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☆ Drug overdose deaths among teenagers surged during the pandemic driven by illicit fentanyl
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Drug overdose deaths among adolescents surged during the Covid-19 pandemic, driven overwhelmingly by illicit fentanyl, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Monthly drug overdose deaths nearly tripled among adolescents ages 10 to 19 during the first two years of the pandemic. But illegally manufactured fentanyl, often consumed as a pill, has become an increasingly common cause of overdose deaths. There was evidence that 25% of adolescent overdose deaths may have involved counterfeit pills that often resemble OxyContin or Xanax but frequently include fentanyl as well. Teens should also be educated about the potential presence of illicit fentanyl in pills that may resemble prescription drugs.

The UK government has promised to overhaul the youth gender care system, after it was deemed inadequate by England’s regulator of health and social care. They described a deeply flawed system that is now hobbled by a toxic political climate around gender care. The letter said a decision would be made at some point from early 2022 on whether the child “is likely to meet the access criteria” for gender care. The family has received no NHS gender care or mental health support since the referral, she said. These recommended supporting “identity exploration” and mental health treatment as the first steps to ensure that any psychological issues are addressed.

☆ Fact Check-No evidence group A strep present in flu vaccine given to children
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

“The LAIV vaccine used in the UK does not contain Streptococcus A,” an MHRA spokesperson told Reuters via email. The bacteria are not listed in the ingredients for Fluenz Tetra (bit.ly/3HesXo4), which is also marketed in the U.S. as fluMist. “Group A strep is not used at any stage of the development of the nasal flu vaccine. The vaccine does not contain Group A strep,” Pollard said via email. The MHRA and AstraZeneca told Reuters that group A strep is not an ingredient in the Fluenz Tetra vaccine, and two independent experts said there are no reports of contamination.

☆ Fact Check-A video of news headlines over time is not proof COVID-19 vaccines are ineffective or a ‘scam’
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Users on social media are sharing a video of news headlines and portions of articles on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness over time without context to question whether the vaccines ever worked. Initial clinical trials for Pfizer’s vaccine showed 95% efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 (here) while Moderna trials showed 94% efficacy (here). CONTEXT COUNTSEarly in the viral video, headlines touting 100% efficacy refer to small trials or specific outcomes. He added that these results are not indicative of vaccine effectiveness for all groups of people, which can vary. A video of news headlines is not proof the vaccines are ineffective or a scam.

☆ Texas man charged with threatening Boston doctor who provides transgender care
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Phil-Helsel-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Phil Helsel | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A Texas man was arrested Friday and charged with threatening to kill a Boston doctor who provides care to transgender people, federal prosecutors said. The threats on Aug. 31 targeting a doctor affiliated with a Boston healthcare education center came after “inaccurate information spread online” about Boston Children’s Hospital and transgender care, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts said. Boston’s Children Hospital is home to the Gender Multispecialty Service, which provides care to transgender and gender-diverse adolescents. Several children’s hospitals, most notably Boston Children’s, were targeted by of a far-right harassment campaign, led by led by anti-trans influencers with millions of collective followers. The FBI in court documents called it a sustained campaign that falsely alleged pedophilia or "grooming" against Boston Children's Hospital, and there have been death threats and threats of mass casualty attacks.

☆ Teens’ brains aged faster during the first year of the pandemic, study says, and stress may be to blame
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The brains of US teens have physically changed during the Covid-19 pandemic, aging faster than normal, a new study says. Dozens of studies have found that teens’ and adolescents’ mental health has suffered during the pandemic. “The pandemic has not been kind to adolescent mental health,” said Gotlib, a psychology professor at Stanford University. There is a chance that their brain changes could have just been an immediate response to a stressor that will normalize over time, he said. Gotlib hopes parents and guardians keep in mind that although lockdowns and school closures may be over, the mental health consequences may be lingering.

☆ The Power of Mattering at Work
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Jennifer Breheny Wallace | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Feeling unappreciated at work? Among the “essentials” for well-being at work, the report states, is “mattering,” the belief that you are valued and important to others. “People want to know that they matter to those around them, and that their work makes a difference in the lives of others,” the report notes. The social psychologist Morris Rosenberg first conceived the idea of mattering in the 1980s, while studying self-esteem among adolescents. Recent research has shown that a focus on mattering can be a powerful tool for responding to the rise in loneliness, anxiety, depression and social division among Americans.

☆ Parents of successful kids don't worry about screen time, expert says—they teach these 3 skills instead
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Melinda Wenner Moyer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

And as much as we wish we could, we can't completely shield our kids from screens. While researching for my parenting book, I found that the most successful parents don't spend time worrying about how much time their kids spend on digital devices. Instead, they teach these three skills to help their kids become "screen smart":1. How to draw screen boundariesIf you feel you have too little control over your kids' screen use, or you want to establish some rules and expectations, consider sitting down for a family meeting to create a digital road map. Allow your kids to include their input and share how your technology use will fit into the roadmap, too.

