Harvard Health Content API

A new study has found no clear increased risk of suicide or depression from a drug that helps people quit smoking. U.S. labels for varenicline (Chantix) warn that it could increase the risk of behavior changes. Depression, thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts are among the changes listed. The study used a database of 80,660 people. All had been prescribed a product to help them quit smoking. Nearly 11,000 used varenicline. Researchers found no clear increased risk of suicidal thoughts, self-harm or depression in this group. But researchers said the study was too small to provide a definite answer. They said it’s possible that a larger study would find that varenicline doubles suicide risk or even cuts it in half. The journal BMJ published the study. HealthDay and Reuters news services wrote about it October 2.

Researchers are gathering this week to talk about a seeming relic of the ’60s, experiments with psychedelic drugs. The conference in San Jose, Calif., will draw people from around the world, the New York Times said April 11. Much of the new research uses psilocybin, an ingredient in certain mushrooms. The new studies are small. They are also much more carefully controlled than early studies of LSD, the Times said. To guard against bad reactions, people receive the drugs in a calm, controlled environment. Results are measured in standard ways. Some studies use scans to see what occurs in the people’s brains. The drugs are being used to treat depression in cancer patients, obsessive-compulsive disorder, end-of-life anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction to drugs or alcohol. Early results are promising, the Times said.

A study has found one common treatment for HIV more effective than another in people who started with a lot of the virus in their bloodstream. The study was published online December 1 by the New England Journal of Medicine. The study included 797 people who had a very high level of HIV in their bodies. They had not been treated for HIV before. Researchers divided them into four groups. Two groups received the drugs abacavir and lamivudine. The other two were given tenofovir DF and emtricitabine. Depending on the group, they also received other drugs. In the next five years, treatment stopped working for 7% of those in the groups that took tenofovir DF and emtricitabine. The rate was twice as high, 14%, for the groups that took the other two drugs.

Flu viruses change as they pass back and forth between people who have been exposed to the virus and those who had not been exposed before, new research suggests. People are exposed by getting infected or vaccinated. Researchers say vaccinating more people who have not been exposed — especially children — may slow the process of change. The study looked at changes in an H1N1 virus, an older strain that is similar to the current H1N1 (swine) flu. Researchers injected virus into several groups of mice. Some had been vaccinated. Some had not. In the vaccinated mice, the virus changed into a form that clung tighter to cells. This helped the virus to fight off antibodies in the immune system. But it also meant the virus did not spread as easily. In the unvaccinated mice, the virus spread and multiplied easily. It didn’t change much.

Couch potatoes can get some of the benefits of exercise with a new drug, researchers say. So far, it has been tested only in mice. After four weeks of taking it, they burned more calories and had less fat than other mice. They also could run 44% farther and 23% longer on a treadmill. Mice who also exercised regularly got even more benefit with a second drug that was tested. They could run 68% longer and 70% farther than mice that exercised but didn’t get the drug. The Associated Press wrote about the study July 31. It was published online by the journal Cell.

Alabama will become the first state to charge obese workers for insurance. More than 37,000 state employees have one year to show some progress. If they don’t, they’ll have to pay $25 a month for insurance that is currently free. Other states reward workers who practice good health. Alabama already charges workers who smoke. The Associated Press reported the announcement on August 22.

More than half a million U.S. children each year are treated for bad reactions or side effects to medicines. So says new research published in the journal Pediatrics. The Associated Press wrote about the study September 28. The study was based on national data about visits to clinics and emergency rooms. It focused on reactions to both prescription and over-the-counter drugs. The years covered were 1995 through 2005. The numbers remained steady through those years. Nearly half of the children involved were under 5. Many of these were cases of accidental overdose. A frequent cause was that parents did not understand dosing instructions. About 1 out of 20 treated children was sick enough to require a hospital stay.

Pop star Michael Jackson, 50, has died after an apparent cardiac arrest, the Associated Press reported. Cardiac arrest is when the heart goes into an abnormal rhythm and stops. Emergency personnel were called to Jackson’s home June 25, but were unable to revive him. He died at UCLA Medical Center. A friend speculated that prescription pain relievers could be a factor. However, no cause of death is known now. Police are investigating. An autopsy is scheduled.

Simple head and body movements are the best treatment for one type of vertigo, or dizziness, a doctors’ group says. Doctors or therapists perform these movements. They are used to treat benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. This problem is caused by mineral deposits in the inner ear. The movements push these crystals into another part of the ear. There, they can be absorbed by the body. The treatment is recommended in a new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology. It was published May 27 in the journal Neurology.

Vitamin D levels may affect breast cancer survival, a study finds. Researchers measured vitamin D in the blood of 512 women with early-stage breast cancer. Only 1 in 4 women had vitamin D at recommended levels. In the next 10 years, the cancer was nearly twice as likely to come back or spread in women who did not have enough vitamin D. They were 73% more likely to die of cancer. The Associated Press wrote about the study May 16. It was released by the American Society of Clinical Oncology.