Weekly Gravy « Weekly Gravy

All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

The problem of “food deserts” in many parts of the United States has gained attention in recent years. Now, researchers are highlighting a similar issue: play deserts. In a recent study, investigators at the University of Georgia found that in many areas of the country — particularly the South — families have few safe, free parks and playgrounds for their kids to enjoy. That’s a problem, experts said, because when kids lack those opportunities, they’re more likely to stay inside and stare at screens. It’s well known that there are communities nationwide where people have a hard time getting to a grocery store or any other source of fresh, nutritious food. Those places have been dubbed food deserts, and an estimated 10% of the United States falls into that dubious category. The new findings show that a similar percentage can be considered play deserts, according to researcher Lan Mu, a professor of geography at the University of Georgia, Athens (UGA). Many play-deficient counties are clustered in the Southeast, where a lack of options and the quality of existing play areas are often problems, the study found. The Southwest was another hotspot for play deserts, and a common issue was affordability: Some places require a membership or fee to enter. It’s not enough that parks or playgrounds merely exist in a community, said lead researcher Jue… read on > read on >

Older Americans are increasingly likely to log into “patient portals” to access their health care information — but confidence levels vary. About 78% of people aged 50 to 80 now use at least one patient portal, according to the new University of Michigan (U-M) National Poll on Healthy Aging. Five years ago, just 51% in this age range used patient portals, the researchers said. The poll also found that 55% of those who used patient portals had done so in the past month. About 49% had accounts on more than one portal. This surge is partly due to the increase in use of telehealth visits, said Denise Anthony, the U-M School of Public Health professor who worked on the poll. “This change makes access to secure portals even more important for older adults who want to see their doctors and other health care providers virtually. It also makes the disparities we found in our poll even more troubling,” Anthony said in a Michigan Medicine news release. Older adults with annual household incomes below $60,000, and those who were Black or Hispanic, had lower rates of portal use. These groups were also less likely to say they’re comfortable using a portal. People in fair or poor health physically or mentally were also much more likely to say they’re not confident about their ability to log in… read on > read on >

Only 13% of American adults understand the purpose of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline nearly a year after its widely publicized launch, a new survey from the Pew Charitable Trusts shows. “There is an opportunity and a need for state and local leaders to launch inclusive awareness campaigns in the months ahead,” lead researcher and Pew senior manager Tracy Velázquez said in a statement, CNN reported. “The federal government’s most recent investment into 988 shows a commitment to building a strong crisis care infrastructure in the country — one that is critically important, given the many people experiencing mental health and substance use issues,” Velázquez added. The 988 line began last year after it was changed from 1-800-273-TALK. It was previously called the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Pew surveyed more than 5,000 adults in April, finding that once people knew about the 988 crisis line, about 7 in 10 said they were somewhat or highly likely to use it. Respondents also had some concerns about where calling the line might lead them. About 2 in 5 of those surveyed worried that calling 988 would lead to police arriving at their home, being forced to go to the hospital, being charged for services they couldn’t afford or having other people learn about the call. Race played a part in the results: Twice as many white… read on > read on >

The supplement known as 5-HTP is available in both natural and synthetic versions and is used by some people to treat a variety of wellness issues. Here’s a look at what this supplement is, its safety profile, side effects and drug interactions, and the potential health benefits that 5-HTP has to offer you for a balanced lifestyle. What is 5-HTP? In your body, 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) is a chemical produced naturally from the essential amino acid called tryptophan. The U.S. National Library of Medicine states that it’s the forerunner of serotonin. Natural supplements that contain 5-HTP are made from a plant called Griffonia simplicifolia that’s native to countries in West Africa such as Congo, Sierra Leone and Ghana, according to the University of Texas El Paso. A review published in the International Journal of Molecular Science by researchers from the University of Turin in Italy found that in recent years, scientific breakthroughs have also allowed for the production of some synthetic 5-HTP supplements. 5-HTP benefits Because 5-HTP is converted into serotonin (also known as 5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT) in the body, it provides a number of potential benefits for your overall health and well-being. Depression The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database rates 5-HTP as “possibly effective” for treating depression, according to the National Library of Medicine, and it may work as well as some antidepressant drugs that are… read on > read on >

Social media presents a “profound risk” to young brains, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy warned on Tuesday. In a report, Murthy warned about the risks of social media use for young people and called on policymakers, tech companies, researchers and parents to “urgently take action.” “There are ample indicators that social media can also have a profound risk of harm to the mental health and well-being of children and adolescents,” Murthy said. The full effect of social media isn’t well understood, he noted. “Adolescents are not just smaller adults,” Murthy told The New York Times. “They’re in a different phase of development, and they’re in a critical phase of brain development.” Among the concerns are that if kids are using social media frequently they may actually be altering their developing brains, specifically in the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex. These are important for emotional learning, emotional regulation, impulse control and social behavior. This “could increase sensitivity to social rewards and punishments,” the report stated. Reaction to the report was enthusiastic. “Today’s children and teens do not know a world without digital technology, but the digital world wasn’t built with children’s healthy mental development in mind. We need an approach to help children both on and offline that meets each child where they are while also working to make the digital spaces they inhabit safer… read on > read on >

