Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
Each week, KFF Health News finds longer stories for you to enjoy. Today's selections are on the opioid crisis, "magic mushrooms," cancer, and health tracking rings.
The New York Times:
Bold Experiment or Safety Risk? Canada Is Divided on How to Stop Drug Deaths.
The mood was cautiously optimistic and the message was simple: Drug decriminalization saves lives. People who used or carried small quantities of illegal drugs in plain sight would no longer face arrest in British Columbia, the nexus of Canada’s opioid crisis, officials announced two years ago. So bold was the experiment, even in a province known for pioneering addiction policies, that its public health officer said she was in disbelief the day had actually come. But decriminalization, a policy introduced as a way of alleviating the opioid crisis, has instead been blamed for deepening it. (Isai, 7/11)
The Washington Post:
Psychedelic Mushroom Edibles Promise Health Benefits. Be Wary, Experts Say.
Public health experts and officials are amplifying their warnings about the risks of unregulated and sometimes illegal products advertised on social media and easily purchased online or in vape shops. Some claim to contain the hallucinogenic mushroom compound psilocybin, which is legal for use in two states but illegal federally. Some products contain potentially harmful synthetic chemicals or extracts from a sometimes-toxic mushroom known as amanita muscaria. (Ovalle, 7/4)
The New York Times:
Chris Evert Beat Cancer. Then It Came Back. So She Beat It Again.
After a second course of treatment, the tennis Hall of Famer is optimistic about life, and vocal about the importance of early testing. (Waldstein, 7/1)
The Washington Post:
Health Tracking Rings Are Getting More Popular. Samsung Wants In.
On Wednesday, the consumer electronics giant revealed a slew of new devices at a splashy event in Paris, including a pair of new foldable phones and updated smartwatches. But it’s the company’s “smart” ring — the $399 Galaxy Ring — that seems to have garnered the most attention. That’s in part because it is new ground for Samsung, a company that has most recently highlighted its interest in artificial intelligence and home robotics. But it’s also the first big tech company to embrace of a class of health devices that haven’t yet gone fully mainstream. (Velazco, 7/10)
