Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Viewpoints: How Will We Know If Social Media Bans Work?; Anti-Vaccine Conference Showed Need For Conversation
Stat: Will Social Media Bans Help Teens? Researchers Must Ask Right Questions
In December 2025, as social media’s potential impact on youth mental health faced growing scrutiny, Australia became the first country to ban social media for people under 16, with Indonesia quickly following. The European Union is taking a slightly different approach, banning social media for children under 13 and personal accounts for people under 15 after pressure from several E.U. nations. (Camilla Iannone, 9/22)
The Washington Post: The Lesson I Learned At D.C.'s Anti-Vaccine Conference
I am firmly pro-vaccine. Ridiculing those who are not helps no one. (Robert Gebelhoff, 9/22)
Stat: Skeptical About Modern Medicine? I Know The Feeling — And Want To Listen
When health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. talks about the chronic disease epidemic ravaging America’s young, I am one of the people he is speaking about. At 34 years old, I am overweight and already suffering from high cholesterol and high blood pressure. I have ADHD so bad I often forget to brush my teeth in the morning. And when a doctor — who I waited several months to see in hopes he’d figure out why I’m incessantly tired — recently asked what conditions my very high dose of an SSRI was treating, my response was simply “all of the above.” (Nicholas Florko, 9/21)
Stat: Cancer Symptoms Can Be Treated With Integrative Oncology
For much of my career in cancer care, I have seen a contradiction play out in the exam rooms of my colleagues and across the country. Cancer patients ask how to manage pain, fatigue, anxiety, immune suppression, and the daily toll of the disease. Clinicians often prescribe only medication, even though they know other evidence-based treatments could help: acupuncture for chemotherapy-induced nausea; exercise and nutrition counseling to improve clinical outcomes; and mindfulness-based programs to ease distress, sleep problems, and even immune dysfunction. (Lorenzo Cohen, 9/22)