You’ve heard of eating your spinach to stay strong, but how about loading up on your flavonols? New research suggests that plant-based foods rich in these important dietary compounds could lower your chances of developing frailty as you age. Apples and blackberries are among the fruits that contain a particular flavonoid called quercetin that may be the most important to prevent frailty, the investigators added. “There may be some validity to the old saying, an apple a day keeps the doctor [or frailty] away,” said a team that included Steven Oei, from the department of medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, in Boston. “Our findings suggest that for every 10 mg [milligrams] higher intake of flavonols per day, the odds of frailty were reduced by 20%. Individuals can easily consume 10 mg of flavonols intake per day since one medium-sized apple has about 10 mg of flavonols.” About 10% to 15% of older adults experience frailty. This geriatric syndrome leads to a greater risk of falls, fractures, disability, hospitalization and death. Dietary recommendations to prevent frailty typically focus on eating protein, but many other foods have health benefits, the study authors reported. “Although there was no significant association between total flavonoid intake and frailty, higher flavonols intake (one of the subclasses of flavonoids) was associated with lower odds of developing frailty,” according to study… read on > read on >

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved a second nasal spray for reversing an opioid overdose. To be sold as Opvee, the spray contains the medication nalmefene hydrochloride and will be available to Americans aged 12 and older with a prescription, the FDA said. “The agency continues to advance the FDA Overdose Prevention Framework and take actionable steps that encourage harm reduction by supporting the development of novel overdose reversal products,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf said in an agency news release. “On the heels of the FDA’s recent approval of the first over-the-counter opioid reversal agent [Narcan], the availability of nalmefene nasal spray places a new prescription opioid reversal option in the hands of communities, harm reduction groups and emergency responders,” Califf added. Indivior, which will make and sell Opvee going forward, said the spray should be available by October. Indivior bought Opiant Pharmaceuticals, which developed Opvee, in March. “Opvee’s FDA approval represents a significant achievement in the development of new treatment options to address today’s era of opioid overdoses that are driven by powerful synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl,” Indivior CEO Mark Crossley said in a company news release. “Opvee is an emergency treatment for the fast reversal of respiratory depression triggered by natural or synthetic opioids, including fentanyl, and we are committed to making this novel rescue medication widely available… read on > read on >

About 7 in 10 American parents are concerned that social media trends related to appearance and editing apps and filters are harming their children’s body image, a new survey shows. Among those polled, about 69% of parents expressed worry about these editing apps and filters, which can completely change the look of someone’s face and body. This may make them appear to meet some supposed standard of beauty. Also, about two-thirds said that trends related to diet and exercise also had a negative influence, according to the survey results released May 23 by the On Our Sleeves Movement for Children’s Mental Health, from Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. A young person’s feelings about their body can affect their mental health, said Erin McTiernan, a contributor to On Our Sleeves and a pediatric psychologist at Nationwide Children’s. “Those concerns are valid,” McTiernan said about parents’ strong response to the survey questions. “Social media has some great benefits for kids, especially in the areas of entertainment and social connection. But when it comes to body image, there are some things that we know can have a negative impact.” Making comparisons Children may compare themselves to these unrealistic standards or feel this is how they should be because of the numbers of “likes” they get on social media for a certain look, McTiernan said. “We know that… read on > read on >

For people who survive gunshot wounds, the trauma may leave mental scars that worsen with time, a new study finds. Among 87 adults treated for gun injuries at a Wisconsin trauma center, many had worsening symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression six months later. The findings, published May 22 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, come from one of the few studies that has tracked the long-term mental health of gunshot victims. For years, gun violence research was stymied in the United States after Congress suspended federal funding for it in 1996. That changed just a few years ago. “For a long time, we weren’t able to do firearms research, so we don’t really know a lot about these long-term outcomes,” said Dr. Peter Ehrlich, director of the pediatric trauma center at the University of Michigan’s C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. Ehrlich, who was not involved in the new research, published a study last year that looked at the mental health of U.S. children and teenagers who’d sustained gun injuries — and the findings were similar. Of 1,450 kids injured by guns, 35% were newly diagnosed with a mental health condition in the year afterward — most often PTSD or substance abuse. That compared with 26% of U.S. kids who were injured in a motor vehicle crash. Ehrlich said that while the new study… read on > read on >

A subset of people may be at high risk for both psychiatric disorders and for using marijuana, based on their genetics, according to a new study. Researchers from the University of Oslo in Norway have found that some of the genetic variants associated with cannabis use are also linked to psychiatric disorders. “These findings are important as they show that the complex links between cannabis use and these disorders may not only be caused by cannabis use itself, but could also be driven by shared genetic susceptibility,” lead co-author Nadine Parker said in a university news release. The rate of cannabis use is high among patients with disorders linked to psychosis, including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Cannabis is a psychoactive drug that can sometimes produces psychotic-like symptoms, according to the study. “This study shows that there is a shared genetic basis underlying our susceptibility to both cannabis use and certain psychiatric disorders,” lead co-author Weiqiu Cheng said in the release. To study this, Parker, Cheng and their colleagues used advanced statistical modeling. They found that a majority of shared variants increased the risk of both cannabis use and developing either schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Yet, there were some genetic variants with opposing effects that increased the risk of cannabis use while decreasing the risk of the two psychiatric disorders. In some parts of the world,… read on > read on >

Weekly Gravy

Look Good – Feel Good – Feed Good

A little about: Weekly Gravy

All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Nowhere Safe to Play: ‘Play Deserts’ Keep Kids from Fun Physical Activity

More Older Americans Use Online ‘Patient Portals’ to Access Care

Most Americans Don’t Know What 988 Suicide Crisis Hotline Is For: Poll

5-HTP Supplement: What Is It, and Can It Help You?

U.S. Surgeon General Warns That Social Media Can Harm Teens’ Mental Health

An Apple (and Some Blackberries) Each Day May Keep Frailty Away

FDA Approves New Nasal Spray to Reverse Overdoses

Many Parents Worry About Social Media’s Impact on Kids’ Body Image: Poll

PTSD, Other Mental Health Ills Haunt Gunshot Survivors

‘Complex’ Genetic Links Between Marijuana Use, Psychiatric Ills