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MultimediaNews
- -04-30-10 Oldest Body Builder (ABC News)
"At 73, Ernestine Shepherd is in better shape than most people decades her junior. Up at 3 a.m. every morning, she spends her days running, lifting weights and working out other senior citizens at the Union Memorial United Methodist Church in Baltimore. She also works as a certified personal trainer at her gym." 04-10
Papers
- -001 Health Care Reform Law Passes (CNN News)
"President Obama won a historic victory in the struggle for health care reform Sunday as the House of Representatives passed a sweeping bill overhauling the American medical system."
"The measure, which cleared the Senate in December, will now go to Obama's desk to be signed into law. It constitutes the biggest expansion of federal health care guarantees since the enactment of Medicare and Medicaid over four decades ago." 03-10
- -01-05-10 Study: Women With Partners Gain More Weight (New York Times)
"It is widely known that women tend to gain weight after giving birth, but now a large study has found evidence that even among childless women, those who live with a mate put on more pounds than those who live without one." 01-10
- -02-06-10 Swine Flu Seems to Be Almost Over (Time.com)
"Is the U.S. swine flu epidemic over? Federal health officials won't go so far as to say that, but on Friday they reported for the fourth week in a row that no states had widespread flu activity." 02-10
- -02-12-10 How to Live 100 Years (Time.com)
"There's no denying that longer life expectancy is swelling the number of seniors — people over age 65 — in our population. But it's the fastest-growing subset of that superannuated group that proves the most interesting for researchers — those over age 85, in particular the centenarians born in the late 1800s, who have lived through the 1918 flu pandemic, the Great Depression and both world wars; have witnessed women's suffrage and the moon landings; and are still here, keeping up with world events during the Administration of the nation's first African-American President."
"In the most recent Census, health officials predicted that by 2050, more than 800,000 Americans would be pushing into their second century of life." 02-10
- -02-15-10 New Insights Gained on Aging (Time.com)
"Spector and Samani say that understanding the components that determine telomere length may one day help researchers devise new treatments for age-related diseases, particularly heart disease (the study was partially funded by the British Heart Foundation). "I see in my practice 80-year-olds with healthy coronary arteries and 40-year-olds with heart disease. We may be on our way to explaining the genetic component in the explanation for why this is so, and so expanding our knowledge of the disease and how to treat it," he says." 02-10
- -02-20-10 McDonald's Chef (Time.com)
"On some level, the very idea of a McDonald's chef sounds preposterous. Burgers, fries, the McRib — is this really the work of a chef? The food at McDonald's tastes partly of nostalgia and partly of marketing; the rest is surely salt."
"And yet — have you eaten at a McDonald's lately? In the past five years, the company has started to serve genuinely edible salads, unlike those dry iceberg-and-carrot things it used to offer." 02-10
- -03-04-10 Abortion Issue May Derail Health Care Reform (ABC News)
"The issue of abortion has sparked nationwide debate. Anti-abortion groups vigorously oppose the legislation being discussed but groups that favor abortion rights say the House's language would move the federal government into a whole new area of restricting women in the private insurance sector.” 03-10
- -03-17-10 Wal-Mart Fires Employee Over Medical Marijuana (MSNBC News)
"Joseph Casias has been legally using medical marijuana to deal with the gnawing pain caused by sinus cancer and an inoperable brain tumor pressing against his skull. He says he never used it when he was on duty as an associate at a Wal-Mart in Battle Creek, Mich, and he never went to work high."
"But one morning he went to work and was fired for it." 03-10
- -04-08-09 Pollen Counts Increasing (CNN News)
" 'CO2 is good for plants and they're making more pollen,' agreed Dr. David Rosenstreich, director of the division of allergy and immunology at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City. In addition, he said, 'Pollen seasons are lengthening a little bit because of global warming.' "
" If you're taking preventive medications for your allergies, Rosenstreich said that it's important to take them in advance and as directed by your doctor."
