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Mood Disorders Have Increased Among Kids, Teens

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Depression and anxiety have been increasing steadily among children and teenagers in recent years, a new study says. More than 1 in 10 children (10.6%) suffered from anxiety in 2022, up from 7.1% in 2016, researchers reported April 21 in JAMA Pediatrics. During the same period, depression among children increased to 4.6% from 3.2%, results show. “Our findings underscore the critical need to prioritize youth mental health, which continued to worsen even as we emerged from the pandemic,” lead researcher Marie Heffernan, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said in a news release. “Parents and schools need more support to be better equipped to help children suffering from anxiety or depression,” she added. For the study, researchers analyzed data from the National Survey of Children’s Health, which is funded by the federal Health Resources and Services Administration. Results showed that some physical maladies among children decreased even as their mood disorders rose. Asthma declined from 8.4% to 6.5% between 2016 and 2022, and severe headaches or migraines declined from 3.5% to 2.6%, researchers found. Behavior and conduct problems remained at about the same levels, around 7%, researchers said. “Continued attention and resources are warranted at a national level to clarify and address the multitude of potential causes of worsening anxiety and depression in children and adolescents,” senior researcher Dr.…  read on >  read on >

Trump Administration Plans Ban on More Synthetic Food Dyes

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The Trump administration is expected to take new steps to remove artificial food dyes from the U.S. food supply, officials say. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are expected to share more details on Tuesday, CNN reported. This follows a major move by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in January, under former President Joe Biden, to ban red dye No. 3 in food, drinks and some drugs. That action came more than 30 years after research linked the dye to cancer in animals. Now, federal officials appear ready to go even farther. Kennedy has been an outspoken critic of petroleum-based synthetic dyes, which are used to make foods and drinks look more appealing to consumers. In March, Kennedy supported a new West Virginia law banning some of these dyes. It made West Virginia the first state to take such broad action. Studies have linked some food dyes to behavior and learning issues in children, CNN reported. More than half of U.S. states, including both Republican- and Democrat-led ones, are pushing to restrict these ingredients, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG). In a March email to CNN, the National Confectioners Association said while states have a role to play in the nation’s food system, “the FDA is the rightful national regulatory decision maker and…  read on >  read on >

Trump Administration Plans Ban on More Synthetic Food Dyes

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The Trump administration is expected to take new steps to remove artificial food dyes from the U.S. food supply, officials say. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are expected to share more details on Tuesday, CNN reported. This follows a major move by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in January, under former President Joe Biden, to ban red dye No. 3 in food, drinks and some drugs. That action came more than 30 years after research linked the dye to cancer in animals. Now, federal officials appear ready to go even farther. Kennedy has been an outspoken critic of petroleum-based synthetic dyes, which are used to make foods and drinks look more appealing to consumers. In March, Kennedy supported a new West Virginia law banning some of these dyes. It made West Virginia the first state to take such broad action. Studies have linked some food dyes to behavior and learning issues in children, CNN reported. More than half of U.S. states, including both Republican- and Democrat-led ones, are pushing to restrict these ingredients, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG). In a March email to CNN, the National Confectioners Association said while states have a role to play in the nation’s food system, “the FDA is the rightful national regulatory decision maker and…  read on >  read on >

School-Based Asthma Programs Keep Kids Healthy And Learning

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Kids struggle with asthma as much at school as they do at home — possibly even more so, since it can be tough for them to access their medicine. So why aren’t all schools offering them asthma therapy? A new study says that school-based asthma therapy is effective in helping kids breathe easier while away from home. These school programs keep kids healthier, and can save millions in health care costs, researchers report in the May issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global. “We help families get better adherence to kids’ asthma control medication regimens by having the school nurses give them their meds on the days that they go to school,” lead researcher Kimberly Arcoleo, a professor at the Michigan State University College of Nursing, said in a news release. For the study, researchers tracked a school-based asthma therapy program implemented in two Columbus, Ohio, school districts between 2013 and 2019, involving 633 kids ranging in age from 5 to 19. “Students get two inhalers with controller medication, one that goes to school and one that stays home so it doesn’t have to move back and forth,” Arcoleo said. “The school nurse administers the medication to the kids each school day according to their health care provider’s instructions. Some kids need it once a day, some need it twice a day.”…  read on >  read on >

School-Based Asthma Programs Keep Kids Healthy And Learning

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Kids struggle with asthma as much at school as they do at home — possibly even more so, since it can be tough for them to access their medicine. So why aren’t all schools offering them asthma therapy? A new study says that school-based asthma therapy is effective in helping kids breathe easier while away from home. These school programs keep kids healthier, and can save millions in health care costs, researchers report in the May issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global. “We help families get better adherence to kids’ asthma control medication regimens by having the school nurses give them their meds on the days that they go to school,” lead researcher Kimberly Arcoleo, a professor at the Michigan State University College of Nursing, said in a news release. For the study, researchers tracked a school-based asthma therapy program implemented in two Columbus, Ohio, school districts between 2013 and 2019, involving 633 kids ranging in age from 5 to 19. “Students get two inhalers with controller medication, one that goes to school and one that stays home so it doesn’t have to move back and forth,” Arcoleo said. “The school nurse administers the medication to the kids each school day according to their health care provider’s instructions. Some kids need it once a day, some need it twice a day.”…  read on >  read on >

Loneliness More Common Among Middle-Aged In U.S.

