Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study Highlights Health Benefits Of Sequencing DNA At Birth
USA Today: Should A Baby's DNA Be Sequenced At Birth? Yes, New Study Suggests
What would happen if every newborn's genes were sequenced at birth? That's the question the BabySeq study has been trying to answer for a decade. Its newest results suggest the genetic information could be used to save lives. And not just the baby's. (Weintraub, 6/5)
More on children's health —
CNN: How Long You Breastfeed May Impact Your Child’s Test Scores Later, Study Shows
Whether children were breastfed as infants and for how long may have an impact on their test scores when they are adolescents, according to new research. The report, published Monday in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, followed about 5,000 British children from their infancy in the early 2000s to their last year of high school, according to lead study author Dr. Reneé Pereyra-Elías, a doctoral student and researcher in the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit at the University of Oxford. (Holcombe, 6/5)
Reuters: Microsoft To Pay $20 Mln To Settle US Charges For Violating Children's Privacy
Microsoft will pay $20 million to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission charges that the tech company illegally collected personal information from children without their parents' consent, the FTC said on Monday. The company had been charged with violating the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children who signed up to its Xbox gaming system without notifying their parents or obtaining their parents' consent, and by retaining children's personal information, the FTC said in a statement. ... "This action should also make it abundantly clear that kids' avatars, biometric data, and health information are not exempt from COPPA," said Samuel Levine, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. (Singh, 6/5)
In other health and wellness news —
CNN: Oral Estrogen-Only Use Riskier Than Patch Or Vaginal Cream For Menopausal Women, Study Says
People who use estrogen-only pills during menopause were more likely to be diagnosed with high blood pressure than those using patches or creams, a new study found. However, doctors who treat menopause say estrogen-only pills are rarely prescribed for high-risk patients, and the overall benefits of hormone replacement therapy far outweigh the risks for many patients. (LaMotte, 6/5)
The Washington Post: You Can Reduce Your Odds Of Getting Osteoporosis As You Age
Osteoporosis — a disease that thins and weakens bones, making them more likely to break — afflicts about 10 million people in the United States age 50 and older, and four times more women than men, according to the Osteoporosis Workgroup, a panel of experts in the Department of Health and Human Services that focuses on improving screenings and treatment to reduce the prevalence of the ailment. ... A bone density scan, a type of low-dose X-ray that measures the minerals in a person’s bones, can help evaluate bones’ strength and thickness. (Searing, 6/5)
The Washington Post: If You’re Hurt In A Fall, Follow These Tips For Recovery
A fall may be minor, leading to only a bit of bruising. But some can cause traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, even death. In fact, falls are a leading cause of death for adults over 65. Each year, 3 million older people are treated in emergency rooms because they’ve had a serious fall. Following a recovery plan can help you heal. (Loria, 6/5)
CBS News: Massage Therapists Ease The Pain Of Hospice Patients — But Aren't Easy To Find
Ilyse Streim views massage for people in hospice care as "whispering to the body through touch." "It's much lighter work. It's nurturing. It's slow," said Streim, a licensed massage therapist. Massage therapy for someone near the end of life looks and feels different from a spa treatment. Some people stay clothed or lie in bed. Others sit up in their wheelchairs. Streim avoids touching bedsores and fresh surgery wounds and describes her work as "meditating and moving at the same time." She recalled massaging the shoulders, hands, and feet of one client as he sat in his favorite recliner and watched baseball on TV in the final weeks of his life. (Ruder, 6/6)
KFF Health News: Recovery From Addiction Is A Journey. There’s No One-And-Done Solution
The atmosphere inside the Allen House is easygoing as residents circulate freely through the hallways, meet in group sessions, or gather on a large outdoor patio that features a dirt volleyball court with an oversize net. The 60-bed safety-net residential treatment center in Santa Fe Springs, run by Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse, has a dedicated detox room, on-site physicians and nurses, substance abuse counselors, licensed therapists, and other practitioners. It offers group counseling as well as individual and family therapy, and it endorses the use of medications for addiction treatment, such as buprenorphine and naltrexone, which are increasingly considered the gold standard. (Wolfson, 6/6)
