Poverty News and Research

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Low socioeconomic status, stressful childhood events develop risk of cardiovascular disease

Early life adversity through poverty, social isolation or abuse in childhood is linked to heightened reactivity, which can lead to heart disease later on, a leading expert on stress and disease said Saturday."Many diseases first diagnosed in mid-life can be traced back to childhood," Karen A. Matthews, PhD, said at the 118th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association. "Having some bad health habits in your 20s and 30s is part of the reason why people get diseases later on. However, it isn't the whole reason. The evidence shows that certain reactions to adverse childhood experiences associated with lower socioeconomic status, isolation and negative events can affect the disease process."

16 Aug 2010

Some Mass. residents fight individual mandate for health insurance, N.J. delays implementation of law requiring outpatient mental-health treatment

A former hospital executive has accused Naples-based Health Management Associates of offering money, free rent and private jet trips to entice doctors to refer Medicare patients to the company's hospitals. ... In a whistleblower lawsuit unsealed Aug. 2 by a federal judge, former hospital CEO J. Michael Mastej also accused his former employer of filing fraudulent claims on services HMA's facilities provided the ill-gotten Medicare patients.

12 Aug 2010

Temperature increases could slow rice production, study says

A study published online Monday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that anticipated temperature increases "could slow the growth of rice production unless farmers adapt by changing management practices and switch to more heat-tolerant varieties," Reuters reports (Fogarty, 8/10).

11 Aug 2010

Africa needs policies, regulations to spur development of innovative mobile phone-based applications

The fast-growing use of cell phones in Africa - where many people lack the basic human necessities - has made headlines worldwide the past few years. The surprising boom has led to widespread speculation that cell phones could potentially transform the impoverished continent.

10 Aug 2010

Census Bureau releases schedule for 2009 income, poverty and health insurance estimates

The Census Bureau announced today the public release schedule for the official income, poverty and health insurance estimates for 2009 from the Current Population Survey (CPS), as well as estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS).

10 Aug 2010

Al Shabaab demands World Vision to close operations in Somalia

World Vision Somalia received a demand today from Al Shabaab to close operations in Somalia. World Vision guards were disarmed and their keys were taken. Nothing was removed from the offices although Al Shabaab representatives occupied the offices.

10 Aug 2010

Study on ethnic disparities in pediatric asthma in Latino and non-Latino children

A new study by researchers at the Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and the University of Puerto Rico may help explain some of the well-documented ethnic disparities in pediatric asthma.

10 Aug 2010

Researchers find disparities among children suffering from repeated ear infections

Research has documented that ethnic and socioeconomic disparities exist among patients with conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Now, a new study by researchers from UCLA and Harvard University has found disparities among children suffering from repeated ear infections. The findings, published in the August edition of the journal Laryngoscope, show that frequent ear infections plague white children and children living below the poverty level more than children of other racial or ethnic backrounds or income levels.

10 Aug 2010

Also in Global Health News: Food production and climate change; Poverty and hunger in India; Composting toilets in Malawi

A new discussion paper, led by a researcher from the University of Nairobi and produced by the International Food Policy Research Institute, examines how 10 sub-Saharan African countries have adapted food production to mitigate the effects of climate change, IRIN reports. The paper found that most countries use crops that mature faster and are tolerant of frequent and intense droughts.

9 Aug 2010

Researchers examine differences in eating habits of African Americans

7 Aug 2010

Catholic Charities USA releases statement in response to passage of Child Nutrition Bill

While Catholic Charities USA strongly supports increased funding for improvements to Child Nutrition Programs, we are opposed to cutting funds from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to pay for these new investments. As one of the nation's largest networks of social service providers, we simply cannot pit one program that serves the poor and vulnerable against another program that serves the same population.

7 Aug 2010

Research Roundups: Expanding Medicaid; More spending doesn't reduce mortality; Colonoscopy cost effectiveness; Kids, asthma and access to care

Health Affairs: Little Evidence Of Correlation Between Growth In Health Care Spending And Reduced Mortality - This study examines differences in hospital mortality and cost between 2000 and 2004 for patients at 122 U.S. hospitals, with seven common medical diagnoses: acute myocardial infarction, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, community-acquired pneumonia, congestive heart failure, cerebrovascular accident (also called ischemic stroke), sepsis, or urinary tract infection.

