A new analysis of 23 years of Australian Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey data finds parental drinking habits have the strongest influence on children between ages 15 and 17. Researchers tracked more than 6,600 people and 43,000 observations, linking individuals’ alcohol use at different ages to their parents’ average drinking when the child was 12–18. Parental influence wanes through the twenties and resurfaces for many at 28–37, when adults become parents themselves. The effect is largely same-sex: mothers most strongly influence daughters, fathers influence sons, with limited crossover. Comparisons including non-birth caregivers suggest household norms, not genetics, drive much of the effect. The study stresses that repeated patterns matter more than one-off occasions and notes long-term data showing parental supply of alcohol is associated with heavier teen drinking later. It recommends harm-minimisation measures: moderate, low-key parental drinking, avoiding supplying alcohol to teenagers, and clear rules and communication. Broader trends show a decline in teenage drinking in high-income countries—Australia’s reported drinking among 14–17-year-olds fell from about 70% in 2001 to ~30% by 2022–23.

Ontario’s provincial legislature resumed on March 23, 2026, with opposition parties preparing to press the Progressive Conservative government to reverse recent changes to the province’s student aid program (OSAP). Members of Provincial Parliament returned to Queen’s Park for the first time in 102 days, setting the stage for heated debate over post-secondary funding and other government decisions. At the same time, health-care workers and unions have sounded the alarm after further nursing-role cuts across Ontario, with nurses reporting mounting burnout and increased workplace violence. Advocates say the reductions deepen existing staffing shortages and risk compounding pressures on hospitals and community care across Canada. The convergence of education-policy controversy and cuts in health staffing has intensified scrutiny of the government’s fiscal and policy priorities as critics warn of both immediate service impacts and longer-term consequences for access to care and student affordability.

Author Jane Fallon, 65, the long-term partner of comedian Ricky Gervais, has undergone surgery following a breast cancer diagnosis first revealed publicly on March 12. Fallon posted an Instagram update on March 23 saying the operation “went very well” and that she was feeling “remarkably fine,” sharing photos of her recovery at home. She said she was “held together with superglue* and dissolving stitches” and joked about wearing compression socks for 48 hours. Fallon, who said the cancer was detected at a very early stage after a routine mammogram before Christmas, has been advised she must wait 8–10 days for pathology to confirm clear margins; there remains a small chance further surgery could be needed. The bestselling novelist, who has published more than a dozen books and lives with Gervais in Hampstead, west London, thanked followers for messages of support and praised the care she received. She also shared lighter details about recuperating with a cup of tea, a new audiobook and her rescue cat Pickle, which she called the “best nurse ever.”

Perez Hilton, the celebrity gossip blogger whose real name is Mario Lavandeira Jr., said a week of flu symptoms and taking medication on an empty stomach led to a dangerous chain of medical complications that kept him in a Las Vegas hospital for 21 days. In a YouTube video posted March 23, Hilton said the medication caused an ulcer, then a perforation, and ultimately sepsis, a life-threatening infection. He described being unable to walk, arriving by ambulance, and undergoing multiple tests before doctors found the problem. Hilton said he later had laparoscopic surgery to locate and clean out the infection, followed by additional procedures to drain fluid from his lungs and treat a heart issue and another infection that developed during his stay. He said he was fed through an IV for much of the hospitalization and is still recovering at home with a PICC line and intravenous medication. Hilton, 48, said the experience has changed his outlook and prompted him to prioritize sleep, family time, and taking medication properly.

A federal judge in Boston on March 16, 2026 temporarily blocked several major moves by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to remake national vaccine policy, ruling that his actions likely violated federal law. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy granted a preliminary injunction in a suit brought by the American Academy of Pediatrics and other medical organizations, staying Kennedy’s appointments to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), nullifying votes taken by the reconstituted panel and pausing a January decision that reduced the number of routinely recommended childhood vaccines from 17 to 11. Murphy wrote that many of Kennedy’s appointees appear “distinctly unqualified” and that the administration bypassed required procedures and the committee’s expertise. The injunction also halts recent changes such as downgrading universal newborn hepatitis B recommendations and removing routine COVID-19 vaccine guidance for pregnant women and healthy children. HHS said it will appeal; the decision forced a planned ACIP meeting to be postponed and leaves uncertain whether the pause will be upheld on appeal. The ruling drew praise from major medical groups and criticism from Kennedy’s allies and administration officials.

Perez Hilton, the 47-year-old gossip blogger and media personality, revealed on March 21–22 that he was recently hospitalized in Las Vegas after a mysterious medical emergency. In posts on Instagram and Facebook he shared dramatic photos from Southern Hills Hospital & Medical Center showing him in a hospital gown, wearing an oxygen mask and nasal tubes, and displaying several scars on his abdomen. Hilton thanked doctors and nurses — singling out many Filipino staff — and said he was now home recuperating with his three children and his mother. He told followers he would provide a full account of the episode soon, with one report noting he planned a YouTube video for March 23. Hilton had previously said in a Feb. 26 livestream that he was suffering “the worst flu of my life,” but the exact cause of the recent hospitalization has not been confirmed by representatives or medical sources. Celebrities and fans offered public support across social media.