Latest Health News

4Feb
2022

Pandemic Worsening Americans' Already Terrible Sleep, Poll Finds​

Pandemic Worsening Americans` Already Terrible Sleep, Poll Finds​FRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Many Americans are bone-weary following two straight years of pandemic stress, and a new HealthDay/Harris Poll shows that sleeplessness is only part of the problem.One-third of poll participants said they feel more tired now than they did before March 2020, the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.But just 28% said they're getting less sleep than before the pandemic."There's a gap there that basically says tiredness is not just driven by sleep," said Kathy Steinberg, vice president at The Harris Poll.It's true people aren't getting enough sleep. On average, respondents said they're getting about 6.5 hours a night, below the amount recommended by sleep experts."Let's give the range of around 7 to 9 hours per night, with the sweet spot being around 8,"...

Crowdfunding for Medical Costs Almost Always Fails

4 February 2022
Crowdfunding for Medical Costs Almost Always FailsFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- You have almost certainly seen the pleas while scrolling through social media: Called crowdfunding, folks try to raise money to pay for their sick loved one's mounting medical bills.But new research shows these grassroots campaigns rarely raise enough money to make a difference.According to GoFundMe, which corners over 90% of the U.S. crowdfunding market, more than one-third of its fundraisers are for medical needs.But crowdfunding should be seen as a "symptom" of the U.S. health care system's failures — not a solution, said Sara Collins, who is vice president of health care coverage and access at the nonprofit Commonwealth Fund, and was not involved with the study. Instead, policymakers should address the reasons that Americans have to resort...

Medicare to Provide Free COVID-19 Rapid Tests

4 February 2022
Medicare to Provide Free COVID-19 Rapid TestsFRIDAY, Jan. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Medicare will soon provide up to eight free COVID rapid tests a month to seniors enrolled in the government health insurance program, the Biden administration announced Thursday.The new policy for the over-the-counter tests will take effect in early spring. The at-home tests will be available at pharmacies and other locations for clients with Medicare's "Part B" outpatient benefit, which about 90% of enrollees have.This will be the first time that Medicare has covered an over-the-counter test at no cost to recipients, the Associated Press reported.Access to free COVID rapid tests will also be available to people with Medicare Advantage, a private insurance option used by 4 in 10 Medicare enrollees. Those plans can already cover over-the-counter...

More Destructive Variant of HIV Spotted in the Netherlands

4 February 2022
More Destructive Variant of HIV Spotted in the NetherlandsFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- If the pandemic taught the world nothing else, it's that viruses can mutate, potentially giving rise to new and more harmful variants.Now, new research reveals that's exactly what has happened with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.Called VB (for virulent subtype B), the "new" HIV variant actually seems to have emerged more than 30 years ago. But its existence was only recently confirmed by a team of genetic researchers from the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland and Finland.That it has largely flown under the radar may reflect the fact that the VB variant has only been found in 109 HIV-positive patients so far, most of them Dutch. But although not widespread, the concern is that — absent...

U.S. Kids Still Dying From Toppling TVs, Furniture

4 February 2022
U.S. Kids Still Dying From Toppling TVs, FurnitureFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Before your eyes become glued to the Super Bowl or the Winter Olympics, make sure your TV and furniture are anchored to the wall to protect little ones from potentially deadly tip-overs.Between 2018 and 2020, an average of 22,500 Americans a year required emergency department treatment for tip-over injuries, and nearly 44% were under 18, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).Since 2000, there have been nearly 600 tip-over deaths involving furniture, TVs or appliances, and 81% of those victims were children 17 and younger."People either don't know about the risks, or they think it can’t happen when an adult is nearby," said CPSC Chair Alex Hoehn-Saric.According to the new CPSC report, 71% of all child deaths involved a...

Most Vaccine-Hesitant Health Care Workers Change Their Minds, Study Shows

4 February 2022
Most Vaccine-Hesitant Health Care Workers Change Their Minds, Study ShowsFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Most health care workers at a large U.S. hospital who initially refused COVID-19 vaccines eventually went and got their shots, new research reveals."This study found health care workers' attitudes about COVID-19 vaccination could change in a very short period of time," said lead study author Charlesnika Evans. She is a professor of preventive medicine in epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. "It shows there is opportunity to change people's decisions about not getting vaccinated," Evans said in a university news release.For the study, her team surveyed nearly 4,200 health care workers at Northwestern Medicine when COVID-19 vaccines became available last winter. At that time, three-quarters said they...

Brain's Decline Accelerates in Years After Heart Attack

4 February 2022
Brain`s Decline Accelerates in Years After Heart AttackFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Your heart and brain may often seem at odds, but they have more in common than you think. A new study shows that a heart attack can lead to faster mental decline over the years."We need to realize that what's going on in the heart and brain are related," said lead study author Dr. Michelle Johansen. She is an assistant professor of cerebrovascular neurology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in Baltimore. "Managing risk factors to prevent a heart attack is actually good for your brain, as well," she explained. And having a heart attack can be detrimental to your brain health over time, Johansen added.To gauge the short- and long-term impacts of heart attack on the brain, Johansen's team analyzed data from more than 31,000 Americans...

Humans' Sense of Smell May Be Getting Duller

4 February 2022
Humans` Sense of Smell May Be Getting DullerFRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Your sense of smell may not be as good as that of your ancestors.A new study that tested volunteers' perceptions of various smells -- including underarm odor -- adds to growing evidence that people's sense of smell is declining, little by little."Genome-wide scans identified novel genetic variants associated with odor perception, providing support for the hypothesis," the researchers said in a news release from the journal PLOS Genetics. The study was published there Feb. 3.Individuals experience smells differently, and the same scent may be pleasant, too intense or undetectable to various people. By combining differences in scent perception and people's genetics, scientists can identify the role of various scent receptors.In this study,...

Brain Changes Appear by Middle Age After Years of High...

FRIDAY, Feb. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Middle-aged folks who had high blood pressure since they were young adults show brain changes that may increase their risk of future mental decline, a new...

A Better Clot-Buster Drug When Strokes Attack?

THURSDAY, Feb. 3, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- A newer type of "clot-busting" medication might be safer than the one long used for treating strokes, a preliminary study hints.Researchers found that...
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