Vaping may increase a person's risk for cavities and tooth decay, preliminary new research suggests. Adding artificial sweeteners and flavorings to the sticky aerosol may create the perfect breeding ground for cavities. The new study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Dental Association, is considered preliminary and does not prove that vaping causes cavities. But because e-cigarette usage is so rampant among adolescents — with 2.5 million teens vaping in the United States alone — the possibility that it could increase the risk for tooth decay in this generation is worrisome, experts who study vaping in young people said. Among these high-risk patients, e-cigarette users, Irusa found, were at a "significantly" higher risk of developing cavities, compared with those who did not vape.

☆ Abortion rates fell slightly in 2020, with most done at or before 9 weeks, says CDC
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Katherine Dillinger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The CDC requests abortion data each year from all 50 states and other jurisdictions, including the District of Columbia and New York City, and researchers compare it to census and birth data. The abortion rate in these areas from 2019 to 2020 fell from 11.4 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 to 11.2 per 1,000 women. From 2011 to 2020, the total number of reported abortions fell 15% and the abortion rate fell 18%. But it ticked up slightly between 2019 and 2020, as total births declined in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic. Missouri had the lowest abortion rate in 2020, at 0.1 per 1,000 women.

☆ Switzerland has a stunningly high rate of gun ownership — here's why it doesn't have mass shootings
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Hilary Brueck | Azmi Haroun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Switzerland hasn't had a mass shooting in 21 years. The Swiss have strict rules for who can get a gun, and take firearm training very seriously. Loading Something is loading. The National Rifle Association often points to Switzerland to argue that more rules on gun ownership aren't necessary. But the Swiss have some specific rules and regulations for gun use.

CNN —A biologic therapy that delays the onset of type 1 diabetes received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration on Thursday. The most common side effects reported in the trial participants were low white blood cells and lymph cells, rash and headache. Without insulin, blood sugar can build up in the bloodstream and break down the body’s own fat and muscle. With Tzield, doctors would screen individual family members of people with type 1 diabetes to see whether they have those specific antibodies. As of 2019, about 1.9 million people have type 1 diabetes in the United States, according to the American Diabetes Association, including 244,000 children and adolescents.

☆ 'Jeopardy!' champ Amy Schneider testifies against Ohio transgender care ban
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | Jo Yurcaba Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

champion Amy Schneider testified before an Ohio House of Representatives committee meeting Wednesday against a bill that would restrict gender-affirming medical care for minors. After receiving gender-affirming care, "for the first time in my life, that alarm went silent, and I knew peace and quiet for the first time." Rep. Latyna Humphrey, a Democrat, asked Schneider if she has ever regretted receiving gender-affirming care or experienced suicidal thoughts after her transition. “We’ve made quite a few concessions, and that’s to bring this to a middle ground,” Click said of the substitute bill. Four states — Arizona, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee — passed laws restricting gender-affirming care for minors.

☆ Texas GOP looks to restrict transgender health care and drag shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Texas Republicans introduced several bills this week that target the transgender community, including at least two measures seeking to criminalize gender-affirming care for minors and one bill looking to prevent children from attending drag performances. For minors, this type of care typically includes puberty blockers, which are recommended to trans youths before the onset of puberty, or hormone therapy for teenagers. The Texas bills come on the heels of a previous attempt this year by the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton, to deem transition-related care for minors as child abuse under state law. Greg Abbott, the state’s Republican governor, subsequently called on citizens to report parents of transgender minors to the state if they suspect these minors are receiving gender-affirming care. The state’s current definition of “sexually oriented businesses” includes any venue where two or more people perform nude and alcohol is served.

☆ Hearing loss: 1 billion people at risk from unsafe listening
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Madeline Holcombe | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Turning down the racket isn’t just for disgruntled parents — a new study has shown it could protect more than 1 billion people at risk for hearing loss. “We estimated that 0.67 to 1.35 billion individuals aged 12-34 years worldwide likely engage in unsafe listening practices,” and are therefore at risk for hearing loss, said lead study author Lauren Dillard via email. If that goes on for too long, they can become permanently damaged, resulting in hearing loss, tinnitus or both. Researchers conducted a meta-analysis of scientific articles regarding unsafe listening practices published between 2000 and 2021 across three databases, the study said. Primary prevention in early adults is critical to avoid earlier onset and accelerated age-related hearing loss.”

☆ Russia has a plan to put children to work since so many men are fighting Putin's war in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia is planning to change its child labor laws to allow kids as young as 14 into the workforce more easily. They will no longer need approval from a guardian or a social services agency to be hired. Putin's unprovoked war in Ukraine pulled 300,000 people into battle, causing labor shortages. Russia is facing labor shortages caused by the absence of nearly 300,000 people from their jobs and onto the battlefield to fight Russian President Vladimir Putin's unprovoked war in Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported. "They have to go through countless checks, bureaucracy, and getting approvals, it is simply not profitable for employers."

☆ Unvaccinated infants were hospitalized with Covid more this summer than most age groups, CDC says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The average weekly hospitalization rate among young infants during this period was about 13.7 per 100,000. Fortunately, the surge in hospitalizations among young infants was not associated with increased severity. The spike in hospitalizations among young infants was due to high community transmission of the virus during omicron, according to CDC. The threshold for admitting young infants is also much lower than older children. Infants younger than six months are the only age group in the U.S. ineligible for the shots.

