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Health spending in OECD countries in 2004 and trends in the health of older Americans

Health Spending In OECD Countries In 2004: An Update, by Gerard Anderson, Bianca Frogner, and Uwe Reinhardt. "In 2004, the U.S. health care system continued to provide less access to health care resources than the health systems in many other [industrialized] countries; however, the United States continued to have the highest level of spending," Anderson and coauthors report.

11 Sep 2007

Link between nicotine and atherosclerosis

It's well known that smoking cigarettes increases risk for a host of serious health problems from cancer to heart disease. Now a new study from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City looks at how they do their dirty work by contributing to atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries. The evidence points to nicotine, the addictive chemical in cigarettes.

11 Sep 2007

Women with a family history of heart disease are less likely than men to drop bad habits

Smoking, eating fattening foods and not getting enough exercise are all lifestyle habits that can lead to poor health and cardiovascular disease – more so if you have a family history.

11 Sep 2007

Smoke-free environments help smokers quit

With Pennsylvania's elected leaders debating the need for a smoking ban, yet another reason is emerging for the Keystone State to clear the air.

11 Sep 2007

Most comprehensive recommendations related to lung cancer

New evidenced-based guidelines from the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP) recommend against the use of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for the general screening of lung cancer.

11 Sep 2007

Adolescents need to see their doctors more often to receive the HPV vaccine

Despite recommendations for annual preventive exams for adolescents, only 10 percent of teens have enough visits within 12 months to receive the recommended three shots needed for HPV vaccine. Ideally the three shots are delivered within six months, and only 1 percent of teens see their physicians that often.

5 Sep 2007

Smoking and lactating women - nicotine disrupts infants' sleep patterns

A study from the Monell Chemical Senses Center reports that nicotine in the breast milk of lactating mothers who smoke cigarettes disrupts their infants' sleep patterns.

5 Sep 2007

Novel insecticidal toxins from bacteria

A light-emitting strain of bacteria and a nematode worm, which work together to prey on soil-dwelling insects, use insecticidal toxins to kill their insect hosts.

5 Sep 2007

Secondhand smoke affects pets too

The threat of secondhand smoke to the health of non-smokers has been known for years but now researchers say pets can also suffer from the effects of secondhand smoke.

5 Sep 2007

Detailed picture of prevalence of ADHD in U.S.

Most children in the United States who meet the medically accepted definition of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have not been diagnosed by a physician, and are not consistently treated with medications, according to the first national ADHD prevalence study in children based on the "gold standard" of diagnostic criteria, according to a new study conducted by researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

4 Sep 2007

Secondhand smoke and pets

It has been in the news for years about how secondhand smoke is a health threat to nonsmokers. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that secondhand smoke is attributed with killing thousands of adult nonsmokers annually.

3 Sep 2007

Impact of indoor air quality on COPD patients

Poor indoor air quality can significantly worsen health problems in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), according to researchers in Scotland. High concentrations of fine particulate pollution - the type of pollution associated with secondhand smoke and, in developing countries, indoor cooking and heating fires - were strongly linked to poorer health status.

3 Sep 2007

Pregnant women exposed to passive smoking are more likely to have sleep disturbances

Pregnant women exposed to passive smoking are more likely to have sleep disturbances such as subjective insufficient sleep, difficulty in initiating sleep, short sleep duration, and snoring loudly or breathing uncomfortably, according to a study published in the September 1 issue of the journal SLEEP.

3 Sep 2007

New technique detects specific chromosomal damage - helps identify precancerous changes

A new technique could pave the way toward screening people at risk for lung cancer for the genetic changes that may foreshadow malignancies, researchers from the University of Colorado say.

3 Sep 2007

Diets double the odds a teenage girl will begin smoking

Starting to diet seems to double the odds a teenage girl will begin smoking, a University of Florida study has found. UF researchers, who analyzed the dieting and smoking practices of 8,000 adolescents, did not find the same link in boys, who were also less likely than girls to diet, according to findings released Friday in the American Journal of Health Promotion.

3 Sep 2007