Latest Health News

MONDAY, Feb. 8, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Developing diabetes during pregnancy may increase a woman's risk for heart disease later in life, according to a new study.It included about 1,100 women without type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Those who developed diabetes during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) were twice as likely by mid-life (average age: 48) to have calcium in their arteries, a strong predictor of heart disease.This was true even if their blood sugar levels returned to healthy levels after pregnancy, the study found. The findings were published Feb. 1 in the journal Circulation.Gestational diabetes affects about 9% of pregnancies in the United States and up to 20% worldwide.Previous studies showed that women with a history of gestational diabetes who later developed type 2...

MONDAY, Feb. 8, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- The microbes on your toothbrush mostly come from your mouth -- not your toilet -- and provide insight into your oral health, researchers say.Their study was inspired by people's concerns that flushing a toilet might create a cloud of aerosol particles that end up on toothbrushes and other bathroom surfaces.The researchers asked people to mail in their used toothbrushes so they could examine DNA on the bristles to identify the microbial communities. The investigators found that those communities matched microbes commonly found inside the mouth and on skin.That was the case no matter where in a bathroom the toothbrushes had been stored, including inside a closed cabinet or out in the open, according to the study the researchers dubbed "Operation...

MONDAY, Feb. 8, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Here's a new reason to make sure your kids get their seasonal flu shot.A new study showed that it reduces kids' risk for symptoms and severe illness if they get COVID-19.That conclusion is drawn from medical records of more than 900 children diagnosed with COVID-19 between February and August of last year.Those who had their current flu shot were less likely to have COVID-19 symptoms, respiratory problems or severe illness, University of Missouri researchers said.Kids who received the pneumococcal vaccine were also less likely to have COVID-19 symptoms, according to findings recently published in the journal Cureus.The findings are important because there is not yet an approved coronavirus vaccine for kids."It is known that the growth of one...

SUNDAY, Feb. 7, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- Doctors need to do a better job of discussing low blood sugar with patients who take high-risk diabetes medications such as insulin, researchers say.Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) is the most common serious side effect of diabetes treatment. Severe cases can lead to falls, emergency department visits, and may increase the risk of stroke and death."For patients to have safe diabetes treatment, there needs to be open communication between them and their health care provider about medication side effects, especially hypoglycemia," said study leader Dr. Scott Pilla. He is assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in Baltimore.The study was published recently in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. According...