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 >

Bullying among American teens remains a big threat, with more than a third (34%) saying they’ve been bullied over the past year, new government data shows. According to the report’s authors, bullying occurs when a person is “exposed to aggressive behavior repeatedly over time by one or more people and is unable to defend themself.”…  read on >  read on >

Women who enter menopause at a later age have a greater risk of asthma, a new study says. Meanwhile, early menopause is associated with a reduced risk of developing asthma, researchers found. The results run counter to other studies suggesting that early menopause, defined as ages 40 to 44, is more detrimental to a woman’s…  read on >  read on >

Weed use among U.S. teenagers fell dramatically over the past decade, a new study shows. By 2021, only about 16% of teens said they were currently using marijuana, down from 23% in 2011, researchers found. All grades experienced a notable decline in current weed use, particularly among ninth graders, researchers said. Further, the percentage of…  read on >  read on >

The health problems of preemie babies cause untold heartache for new parents. But these families also face a strained financial future, a new study finds. About 30% of parents with a very low birth weight baby, under 3.3 pounds, have had to make serious decisions about their employment and career based on their child’s health,…  read on >  read on >

Smoking marijuana during pregnancy may quell your morning sickness, but it could also harm your child’s development, a new study warns. Cannabis exposure in the womb is associated in early childhood with poorer thinking skills, researchers reported Oct. 28 in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. These kids also have behavioral problems like impulse control, poor attention…  read on >  read on >

DNA analysis of newborns can detect many more preventable or treatable health problems than standard newborn screening does, a new study shows. Genome sequencing identified 120 babies with serious and treatable health conditions out of 4,000 newborns, researchers reported Oct. 24 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. By comparison, conventional screening techniques only…  read on >  read on >

Anxiety is driving more children with potentially dangerous food allergies to seek out psychological care, a new study finds. Focusing on one Ohio hospital, the researchers found a more than 50% jump in psychology referrals for kids with food allergies between 2018 and 2023. “Our center has devoted significant resources to address the psychosocial support…  read on >  read on >