Latest Health News

23Oct
2020

Poverty Might Raise Black Kids' Health Risks as Early as Age 5

Poverty Might Raise Black Kids` Health Risks as Early as Age 5FRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Kids growing up in poverty show the effects of being poor as early as age 5 -- especially those who are Black, a new study suggests. The research adds to mounting evidence that children of Black parents who are also poor face greater health inequities than whites. "Our findings underscore the pronounced racialized disparities for young children," said lead author Dr. Neal Halfon, director of the Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities at the University of California, Los Angeles. For the study, teachers administered a standardized test to measure physical, social, emotional and language development of kindergarteners in 98 school districts across the United States. More than 185,000 kids took the test from 2010 to 2017....

AHA News: Team Gemini Gives Disabled Children Something...

23 October 2020
AHA News: Team Gemini Gives Disabled Children Something to Cheer AboutBy Diane Daniel American Heart Association News FRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (American Heart Association News) -- When Presley LeGrande was a member of the competitive cheer team NorCal Elite All Stars in San Jose, California, one of their biggest fans was a teammate's sister. She had her own NorCal uniform and would try to copy the athletes' moves, all from a wheelchair on the sidelines. "When I was 3 years old, I was able to sign up for cheer and there was no question about my abilities," LeGrande said. Watching her teammate's sister, she realized how disabled students lacked access to the activities she took for granted. "In my school, we were usually separated from the kids in special education. When that happens, I think it results in a lack of understanding about their capabilities and...

Most Americans Want to End Seasonal Time Changes: Survey

23 October 2020
Most Americans Want to End Seasonal Time Changes: SurveyFRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- As most of America prepares for the Nov. 1 return of standard time, 63% want one fixed, year-round time, a new survey finds. "Evidence of the negative impacts of seasonal time changes continue to accumulate, and there is real momentum behind the push to end seasonal time changes," said Dr. Kannan Ramar, president of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), which favors a fixed, nationwide time. A recent position statement from AASM said public health and safety would benefit if seasonal time changes were eliminated. It called for permanent use of standard time, which it said more closely aligns with the daily rhythms of the body's internal clock. More than 20 organizations have endorsed the statement. They include the National...

Coronavirus in a Cough: Tests Show Masks Stopping the Spread

23 October 2020
Coronavirus in a Cough: Tests Show Masks Stopping the SpreadFRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- A cough could spread a cloud of COVID-19 throughout a room, but a face mask can greatly shrink the size and spread of that cloud, a new study finds. In fact, the volume of the cloud without a mask is about seven times larger than with a surgical mask and 23 times larger than with an N95 mask, the researchers found. "We found that anything that reduces the distance traveled by the cloud, such as a mask, handkerchief, or coughing into an elbow, should greatly reduce the region over which the droplets disperse upon coughing, and therefore the chances of infection," said researcher Rajneesh Bhardwaj, from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, in Mumbai. Using jet theory and data from the literature, Bhardwaj and colleague Amit Agrawal...

Politics Key to Americans' Views on COVID-19, Poll Shows

23 October 2020
Politics Key to Americans` Views on COVID-19, Poll ShowsFRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The new coronavirus holds no political views. The pathogen's only aim is to infect, spread and thrive. But in what is surely no surprise in a deeply divided America, it turns out that your political views play a large role in your attitude towards COVID-19 prevention efforts. Republicans tend to be much less worried than Democrats about the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore less likely to take steps to ward off infection, according to a new HealthDay/Harris Poll survey. Twice as many Republicans believe the U.S. reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic is overblown, 52% versus 26% of Democrats, the survey shows. Republicans are also more likely than Democrats to be optimistic that COVID-19 will be under control by early 2021 (66% versus...

U.S. Daily COVID Case Count Nears Record for Pandemic

23 October 2020
U.S. Daily COVID Case Count Nears Record for PandemicFRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The United States on Thursday recorded its second highest daily total of new coronavirus cases since the pandemic began, with 75,000 new infections, while eight states broke single-day records of new cases. Also on Thursday, the antiviral medicine remdesivir became the first drug to gain U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to fight COVID-19. Such drugs are urgently needed: Adding to bleak national numbers, 13 additional states have added more cases in the past week than in any other seven-day stretch, The New York Times reported. The Midwest and Rocky Mountains are struggling to contain major outbreaks, while new hot spots are emerging in other parts of the country. Kentucky announced more than 1,470 cases on Thursday, the biggest...

Repeal of Obamacare Could Leave Young Cancer Patients in the Lurch

22 October 2020
Repeal of Obamacare Could Leave Young Cancer Patients in the LurchTHURSDAY, Oct. 22, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- If Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act (ACA), is repealed, pediatric cancer patients could lose critical insurance coverage, a new study warns. Kids with cancer often require intensive treatment and long-term follow-up to beat the disease. The ACA allows them to stay on their parents' insurance coverage to age 26 and bans exclusion of patients with preexisting conditions. The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to rule on the future of the ACA this fall. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco's Benioff Children's Hospital and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia studied the potential impact of dismantling it on 18- to 25-year-old cancer patients. "We know that even brief disruptions in insurance have been associated with...

Heart Conditions Could Raise Risk of Torn Aorta During Pregnancy

22 October 2020
Heart Conditions Could Raise Risk of Torn Aorta During PregnancyTHURSDAY, Oct. 22, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Pregnancy can increase the risk of a rare, dangerous heart condition called aortic dissection, researchers report. This is especially true for women with underlying heart conditions that can go undetected. Aortic dissections -- which affect 3 in 100,000 people per year -- cause the layers of the aorta to tear, and blood to pool or leak instead of flow normally. Patients require lifesaving care. Researchers analyzed data from 29 women who were unexpectedly hospitalized for aortic dissection while pregnant. Most already had a heart condition that hadn't been diagnosed in many cases. Aortic diseases and conditions such as Marfan syndrome or Loeys-Dietz syndrome are often found in women who have an aortic dissection while pregnant, the...

Could Common Asthma Meds Weaken Bones?

THURSDAY, Oct. 22, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- People who use common asthma controller medications are vulnerable to developing brittle bones and suffering fractures, a new study shows. The findings...

'Heat Not Burn' Cigarettes Can Still Harm the Heart

THURSDAY, Oct. 22, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- "Heat-not-burn" tobacco products, created as an alternative to other types of smoking, may harm the user's heart, researchers report. These tobacco...
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