It’s World AIDS Day. Let’s review: There were 2.9 million AIDS-related deaths in 2006. 4.3 million people were newly-infected with HIV, bringing the total of number of HIV-infected individuals worldwide to 39.5 million. 40% percent of new adult HIV infections worldwide in 2006 occurred among young people 15 – 24 years old. More adult women […]
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has announced that pregnant women and those who plan to become so should avoid taking the antidepressant Paxil if possible because of a risk of birth defects. They also cautioned against pregnant women taking a number of other related antidepressants, but said cases should be considered on
It’s National Influenza Vaccination Week. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), rates of flu infection are highest among children. They recommend vaccination of all children between 6 and 59 months of age, as well as “all children and adults who have certain diseases that put them at risk of serious complications from the
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) has launched an asthma friendly(R) Certification Program to help identify toys, pillows, bedding, and other products suitable for people with asthma and related allergic sensitivities. I imagine that most parents of children with asthma or allergies (or who have them themselves) are already aware of what to
A twelve-year study of over 90,000 women has found that daily consumption of red meat may significantly increase a woman’s risk of certain breast cancers, even before menopause. Women who ate more than one and a half 100-gram servings of red meat per day had nearly twice the risk of developing hormone-sensitive breast cancer as
Several pieces of health news caught my eye today, so I’ve rolled them all into a single healthy treat: People may have overreacted to the link between children’s use of antidepressants and suicide, say researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Although an earlier FDA study showed that a very few people (about one
I’d never heard of Mason Andrews before reading of his death this past week, but without him, my son might not exist. No, he’s not our sperm donor—he’s the doctor who performed the first in vitro fertilization in the U. S. Although conservative activists tried to stop him from attempting the procedure, his privately funded
The Colorado Court of Appeals reversed a lower court ruling and said the partner of a man who died in 2004 may inherit his estate, even though the man’s relatives contested the validity of his will. Lambda Legal argued that the U. S. Court of Appeals should affirm a lower court ruling that Oklahoma’s anti-gay
It’s official. Motherhood makes you tired. A new nationwide survey found that 52 percent of moms in the U. S. feel more sleep would make them better parents and 65 percent feel they would be happier. The survey was released today to coincide with the launch of a “Sleepless Moms” campaign, headed by actress and
It’s the beginning of the extended dance mix that is Halloween—the assorted parades, parties, and costume contests all leading up to the big night. I thought I was going to get away easy this year, since my son told me in early September he wanted to be “a spooky ghost.” I could handle a sheet
