhood nanny. But, as she faced foreclosure on the family’s home, de Matteo’s teenage children’s joke about putting her feet on OnlyFans became a real path out of both financial and emotional insecurity. The experience helped de Matteo save her home and recognize, “Man, I’m a 52-year-old woman with a smokin’ hot body,” she told Maressa Brown.

2. Kate Middleton’s secretive cancer journey

The Princess of Wales kept much of her cancer journey private after announcing her diagnosis with an undisclosed form of the disease in March. By September, the mom of three shared that she had finished chemotherapy, but said her “path to healing and full recovery is long” in an emotional video posted to her Instagram. Cancer was discovered when the royal underwent major abdominal surgery. Afterward, she was treated with what she described as a “preventative” form of chemotherapy. Experts applauded her “proactive measures” and told Rahhal that this type of treatment might be used when tumors were completely removed surgically but doctors want to reduce the risk of recurrence.

1. Millennials’ and Gen X-ers’ rising cancer rates

Our most-read story of the year aimed to shed light on a disturbing trend: More young adults are getting cancer, according to a study published in July. Each generation since the baby boomers has seen an increase in 17 cancers, including pancreatic, colorectal, breast and gastric cancers. Even as rates and deaths from these cancers decline among older adults, people under age 50 are getting and dying from them at rising rates (although it’s still relatively rare to be diagnosed in younger adulthood). In fact, people born in 1990 are at two- to threefold higher risks of certain cancers than those born in 1965, the study found. Why this is happening is a hot topic of research and far from settled science. But most of the cancers that are on the rise are linked to obesity — and experts said that excess body weight and the inflammation it causes are the prime suspects. But that carries a silver lining. The best things you can do to reduce your risks make good New Year’s goals: Maintain a healthy body weight, exercise regularly and have a balanced diet high in plants and fish and low in red meat, ultra-processed foods and alcohol. And, of course, don’t smoke.