Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study: At Least 25% Of NFL Players Could End Up With Brain Disease
The New York Times: At Least 1 In 4 NFL Players Gets CTE, Major New Study Finds
Since the degenerative brain disease known as C.T.E. was first scientifically linked to football about 20 years ago, and as hundreds of former professional football players have been diagnosed with the disease after their deaths, a haunting question has lingered: Just how many N.F.L. players will end up with C.T.E.? New data provides a sobering indication: At least one in four of all the people who have played in the N.F.L. might expect to end up with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, according to a study of hundreds of cases over a recent six-year period. (Branch, 8/25)
The New York Times: Many N.F.L. Players Get Brain Disease. Why Hasn’t OSHA Intervened?
The most notorious form of workplace illness in the United States might be black lung disease. Scientists say that 10 to 20 percent of coal miners who have worked 25 years or more have gotten it. It has long been considered an epidemic. Imagine an American job that is less safe than that, where one in four workers (and maybe far more) ends up with an incurable, degenerative brain disease that withers the mind, sometimes after just a few years of exposure. (Branch, 8/25)
The New York Times: Your Child Plays Football. How Can You Minimize Risk Of C.T.E.?
Researchers say it’s all about reducing the total number of blows to the head. (Branch, 8/25)
More health and wellness news —
The Baltimore Sun: People Can Sense Mental Decline, Says New Research Powered By Smartwatches
Older adults may be better judges of their moment-to-moment mental sharpness than scientists once assumed, according to a University of California, Davis study — which relied on familiar technology: the smartwatch. (Mutasa, 8/24)
Medical Xpress: Oxalate In Spinach And Almonds May Worsen Gut Inflammation In IBD
Spinach, almonds and sweet potatoes are celebrated as some of the healthiest foods on the planet. But for the millions of Americans living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), a new study from the UNC School of Medicine suggests that these same foods may be quietly worsening gut inflammation through a compound most people have never heard of. (Harley, 8/23)
Phys.org: Engineered Yeasts Help Turn PET Plastic And Crop Waste Into Protein-Rich Cookies
Plastic might be the last ingredient you would ever add to a cookie recipe. But a team of researchers is looking to change that. They've programmed yeasts to turn plastic and agricultural waste into edible proteins and flavoring molecules, creating a treat from trash. The technology not only offers a new upcycling method but could also sustain life in disaster zones or even deep-space missions with humans aboard. (8/24)