" 'Most allergy medicines work better to prevent allergic symptoms than to treat them when they're in progress,' he explained." 04-09
- -04-21-10 Benefits of Health Care Reform Bill (Time.com)
"The new health-reform bill has many Americans confused. Here are five of the most vital immediate benefits of the reform law and what details are still unknown about the." 04-10
- -04-24-10 A Revolution in School Lunches (Time.com)
"But school lunch is facing new scrutiny. There's even a prime-time network reality show (Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution) that takes place in school cafeterias and has stars bickering about chicken nuggets and federally mandated grain servings. This is partly due to the reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, a once-every-five-years event when Congress decides how much federal money schools will receive under the National School Lunch Program. But it's more than that. This year's vote comes at a time of unprecedented attention to childhood obesity." 04-10
- -05-06-10 America's Five Saltiest Fast Foods (MSNBC News)
"Nearly all egg- or pancake-based breakfast dishes at Denny’s break the 1,000-milligram sodium barrier, meaning that you’re more likely than not to consume half a day’s worth of salt during your morning meal. To stay safe, stick to the Ultimate Omelette, or order several sides and call them a meal."
"Chinese food is stuffed with sodium because it too often relies on viscous stir-fry sauces and super salty condiments like soy sauce. We initially called out P.F. Chang’s Hot and Sour Soup Bowl for packing in 6,878 milligrams of sodium, but they’ve since reduced that number to a “mere” 4,857. Unfortunately, they haven’t fixed this Double Pan-Fried Noodle disaster, with nearly 3 and a half days’ worth of sodium." 05-10
- -05-10-10 AIDS Battle Is Being Lost (New York Times)
"Uganda is the first and most obvious example of how the war on global AIDS is falling apart."
"The last decade has been what some doctors call a “golden window” for treatment. Drugs that once cost $12,000 a year fell to less than $100, and the world was willing to pay."
"In Uganda, where fewer than 10,000 were on drugs a decade ago, nearly 200,000 now are, largely as a result of American generosity. But the golden window is closing." 05-10
- -05-26-10 New Bacterium Threat in Hospitals (New York Times)
"Clostridium difficile, a germ that causes deadly intestinal infections in hospital patients, has long been thought to be spread only by contact with contaminated surfaces. But a new study finds that it can also travel through the air." 05-10
- -05-26-10 Thoat Exercises Can Help Sleep Apnea (New York Times)
"After three months, subjects who did the throat exercises snored less, slept better and reduced the severity of their condition by 39 percent. They also showed reductions in neck circumference, a known risk factor for apnea. The control group showed almost no improvement." 05-10
- -06-11-10 What Plants Are Worst for Allergies? (Health.com)
Provides 10 of the most common sources of allergic reactions. 06-10
- -07-02-10 Editorial: Health Reform May Increase ER Waits (CBS News)
"The biggest users of emergency rooms by far are Medicaid recipients. And the new health insurance law will increase their ranks by about 16 million. Medicaid is the state and federal program for low-income families and the disabled. And many family doctors limit the number of Medicaid patients they take because of low government reimbursements."
"ERs are already crowded and hospitals are just now finding solutions." 07-10
- -07-27-10 New Theory for National Differences in Intelligence Scores (Newsweek.com)
"If the study holds up, it could be revolutionary for our understanding of the still-bewildering variation in national intelligence scores—and also a pressing injunction to continue the fight against malaria and other developing-world diseases, which some global-health watchers have recently declared unbeatable." 07-10
- -08-04-10 Be Sure Exercise Is All You Get at the Gym (New York Times)
"When you go to the gym, do you wash your hands before and after using the equipment? Bring your own regularly cleaned mat for floor exercises? Shower with antibacterial soap and put on clean clothes immediately after your workout? Use only your own towels, razors, bar soap, water bottles?" 08-10
- -08-23-10 Federal Judge Halts Some Federal Embryonic Stem Cell Research (CNN News)
"A U.S. district judge granted a preliminary injunction Monday to stop federal funding of embryonic stem cell research that he said destroys embryos, ruling it went against the will of Congress."