☆ More adolescent e-cigarette users report vaping within five minutes of waking up, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The data included a total of 151,573 survey respondents, all in middle or high school in the United States. ‘Concerning’ trends in the intensity of useThe overall prevalence of e-cigarette use peaked in 2019 and then declined. But by 2019, more e-cigarette users were using within the first five minutes of waking up each day compared with traditional cigarette users. “It is encouraging that the prevalence of e-cigarette use has declined among U.S. adolescents from 2019 to 2021. “Unfortunately, early nicotine addiction could overturn the significant tobacco control progress made over many decades,” she said.

☆ Kids’ average daily screen use increased by more than an hour and twenty minutes during the pandemic, analysis finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Carma Hassan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Average daily screen use by children during the Covid-19 pandemic increased by more than an hour and twenty minutes, according to an analysis published in JAMA Pediatrics on Monday. Kids’ average daily screen use increased by 1.5 times during the pandemic – from a baseline of 162 minutes a day before the pandemic to 246 minutes during the pandemic, according to the analysis. Also, some of the studies in the analysis used retrospective estimates, meaning parents could have misremembered how much screen time their kids had before the pandemic. Parents and caregivers’ amount of screen time, as well as their stress levels, during the pandemic were found to be associated with the duration of kids’ screen use, the analysis said. It is also critical to discuss balancing screen use with other important daily functions, such as sleep and physical activity,” the researchers advised.

☆ As election nears, some conservative groups have ramped up anti-trans campaign ads
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Matt Lavietes | Matt Lavietes Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

In the last leg of what has been a heated midterm election cycle, some conservative groups have ramped up misleading or inflammatory campaign ads targeting transgender rights, which have become an increasingly partisan and divisive issue. Within the last several weeks, the American Principles Project aired campaign ads in six battleground states, the group wrote on Twitter. Justin Unga, the director of strategic initiatives for the Human Rights Campaign, said ads targeting transgender rights can have real-world ramifications. A record 346 anti-LGBTQ bills have been filed in state legislatures around the country this year, including 145 that restrict transgender rights, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Many of the recent campaign ads targeting transgender rights were directed at Black and Latino voters, according to the Human Rights Campaign.

☆ Two Florida medical boards advance ban on gender-affirming care for minors
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Florida’s state medical boards voted Friday afternoon to approve the language of a first-of-its-kind rule banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors who don’t already receive it. The rule updates the medical standards of practice in the state to mostly prohibit health care professionals from starting treatment for gender dysphoria in those younger than 18. Gender dysphoria refers the stress and discomfort some experience when their gender identity doesn’t match their sex assigned at birth. The measure bans the prescription of puberty blockers or hormone therapy to new patients who are minors, and it forbids gender-affirming surgeries. In a statement Friday, Equality Florida said once the rule goes into effect, it will be the only ban in the country of gender-affirming care for minors instituted by a state medical board.

"Joe Biden and his political allies are indoctrinating your children," the flier, which NBC News reviewed, says in bold red letters translated from Spanish. "The primary motive behind that is to suppress Latino voters," he said. The Latino vote could be a factor in the outcome. Citizens for Sanity, a group associated with America First Legal, has also recently broadcast anti-immigration ads in California and Arizona. "Putting this out there could prevent a kid from receiving help that could prevent them from going down a darker path."

An earlier study in adults showed that the drug did indeed help with weight loss. “We’ve entered the phase where we are seeing the kind of weight loss where teens come to us in tears. In addition to the weight loss, the drug reduced some cardiovascular risk factors, including waist circumference and bad cholesterol. As it turns out, even when people get weight loss surgery, “three years out, there is significant weight gain,” Li said. When a weight loss drug like this is prescribed to patients, that shouldn’t be the end of things, Li said.

☆ Effects of Supreme Court abortion ruling: Longer travel time, more requests for pills
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Aria Bendix | Aria Bendix Is The Breaking Health Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Infants born as a result of an unintended pregnancy, meanwhile, face a higher risk of low birth weight or preterm birth. Ashana's article asserts that every hour of delayed care increases a patient’s risk of adverse outcomes or death. But in some cases, abortion restrictions require waiting until a person is hemorrhaging or develops sepsis before performing a lifesaving abortion. Hassan said medication abortion presents "a lot of opportunity to be able to expand into places that are geographically difficult for people to access abortion." "There are a lot of things within the health care system environment that could change, including the way we think about where abortion care can be accessed," Hassan said.

☆ More Children Are Being Screened for Mental-Health Issues. But Then What?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Andrea Petersen | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A mental-health crisis among children and teens that had been brewing for years worsened as routines were disrupted in the pandemic. Mental-health screenings for kids are expanding across the country. But as more children are identified as needing assistance, families can face a tough time getting help from resources that are already stretched thin. A mental-health crisis among children and teens that had been brewing for years worsened as routines were disrupted in the pandemic and many kids faced isolation and loss. Schools have added or expanded screenings for mental health or emotional well-being, and earlier this month, a panel of medical experts recommended children and teens ages 8 to 18 be screened for anxiety disorders.

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