Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Survey Finds Bullying Has Soared In Schools Over Past Five Years
Axios: Bullying Rates Are Jumping In Schools: Survey
Bullying in schools has shot up over the past five years, according to an annual survey by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Years of pandemic disruption have caused students to struggle with stress management, problem solving and peer relationships, the survey found. 40% of child and teen respondents said they were bullied on school campuses in the past year, according to the Youth Right Now survey, conducted annually by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. (Rubin, 8/24)
The Washington Post: Doctors To Parents: Stop Smashing Eggs On Your Kids’ Heads On TikTok
Pediatricians and other child development experts have spoken out about the risk of emotional harm to the children featured in many of these videos. (Bisset, 8/25)
The Washington Post: A Mother’s Stress May Change The Makeup Of Her Child’s Microbiome
When it comes to microbiome health, many people focus on the foods that will help the trillions of good bacteria in their guts thrive. But less is known about how other factors like stress and trauma influence our gut health. A provocative study suggests that a mother’s stress may leave a lasting scar on future generations by impacting the makeup of her child’s gut microbiome. (Zimmerman, 8/24)
On gun violence —
KFF Health News: ‘All We Want Is Revenge’: How Social Media Fuels Gun Violence Among Teens
Juan Campos has been working to save at-risk teens from gun violence for 16 years. As a street outreach worker in Oakland, California, he has seen the pull and power of gangs. And he offers teens support when they’ve emerged from the juvenile justice system, advocates for them in school, and, if needed, helps them find housing, mental health services, and treatment for substance abuse. (Szabo, 8/25)
KFF Health News: Illustrated Report: How Gun Violence Goes Viral
As chatter and images about guns and violence slip into the social media feeds of more teens, viral messages fueled by “likes” can lead to real-world conflict and loss. This illustrated report has been adapted from a KFF Health News article, “‘All We Want Is Revenge’: How Social Media Fuels Gun Violence Among Teens,” by Liz Szabo. (Tempest and Szabo, 8/25)
Also —
AP: What Is Stockholm Syndrome? It All Started With A Bank Robbery 50 Years Ago
t’s a common term these days, deployed to describe the bond that victims of kidnappings or hostage situations sometimes develop with their captors: “Stockholm syndrome.” And it got its name 50 years ago this week, during a failed bank robbery in Sweden’s capital. Stockholm syndrome — dubbed by its founder “Norrmalmstorg syndrome,” after the square where the bank heist took place — has since been used in connection with hostage-takings around the world, including the kidnapping of newspaper heiress Patty Hearst in the 1970s. (Ritter and Olsen, 8/25)
The Mercury News: Sexy Feeling: Stanford Scientists Find Where Lust Lives -- In Mice
The source of desire has long been elusive, the stuff of poets and musicians. Now, Stanford University researchers have found it doesn’t live in the heart but in a very specific set of cells in the brain. They have located the cellular circuitry that drives the passion of male mice, and learned how to turn it on and off – a discovery that could lead to new treatments and deepen our understanding of this most primal force. (Krieger, 8/24)
