The Health News USA January 21 2018
- According to new research by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, prescriptions for ADHD medications have increased 700% among US women in their late 20’s since 2003. Researchers raised alarms about the increase because “little information is available about the safety of taking ADHD medication during pregnancy”. The second largest increase, of 560%, was among women between 30 and 34 years old. The most common medications prescribed for ADHD are stimulants, such as methylphenidate, a medication known best by its brand name, Ritalin.
- A protein found in the brain called CK2 has been identified as an important factor in decreasing depressive and anxious feelings if manipulated correctly. Most antidepressants on the market are Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, or SSRIs — such as Fluoxetine (Prozac) or Sertraline (Zoloft). A new study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry explains that people have 14 different types of serotonin receptors, and scientists are unsure of which one communicates with SSRI drugs, leaving many people susceptible to failed drug therapy.
- New health insurance data shows that more U.S. kids are getting their full series of vaccines, but more and more parents are also refusing to immunize their children. A new report from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association has discovered that the No. 1 vaccine refusal hotspot is in New York. Vaccination rates are up 12% overall since 2013 among people covered by employer-provided health insurance, Blue Cross and Blue Shield reports. But the rate of vaccines refusal rose from 2.5% in 2010 to more than 4% in 2016.
News on Health Professional Radio. Today is the 21st of January 2018. Read by Tabetha Moreto.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jan/18/adhd-young-women-medication-ritalin
According to new research by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, prescriptions for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medications have increased seven hundred percent among US women in their late twenties since two thousand three. Researchers raised alarms about the increase because “little information is available about the safety of taking ADHD medication during pregnancy.”
The second largest increase, of five hundred sixty percent, was among women between thirty and thirty four years old. The most common medications prescribed for ADHD are stimulants, such as methylphenidate, a medication known best by its brand name, Ritalin. Increases among women of childbearing age represent the latest data on the fivefold increase in stimulant prescriptions that has taken place since the early two thousands.
While the largest increases in ADHD prescriptions were among women in their twenties, prescriptions among all women between fifteen and forty four rose three hundred forty four percent. The large increase among women in their twenties and thirties, considered the optimal age for having children, raised concern among physicians.
A protein found in the brain called CKtwo has been identified as an important factor in decreasing depressive and anxious feelings if manipulated correctly. Most antidepressants on the market are Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, or SSRIs — such as Fluoxetine (Prozac) or Sertraline (Zoloft).
A new study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry explains that people have fourteen different types of serotonin receptors, and scientists are unsure of which one communicates with SSRI drugs, leaving many people susceptible to failed drug therapy. But researchers at The City College of New York discovered that the CKtwo protein can successfully interact with one specific serotonin receptor, five-HTfour, and proved effective in relieving feelings of depression.
The study’s lead author Julia Castello said in a statement: “Identifying new targets broadens our understanding about the cause of depression as well as the mechanism of action of antidepressants.”
According to the World Health Organization, more than three hundred million people suffer from depression around the world and the antidepressant drugs currently available only work for about half of them. These findings from Castello and her team at the CUNY Graduate Center could, potentially, mean treatment options for millions of people.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/vaccine-rates-are-so-are-refusals-n838811
New health insurance data shows that more U.S. kids are getting their full series of vaccines, but more and more parents are also refusing to immunize their children. A new report from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association has discovered that the number one vaccine refusal hotspot is in New York. Vaccination rates are up twelve percent overall since two thousand thirteen among people covered by employer-provided health insurance, Blue Cross and Blue Shield reports. But the rate of vaccines refusal rose from two point five percent in two thousand ten to more than four percent in two thousand sixteen.
The company found that it’s because most kids who missed vaccines missed them because they skipped regular doctor appointments, not because their parents deliberately declined to get them vaccinated.
Kids who don’t get the full series of vaccines are susceptible to infection and can spread infections. Schools and daycares can refuse to admit unvaccinated and undervaccinated children, and states regulate admission due to vaccination status, but there are no laws in the U.S. forcing vaccination. Blue Cross and Blue Shield looked at the records of kids born in two thousand ten and followed them to the age of three in two thousand thirteen, and then looked at records of kids born in two thousand thirteen, who turned three in two thousand sixteen.
They found sixty nine percent of kids were fully vaccinated in two thousand thirteen, compared to seventy seven percent in two thousand sixteen.
Vaccine deniers have become much more active as social media gives them an easy way to voice their opinions without contradiction from experts. The survey shows where the hotspots are of vaccine deniers. Claims submitted to insurance companies can be coded to show if a parent gave a non-medical reason for refusing to vaccinate a child. “Refusal rates were highest in the states of New York at eight point four percent, Washington at seven point zero percent, Oregon at six point eight percent, New Jersey at six point five percent and Arizona at six point four percent.”