Intense weather fluctuations caused by climate change could be contributing to an increase in stroke deaths, a new study claims. Freezing cold fronts and broiling heat waves are associated with more than half a million deaths annually in recent years, researchers report April 10 in the journal Neurology. “Dramatic temperature changes in recent years have affected human health and caused widespread concern,” said researcher Quan Cheng, of Xiangya Hospital at Central South University in Changsha, China. “Our study found that these changing temperatures may increase the burden of stroke worldwide, especially in older populations and areas with more health care disparities,” Cheng added in a journal news release. Bone-chilling cold fronts in particular were linked to more strokes, researchers said. But temperatures that swing too high or too low can both increase a person’s risk of stroke, researchers added in background notes. Lower temperatures cause a person’s blood vessels to constrict, increasing blood pressure. High blood pressure is a primary risk factor for stroke. On the other hand, higher temperatures can cause dehydration, which thickens and slows blood — factors also associated with stroke. Stroke deaths in the United States increased 26% between 2011 and 2021, according to the American Heart Association. Some of this could be tied to climate change, the researchers argue. For the study, the team looked at three decades of health…  read on >  read on >

Toddlers who grow up near nature are less likely to have emotional issues, even if the green space is just a park or a big back yard, a new study shows. The more green space there is within three-fourths of a mile from a child’s home, the fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression they’ll have between the ages of 2 and 5, investigators found. “Our research supports existing evidence that being in nature is good for kids,” said researcher Nissa Towe-Goodman, with the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina. “It also suggests that the early childhood years are a crucial time for exposure to green spaces.” For the study, researchers examined data from more than 2,100 children in 199 counties across 41 U.S. states.  The team compared the depression and anxiety symptoms of the children — who ranged in age from 2 to 11 — to satellite data about the green space located near their homes. More green space was significantly associated with less anxiety and depression among younger kids, even after accounting for other factors, researchers said. Those other factors included the child’s gender, parent education and the social and economic quality of their neighborhood. However, researchers found no significant link between green space and mental health symptoms from ages 6 to 11, after kids have started school.…  read on >  read on >

More middle-aged Black and Native Americans are now falling prey to “deaths of despair” than whites, a new study finds. These deaths — from suicide, drug overdose and alcoholic liver disease — initially had been more common among whites. But a new analysis has determined that deaths of despair have skyrocketed for Black and Native Americans over the past decade. The deaths of despair rate among Black Americans tripled between 2013 and 2022, rising from 36 deaths per 100,000 people to nearly 104 deaths per 100,000, researchers found. That’s slightly higher than the 2022 rate among white Americans, which was nearly 103 deaths per 100,000. The rate is worst among Native American/Alaska Native people, who suffered nearly 242 deaths of despair per 100,000 in 2022. “The findings reinforce the notion that we need to invest in services that can address these issues and, ultimately, we need much more comprehensive access to low-barrier mental health care and substance use treatment in the U.S.,” said researcher Joseph Friedman, of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “And we need to specifically make sure those treatments, services and programs are implemented in a way that is accessible for communities of color and will actively work to address inequality,” Friedman added in a university news release. Deaths of despair attained the spotlight following a 2015 study that analyzed…  read on >  read on >

The Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday that it has finalized a first-ever rule that will drastically lower the amount of PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” in the nation’s drinking water. “Drinking water contaminated with PFAS has plagued communities across this country for too long,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in an agency news release announcing the new rule. “That is why President Biden has made tackling PFAS a top priority, investing historic resources to address these harmful chemicals and protect communities nationwide.” Exposure to PFAS has been linked to various cancers, liver and heart issues, and immune and developmental damage to infants and children, the agency noted. The level of exposure is significant in the United States: A 2023 government study detected PFAS in nearly half of the country’s tap water. The new rule, which requires utilities to reduce PFAS to the lowest level they can reliably be measured, should lower PFAS exposure for approximately 100 million people, the agency noted. In addition to the new rule, the EPA also announced that nearly $1 billion in new funding should help states and territories implement PFAS testing and treatment at public water systems and help owners of private wells address PFAS contamination. While environmental experts and health advocates welcomed the news, water utilities warned the new rule will cost billions more than the EPA has estimated and fall hardest on…  read on >  read on >

Teenagers suffering from anxiety, depression or bipolar disorder are likely to have a tougher time getting their driver’s license, a new study finds. Teens and young adults with these types of mood disorders are 30% less likely to obtain a driver’s license than peers without a mood disorder, researchers report April 8 in the journal JAMA Network Open. Youths with mood disorders also have nearly twice the risk of losing their license and a slightly elevated risk of crashing a vehicle, the researchers discovered. “Our results indicate that newly licensed youths with mood disorders have a greater risk of crashing than other young drivers, but that this is a manageable risk,” said senior researcher Allison Curry, an associate professor of pediatrics with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Center for Injury Research and Prevention. As many as one in 10 teens and young adults have been diagnosed with a mood disorder, researchers said in background notes. These disorders often develop around the age a teen becomes eligible to get a driver’s license, researchers noted. However, skills required for safe driving — attention, memory, motor skills — are often impaired in those with mood disorders. For the study, researchers compared nearly 1,900 teens with mood disorders to more than 84,000 teens without such a disorder, all of whom were eligible to get their license. They linked…  read on >  read on >