7 Aug 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

According to a Lancet Comment, "alcohol remains conspicuously absent from the larger field of research and programming in HIV and substance use. ... Patterns of hazardous alcohol consumption prevail in countries with the most severe HIV epidemics, notably eastern and southern Africa." In addition, "hazardous drinking patterns also dominate in the concentrated epidemics of eastern Europe and Asia, where alcohol use by injecting drug users and other marginalised groups might be an additional barrier to effective efforts to prevent HIV infection."

7 Aug 2010

Research shows variations in care that kidney disease patients receive before starting dialysis

The wealth or poverty of kidney disease patients' communities impacts the quality of care patients receive before starting dialysis, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology. The results suggest that medical professionals need to improve care for patients who have not yet started dialysis.

6 Aug 2010

Survey reveals need for nutrition education among African Americans for disease prevention, management

Researchers looking for differences in eating habits of African Americans based on whether or not they had Type 2 diabetes uncovered an unexpected result: No matter what the blood sugar level was, the dietary intakes were pretty much the same.African Americans are 1.8 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes and 1.4 times more likely to be obese than are non-Hispanic whites, according to federal health agencies. Obesity is a leading risk factor for development of diabetes, a condition that results when the body cannot properly use insulin to transfer sugar from the blood to muscle and fat cells that use glucose for energy.

6 Aug 2010

Kaiser Permanente funds 700 grants targeting critical health issues in communities

Kaiser Permanente, one of the country's largest not-for-profit health care organizations, funded 700 grants nationwide totaling approximately $13 million in the second quarter of 2010. The grants this quarter focused on expanding access to healthy food, reducing childhood obesity, and increasing care for the underinsured.

5 Aug 2010

Senate vote on Medicaid help for states delayed because of cost underestimate

Senate Democrats Monday delayed a scheduled vote on a provision to aid states and local governments after the Congressional Budget Office said the bill would increase spending. The CBO analysis further complicates efforts to extend enhanced federal Medicaid funding to states.

4 Aug 2010

Asian ministers review MDGs progress

South Asia is "lagging behind" in poverty and hunger reduction and is "in danger" of missing key Millennium Development Goal (MDG) targets, a U.N. official told Asian ministers gathered to discuss MDGs progress, Agence France-Presse reports. At the meeting, "senior officials told delegates from dozens of countries that global food, energy and financial crises in recent years had jeopardized progress toward achieving the goals set for 2015," the news service writes.

4 Aug 2010

Opinions: AIDS 2010; Clean water, sanitation; Russia's HIV/AIDS epidemic; Financial tax; Medical abortion in developing countries

A VOA News editorial by the U.S. government reflects on last month's International AIDS Conference-AIDS 2010, including key advancements such as the vaginal microbicide gel found to offer women some protection against HIV infection as well discussions about funding for the fight against HIV/AIDS and how the "criminalization of drug abuse and persecution of homosexuals" in the world is compromising efforts to prevent the spread of the disease.

4 Aug 2010

EITC programs directly linked to higher birth weights: Study

Relieving poverty during pregnancy can reduce the incidence of low- birth-weight babies and may help break the succession of childhood poor health, a study published in the August 2010 issue of the American Sociological Review has found.

3 Aug 2010

Poverty News and Research

Low socioeconomic status, stressful childhood events develop risk of cardiovascular disease

Some Mass. residents fight individual mandate for health insurance, N.J. delays implementation of law requiring outpatient mental-health treatment

Temperature increases could slow rice production, study says

Africa needs policies, regulations to spur development of innovative mobile phone-based applications

Census Bureau releases schedule for 2009 income, poverty and health insurance estimates

Al Shabaab demands World Vision to close operations in Somalia

Study on ethnic disparities in pediatric asthma in Latino and non-Latino children

Researchers find disparities among children suffering from repeated ear infections

Also in Global Health News: Food production and climate change; Poverty and hunger in India; Composting toilets in Malawi

Researchers examine differences in eating habits of African Americans

Catholic Charities USA releases statement in response to passage of Child Nutrition Bill

Research Roundups: Expanding Medicaid; More spending doesn't reduce mortality; Colonoscopy cost effectiveness; Kids, asthma and access to care

Recent releases in Global Health

Research shows variations in care that kidney disease patients receive before starting dialysis

Survey reveals need for nutrition education among African Americans for disease prevention, management

Kaiser Permanente funds 700 grants targeting critical health issues in communities

Senate vote on Medicaid help for states delayed because of cost underestimate

Asian ministers review MDGs progress

Opinions: AIDS 2010; Clean water, sanitation; Russia's HIV/AIDS epidemic; Financial tax; Medical abortion in developing countries

EITC programs directly linked to higher birth weights: Study

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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