"The ruling by Judge Royce C. Lamberth was a blow to the Obama administration, which last year issued guidelines to allow federal funding for embryonic stem cell research." 08-10
- -09-26-09 Children Under 10 Will Need Two Swine Flu Shots (U.S. News)
"Still confused about what's going to happen with swine flu shots next month? You're not alone. The federal government and individual states still haven't told us how they're going to distribute the vaccine, or when. Yesterday's chirpy press release from the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases made it easy to think that all children will need just one swine flu immunization, but that's not true. The younger a child is, the less well his or her immune system responded to the swine flu vaccine in clinical trials. So children under age 10 will need two doses of swine flu vaccine, one month apart, according to the NIAID itself." 09-09
- -10-06-10 Embryonic Stem Cell Research in the U.S. in Question (New York Times)
"Perhaps more than any other field of science, the study of embryonic stem cells has been subject to ethical objections and shaped by political opinion. But only a year after the Obama administration lifted some of the limits imposed by President George W. Bush, a lawsuit challenging the use of public money for the research and a conservative shift in Congress could leave the field more sharply restricted than it has been since its inception a decade ago." 10-10
- -10-19-09 Life-Saving H1N1 Drug Unavailable to Most (CBS News)
"New doses of the H1N1 flu vaccine will arrive across the country this week. But what about those who are already infected?"
"The virus can make healthy people suddenly very ill. Some doctors say they'd use an experimental drug to help rescue patients on the brink - if only they were allowed, CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews reports." 10-09
- -10-19-09 Poll: Majority Backs Public Option (MSNBC News)
"As Democratic congressional leaders and White House officials work to shape health care bills that will go to the House and Senate floors, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that support for a government-run health plan to compete with private insurers has rebounded from its summertime lows and now wins clear majority support from the public." 10-09
- -10-20-09 Health Care Lobbyists Rise to Power (CBS News)
"The pharmaceutical industry is putting its army of lobbyists into overdrive as Congress works to complete a health care reform bill."
"There are 3,000 registered health care lobbyists on Capitol Hill -- that's six for every single member of Congress. And in many cases, those lobbyists are former members of Congress who shaped laws that benefitted the industry they joined." 10-09
- -10-21-09 Big Businesses Ask for Health Care Reform Exemption (MSNBC News)
"At issue are businesses that "self-insure" rather than purchasing coverage from an insurance company. Workers in such arrangements often believe they're covered by a health insurer since they have cards bearing the company's name, but in fact their employer shoulders the risks and pays claims, with the insurance company merely administering the plan." 10-09
- -10-28-09 A H1N1 Flu To Do (and Don't Do) List (CNN News)
"Experts say that flu activity is higher-than-normal for this time of year and almost all of it is due to H1N1."
" 'From what I've seen, I actually believe it to be more contagious,' [than seasonal flu] says Litman. [Dr. Nathan Litman is the chief of pediatric infectious diseases at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore, in New York City.] Often with the seasonal flu that's circulating, a percentage of the population has some immunity to it. With H1N1, it looks like most people -- other than the elderly -- have no immunity to it, and that may be why it appears more contagious, he says."
"People who are older than 60 may have been exposed to a swine-flu-like virus in the distant past, which is giving them an edge with this pandemic."
