Health category, Page 117
All soda — even diet — linked to risk of early death, study says
In researchers’ continuing mission to ruin everything fun, a new expansive study shows that sodas — even diet ones — could be deadly. And it’s not like the study was quick and dirty. Published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, researchers looked at more than 450,000 people in 10 European...
Michigan moves to be 1st state to ban flavored e-cigarettes
LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is moving to make Michigan the first state to ban flavored e-cigarettes. The Democrat announced Wednesday that she ordered the state health department to issue emergency rules. They will prohibit the sale and misleading marketing of flavored nicotine vaping products. Whitmer says in a...
British teen goes blind by living mostly on junk food, study says
A teenage boy who subsisted primarily on junk food went blind from his poor diet, according to a new study. The 17-year-old, who lives in the United Kingdom, first went to the doctor at age 14 complaining of tiredness, the Annals of Internal Medicine wrote in the study abstract. By...
CDC awards Pennsylvania $2.25 million grant to study maternal mortality
Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration announced Tuesday it has received a $2.25 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the cause of maternal deaths in the state after an increase in recent years. Officials said the state Department of Health will receive the grant over five...
Tarentum Recreation Board hosting health fair in park
Helping people live a healthier life is the driving force behind a new health fair in Tarentum. The Tarentum Recreation Board is holding the fair from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Carl J. Magnetta Jr. Memorial Amphitheater in Riverview Memorial Park. “Health fairs serve a lot of...
Ohio medical board to review nearly 2,000 ‘sexual boundary’ cases
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The State Medical Board of Ohio plans to review nearly 2,000 closed cases involving alleged “sexual boundary” violations by doctors over the past 25 years to see if any involved evidence of criminal misconduct that was ignored. Gov. Mike DeWine requested such a review after learning credible...
Have it your way when making healthier fast food choices
Does following a weight-loss or healthy diet mean you must swear off fast food? Not necessarily. An occasional stop for fast food can fit into a healthy diet — if you’re careful about what you order. Consider the following tips. Keep portion sizes small If the fast-food restaurant offers several...
For chronic Lyme patients, every day can be a struggleVideo
It was bad enough that Amy Wiester of Bell Township contracted Lyme disease at age 6 after suffering a tick bite at her family’s farm. But Wiester, 36, was bitten twice more by Lyme-carrying ticks, in 2004 and 2018. The disease — and the co-infections that frequently accompany it —...
Worried? Losing sleep? It’s hard not to be stressed in 2019
Are you feeling stressed? Do your days bring more OMGs than LOLs? Do you lose sleep over finances, violence, politics or the country and planet’s future? If you have a kid(s), do the demands of parenting cause anxiety? If you are a kid, do the pressures of adolescence prompt the...
There’s no single ‘gay gene,’ according to vast DNA analysis
A new study that analyzed the DNA of nearly half a million people has found that while genetic differences play a significant role in sexual preference, there is no single gene responsible. The findings, described Thursday in the journal Science, looked at sexual behavior and not sexual identity. Still, the...
Doctors fear vaping to blame for spike in lung illnesses
Doctors in Western Pennsylvania are concerned and frustrated with an uptick in vaping-related lung illnesses diagnosed over the past few weeks. Pittsburgh joins a growing list of places that have identified people with breathing problems related to vaping. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating 215 possible cases...
Greensburg rally offers message of hope on National Overdose Awareness DayVideo
At 18 years old, Nakkia Proffit had to watch as a friend fatally overdosed, and it still was not enough to keep her from making negative decisions about drugs. On Saturday, Proffit was continuing her recovery and shared her story with attendees at a rally in Greensburg’s St. Clair Park...
More vaping illnesses reported, many involving marijuana
WASHINGTON — Health officials are investigating more cases of a breathing illness associated with vaping. While the cause remains unclear, officials said Friday that many reports involve e-cigarette products that contain THC, the mind-altering substance in marijuana. Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday they are...
Trump eyes mental institutions as answer to gun violence
WASHINGTON — When shots rang out last year at a high school in Parkland, Fla., leaving 17 people dead, President Donald Trump quickly turned his thoughts to creating more mental institutions. When back-to-back mass shootings in Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso, Texas, jolted the nation earlier this month, Trump again...
Eating poultry instead of red meat may lower breast cancer risk
Good news for women who can’t quite bring themselves to go vegetarian, but don’t mind giving up burgers and steaks: A new study finds red meat may increase breast cancer risk, while substituting poultry may lower it. The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, looked for links between...
‘This ain’t your mother’s marijuana,’ surgeon general says
WASHINGTON — Federal health officials are issuing a national warning against marijuana use by adolescents and pregnant women , as more states legalize some forms of the drug’s use. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Surgeon General Jerome Adams made the announcement Thursday. The warning comes as more...
Overdose awareness event in Greensburg can provide ‘spark of hope’ for addicts, families
A decade ago, Katrin Schall of Youngstown would have had little interest in an event like the Overdose Awareness Day scheduled this weekend in Greensburg. But on Saturday, Schall — who overcame her own drug addiction — will be at St. Clair Park in her capacity as supervisor for Southwestern...
Pinterest to direct vaccine-related searches to health orgs
NEW YORK — Pinterest says it will try to combat misinformation about vaccines by showing only information from health organizations when people search. Social media sites have been trying to combat the spread of misinformation about vaccines. Pinterest previously tried blocking all searches for vaccines with mixed results. Now it...
Biden health plan aims far beyond legacy of ‘Obamacare’
WASHINGTON — Wrapping himself in the legacy of “Obamacare,” Joe Biden is offering restless Democrats a health care proposal that goes far beyond it, calling for a government plan almost anybody can join but stopping short of a total system remake. Recent polls show softening support for the full government-run...
Health costs rising for Americans with employer-based insurance
Health costs for people with employee-sponsored health plans rose 18% over the past five years, outpacing inflation and wage increases, according to a new report by Kaiser Family Foundation. The findings reinforce a decade- long trend of rising employee health costs that is partly driven by rising deductibles. Over the past...
One step at a time: Greensburg man with cerebral palsy on journeyVideo
Bobby Mihalko makes his way across the uneven pavement behind Piff’s Power and Fitness in Youngwood on a hot July day in 90-degree weather, wearing a weighted vest and pulling a tire along uneven pavement. The bumpy gravel road and the sweat across his forehead are symbolic of the way...
Vitamin takers better served by lifestyle changes, experts say
Vitamin supplements, a multibillion-dollar industry, are a layperson’s favorite prescription. Tired? Take an iron supplement. Sad? Classic vitamin D deficiency. But a recent paper related to cardiovascular health, published July 9 in Annals of Internal Medicine, put this loyalty to the test. Surprise, surprise: vitamin supplements had little impact on...
Are beans considered complete proteins?
Question: Thanks for your very informative column on the nutritional value of beans. One of the things you said was that beans are high in protein. Many years ago I read that beans were an incomplete protein, so you should eat them with corn, and then the two together made...
3rd locally transmitted dengue fever case confirmed in Miami-Dade County
MIAMI — The third locally transmitted case of dengue fever this year has been confirmed in Miami-Dade County, the Florida Department of Health announced Friday. The first case of the mosquito-borne ailment was confirmed in March. The second came earlier this month. The three cases don’t seem to be related,...
Illinois patient’s death may be first in U.S. tied to vaping
Illinois health officials said Friday that a patient who contracted a serious lung disease after vaping has died, which could make it the first death in the United States linked to the smoking alternative that has become popular with teens and young adults. The Illinois Department of Public Health said...
