Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Instagram To Alert Parents If Teens Search Suicide Content Frequently
AP: Instagram Says It Will Notify Parents If Teens 'Repeatedly' Search For Terms Related To Suicide
Instagram said Thursday it will start alerting parents if their kids repeatedly search for terms clearly associated with suicide or self-harm. The alerts will only go to parents who are enrolled in Instagram’s parental supervision program. Instagram says it already blocks such content from showing up in teen accounts’ search results and directs people to helplines instead. (Ortutay, 2/26)
Harvest Public Media: Demand For 988 Suicide Prevention Hotline Is Rising
Brent Brewer has a passion for helping his fellow farmers and ranchers handle the stress that comes with agricultural work. He’s known around Oklahoma as someone you can call if you’re struggling with your mental health. “This is a hobby of mine,” said Brewer, who farms and raises cattle in Grant County, Oklahoma. “To help people navigate through tough times and to try to get their legs back underneath them.” (Marks, 2/26)
The Hill: Parents Underestimate Teens' AI Chatbot Usage: Pew Study
There’s a wide gap between parents’ estimates of their teenagers’ AI chatbot activities and actual usage, according to new polling data. A majority of teens in the U.S. — 64 percent — indicated they use AI chatbots in a Pew Research Center survey. About 3 in 10 said they use these services daily. Parents of these polled teenagers underestimated such usage in the survey, with only 51 percent of parents saying that their child uses AI chatbots. Over a quarter said they were “unsure,” 18 percent said their teen did not use these chatbots and 4 percent said they had not heard about AI chatbots. (Davis, 2/24)
In other health and wellness news —
AP: ByHeart Infant Formula Botulism Outbreak Is Over, CDC Says
A rare outbreak of infant botulism that sickened dozens of babies who drank recalled ByHeart formula is over, with no new cases reported since mid-December, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. In all, 48 babies were sickened since 2023. That’s actually down from the previous case count, because three infants were ultimately diagnosed with other illnesses not tied to botulism, health officials said. All of the children who got sick were hospitalized. No deaths have been reported. (2/26)
The Wall Street Journal: More Americans Under 55 Are Dying Of Severe Heart Attacks
The last thing someone in their 30s or 40s should worry about is dying of a heart attack. But new research shows more are. The proportion of adults ages 18 to 54 who died in a hospital of a severe first heart attack rose 57% between 2011 and 2022, according to a new study published Thursday in the Journal of the American Heart Association. (McKay, 2/26)
The Hill: Walmart Recalls Cottage Cheese Over Health Risk
Cottage cheese sold at Walmart stores in 24 states is being recalled over concerns that liquid dairy ingredients used in the items may not be fully pasteurized, the company announced this week. A recall alert published by the Food and Drug Administration said no illnesses had been reported in connection to the recalled cottage cheese as of Feb. 24, but consuming products that are not fully pasteurized can cause “significant health risk, especially to the young and elderly or immunocompromised individuals.” (Langenfeld, 2/26)
Also —
The Hill: Cindy McCain Resigning As WFP Chief Citing Health Concerns
Cindy McCain announced Thursday she will step down as executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), citing health issues. McCain, who had a mild stroke in October and returned to her role last month, said in a news release that while she hoped to serve through the rest of her term, her “health has not recovered to a level that allows me to fully serve the enormous demands of this job.” (Rego, 2/26)
