(HealthDay News) -- Playing in the great outdoors during the chilly winter months can be a lot of fun, but it's important to take precautions.

(HealthDay News) -- Pesticides are commonly used at homes, farms, gardens, parks and schools, and can be toxic if consumed.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Some people with Parkinson's disease discover untapped artistic abilities after their diagnosis -- a phenomenon that seems to be related to their dopamine-enhancing medication.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- A discovery about the aging process in mice might one day help efforts to develop treatments for age-related diseases in humans, researchers report.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- It's hard to quibble with the speed and convenience of connecting through texts and instant messages, but scientists say that today's ubiquitous online social communication may not confer the same feel-good effects as plain old talking.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- People suffering from the flu can give off small virus particles into the air at greater distances than previously thought, putting the health care workers who treat these patients at increased risk for getting the virus themselves, researchers report.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Marriage appears to reduce the risk of heart attacks for both men and women, according to researchers in Finland.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Americans are being urged to look through their closets for anything crimson, scarlet or apple-red to wear Friday, in support of the American Heart Association's annual Go Red for Women campaign.

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Women taking the epilepsy drug valproate (Depakote) while pregnant are at increased risk of having children with autism and other developmental problems, according to a small British study.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

THURSDAY, Jan. 31 (HealthDay News) -- People who eat large, tropical predatory reef fish such as barracuda and grouper may be at risk for a form of food poisoning called ciguatera fish poisoning, U.S. health officials reported Thursday.