Decades of “redlining” — discriminatory policies that led to disinvestment in minority communities within the United States — may be connected with current cases of kidney failure in Black adults. A new study from researchers at Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) shows that long-term disinvestment of wealth and resources in historically redlined neighborhoods… read on > read on >
All Health and Wellness:
More Cancer Patients Got Palliative Care After Obamacare
New research finds that Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare — brought an unexpected benefit: increases in how many patients got palliative care. “Our findings are encouraging, especially with growing evidence of the important benefits of palliative care for patients with cancer,” said lead study author Dr. Xuesong Han,… read on > read on >
Half of America’s Beaches Have Unsafe Pollution Levels: Report
A day at the beach can be fun with family and friends, but water pollution can ruin the experience. The problem is more widespread than many might think: In a new report, the Environment America Research & Policy Center, a nonprofit organization, found that half of U.S. beaches had potentially unsafe contamination levels in 2022.… read on > read on >
How to Care for Your Heart During a Pregnancy
Pregnancy triggers many changes to the body, but there’s one that may surprise many women. A hidden change is that the heart has to pump, on average, nearly 50% more blood by the end of pregnancy than it did before pregnancy, and then it has to quickly go back to “normal operations” after delivery. While… read on > read on >
Diabetes Medications: Choosing Which Ones Are Best for You
You have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. What are your medication options? That depends on what type of diabetes you have and what risk factors you carry. In type 2 diabetes, the body becomes resistant to the insulin and the pancreas has to make more. Insulin resistance can be caused by obesity, lack of… read on > read on >
Australian Footballer Is First Female Athlete to Receive Diagnosis of CTE
Heather Anderson, a star Australian rules football player who died last November, is the first female professional athlete to be diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. “She is the first female athlete diagnosed with CTE, but she will not be the last,” researchers wrote in a paper published Friday. Anderson was 28 when she… read on > read on >
FDA Approves First Blood Test to Predict Preeclampsia in Pregnant Women
A new blood test approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration can predict imminent preeclampsia, helping pregnant women who are at risk of this severe and sometimes deadly form of high blood pressure. The test can identify with 96% accuracy which women with sometimes-vague symptoms will develop preeclampsia within the following two weeks, The… read on > read on >
Long-Acting, Injected HIV Meds Can Help Tough-to-Treat Patients
For nearly three decades, daily antiretroviral pills have offered patients living with HIV a highly effective way to keep their infection under control. But some patients, particularly those beset by homelessness, drug addiction and/or mental illness, find it very difficult to follow a daily pill routine due to the “competing priorities in their life, like… read on > read on >
Access to Medical Marijuana Won’t Lower Use of Opioid Painkillers: Study
Medical marijuana is touted as a pain reliever, but in U.S. states where it’s legal, prescriptions for opioid or non-opioid painkillers haven’t decreased, a new study finds. According to researchers, this means that people aren’t switching to cannabis for pain relief in huge numbers even when it’s legally available, so it’s unlikely to ease the… read on > read on >
AHA News: Trim, Fit and 53, His Heart Attack Took Him by Surprise
WEDNESDAY, July 5, 2023 (American Heart Association News) — Ed Frauenheim frequently walked the hilly streets around his San Francisco neighborhood. One summer day, he took long strides to his favorite park. As always, he huffed and puffed a bit up the steep ascent. Walking back down the hill was another story. Suddenly, he felt… read on > read on >