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Loneliness among seniors has been a huge concern among experts on aging as social isolation increases risk of dementia, health problems, psychological disorders and deaths. But a new study suggests that, at least in the U.S., that concern has been somewhat misplaced. Middle-aged people in the United States experience more loneliness than seniors, researchers reported today in the journal Aging and Mental Health. The Netherlands is the only other country where loneliness is more concentrated among the middle-aged than seniors, according to the study’s review of more than 64,000 people in 29 countries. “There is a general perception that people get lonelier as they age, but the opposite is actually true in the U.S. where middle-aged people are lonelier than older generations,” lead researcher Robin Richardson, a social and psychiatric epidemiologist and assistant professor at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, said in a news release. “Advocacy and interventions to address the loneliness epidemic have historically focused on older adults and adolescents,” she added. “Middle-aged adults represent a critical population that is being overlooked.” For the study, researchers assessed data from surveys conducted in Europe, the Middle East and North America that included a three-question loneliness scale developed by UCLA. Results showed that loneliness generally increased with age, with the most substantial increases in the Eastern European countries Bulgaria and Latvia. Adults in Cyprus…  read on >  read on >

Loneliness More Common Among Middle-Aged In U.S.

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Loneliness among seniors has been a huge concern among experts on aging as social isolation increases risk of dementia, health problems, psychological disorders and deaths. But a new study suggests that, at least in the U.S., that concern has been somewhat misplaced. Middle-aged people in the United States experience more loneliness than seniors, researchers reported today in the journal Aging and Mental Health. The Netherlands is the only other country where loneliness is more concentrated among the middle-aged than seniors, according to the study’s review of more than 64,000 people in 29 countries. “There is a general perception that people get lonelier as they age, but the opposite is actually true in the U.S. where middle-aged people are lonelier than older generations,” lead researcher Robin Richardson, a social and psychiatric epidemiologist and assistant professor at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, said in a news release. “Advocacy and interventions to address the loneliness epidemic have historically focused on older adults and adolescents,” she added. “Middle-aged adults represent a critical population that is being overlooked.” For the study, researchers assessed data from surveys conducted in Europe, the Middle East and North America that included a three-question loneliness scale developed by UCLA. Results showed that loneliness generally increased with age, with the most substantial increases in the Eastern European countries Bulgaria and Latvia. Adults in Cyprus…  read on >  read on >

FDA May Shift Routine Food Inspections to States

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may soon hand off routine food safety inspections to state and local officials, multiple federal health officials told CBS News. These changes are not final and could require approval and funding from Congress. Some FDA employees have been discussing a handoff for years. The goal is to free up federal staff for higher priotiry or foreign inspections. “The claim that the FDA is suspending routine food safety inspections is false,” an FDA spokesperson said. “FDA is actively working to ensure continuity of operations during the reorganization period and remains committed to ensuring critical programs and inspections continue.” The FDA already contracts with 43 states and Puerto Rico to do some routine inspections.  States have handled about one-third of routine inspections in recent years, according to a Government Accountability Office report. “There’s so much work to go around. And us duplicating their work just doesn’t make sense,” a former FDA official who worked on the plans before leaving the agency and spoke on the condition of anonymity, told CBS News. The FDA oversees safety of foods like packaged goods, seafood, eggs and produce. Some meat products are handled by a separate agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Under the tentative plan, some inspections considered higher risk would still be done by the FDA. For example, the agency…  read on >  read on >

FDA May Shift Routine Food Inspections to States

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may soon hand off routine food safety inspections to state and local officials, multiple federal health officials told CBS News. These changes are not final and could require approval and funding from Congress. Some FDA employees have been discussing a handoff for years. The goal is to free up federal staff for higher priotiry or foreign inspections. “The claim that the FDA is suspending routine food safety inspections is false,” an FDA spokesperson said. “FDA is actively working to ensure continuity of operations during the reorganization period and remains committed to ensuring critical programs and inspections continue.” The FDA already contracts with 43 states and Puerto Rico to do some routine inspections.  States have handled about one-third of routine inspections in recent years, according to a Government Accountability Office report. “There’s so much work to go around. And us duplicating their work just doesn’t make sense,” a former FDA official who worked on the plans before leaving the agency and spoke on the condition of anonymity, told CBS News. The FDA oversees safety of foods like packaged goods, seafood, eggs and produce. Some meat products are handled by a separate agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Under the tentative plan, some inspections considered higher risk would still be done by the FDA. For example, the agency…  read on >  read on >