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THURSDAY, Aug. 20, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- People who eat healthfully may be less likely to develop a constellation of symptoms that can precede Parkinson's disease, a large new study suggests. Researchers found that people who closely adhered to a Mediterranean-style diet were about one-third less likely to develop at least three "prodromal" features suggestive of Parkinson's disease, compared to those who stuck with meat and potatoes. Prodromal refers to certain symptoms that can arise years before the more obvious movement problems that mark Parkinson's. They include constipation, depression, body pain, diminished sense of smell, daytime drowsiness, difficulty seeing colors and a tendency to "act out" dreams. Individually, some of those issues are quite common, said James Beck,...

THURSDAY, Aug. 20, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Back-to-school season can be a time of stress for many kids -- even in the best of times. But pandemic fears add to the anxiety many kids will experience with the start of the 2020-2021 academic year, according to David FitzGerald, a child and adolescent psychologist at UConn Health in Farmington, Conn. "COVID-19's continued presence for this year's back-to-school season will bring with it more challenges than ever before," he said in a university news release. "We need to model calm for the kids at all times, and provide as much structure as possible, especially during these unpredictable times." FitzGerald said parents need to pay close attention to their children's emotional health and well-being, and give them the support they need...

THURSDAY, Aug. 20, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- More older Americans have been seeing their doctors virtually since the pandemic began than ever before, a new poll finds. During the first three months of the pandemic, one in four patients over 50 years of age used telehealth -- way up from the 4% who did so in 2019. Comfort levels with telemedicine have also risen, the researchers said. In 2019, most older people had at least one concern about telemedicine, but by mid-2020, the number of those with concerns dropped, especially among people who had a virtual visit between March and June. But not everyone is comfortable with meeting their doctor online, according to the National Poll on Healthy Aging, published online by the University of Michigan. Among those over 50, 17% still said...

THURSDAY, Aug. 20, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- The largest study of its kind finds that children can carry exceedingly high amounts of the new coronavirus, even in the absence of symptoms. Researchers say that could make them ideal "silent spreaders" of COVID-19, throwing the safety of reopening schools into question. "If schools were to reopen fully without necessary precautions, it is likely that children will play a larger role in this pandemic," said study senior author Dr. Alessio Fasano. He directs the Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. The study of 192 children and young adults -- newborns to 22-year-olds -- found that 49 tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and another 18 showed symptoms of COVID-19 illness. What's more,...