Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Chronic Insomnia Is More Than Just Exhausting--It's Linked To A Whole Host Of Health Issues Including Premature Death
The New York Times: Insomnia Can Kill You
How did you sleep last night? If you’re over 65, I hope it was better than many others your age. In a study by the National Institute on Aging of over 9,000 Americans aged 65 and older, more than half said they had difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. Many others who believe they spend an adequate number of hours asleep nonetheless complain of not feeling rested when they get up. Chronic insomnia, which affects 5 percent to 10 percent of older adults, is more than just exhausting. It’s also linked to an increased risk of developing hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, heart attack, depression, anxiety and premature death. (Brody, 6/10)
The New York Times: The Elderly Are Getting Complex Surgeries. Often It Doesn’t End Well.
People over 65 represent roughly 16 percent of the American population, but account for 40 percent of patients undergoing surgery in hospitals — and probably more than half of all surgical procedures. Those proportions are likely to increase as the population ages and more seniors consider surgery, including procedures once deemed too dangerous for them. Dr. Clifford Ko, a colorectal surgeon at the University of California, Los Angeles, recently performed major surgery on an 86-year-old with rectal cancer, for instance. (Span, 6/7)
NPR: How Early Trauma Can Shape The Brain's Response To Pain
Jeannine, who is 37 and lives in Burbank, Calif., has endured widespread pain since she was 8. She has been examined by dozens of doctors, but none of their X-rays, MRIs or other tests have turned up any evidence of physical injury or damage. Over the years, desperate for relief, she tried changing her diet, wore belts to correct her posture and exercised to strengthen muscles. Taking lots of ibuprofen helped, she says, but doctors warned her that taking too much could cause gastric bleeding. Nothing else eased her discomfort. On a pain scale of 0 to 10, her pain ranged from "7 to 9, regularly," she says. (Neighmond, 6/10)
The Washington Post: Mothers With Autism -- Discovered Only In Adulthood -- Bond With Autistic Children.
Maria Mercado always knew she was different. Growing up in a boisterous Puerto Rican family in the Bronx, Mercado rarely spoke unless challenged or angry. To the outside world, she came across as a smart but shy girl, who learned to read at age 4 and couldn’t keep eye contact. For most of her school years, she had little trouble with academics — despite a severe stutter and constant daydreaming — but struggled in social settings. Even into adulthood, Mercado sometimes had a hard time verbalizing her thoughts. “Can I say this?” she asked herself. Yet only she appeared to be aware of the problem. She just didn’t understand why. (Dias, 6/7)
The New York Times: Supplements For Weight Loss, Sexual Function And Muscle Building May Be Deadly
Dietary supplements for weight loss, energy, sexual function or muscle building are popular among young people. But they led to 1,392 adverse event reports in people under 25 from 2004 to 2015, with more than 40 percent of them severe or even fatal. A 1994 law prohibits the Food and Drug Administration from screening supplements for safety or efficacy, and requires only that manufacturers assert that their products are safe before selling them. (Bakalar, 6/10)
The Washington Post: A Type Of Scan Used To Monitor An Elevated Risk Of Breast Cancer Poses A Risk Of Its Own
We all have certain numbers we’d rather not think about: weight, age and, for me, in addition to breast cancer risk, how many MRIs might be too many. What’s worse — a known risk for breast cancer (mine is 42 percent) or an undetermined risk for the diagnostic tool used to detect it? The tool I’m referring to is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadolinium contrast. Gadolinium is a rare earth metal whose presence highlights certain abnormalities, aiding in the diagnosis of many organ, musculoskeletal and soft-tissue diseases. (Resnick, 6/8)
The New York Times: How Safe Is Sunscreen?
Skin cancer is the most common malignancy in the United States, affecting more than three million people each year. Using sunscreen is one mainstay of prevention. But the recent news that sunscreen ingredients can soak into your bloodstream has caused concern. Later this year, the Food and Drug Administration will offer some official guidance on the safety of such ingredients. What should people do in the interim as summer approaches? (Carroll, 6/10)
The New York Times: Nutrition For One? Scientists Stalk The Dream Of A Personalized Diet
A decade ago, spurred by the success of the Human Genome Project and the affordability of genetic sequencing, scientists began to explore the promise of “nutrigenomics.” Could personalized nutrition, informed by knowledge of an individual’s DNA, help prevent and even treat diet-related diseases? The results of early studies from Harvard, Stanford and elsewhere were compelling: Genetic differences seemed to predispose individuals to lose different amounts of weight on different types of diets. (Graber and Twilley, 6/10)
The New York Times: Children’s Safety On Wheels
A 13-year-old patient recently talked to me about the amount of time he spends playing video games (plenty) and about his weight (heavier than he wants, and on the rise). I asked about exercise, and he told me proudly that he rides his bike a lot, now that the weather is good. And then, of course, I had to be the fun police, and ask whether he wears a helmet, and when he told me no, of course, I had to take the opportunity to deliver more good advice that I suspected he was not going to follow, and his parents were not going to enforce. (Klass, 6/10)
