If anxiety over this year’s presidential election is keeping you up at night, you’re not alone. About 17% of all U.S. adults — a striking 45 million Americans — say the election has negatively impacted their sleep, according to a survey by the National Sleep Foundation. These folks are sleeping less on the weekend and… read on > read on >
A little about: Weekly Sauce
All Sauce from Weekly Sauce:
Most Patients Can Keep Using GLP-1 Weight Loss Meds Before Surgeries
A new guidance issued jointly by groups representing U.S. surgeons, anesthesiologists and gastroenterologists affirms that most people taking popular GLP-1 weight-loss meds can keep taking them in the weeks before a surgery. Concerns had arisen because the drugs, which include semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro and Zepbound), liraglutide (Saxenda) and dulaglutide (Trulicity), can… read on > read on >
When This Black Cat Crossed His Path, It Was a Lucky Day for Medicine
When a black cat named Pepper dropped a dead mouse on the carpet at his owner’s feet on a day back in May 2021, neither of them knew then that it would alert scientists to the arrival of an exotic virus to the United States. Pepper is a skilled hunter who regularly leaves “gifts” for… read on > read on >
Staying In: Did Pandemic Shift Americans’ Leisure-Time Habits Permanently?
The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have created a nation of homebodies in the United States, a new study finds. People are spending nearly an hour less each day doing activities outside the home, researchers reported Oct. 31 in the Journal of the American Planning Association. In essence, not going out has become the “new normal”… read on > read on >
Costs for MS, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Meds Keep Rising
A person battling multiple sclerosis spent an average of $750 in out-of-pocket fees on medicines in 2012, but by 2021 that same patient spent $2,378 annually, a new report finds. Out-of-pocket costs for drugs for neurologic diseases such as MS, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease are climbing sharply, according to research led by Amanda Gusovsky, of… read on > read on >
Halloween Candy: Don’t Get Spooked by All That Sugar
Sugar overload is a real danger on Halloween, as piles of candy prove a powerful temptation to both Trick-or-Treaters and the folks handing out the goodies. Too many sweet treats can instigate a blood sugar spike followed by a hard crash, causing folks to become irritable and experience symptoms like dizziness, upset stomach, tiredness and… read on > read on >
Diagnostic Device Spots Malaria Without Need for Blood Sample
Scans using lasers and ultrasound can pick up signs of a malaria infection through the skin, without the need for a blood draw, Yale researchers report. The technology, called Cytophone, could be a real boon for developing countries where access to labs for blood tests isn’t always available. According to a Yale news release, the… read on > read on >
CDC Confirms Onions as Source of McDonald’s E. Coli Outbreak; Cases Rise to 90 Nationwide
Onions spread on McDonald’s Quarter Pounders are the definite source of an outbreak of E. coli illness that’s now affected 90 people nationwide, new evidence from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows. “Epidemiologic and traceback information show that fresh, slivered onions are the likely source of illness in this outbreak,” the CDC… read on > read on >
Autism Diagnoses Rising Among U.S. Children, Adults
Big surges in new autism diagnoses among young adults, as well a rise in diagnoses for girls and young women, have driven a near-tripling of U.S. autism cases in just over a decade, researchers report. Data on over 12 million patients enrolled in major U.S. health care systems found that between 2011 and 2022 the… read on > read on >
Lack of Insurance Could Mean Later Cancer Diagnoses for Black, Hispanic Americans
A lack of health insurance coverage raises the risk that cancers among Black and Hispanic Americans will be caught too late, a new study suggests. Being uninsured accounts for a significant proportion of racial and ethnic disparities in cancers that are only detected at a later, more life-threatening stage, researchers found. “Securing health insurance for… read on > read on >