Category: news-perspectives

Mothers multitask more than fathers, and they feel more stressed out about it. So says a new study in the American Sociological Review. Researchers used data from a 12-year-old study of mostly college-educated parents. Most of them were professionals who worked longer than average hours. The 368 mothers and 241 fathers in the study wore special wristwatches that beeped several times during the day. They were supposed to write down whatever they were doing at that moment. They also wrote down what they were thinking and feeling. Mothers spent 48 hours of their week multitasking. Fathers spent 39 hours. For mothers, 53% of the multitasking involved household chores, compared with 42% for fathers. Mothers spent 36% of their multitasking time on child care. Fathers spent 28%. Men’s multitasking was more likely to include tasks for work or self-care.

New York City health officials are urging doctors to prescribe medicine earlier to people infected with HIV. The medicines help to keep down the amount of virus in a person’s body. Health officials noted that people who get treatment are much less likely to spread the virus to others. But the drugs are expensive. Standard practice has been to prescribe them only after the immune system weakens. New York City health officials said costs will go down as the drugs become generic. They said preventing spread to others also will lower costs. More than 110,000 people in New York City are infected with HIV. That’s more than in any other U.S. city. The city health department is keeping track of 66,000 who are being effectively treated with drugs to suppress the virus. Officials estimated that their new advice would help about 3,000 more people begin treatment.

Many people taking the blood thinner warfarin may cut their risk of blood clots in half by doing required blood tests at home, a study finds. The best dose of warfarin varies, even for the same person. To prevent clots or excess bleeding, people get regular blood tests. Based on the results, they may need to take a different dose. The new study put together results from 11 prior studies. They included a total of 6,400 people. All of the studies compared people who got standard office tests with those who tested at home. The people who tested at home used a special meter to test a drop of blood. People who used office or home testing had similar risks of excess bleeding or death. For some groups, blood clot risk was cut in half or more with home tests. Those who benefited most included people with mechanical heart valves and people under age 55.

About 38% of U.S. adults who get care from a home health agency are taking at least one inappropriate prescription drug, a study finds. The medicines were on a list of drugs that should be used only with great care among older adults. The rate of potential problem drugs was nearly 3 times as high as other studies have shown for people who get care in a doctor’s office. Researchers used data from the 2007 National Home and Hospice Care Survey. The study included 3,100 patients. All were age 65 or older. The average person in the study took 11 prescription drugs. Potential problem drugs were prescribed most often for those who took the most drugs. They were prescribed 5 to 6 times as often for those taking 15 or more drugs as for those taking 7 or fewer. The Journal of General Internal Medicine published the study online. HealthDay News wrote about it November 29.

A common liver disease does not increase the risk of death, a new study concludes. The results surprised researchers. The condition, called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, is found most often among people who are obese. Researchers looked at records for 11,000 Americans, ages 20 to 74. Their health was tracked for up to 18 years as part of a large national survey. About 1 out of 5 people had non-alcoholic fatty liver. But they did not have a higher risk of death than others surveyed. Researchers said they didn’t know why fatty liver does not seem to affect death rates. They suggested that fatty liver may protect the body from some of the effects of obesity and diabetes. The journal BMJ published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it November 28.

Statin drugs that lower LDL cholesterol are safe long term, an 11-year study concludes. The study found that the drugs lowered the risk of heart attack and strokes 23%. And they didn’t increase the risk of cancer or other diseases. More than 20,000 people were part of the study. All had an above average risk of heart disease and other blood vessel problems. They were randomly assigned to take either simvastatin (Zocor) or placebo (fake) pills. The original study lasted 5 years. After that, people who got the placebo at first could take the statin if a doctor prescribed it. Researchers kept track of people for another 6 years. They found no difference between the two groups in their rates of cancer or deaths from non-heart diseases. The journal Lancet published the study online. HealthDay News wrote about it November 22.

Both high and relatively low levels of sodium may be bad for some people, a new study suggests. It’s one of a few studies published recently that question whether a low-sodium diet is best for everyone. The new study included 30,000 people. Some had heart or artery disease. Others had a high risk of developing it. Researchers measured their total output of sodium in urine in a 24-hour period. This was used to estimate how much sodium they took in per day. Researchers kept track of them for the next 4 years. The most heart-related deaths and hospital stays for heart failure occurred among people with the highest and lowest levels of sodium in their urine. People with high sodium also had more heart attacks and strokes. People with a mid-range level of sodium had the fewest problems. But many of those in the lower-sodium group still consumed more sodium than recommended.

A form of home blood pressure monitoring may show which older adults are most at risk for a form of dementia, a new study suggests. The study included 72 people. Their average age was 82. Doctors gave them 2 tests. Each person wore a monitor for 24 hours. It measured their blood pressure at regular intervals, day and night. People also got magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of the brain. They got the same tests again 2 years later. In the MRI, researchers looked for white spots known as white matter hyperintensities. These spots are signs of damage to small blood vessels. They have been linked with a reduction in memory and thinking skills. Some people’s home-measured blood pressure got worse during the 2-year study. They tended to have more white spots in the brain than people with lower blood pressure. They also did worse on tests of mental function.

About 8% of teens and young adults hurt themselves on purpose, a new study finds. Most of them stop as they get older, but 1% of adults are still harming themselves at age 29. These numbers come from a long-term study of 1,800 teens and young adults. They were surveyed from time to time about their health and behaviors. They were mostly about 15 years old when the study started and 29 when it ended. At the start, about 10% of girls and 6% of boys said they sometimes harmed themselves. The methods included cutting, burning or taking a life-threatening risk. Researchers said it was good to see that most people who harm themselves stop. But the risk is great for those who continue. Other studies have shown that people who are brought to the hospital because of self-harm are 100 times more likely than average to commit suicide. The journal Lancet published the study.

Blood type might have an impact on a person’s risk of stroke, a new study suggests. People with O blood, the most common type, had the lowest risk. People with AB blood, the least common type, had the highest risk. They were 26% more likely to have a stroke than people with O blood. The study was based on medical records for 90,000 men and women. All were involved in health studies that have kept track of people for more than 20 years. Stroke risk also was higher in people with B blood, but only among women. They were 15% more likely to have a stroke than women with O blood. Blood type is determined by proteins on the surface of red blood cells. These proteins affect immune system responses. Researchers said some blood types might make red cells more likely to clump together and cause clots. Type O, on the other hand, has been linked to an increased risk of bleeding.