The toll of Alzheimer's disease on caregivers

Nearly 16 million Americans care for a loved one with Alzheimer's disease

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/the-toll-of-alzheimers-disease-on-caregivers/

NFL concussions more common on colder game days

The study also found ankle injuries were more common at colder temperatures

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/nfl-concussions-more-common-on-colder-game-days/

Husband puts off retirement to afford wife's Alzheimer's care

73-year-old Mike Daly is committed to caring for his ailing wife, but his bank account and his own health are feeling the heavy toll

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/aging-husband-puts-off-retirement-to-afford-wifes-alzheimers-care/

Autism rate in U.S. kids remains steady

Unchanged autism rates are stabilizing among U.S. children, say government researchers

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/autism-rate-in-us-kids-remains-steady/

U.S. Autism Rate Unchanged at 1 in 68 Kids: CDC

It's not yet clear if the rate will stabilize over the long-term, experts say

From: http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/news/20160331/us-autism-rate-unchanged-at-1-in-68-kids-cdc?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Machine Makes Prescription Drugs 'On Demand'

Technological advance produced thousands of doses a day; could be used on battlefields, during epidemics, scientists say

From: http://www.webmd.com/news/20160331/fridge-sized-machine-makes-prescription-drugs-on-demand?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Diabetes Meds Vary in Safety, Effectiveness: Study

Every drug or drug combo for type 2 disease has its benefits and risks, British team says

From: http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/news/20160331/diabetes-meds-vary-in-safety-and-effectiveness-study-shows?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Evening Snacking May Up Breast Cancer Return Odds

Women who fasted less than 13 hours had 36 percent higher risk of cancer recurrence, researchers say

From: http://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/news/20160331/evening-snacking-might-raise-odds-for-breast-cancers-return?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Smoking During Pregnancy Seems to Alter Fetal DNA

Discovery could help explain link between expectant moms' tobacco use and kids' health problems

From: http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/news/20160331/smoking-during-pregnancy-seems-to-alter-fetal-dna-study-finds?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Fluoridation flourishes, new CDC stats say

Nearly 74.7 percent of the U.S. population on community water supplies — or about 214.2 million people — received the benefit of fluoridated water in 2014, according to statistics released March 25 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2016-archive/march/fluoridation-flourishes-new-cdc-stats-say

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to Travel to Germany and France

WASHINGTON, March 31, 2016 –Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will travel to Berlin and Paris next week to discuss areas of mutual interest between the European and American agricultural sectors.

From: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2016/03/0082.xml&contentidonly=true

Germs may be lurking in your deli's meat slicer

You may want to put that sandwich down: a new CDC report uncovers troubling findings about delis' meat slicer cleaning habits

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/germs-lurking-in-deli-meat-slicer/

Live Webinar: Comprehensive Training: What Hockey Players Should Know

From: Mayo Clinic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0bAGQl0qrk

Endometriosis and Heart Disease: Is There a Link?

From: Mayo Clinic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qThNxJkZ8OM

The Importance of Exercise & Staying Motivated

From: Mayo Clinic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYZje0BNivk

2016 The Ronald L. Linscheid, M.D. & James H. Dobyns, M.D. Memorial Disorders of the Wrist Course

From: Mayo Clinic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGsOOB54pFM

USDA Issues Final Rule Extending New Religious Liberty Protections to Beneficiaries of Federally-Funded Programs

WASHINGTON, March 31, 2016 – Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture, along with other federal agencies, published a final rule that will provide new religious liberty protections for beneficiaries of federally funded social service programs, while also adding new protections for the ability of religious providers to compete for government funds on the same basis as any other private organization.

From: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2016/03/0081.xml&contentidonly=true

FDA OKs Experimental Zika Test for Blood Donations

But agency still asks those who've possibly been exposed to the virus to forgo giving blood right now

From: http://www.webmd.com/news/20160330/fda-approves-experimental-zika-test-for-blood-donations?src=RSS_PUBLIC

FDA Eases Restrictions on Abortion Medication

Women will have an easier time accessing mifepristone

From: http://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20160330/fda-eases-restrictions-on-abortion-medication?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Minecraft helps kids with autism build richer lives

For kids living with autism spectrum disorder, building new worlds with Minecraft offers more than just fun

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/minecraft-helps-kids-with-autism-build-richer-lives/

CDC warns more U.S. cities could face Zika threat

The mosquitoes that transmit the virus may live more areas of the country than previously thought

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/cdc-warns-more-u-s-cities-face-zika-threat/

Flu Shot Might Cut Stillbirth Risk

Australian researchers find possible link in large-scale study

From: http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/news/20160331/flu-shot-might-cut-stillbirth-risk?src=RSS_PUBLIC

ADA calls for increased licensure portability

This is the second in a series of articles on licensure reform, a debate occurring in various states as students, educators and dental leaders seek alternatives and/or changes to the licensure process.

From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2016-archive/march/ada-calls-for-increased-licensure-portability

Federal, Philanthropic Partners Join to Strengthen Local Food Supply Chains

ATLANTA, March 31, 2016 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials today joined 15 national and regional philanthropic partners to announce a new initiative to bolster the supply chain for local food systems around ten key U.S. cities.

