Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Victims Of Food Shortages Hit Record Levels In 2021: UN
AP: UN: Record Number Of People Without Enough To Eat In 2021
The United Nations said Wednesday that the number of people without enough to eat on a daily basis reached all-time high last year and is poised to hit “appalling” new levels as the Ukraine war affects global food production. Almost 193 million people in 53 countries suffered acute food insecurity in 2021 due to what the U.N. said was a “toxic triple combination” of conflict, weather extremes and the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. (5/5)
In mental health news —
NBC News: Almost Half Of LGBTQ Youths 'Seriously Considered' Suicide In Past Year, Survey Says
Nearly half of LGBTQ youths in the United States have “seriously considered” suicide in the past year, a survey released on Wednesday found, piling onto concerns for a vulnerable group of adolescents amid a nationwide culture war over LGBTQ issues. The survey, conducted by the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ youth suicide prevention and crisis intervention group, polled 34,000 LGBTQ people aged 13 to 24. Among the report’s key findings is that 73 percent of respondents reported symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder and 58 percent reported symptoms of major depressive disorder. (Lavietes, 5/4)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UW 'Tackle The Stigma' Talks Athlete Mental Health In Social Media Age
The session was sponsored by UNCUT Madison, a non-profit media platform designed to let UW athletes share their life stories. The session lasted a little more than an hour and the topics covered were varied. Ball, a Heisman Trophy finalist as a junior in 2011 who left UW with 77 rushing touchdowns and 83 total TDs, discussed his battle with alcoholism. Borland, the Big Ten defensive player of the year as a fifth-year senior in 2013, touched on what life has been like since he walked away from the NFL after his rookie season with the San Francisco 49ers, concerned about potential head trauma. (Potrykus, 5/4)
In other news —
Fox News: Medical Company Creates Most Accurate 3D Model Of Female Anatomy Ever
Elsevier has launched "the most advanced 3-D full female model ever available," according to a recent press release. "This is the first time that a female model has been built with this level of detail in its entirety, to represent the female — versus replacing specific areas of the male anatomy with female features," the Elsevier release stated. The company, which is a known leader in publishing research and information analytics, said in the release that this model would help educators for the first time teach, visualize, and edit anatomy entirely from the female perspective using a realistic detailed 3-D model. (McGorry, 5/2)
Stat: A New 'Master Regulator' Could Call The Tune For Hair Cells Key To Hearing
The act of hearing is like a ballroom dance, scientist Jaime García-Añoveros says. Tiny hair cells lined up in the outer ear leap and sway, transmitting sound’s vibrations to other hair cells in the inner ear that carry information via nerves to the brain. Exquisitely sensitive to frequency, these hair cells detect highs and lows, music and noise, in something like a ballet. But the music stops when these cells are damaged, by noise or some cancer drugs or antibiotics. The cells can live as long as we do, but once they die, they cannot be regenerated. ... García-Añoveros, professor of anesthesia, neurology, and neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, led a team that identified a master gene regulator that controls whether these hair cells made by the cochlea become inner or outer hair cells. The hope is that other cells surrounding them that provide a lattice of support could be reprogrammed to regain lost hair cell function. (Cooney, 5/5)
