ALL ABOUT HEALTH -

10Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Half of Americans Support Laws Against Weight-Based Discrimination

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Should there be laws in place to protect people with obesity from being denied a job or housing opportunities on the basis of their weight status? Whether or not you answer yes to that question may be influenced by your gender, race, or your own weight, according to a study that examined how these factors impact perceptions of obesity, weight bias, and weight-based discrimination laws.About half of Americans would support laws against weight-based discrimination, with those who have personally experienced weight bias being about twice as likely to support the policy as people who have not, according to the findings, which were presented June 7 at the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Annual Meeting (ASMBS) in Dallas.Can a Person Be Denied a Job or Fired Because of How Much They…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Testosterone May Aid Memory in Men With Uncontrolled Diabetes

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Some men with a deficit of sex hormones who take testosterone replacement therapy may experience a benefit that goes beyond improved sexual function.When men have both hypogonadism and poorly controlled type 2 diabetes, testosterone replacement therapy may improve both sexual function and cognitive function, according to preliminary results of a small clinical trial presented at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Atlanta.“The findings are welcome news to men with diabetes and hypogonadism, since they often have a poor quality of life,” said the lead study author, Preethi Mohan Rao, MD, of the University of Sheffield, England, in a statement.Hypogonadism in men, often called low T, develops when the body doesn’t produce enough testosterone. While men can be born with the condition, it can also develop later in life and cause…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

What’s Up With the Tampon Shortage?

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In the past several weeks, half-empty shelves in the “feminine hygiene” area of local pharmacies and grocery stores have become commonplace because of a shortage of tampons in the United States. According to some reports, there’s only a 30 percent stock of tampons in stores around the country, with Arkansas and West Virginia among the most affected states.The drugstore chains Walgreens and CVS reported temporary scarcities of some varieties of tampons but didn’t specify which brands. Target said it's working with tampon manufacturers to secure more inventory, and Walmart stated that they aren’t experiencing a tampon shortage.The current crisis is forcing many people to go from store to store searching for their preferred brand of tampon or traveling much farther than usual to buy them. There are also anecdotal reports…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Multivitamins and Supplements May Not Prevent Heart Disease, Cancer

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Even though millions of American adults take daily multivitamins and dietary supplements, there isn’t clear evidence that doing so is helping them live longer, according to new guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF).The guidelines, published June 21 in JAMA, focus on the prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death that account for about half of fatalities in the United States each year. There isn’t enough evidence to suggest that multivitamins help avoid these fatalities, according to the new guidelines, which echo advice issued by the USPSTF in 2014.“Patients ask all the time, ‘What supplements should I be taking?’ They’re wasting money and focus thinking there has to be a magic set of pills that will keep them healthy when we should all…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Eating Right, Getting Enough Exercise and Sleep Among First Treatments for IBS in New Guidelines

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People with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) should try to manage their symptoms by adjusting their eating, exercise, and sleep habits before seeking out an IBS specialist or gastroenterologist for medications or other types of treatment, new clinical guidelines advise.The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) published two sets of guidelines in the journal Gastroenterology: one for IBS-C, where patients experience constipation; and one for IBS-D, which involves diarrhea. These guidelines detail for the first time what interventions patients should try, as well as the best times to consider newer drugs as opposed to older medications, according to a statement from the AGA.Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which affects up to 35 million Americans, is a chronic gastrointestinal condition that impairs proper functioning of the small and large intestines, often causing cramps, diarrhea, constipation, and…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

FDA Approves Dupixent (Dupilumab) as First Biologic Atopic Dermatitis Treatment for Kids 5 and Under

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One of the most vexing things about having a young child with atopic dermatitis (eczema) is figuring out how to help them when topical treatments don’t work. Now there’s an entirely new option to try with Dupixent (dupilumab), a once-monthly injection that parents can give kids at home.In June 2022 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Dupixent to treat moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis in children 6 months to 5 years old who haven’t achieved enough symptom relief with prescription corticosteroid creams or ointments, according to a statement from the drug’s developers, Sanofi and Regeneron.More than 1 in 10 Americans have atopic dermatitis, which is much more common in children and typically develops before kids are 5 years old, according to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD).Around a third of…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Why Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay or Trans’ Law Puts LGBTQ+ Mental Health at Risk

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On March 28, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida signed into law a bill that mental health professionals and advocates say will greatly harm LGBTQ+ communities.The Florida state legislation, titled CS/CS/HB 1557: Parental Rights in Education (commonly referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill), prohibits classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in certain grade levels.It also requires school districts to notify parents of healthcare services for their children. This means the law could require teachers to “out” their queer and trans students to their legal guardians — something that may put children in danger if their family doesn’t accept them, according to a statement by the Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on LGBTQ+ suicide prevention. (Survey data from the Trevor Project published in February showed…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Can Olive Oil Shots Really Improve Your Skin and Reduce Bloating?

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But first … olive oil?This Mediterranean diet staple is having a moment. Olive oil is a much-loved topping on trendy salads and avocado toast, but now some TikTokers are opting for a more generous pour. In fact, they’re downing shots of the stuff for its purported health benefits.In one video with 3.5 million views, @oliveoilqueen claims that drinking olive oil reduces her bloating, among other positive effects. Others, like @eliyahmashiach, prefer a tablespoon in the morning for digestion. Some, like @back2basics4all, mix it with lemon juice.Some celebrities love it, too. Kourtney Kardashian knocks back a tablespoon every other day as part of her morning routine. Model Agatha Relota Luczo takes a shot of her own blend, followed by lemon water and coffee, reports Goop. Producer Shonda Rhimes told WSJ. Magazine that…

09Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

Brain Scan Can Aid Early Detection of Alzheimer’s Disease

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One of the most vexing things about diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease is that many patients don’t know they have this common form of dementia until it’s more advanced and challenging to treat. Now, a new study suggests that it may be possible to catch Alzheimer’s early with a single brain scan.Even though Alzheimer’s disease can’t be cured, early detection can help patients get treatment to help manage and sometimes slow the progression of symptoms, researchers noted in a paper published June 20 in Communications Medicine. Many techniques currently used to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease — including cognitive assessments, memory tests, and brain scans to look for telltale protein deposits in the brain and tissue shrinkage in the hippocampus region of the brain — can take weeks to schedule and then get the…

08Mar 2023 by Janice Holland

U.S. Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade, Ending Federal Right to Abortion

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The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that has protected abortion rights nationwide for half a century, allowing individual states to ban or restrict pregnancy terminations.The court overturned Roe by a 5-4 vote. Associate Justice Samuel Alito wrote the opinion (PDF), joined by Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. Chief Justice John Roberts filed a separate, concurring opinion.“The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion,” Alito wrote in the decision. “The authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.”President Joe Biden described the decision as a “tragic error by the Supreme Court,” in remarks from the White House after the ruling. While the president noted that only Congress can restore a national…