From: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2016/03/0080.xml&contentidonly=true

USDA Invests $103 Million in Vital Watershed Projects

WASHINGTON, March 31, 2016 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing up to $103 million in post-disaster recovery and the rehabilitation of aging dams in 19 States.

From: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?contentid=2016/03/0079.xml&contentidonly=true

More Evidence This Drug Raises Bladder Cancer Risk

But odds are small, and experts want it to remain on market, although newer drugs are available

From: http://www.webmd.com/cancer/bladder-cancer/news/20160330/more-evidence-diabetes-drug-actos-raises-bladder-cancer-risk-a-bit?src=RSS_PUBLIC

CDC warns of expanding Zika threat in U.S.

New guidance shows the two species that carry Zika have a far greater range that could stretch to big cities like New York and San Francisco

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/cdc-warns-of-expanding-zika-threat-in-us/

News flash: Teens need adequate sleep!

There’s been a lot of back-and-forth recently about how much sleep we really need, with recent studies suggesting that some long-held notions about this may be outdated. For example, a recently published study challenged the widely held belief that adults need an average of eight hours of sleep a night to function well. The researchers found that members of pre-industrial societies, free of the technological distractions that often keep us up at night, tend to get an average of 5.7 to 7.1 hours of sleep per night (more on that in a bit).

However, while the actual amount of sleep required to function optimally may vary from person to person, it is still very clear that not getting enough sleep — whatever that “magic number” is for any specific individual — can have serious consequences. This is especially true in children and adolescents, whose developing brains are very sensitive to insufficient sleep.

Studying the effects of sleep deprivation in teens

This was borne out in a new study published in this month’s issue of Sleep. Researchers from Singapore compared two groups of high school students before, during, and after a week in which half were allotted nine hours sleep per night and the other half only five hours per night. Not only did the sleep-deprived kids exhibit impaired cognitive function, alertness, and mood during their week of five-hour nights as compared with their peers, but it took them more than two nights of “recovery sleep” to catch back up again.

One way of looking at this is that not only do you suffer the day after not getting enough sleep, but that the idea of skimping on sleep during the week with the plan to somehow “catch up” on the weekend isn’t a good one: it simply doesn’t work. Even after getting lots of sleep on the weekend, you’ll still be far away from where you could — and probably should — be as far as sharpness and mood go.

Setting up a great night’s sleep for your child

One way of helping kids get the sleep they need is by eliminating some of those things that tempt them into staying awake. There is a lot of evidence that kids with televisions in their bedrooms, for example, not only sleep less but also have poorer-quality sleep. (Increased screen time is also associated with higher rates of obesity and with less time spent reading, but that’s a topic for another post.) The same is probably true for computers, tablets, and smartphones as well. Removing electronic media devices from the bedroom will make it more likely that your child will fall asleep sooner — and sleep better — than she will with the world at her fingertips.

Another way of helping kids fall asleep sooner and with greater ease is by removing stressors from their bedroom and encouraging them to relax before bedtime. This means, for example, not doing homework in the bedroom (and never in bed!), but at the dining room table instead. This creates a distinct boundary between the pressures of the day and the comforting space of the bedroom, which is so important for falling asleep. It may also have the added benefit of keeping them focused on the task at hand instead of the distractions of YouTube, Snapchat, and texting that can turn one hour of homework into a three-hour ordeal. Likewise, ending the day with 20-30 minutes of mindfulness practice, yoga, or quiet reading can help your teen redirect himself to a different plane as he gets ready to sleep.

Finally, keeping to a regular sleep schedule, seven days a week, with fixed wake-up and bed times will help keep your teen’s internal clock synchronized with the external one, preventing the development of a circadian phase delay between the two that may interfere with his or her being able to fall asleep at their appointed bed time on week nights.

Related Post:

• Daylight Saving Time “fall back” doesn’t…
• Too little sleep, and too much, affect memory
• Sleeping like a caveman?
• What is the magic sleep number?
• Too little sleep and too much weight: a dangerous duo

The post News flash: Teens need adequate sleep! appeared first on Harvard Health Blog.

From: Dennis Rosen, M.D. http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/news-flash-teens-need-adequate-sleep-201603319333

Urban health: major opportunities for improving global health outcomes, despite persistent health inequities

The new report emphasizes the urgency of addressing health disparities and their determinants in cities as countries strive to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

From: http://www.who.int/entity/mediacentre/news/releases/2016/urban-health-report/en/index.html

Virginia Dental Association takes oral cancer awareness to the street — literally

If patients could get oral cancer screenings in two minutes at the mall or on their way to a concert, would it make a difference for patient wellbeing? It's a question Virginia Dental Association members are attempting to answer with their ongoing "Where's the Chair?" campaign.

From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2016-archive/march/virginia-dental-association-takes-oral-cancer-awareness-to-the-street-literally

How effective are health "awareness days"?

Researchers looked at the impact of one of the best-known campaigns to see if it's made a difference

From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-effective-are-health-awareness-days/