Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Autism Risk Linked To Common Drugs Taken During Pregnancy, Study Finds
MedicalXpress: Millions Of US Birth Records Uncover An Autism Risk Surge Tied To Common Drugs Taken During Pregnancy
A landmark study led by researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and published in Molecular Psychiatry has identified a significant association between prenatal prescription of commonly utilized medications and the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children. Analyzing 6.14 million maternal-child health records from the Epic Cosmos database—representing nearly one-third of all U.S. births between 2014 and 2023—the team found that prescription of medications known to inhibit the cholesterol synthesis pathway were consistently associated with higher rates of ASD in offspring. These are the generic names of the 14 medications studied: aripiprazole, atorvastatin, bupropion, buspirone, fluoxetine, haloperidol, metoprolol, nebivolol, pravastatin, propranolol, rosuvastatin, sertraline, simvastatin and trazodone. (Clark, 4/20)
More research on pregnancy and birth —
CIDRAP: Antibiotic-Resistance Genes Detected In Babies Within First 3 Days Of Life
New research presented at the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) Global 2026 conference in Munich suggests antibiotic-resistance genes (ARGs) are present in newborns shortly after birth. (Dall, 4/20)
MedicalXpress: Having More Kids Associated With Reduced Risk Of Stroke And Brain Damage
While some say having lots of kids can make you lose your faculties, a new study suggests otherwise. Research co-led by UT Health San Antonio, the academic health center of The University of Texas at San Antonio, associates a greater number of live births with a reduced risk of stroke or brain damage for mothers. As more women than men have strokes, the finding is seen as significant in helping determine risk. (Clark, 4/20)
On food preservatives, sunshine, and asthma —
MedicalXpress: Widely Used Food Preservative Implicated In Recent Uptick In UK Suicide Deaths
A chemical widely used in food preservation is implicated in an uptick in recent UK deaths by suicide, with a disproportionately high number of cases among young people and boys/men, finds a comprehensive analysis of available data for the period 2019–24, published in the open access journal BMJ Public Health. (Harley, 4/20)
MedicalXpress: Physicists Refute Famous 2025 Study Claiming Daylight Saving Time Poses Severe Health Risks
In 2025, Lara Weed and Jamie M. Zeitzer of Stanford University published an article linking the practice of seasonal time changes (Daylight Saving Time) to negative health outcomes, ranging from acute symptoms (heart attacks and strokes) to chronic conditions (obesity). Now, Professors José María Martín-Olalla (University of Seville) and Jorge Mira Pérez (University of Santiago de Compostela), after analyzing the methodology applied in that study, have concluded that "what the world read as scientific evidence against time change has turned out to be a mathematical illusion." (Clark, 4/20)
HealthDay: Young Adults Who Smoke Or Vape Cannabis Face Higher Asthma Attack Risk
Weed might increase a young person’s risk of an asthma attack, whether or not they are smoking or vaping it, a new study says. Young adults had 57% to 81% higher odds of an asthma attack if they smoked or vaped cannabis, researchers recently reported in the journal Chest. (Thompson, 4/21)
On aging and dementia —
MedPage Today: Midlife Migraines Tied To Higher Dementia Risk, 40-Year Study Suggests
A large study spanning more than 40 years suggested that migraines in midlife were associated with a modest increase in the long-term risk of dementia. Adults with migraines in midlife were slightly more likely to experience dementia later in life compared with those without migraine (HR 1.07, 95% CI 1.02-1.13), reported Pamela Rist, PhD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and colleagues in a poster session at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting. (George, 4/20)
MedicalXpress: Daytime Napping Patterns May Reveal Hidden Health Decline In Older Adults
New research reveals that as people age, naps may be an easily trackable warning sign of underlying conditions or declining health. A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham and Rush University Medical Center followed 1,338 older adults for up to 19 years to track napping habits and associated mortality rates. They found longer, more frequent, and morning naps were associated with higher mortality rates. (Harley, 4/20)
MedPage Today: New Kink In The Link Between GLP-1 Drugs And Cognition
Adults whose type 2 diabetes was treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists were more than likely to develop cognitive impairment over 10 years than their counterparts not treated with GLP-1 agents, a propensity-matched retrospective study of nearly 65,000 patients suggested. (George, 4/20)
On HIV —
Medical Xpress: Scientists Map How HIV Hijacks Human Cells—And How Cells Can Fight Back
Scientists at Gladstone Institutes and UC San Francisco (UCSF) have opened a new door to understanding HIV by creating the first comprehensive genetic roadmap of how the virus interacts with real human cells. (Harley, 4/20)
CIDRAP: People Living With HIV Age Faster, But Antiretroviral Therapy Can Help: New Study
It’s well established that HIV speeds up the aging process, possibly due to chronic inflammation. But antiretroviral therapy (ART) can slow down and possibly even reverse aging caused by an infection, according to new research presented in Munich at the annual meeting of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID). Researchers estimated biological age by developing a tool called the proteomic aging clock (PAC,) which analyzes protein patterns in blood plasma to estimate a person’s biological age. (Boden, 4/20)
