Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Weight-Loss Surgeries For US Youngsters Have Risen In Recent Years
Bloomberg: Bariatric Weight-Loss Surgeries Rose 20% Among US Teens, Children
Weight-loss surgeries among adolescents increased substantially in recent years, part of an overall rise in obesity treatments in the US. The number of adolescents ages 10 to 19 who underwent metabolic or bariatric surgery rose about 20% in 2021 from the year before, according to a research letter published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Pediatrics. Rates of these surgeries, which are uncommon, also rose among minors between 2019 and 2020, even as rates for adults dipped. (Peng and Court, 5/30)
On heart health —
The Hill: Accelerated Cognitive Decline Seen After Heart Attacks: Study
A new study has found a rapid decline in global cognition, memory and executive function in those who suffer from a heart attack compared to those who do not. In a study published in the JAMA Neurology journal, researchers found that people who suffered from at least one or more incidents of myocardial infarction (MI), also known as a heart attack, had a "significantly faster" rate of decline in global cognition, memory and executive function over the years compared to those who did not. The research also found that having a heart attack was not associated with an immediate decrease in these functions after the event, but rather impacted long-term brain health. (Sforza, 5/30)
The New York Times: To Prevent Heart Attacks, Doctors Try A New Genetic Test
Cardiologists hope to use such tests, which cost about $150 and are not typically covered by health insurance, to identify people most likely to have heart attacks long before they have them. Some doctors envision testing children as part of routine pediatric care. (Kolata, 5/30)
On memory and brain health —
CNN: Cocoa Flavanols May Boost Memory, Study Says
If your diet is low in flavanols — antioxidant compounds found in foods such as green tea, apples, berries and cocoa — adding 500 milligrams a day to your diet may slow and possibly improve age-related mental decline, according to a new study. (LaMotte, 5/29)
AP: Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter Has Dementia, The Carter Center Says
Former first lady Rosalynn Carter has dementia, her family announced Tuesday. Carter, now 95, remains at home with former President Jimmy Carter, 98, who has been at home receiving hospice care since early this year. “She continues to live happily at home with her husband, enjoying spring in Plains and visits with loved ones,” the family said via The Carter Center, the global humanitarian organization the couple founded in 1982, less than two years after Jimmy Carter’s landslide defeat. (Barrow, 5/30)
AP: Teenager Walks At Brain Injury Event Weeks After Getting Shot In Head For Knocking On Wrong Door
Ralph Yarl — a Black teenager who was shot in the head and arm last month after mistakenly ringing the wrong doorbell — walked at a brain injury awareness event Monday in his first major public appearance since the shooting. The 17-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury when he was shot while trying to pick up his younger brothers in April, the Kansas City Star reported. Yarl walked with family, friends and other brain injury survivors Monday at Going the Distance for Brain Injury, a yearly Memorial Day race at Loose Park in Kansas City, Missouri. (5/30)
On mushrooms, marijuana, and cannabis —
KFF Health News: Mood-Altering Mushroom Sales Bloom Despite Safety Concerns
When a hemp dispensary in this Florida city started to stock edibles with certain mushroom extracts last year, state regulators quickly ordered it to stop selling the items. The shop had been advertising fruit-flavored gummies and other products containing tiny doses of mood-altering chemicals from the mushroom Amanita muscaria. The red-capped, white-spotted fungus — rooted in popular culture through the Super Mario Nintendo game franchise, “The Smurfs,” and “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” — is legal for consumers to possess and eat in every state except Louisiana, according to a review of state laws. (Ogozalek, 5/31)
KFF Health News: Readers And Tweeters Weigh Marijuana’s Merits Against Those Of Alcohol Or Opioids
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories. (5/31)
KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
This week’s KFF Health News Minute: Potent new forms of recreational cannabis are increasing the risk of dependency, and learn how Medicare fraud could prevent you from getting the medical supplies you need. (5/25)
