U.S. Childhood Obesity Rates Stabilize, CDC Researchers Find  
A study in this week;s Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that U.S. childhood obesity rates may be leveling off after surging for more than two decades, although experts caution that "the pace at which young people are becoming overweight remains alarmingly high," the Washington Post reports. To assess recent trends in childhood obesity, researchers from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention calculated body mass indices for 8,165 youth between the ages of 2 and 19 participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2003 and 2006. After comparing the data with information from 1999, the researchers found no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of obesity. Overall, nearly 32 percent of participants were considered overweight, roughly 16 percent were considered obese, and approximately 11 percent were considered extremely obese. |
Primary Health Care Needs Fixing Before Universal Care Can Work
Who will take care of the estimated 47 million uninsured Americans if they get health coverage promised by politicians?
Few people seem concerned about whether the supply of primary care doctors is up to the task. But they should be.
Even without health-care reform, the demand for family physicians is expected to surge by 2020, when the nation will need 140,000 family physicians, according to the American Academy of Family Physician's 2006 Physician Workforce Report. That's a 40% increase over the 100,000 family doctors at work in 2006. |
New Report: Investment in Disease Prevention Could Save America More than $16 Billion in Five Years
A small strategic investment in disease prevention could result in significant savings in U.S. health care costs, according to a new report released today by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH). In its report, entitled Prevention for a Healthier America: Investments in Disease Prevention Yield Significant Savings, Stronger Communities, TFAH finds that an investment of $10 per person per year in proven community-based programs to increase physical activity, improve nutrition, and prevent smoking and other tobacco use could save the country more than $16 billion annually within five years. This is a return of $5.60 for every $1. |
H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu) and You
Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. Swine flu viruses have been reported to spread from person-to-person, but in the past, this transmission was limited and not sustained beyond three people. |
Michigan plumps up to ninth fattest in U.S.
Report finds 27% of adults are 30 pounds or more overweight, costing $2.9B.
" In Royal Oak, Dr. Paul Ehrmann has been advocating his children's health initiative designed to assist children and their families adapt to healthy living ideas. The goal is to help them get healthy as they navigate childhood. A side benefit: Helping their parents make similar healthy choices. "
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Childhood obesity: A lifetime of danger
Scientists are serving up extra helpings of research these days showing why parents must keep an eye on their children's weight. Experts have known for years that hauling around extra pounds takes a huge toll on children's health, putting them at an... |
Retraining Our Sights: From Tobacco Use to Obesity Awareness
To the Editor: The international pandemic of obesity poses a serious threat to the well-being of society in terms of adverse public health and economic consequences. |
The Big, Fat American Kid Crisis . . .
The problem is all too obvious. At the mall, the movie theater or the airport, the evidence appears in the flesh - altogether too much of it. Americans are now officially supersized, overweight, obese even. This is true of almost two thirds of American adults, but what is more alarming, it is also true of millions of American children. The "little ones" aren't so little anymore. |
Giving up smoking has rapid health benefits, says study
Risk of death from all causes falls by 13% within 5 years and no extra risk of death by 20 years
People who give up smoking begin to improve their health almost immediately, according to a study of more than 100,000 women carried out between 1980 and 2004. Within five years the risk of death from all causes fell by 13%, it found. By 20 years, people had no extra risk of death because of their past smoking history.
The study, by researchers at Harvard medical school in Boston, also highlights the benefits of not starting smoking until later; women who began at 17 were 22% more likely to die within the study period than those who started at 26 or older. The news will encourage the third of smokers in the UK who would like to give up the habit. A survey by the Office for National Statistics released in January found 22% of Britons are smokers, down from 27% at the end of the 1990s and the lowest level since records began. |
Four Health Changes Can Prolong Life 14 Years
People who drink moderately, exercise, quit smoking and eat five servings of fruit and vegetables each day live on average 14 years longer than people who adopt none of these behaviors, researchers said on Tuesday.
Overwhelming evidence has shown that these things contribute to healthier and longer lives, but the new study actually quantified their combined impact, the British team said.
"These results may provide further support for the idea that even small differences in lifestyle may make a big difference to health in the population and encourage behavior change," the researchers wrote in the journal PLoS Medicine. |
Making Medicare Fair
A couple of years ago, a colleague of mine moved his 80-year-old mother from the Midwest to Northern Virginia. He contacted 16 doctors before he found one who would accept a new Medicare patient.
Why are some doctors reluctant to accept new Medicare patients or are no longer treating them? Many physicians say they simply can't afford to. This is partly because the formula for Medicare payments to doctors is flawed.
The problem has intensified in recent years and is destined to become even worse. If Congress doesn't act by the end of 2007, doctors will face an unprecedented 10 percent cut in Medicare payments next year. Should that occur, 60 percent of physicians say they'll be forced to limit the number of new Medicare patients they accept, according to the American Medical Association. |
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