Insomniacs have a much higher risk for depression if they have chronic inflammation, a new sleep lab experiment says. Seniors with insomnia were three times as likely to report symptoms of depression if they’d been dosed with a substance that promotes inflammation, according to results published July 16 in JAMA Psychiatry. “Insomnia not only robs…  read on >  read on >

Some newer antiseizure medications appear to be safer for pregnant women to take without risk of birth defects, a new study says. Second-generation antiseizure drugs like levetiracetam, oxcarbazepine, gabapentin and zonisamide did not show an increased risk for birth defects, researchers reported July 16 in the journal Neurology. On the other hand, the study confirmed…  read on >  read on >

Middle-aged women with more belly fat have a higher risk for stress urinary incontinence, a recent study says. Fat around the waist and visceral organs increases by 33% a woman’s risk of leaking when she sneezes, coughs or exerts herself, researchers reported in the journal Menopause. “Abdominal obesity may cause pelvic tissues to encounter chronic…  read on >  read on >

Kids coping with chronic health problems like asthma also are struggling with the emotional burden of stress, fear and sadness, a new study says. Almost 94% of comments posted online by chronically ill kids and their caregivers expressed negative feelings like disgust, sadness and fear, according to results published recently in the Journal of Affective…  read on >  read on >

Folks seeking relief from low back pain in an ER aren’t likely to leave with a prescription for opioids. The rate of ER opioid prescriptions for back pain fell by more than half between 2016 and 2022, researchers reported July 12 in the Annals of Emergency Medicine. Back in 2016, nearly a third of these…  read on >  read on >

Worried about maintaining your regularity as you grow older? Changing your diet can reduce the risk of chronic constipation in middle-aged folks and seniors, a new study says. The Mediterranean diet and plant-based diets were found to best ward off constipation, researchers reported recently in the journal Gastroenterology. “Chronic constipation affects millions of people and…  read on >  read on >