" 'Get immunized, wash your hands, cover your mouth and nose if you're sneezing or coughing, stay home if you're sick, and if any warning signs come up -- difficulty breathing, not responsive as usual, unable to take fluids, or after a day or two of the fever coming down and having more fever and cough again -- see the doctor,' says Litman." 10-09
- -10-28-09 Plus-Size Supermodel Speaks Out (Time.com)
"Six years ago, Crystal Renn was an unknown size-0 model who moved to New York City from Clinton, Miss., to make it big. She struggled with her weight for years, however, and finally made the bold decision to switch to plus-size modeling. Now a healthy 165 lb., she is the highest-paid plus-size model in the world, having graced the covers of American Vogue and Harper's Bazaar and appeared in Dolce & Gabbana ads. The 23-year-old talks with TIME about her new book, Hungry, her size-0 modeling days and walking the runway for Jean Paul Gaultier." 10-09
- -10-29-09 House to Vote on Health Plan (MSNBC News.com)
"After months of struggle, House Democrats rolled out sweeping legislation Thursday to extend health care coverage to millions who lack it and create a new option of government-run insurance. A vote is likely next week on the plan largely tailored to President Barack Obama's liking." 10-09
- -11-17-10 Doctors Brace for Possible Medicare Cuts in Payments (ABC News)
"The cuts have nothing to do with President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. They're the consequence of a 1990s budget-balancing law whose requirements Congress has routinely postponed. But these cuts don't go away; they come back for a bigger bite."
"Doctors have muddled through with temporary reprieves for years. This time, medical groups estimate that as many as two-thirds of doctors would stop taking new Medicare patients, throwing the health program for 46 million older and disabled people into turmoil just when the first baby boomers will become eligible." 11-10
- -12-15-10 Doctors Say Stem Cells Cured Man of AIDS Virus (KKKTV.com)
"Stem cells have been credited with all sorts of medical magic. Now it looks as if they may have cured a man of his HIV infection."
"In 2007, the 40-something-year-old American underwent a blood stem cell transplant to treat leukemia. His donor not only was a good blood match but also had a mutant gene that confers natural resistance to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS."
"Now, three years later, the man shows no sign of leukemia or HIV, according to a report in the journal 'Blood.' " 12-10
- -Swine Flu Update for the U.S. (CDC.gov)
"Human cases of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection have been identified in the United States. Human cases of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection also have been identified internationally. The current U.S. case count is provided below." 04-09
- 07-02-10 A Bread for a Healthier Colon (RealAge.com)
"In a new study, eating four slices of oat-bran bread every day for 8 weeks was associated with higher colon levels of special gut-protective compounds."
"These compounds -- called carboxylic acids -- help defend against diseases such as ulcerative colitis and colon cancer. The compounds form when people eat foods that have indigestible bits, like insoluble fiber. And oat bran happens to be rich in fabulous beta-glucan fiber. In the recent study, the participants ate oat-bran bread enriched with extra beta glucan, so it may be worth your while to check labels and find the highest-fiber brand of oat-bran bread that you can." 07-10
- Pre-Cursor to H.I.V. Estimated 32,000 Years Old (New York Times)
"In a discovery that sheds new light on the history of AIDS, scientists have found evidence that the ancestor to the virus that causes the disease has been in monkeys and apes for at least 32,000 years — not just a few hundred years, as had been previously thought." 09-10
- Skin Printer Under Development to Treat Burns (CNN News)
"Scientists at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine were inspired by standard inkjet printers found in many home offices." 10-10
- -10-27-09 Poll: Public Option at Highest Popularity Yet (MSNBC News)
"According to the poll, 48% say they favor a public health plan administered by the federal government that would compete with private insurers, compared with 42% who oppose it. That's a shift from last month, though within the margin of error, when 48% opposed the public option and 46% supported it. And it's a 10-point swing from August, when 47% were in opposition and 43% were in favor."
"In another question asked a different way -- is it important to give people a choice of a public option? -- a combined 72% answered that it was either 'extremely important' or 'quite important,' while just 23% said it was 'not that important' or 'not at all important.' Those numbers are virtually unchanged from last month." 10-09
- -Health Care and Retirement (Time.com)
"One of the most underestimated costs in retirement is health care, and for good reason. The figures can be staggering. A healthy 65-year-old couple should plan on $305,000 in out-of-pocket health costs during their retirement, according to a study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute." 01-10
- -How to Not Get H1N1 Flu (Time.com)
"Keeping your hands clean can stop viruses that are living and breeding around you from causing infection." 09-09
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