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FRIDAY, Nov. 5, 2021 (American Heart Association News) -- A COVID-19 vaccine has finally arrived for children ages 5 to 11 – and with it, some important questions from parents.Many are wondering about safety, said Dr. Donna Curtis, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Children's Hospital Colorado in Aurora. Others are asking whether the coronavirus is enough of a threat to their child to require a vaccine.Here are answers that might help.What is the vaccine, and where can I get it?It's one-third of the dose of the Pfizer vaccine that has been given to adults since December 2020 and adolescents 12 and up since May. Tens of millions of Americans have received Pfizer's vaccine, and it's considered very safe.Data presented to the Food and Drug Administration showed the new dose...

FRIDAY, Nov. 5, 2021 (American Heart Association News) -- In March 2020, just as work was beginning on Breaktime Café – an ambitiously planned restaurant to train and employ young people experiencing homelessness in Boston – the pandemic brought construction to an abrupt halt.The disruption could have killed the dreams co-founders Connor Schoen and Tony Shu, who were Harvard University undergraduates at the time. Instead, it led to innovation.While the country went on lockdown, Breaktime pivoted into a connection-based nonprofit, matching young people without housing with Boston-area nonprofits and small businesses in need of employees. It accelerated quickly, creating more than 60 transitional employment opportunities and serving tens of thousands of people throughout Greater...

FRIDAY, Nov. , 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Pfizer Inc. announced Friday that its experimental COVID-19 pill slashed the risk of hospitalization and death by 89% in infected high-risk people.The five-day treatment, when given within three days of infection, was so effective in a clinical trial that an independent monitoring committee recommended the trial be stopped early, Pfizer said. The antiviral pill, the second of its kind to show the power to guard against severe COVID, appears to be even more effective than a similar offering from Merck. Merck's pill, molnupiravir, halved the risk of severe disease in high-risk patients. British regulators cleared the pill for use this week in people who are diagnosed with COVID-19 and have at least one risk factor for severe illness, the Washington...

FRIDAY, Nov. 5, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Most folks groan when the time comes to either "spring forward" or "fall back" an hour, with the waxing and waning of daylight saving time.But that one-hour time shift — which occurs at 2 a.m. Sunday — is more than just a minor annoyance, sleep experts say.Research has shown that deliberately messing with our internal clock twice a year increases our risk of accident, illness and death.That's why the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) has called for an end to daylight saving time, arguing that permanent adoption of standard time is best for improving people's health."Over the last 20 to 30 years, there's been increasing research which has demonstrated that one hour, in fact, appears to be very important," said Dr. Muhammad Adeel...