Harvard Health Content API

College students feel stressed, and maybe depressed — and they often don’t seek help, a survey finds. The poll was done on behalf of the Associated Press and mtvU, a division of MTV Networks. About 85% of college students said they felt stressed in recent months. About 42% had felt down, depressed or hopeless several days in the last two weeks. Based on poll answers, about 13% showed signs of at least mild depression. About 9% were at risk of at least moderate depression. Most had not sought help – including half of those who had seriously considered suicide. The economy also may play a role in poll results. People who recently had a parent lose a job were twice as likely as others to show signs of depression. The Associated Press wrote about the survey May 21.

New research suggests that protein in urine is a more important predictor of kidney problems and death than doctors realized. The study looked at tests done on nearly 1 million adults in Canada. One test looked for protein in the urine. The other, a blood test, showed how well the kidneys were clearing waste products from the body. Doctors usually focus on this kidney function test to predict whether kidney disease will get worse. But the new study found that people with high levels of urine protein were more likely to die or have a heart attack or kidney failure. And this occurred even in people with relatively normal kidney function, as shown by the blood test. The study appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association. HealthDay News wrote about it February 2.

Not everyone with swine flu should get the medicine Tamiflu (oseltamivir), the World Health Organization (WHO) said August 21. The drug should be saved for those who need it most, WHO said. High-risk groups include children under age 5, pregnant women, people over 65 and those with long-term health problems. WHO said these groups definitely should get the drug, the Associated Press reported. People with severe cases of swine flu also should get it, WHO said. This includes people who have breathing problems, chest pain or severe weakness. The advice is a warning to countries, such as the United Kingdom, that have given the drug out freely. WHO said excess use could help swine flu become resistant to Tamiflu. This would make it useless to those who need it most.

A medical lab company said it has fixed a problem with tests for vitamin D levels in the blood. The problem led to readings that were too high on some tests, Quest Diagnostics said. Quest said it discovered the problem because vitamin D levels found in tests were rising for no apparent reason. The company notified doctors and offered free repeat tests for some patients. Tests for vitamin D have been rising. Quest said there’s more interest now. That’s because new research suggests low vitamin D may increase the risk of cancer and heart disease. The Associated Press wrote about the Quest announcement January 8.

Some Dutch scientists have stirred controversy by saying that maybe kids should skip seasonal flu vaccine this year. But other health experts reject the idea, the Associated Press reported. The theory came from a group of scientists at Erasmus University in the Netherlands. The journal Lancet published their commentary online October 30. The scientists cited the 1957 Asian flu pandemic. They said people infected with seasonal flu that year were less likely to catch Asian flu. In mice and ferrets, having seasonal flu also seems to increase immunity to other types of flu, they said. But health officials said there’s no proof that letting children get seasonal flu will protect them from the current pandemic, H1N1 (swine) flu. Children are one of the groups most likely to get seriously ill from flu. Also, experts noted that most people in Mexico don’t get flu shots.

If people you know stop smoking, you’re more likely to quit too, a study has found. You’re influenced by the people you know and even by the people they know, researchers said. The study used a detailed set of data on 12,067 people. All were part of the 30-year Framingham Heart Study. The study found that if your spouse quits smoking, you’re 67% less likely to continue. If a friend quits, the odds that you’ll keep puffing drop 36%. Even if your friend’s sister or your husband’s co-worker quits, you’re more likely to quit too. The Associated Press wrote about the study May 22. It was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Obesity is costly for our wallets as well as our health, a study has found. The study looked at U.S. medical spending. It averages $1,400 more per year for an obese person than for someone of normal weight, the study found. Obesity-related medical spending has reached $147 billion per year. That figure has doubled in less than 10 years. Several conditions occur more often among obese people. Two of the most common are heart disease and diabetes. Obese people also take more prescription drugs. Researchers said Medicare drug spending alone is $600 higher each year for an obese person. The study appeared in the journal Health Affairs. The Associated Press wrote about it July 27.

The United States needs health care reform now, members of interest groups and both political parties agreed March 5 at a summit. The White House sponsored the meeting. People don’t agree on how to solve the problem, President Barack Obama said. But he stressed that every idea and opinion must be heard. The goal is to provide health coverage for everyone, he said. Congress is expected to begin writing the plan by June. Drug makers, insurance companies and others support the reform effort. Their opposition in the 1990s helped to derail health reform under President Bill Clinton. The Associated Press reported on the summit March 6.

The government recently gave the okay for a cholesterol-lowering drug to be used to prevent high cholesterol. Rosuvastatin (Crestor) could now be taken by people who have no cholesterol problem but are at risk for high cholesterol. Right now, about 40 million people who already have high cholesterol take statins. These drugs lower cholesterol with few side effects. High cholesterol is a risk factor for heart attack and stroke. But a large study found that while taking rosuvastatin does protect against these events, they are rare in people who don’t have high cholesterol. According to that study, called JUPITER, about 500 people would need to be treated with rosuvastatin for a year to avoid one heart attack. That would cost about $638,000.

An arthritis drug also may help to control diabetes, new research suggests. The study included 108 people with type 2 diabetes. They were randomly assigned to receive the drug salsalate or placebos (fake pills). Salsalate is similar to aspirin but has fewer side effects. After three months, people who took salsalate had more improvement in blood sugar control than people who took placebos. They also did better in some tests related to heart disease risk. But the salsalate group also was more likely to have protein in the urine. This can be an early warning sign of kidney problems. Researchers said more and larger studies are needed. The study was published online by the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. HealthDay News wrote about it March 15.