Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Bipartisan Legislation Aims To Help US Sunscreen Market Catch Up
Roll Call: Congress Sees Bipartisan Bright Spot In Sunscreen Legislation
Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are collaborating on legislation to lower market barriers for new sunscreens, in an effort to bring the United States in line with other countries that have seen advancements in sun protection. (DeGroot, 8/25)
The Independent: How Sunscreen Became The Subject Of Troubling Conspiracy Theories
Anti-sunscreen sentiment is cropping up on social media with alarming frequency. Recent research has suggested that Gen-Zers are particularly susceptible to sunscreen myths. Last year, a study from the American Academy of Dermatology found that 28% of 18- to 26-year-olds believe that getting a tan is more important than the risk of skin cancer, with 37% admitting to only using sunscreen when they’re nagged by others to do so. And new data from health insurance provider Vitality found that 18% of Gen Z respondents believed that you don’t need sun protection if you tan easily. (Rosseinsky, 8/24)
New Beauty: How To Get Free Skin Checks And Sunscreen At The 2025 US Open
On-site at the 2025 US Open, fans can visit the La Roche-Posay Sun Safety Booth at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center for complimentary sunscreen samples, free skin checks from board-certified healthcare providers, sun-safety education from dermatology experts and interactive tennis games. (Ritter, 8/25)
In other health and wellness news —
The New York Times: Scientists Perform First Pig-To-Human Lung Transplant
Scientists have dreamed for centuries about using animal organs to treat ailing humans. In recent years, those efforts have begun to bear fruit: Researchers have begun transplanting the hearts and kidneys of genetically modified pigs into patients, with varying degrees of success. But lungs are notoriously difficult to transplant, even from human to human, and mortality rates are high. Now, in the first procedure of its kind, Chinese scientists on Monday reported transplanting a lung from a pig into a brain-dead man. (Caryn Rabin, 8/25)
MedPage Today: Risk Of Malignant Tumor Rises After Traumatic Brain Injury
Moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) was tied to an increased risk of subsequent brain cancer, a retrospective study of more than 150,000 adults showed. Malignant brain tumor incidence was 0.6% among civilians who had experienced moderate-to-severe TBI and 0.4% in those with mild TBI or healthy controls, reported Saef Izzy, MD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, and co-authors. (George, 8/25)
NBC News: Most Women Under 50 Have Risk Factors For Birth Defects That Can Be Lowered, CDC Finds
One in 33 babies in the United States are born with birth defects. But a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is raising awareness of ways to lower that risk. The study points to five risk factors that public health officials — and, in some cases, women themselves — can do something about: obesity, diabetes, smoking exposure, food insecurity and low levels of folate (an essential vitamin that helps the body produce cells). (Bendix, 8/26)
ABC News: Mediterranean Diet And Exercise Cut Diabetes Risk By Nearly One-Third, Even Without Much Weight Loss, Study Finds
A large six-year trial found that older adults who combined a Mediterranean diet with regular exercise were far less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who only changed their diet. Researchers from Harvard and 23 Spanish hospitals studied more than 4,700 adults aged 55 to 75 with metabolic syndrome and excess weight over six years. (El-Naas, 8/25)
CNN: Mediterranean Diet Lowers Risk Of Dementia By 35% In People At Most Risk, Study Finds
Closely following the Mediterranean diet lowered the risk of dementia by at least 35% in people with two copies of the APOE4 gene, a major risk factor for Alzheimer’s, according to a new study. (LaMotte, 8/25)
CIDRAP: CDC: Rare Salmonella Strain From Bearded Dragons Caused 2024 US Outbreak, Still Circulates
People who live with or handle pet bearded dragons are at continued risk for Salmonella infection, conclude the authors of a study on a 2024 outbreak published last week in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and federal and local health authorities investigated a 27-case, 14-state outbreak in 2024 caused by reptile-transmitted Salmonella Cotham. They also referenced a 2012-14 outbreak of 160 cases in 35 states caused by a genetically related strain. (Van Beusekom, 8/25)
