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House votes to slash health law's public health fund

Almost entirely along party-lines, the House voted to repeal a provision of the health law that establishes a trust fund to support prevention and public health activities. Opponents of the trust fund said it was a "slush fund" for the HHS secretary, but the White House responded by threatening a veto.

15 Apr 2011

Metabolic syndrome less prevalent in vegetarians

Vegetarians experience a 36 percent lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome than non-vegetarians, suggests new research from Loma Linda University published in the journal Diabetes Care. Because metabolic syndrome can be a precursor to heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, the findings indicate vegetarians may be at lower risk of developing these conditions.

15 Apr 2011

Good neighbors increase stroke survival

A new U.S. study has shown that seniors who are able to count on their neighbors for help and conversation have better odds of surviving a stroke than those living in less sociable neighborhoods. Study author Cari Jo Clark, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota said social isolation is unhealthy on many levels.

15 Apr 2011

Obesity and smoking linked to stillbirths: Report

According to experts, excessive weight, smoking and late maternal age over 35 are contributing to thousands of stillbirths each year in high-income countries, including Australia, and the trend looks set to continue. These figures were published in the Lancet medical journal.

13 Apr 2011

Active efforts towards happiness

Now the world's first membership organization dedicated to spreading happiness has been officially launched. It is called “Action for Happiness” and claims to have 4,500 members in more than 60 countries.

12 Apr 2011

Medicaid news: Govs split on block grants; Kansas begins 'makeover'

Even as states try to move forward with a Medicaid makeovers, transforming this state-federal program into a block grant comes with complications.

12 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 11, 2011

In today's headlines, as details emerge regarding the last-minute budget deal for current-year spending, President Barak Obama is poised to lay out a new long-term budget vision which will include everything from Medicare and Medicaid to tax hikes for the wealthy.

11 Apr 2011

Targacept's TC-5619 Phase 2 trial data in schizophrenia presented at ICOSR

Targacept, Inc. today announced the presentation of data from a Phase 2 clinical proof of concept trial to assess TC-5619 as an augmentation therapy to improve cognition in patients with schizophrenia at the International Congress on Schizophrenia Research in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

8 Apr 2011

AJG publishes new review on Inflammatory Bowel Disease management

The American College of Gastroenterology published a new evidence-based systematic review on the management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease as a supplement to The American Journal of Gastroenterology for April 2011, a special issue entirely dedicated to IBD.

8 Apr 2011

Water pipe smoking is on the rise

The number of people smoking water pipes is rising dramatically throughout the world. A large proportion of new users are young, and many believe - contrary to facts - that water pipe smoking is less dangerous than cigarettes. Research into why people start smoking water pipes is under way at Uppsala University.

7 Apr 2011

Elevated BMI linked to high risk of obesity-related disorders in young adults

A large cohort study following 37,000 teenagers for 17 years found that an elevated, yet normal range Body Mass Index constitutes a substantial risk factor for obesity-related disorders in young adults.

7 Apr 2011

Supplements are less well regulated than drugs and may have side effects, drug interactions and toxicities

Vitamins, herbs and other dietary supplements are sold as natural alternatives to pharmaceuticals and many people turn to them in an attempt to improve their health. Others seek supplements to lose weight or after hearing that they can help with serious medical conditions.

7 Apr 2011

Scientists demonstrate how cigarette smoke produces different 'metabolites' in individuals

Smoke from cigarettes can affect nearly every organ in the body by promoting cell damage and causing inflammation, but no one has understood which smoker is or is not susceptible to disease development.

7 Apr 2011

Study: AI/AN youths in the U.S. have high lifetime smoking rate

Youths identified as American Indian or Alaska Native have the greatest lifetime smoking rate of all racial groups, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

7 Apr 2011

Busy roads around pregnant woman's home increases likelihood of premature birth of baby

Babies are born earlier when their mothers live near a concentration of freeways and main roads, a study of 970 mothers and their newborn babies in Logan City, south of Brisbane, has found.

7 Apr 2011

Cigarette packaging in olive green to deter smokers

In a bid to reduce smoking rates in Australia, all cigarette packs will be packaged olive green. Under the new laws to be proposed in federal parliament, all logos will be removed from cigarette packs and brand names displayed in a specific font.

6 Apr 2011

Study: Hookah use may spread among youth in the U.S.

An alternative and harmful form of tobacco use, known as the hookah or water pipe, may be spreading among youth in the United States according to researchers from the University of California, San Diego's Department of Family and Preventive Medicine and San Diego State University. This trend is emerging even as cigarette smoking among high school students is on the decline nationally.

6 Apr 2011

High clusterin levels linked to Alzheimer's prevalence and severity

Higher levels in blood of the protein clusterin, also known as apolipoprotein J, are significantly associated with the prevalence and severity of Alzheimer's disease, but not with the risk of onset of new disease, according to a study in the April 6 issue of JAMA.

6 Apr 2011

Study finds marked increases in teen use of marijuana and Ecstasy

Following a decade of steady declines, a new national study released today by The Partnership at Drugfree.org and MetLife Foundation indicates that teen drug and alcohol use is headed in the wrong direction, with marked increases in teen use of marijuana and Ecstasy over the past three years.

6 Apr 2011

Physical activity may moderate impact of stress on telomeres

UCSF scientists are reporting several studies showing that psychological stress leads to shorter telomeres - the protective caps on the ends of chromosomes that are a measure of cell age and, thus, health. The findings also suggest that exercise may prevent this damage.

5 Apr 2011