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Health News:What’s New

Even Smokers Support Bans at Work

November 20, 2009

FRIDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) — Most smokers around the world support workplace smoking bans, according to a new study.

Researchers surveyed more than 3,500 employees who smoke and more than 1,400 employers (smokers and nonsmokers) in the United States and 13 other countries. They found that 74 percent of employees who smoke and 87 percent of employers said the workplace should be smoke-free.

“Although there was widespread variation among countries, overall the results demonstrate global support for workplace smoking bans,” lead author Michael Halpern, a senior fellow at RTI International, said in a news release. “This study shows support for additional programs and policies to increase those bans and assist employees with smoking cessation.” Read More

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Swine Flu May Hit Kids With Asthma Harder

November 20, 2009

FRIDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) — Canadian researchers are reporting that children with asthma are more likely to develop severe cases of H1N1 flu than seasonal flu.

“Asthma has been identified as a significant risk factor for admission with pandemic H1N1 influenza, present in 21 percent to 30 percent in the larger samples,” wrote Dr. Upton Allen and fellow researchers from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

Their study was published online Nov. 19 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Read More

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Swine Flu Declining in Some Parts of U.S.

November 20, 2009

FRIDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) — Some areas of the United States are seeing declines in H1N1 swine flu activity, a federal health official said Friday, and while the disease remains widespread in 43 states, that’s down from the 46 states reported last week.

“We are beginning to see some declines in influenza activity around the country, but there is still a lot of influenza everywhere,” Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said during an afternoon press conference. Read More

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No Immediate Changes Expected in Mammogram Coverage

November 20, 2009

FRIDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) — Women can rest assured, at least for now, that their health plan will continue to pay for an annual mammogram beginning at age 40.

A firestorm set off this week by a federal task force recommendation against “routine screening” of women under 50 is not likely to spur hasty changes in coverage policies, experts say.

“We’re not hearing that coverage is going to change. We’re hearing that coverage will continue pretty much as it has been,” said Susan Pisano, vice president of communications for America’s Health Insurance Plans in Washington, D.C. Read More

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Asthma Combo Seems Less Influenced by Genes

November 20, 2009

THURSDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) — People’s genetic makeup has been shown to affect how they respond to asthma medications, but a new study finds that many people respond well to a particular combination treatment regardless of their genes.

However, the study did find a difference in response among blacks.

The drug combo in question combines the long-acting beta-agonist salmeterol (Serevent) and moderate doses of an inhaled corticosteroid. The genes in question relate to a receptor in the body that is crucial to the effectiveness of asthma bronchodilators. Read More

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Spray May Delay Ejaculation

November 19, 2009

THURSDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) — A spray touted as the first potential treatment for premature ejaculation has proved effective in a second study, according to the company that developed it.

PSD502 — which combines the drugs lidocaine and prilocaine — is sprayed on the head of the penis before intercourse.

The study of men in Canada, Poland and the United States found that those treated with the spray five minutes before intercourse were able to delay ejaculation up to five times longer than those who used a placebo. In addition, men who used the spray and their partners reported improved sexual satisfaction. Read More

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Moderate Drinking Guards the Heart

November 19, 2009

THURSDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) — A Spanish study has found that long-term moderate drinking decreased the risk of heart disease by up to one-third in men and to a lesser degree in women.

The type of alcohol— beer, wine or spirits — made no difference, the researchers reported in the Nov. 19 online issue of Heart. The Spanish analysis used 10-year data on 15,500 men and nearly 26,000 women who were participants in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer study. Read More

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Task Force Member Defends Mammography Guidelines

November 19, 2009

THURSDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) — Responding to the uproar over revised mammogram recommendations unveiled earlier this week, a member of the independent task force that crafted the recommendations defended them Thursday, saying they were based on the most current, accurate information available.

Dr. Timothy Wilt, a member of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, defended the recommendation that most women don’t need to get mammograms in their 40s and should get one every two years starting at age 50. That recommendation runs counter to the American Cancer Society’s long-held stance that women should get a yearly mammogram starting at age 40. Read More

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Appalachia, Southeast Hit Hardest by Obesity and Diabetes

November 19, 2009

THURSDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) — While rates of obesity are climbing across America, they are especially high in sections of Appalachia and the Southeast, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports in its first county-by-county survey.

Obesity and diabetes “are basically the two conditions of greatest concern for U.S. adults right now,” said study lead author Edward Gregg, chief of epidemiology and statistics in the CDC’s division of diabetes translation. Read More

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Toddlers, Obese Kids Suffer Most From Smoke

November 19, 2009

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 18 (HealthDay News) — Secondhand smoke harms the cardiovascular health of children, especially toddlers and obese youngsters, U.S. researchers say.

Their study of 52 toddlers (aged 2 to 5) and 107 adolescents (aged 9 to 18) found an association between the amount of secondhand smoke exposure and a marker of vascular injury in toddlers. This link was two times greater in obese toddlers, the study authors noted. Read More

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