Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Research Finds Less Frequent Colon Cancer Screening OK For Some
NBC News: Colon Cancer Screening May Be Safe Every 15 Years For Some, Research Suggests
New research suggests patients with an average risk of colon cancer may only need to undergo a colonoscopy screening every 15 years instead of the recommended 10. Swedish researchers found that waiting an extra five years after a first negative colonoscopy carried about the same risk of later having a colorectal diagnosis or dying from the disease as getting screened every 10 years. Extending screening time could reduce “unnecessary invasive examinations,” according to the study published Thursday in JAMA Oncology. (Sullivan, 5/2)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Your Cellphone May Be Causing Nearsightedness, Now At Epidemic Levels
Around half of the global population could need corrective lenses by 2050 — a health care burden that already costs Americans an estimated $7.2 billion annually. It’s because myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is at epidemic levels, according to Rochester Institute of Technology professor Andrew Herbert. ... “Two recent studies featuring extensive surveys of children and their parents provide strong support for the idea that an important driver of the uptick in myopia is that people are spending more time focusing on objects immediately in front of our eyes, whether a screen, a book or a drawing pad,” Herbert told the Conversation. (Boyce, 5/2)
CNN: Women Need To Exercise And Eat Differently Than Men. Dr. Stacy Sims Explains
For centuries, medical researchers have exclusively studied men, downplaying or outright ignoring sex differences and extrapolating their findings to women. However, women are not physiologically the same as men — marked most plainly with the onset of menstruation at female puberty and two X chromosomes — and thus have often been given incomplete, poor and even harmful medical advice. (McManus, 5/2)
Fox News: Cat Owners Could Be At Higher Risk Of Schizophrenia, Study Suggests, But More Research Is Needed
Research published in Schizophrenia Bulletin found that people who are exposed to cats may have more than double the chances of developing schizophrenia and other similar mental disorders later in life. Australian researchers from the University of Queensland conducted a systematic review of 17 studies performed in 11 countries between Jan. 1, 1980, and May 30, 2023. (Rudy, 5/2)
KFF Health News: Oh, Dear! Baby Gear! Why Are The Manuals So Unclear?
Since becoming a father a few months ago, I’ve been nursing a grudge against something tiny, seemingly inconsequential, and often discarded: instructional manuals. Parenthood requires a lot of gadgetry to maintain a kid’s health and welfare. Those gadgets require puzzling over booklets, decoding inscrutable pictographs, and wondering whether warnings can be safely ignored or are actually disclosing a hazard. (Tahir, 5/3)
