Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Asthma Risk Higher In Kids Exposed To Ozone Pollution Early In Life
The Washington Post: Early-Life Ozone Pollution Linked To Higher Asthma Risk In Young Kids
Ozone exposure early in life raises the risk a child will develop asthma and wheezing by age 4, a recent analysis found. The study, published in JAMA Network Open, analyzed data on 1,188 children in Washington state, Minnesota, New York, California and Tennessee who were drawn from three cohorts in the National Institutes for Health’s Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes program. All of the children were exposed to modest ozone pollution between birth and age 2, and 81.9 percent had mothers with no history of asthma. (Blakemore, 4/13)
CIDRAP: Child, Adult COVID Survivors More Likely To Have Heart Disease, Symptoms, Data Suggest
New studies from the United States and Poland detail COVID-19's cardiovascular toll, with one suggesting that infected children face significantly higher odds of conditions such as high blood pressure and heart failure and the other revealing that post-infection heart symptoms are common in adults. (Van Beusekom, 4/11)
Fox News: Creatine Sports Supplement Shown To Be Ineffective In Study
Creatine is a popular supplement used to help build muscle, but researchers in Australia are questioning its effectiveness. Investigators from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney found that individuals who took creatine while performing a three-month weightlifting regimen put on the same amount of muscle as those who did not take the supplement while lifting. (McGorry, 4/13)
KFF Health News: Magic Happens When Kids And Adults Learn To Swim. Tragedy Can Strike If They Don’t
At a swim meet just outside St. Louis, heads turned when a team of young swimmers walked through the rec center with their parents in tow. A supportive mom kept her eye on the clock while the Makos Swim Team athletes tucked their natural curls, braids, and locs into yellow swimming caps. In the bleachers, spectators whispered about the team’s presence at the pool in Centralia, Illinois — as they do at almost every competition. (Anthony, 4/14)
Also —
The New York Times: Pig Kidney Removed From Alabama Woman After Organ Rejection
Surgeons removed a genetically engineered pig’s kidney from an Alabama woman after she experienced acute organ rejection, NYU Langone Health officials said on Friday. Towana Looney, 53, lived with the kidney for 130 days, which is longer than anyone else has tolerated an organ from a genetically modified animal. She has resumed dialysis, hospital officials said. (Caryn Rabin, 4/11)
