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Does advising your teen sometimes feel like talking to the proverbial brick wall? Don’t fret: New research shows that even when your preteen or teen gives your advice a flat “no way,” your counsel is probably having an impact. It may simply be tucked away by your child, ready for use another day. “The kids are at an age where they’re maturing and wanting to make their own decisions,” explained study lead author and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researcher Kelly Tu. “Their immediate response may be resistance or reluctance, but the advice about how to reframe the problem, consider other explanations or think about what they are learning from the experience is sticking with them,” Tu said in a university news release. “They may need time to process and evaluate it. Maybe they didn’t find it useful in that specific situation they were discussing. But perhaps they came across new experiences in middle school and now they have some strategies to pull from their toolbox because mom gave them different ways to think about academic challenges.” Tu is associate professor of human development and family studies at the university. Her team published the study in the May-June issue of the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. The study focused on 100 mother-child pairs where the child was in the fifth grade. Tu said her team focused… read on > read on >

If you’re one of the millions of Americans walking around with a new knee or hip, your odds for an infection in that joint rise if you ever have to undergo cancer chemotherapy, researchers report. “Given the number of people of receiving total joint replacements each year, as well as the cost both physically, emotionally and financially for those who develop an infection and may need subsequent treatment, we need to understand what factors may increase the risk for postoperative infections,” said study author Dr. Janet Conway. She’s an orthopedic surgeon at the Rubin Institute for Advanced Orthopedics, and is also head of Bone and Joint Infection at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore. Her team tracked outcomes for over 17,000 patients who had undergone total knee replacement, total hip replacement or total shoulder replacement. They looked at people who’d also undergone chemotherapy within a year of their joint replacement surgery. Undergoing chemo appeared tied to a higher odds for an infection in the joint that had been replaced, the team found, compared to folks with new joints who had not undergone chemo. “We became curious about the potential effects of postoperative chemotherapy and the risk of joint infection as we saw cases in our own joint replacement patients,” Conway explained in a Sinai Hospital news release. “To our knowledge, this is the first study to comprehensively… read on > read on >

Memorial Day means firing up that backyard grill for the season, hopefully under warm, sunny skies. You can be sure to enjoy the day without hazards by taking a few simple precautions, said Dr. Mike Ren, an associate professor of family and community medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Watch out for rising heat and humidity If Memorial day is a scorcher, hydration is key, Ren said. “A good rule of thumb is to drink water regularly throughout the day, aiming for 12 or more cups; when in the heat, drink one cup (eight ounces) of water roughly every 20 minutes,” he advised. And stay away from substances that can rob your body of water. “Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it increases urine production and can lead to fluid loss,” Ren noted in a Baylor news release. “On the other hand, sugary drinks can cause spikes and crashes in blood sugar levels,” he added. “Prioritizing water consumption is crucial for maintaining proper hydration levels. If you want to add a little flavor, low or zero-sugar electrolyte powders and supplements can be a good alternative.” Shield your skin from the sun Folks may have forgotten the sun’s dangers as winter and spring ebb away. Dr. John Wolf, professor of dermatology at Baylor, recommends slapping on a sunscreen with an SPF of 30, and using… read on > read on >

Ozempic provides a wide variety of health benefits for people with kidney disease and type 2 diabetes, a major clinical trial has found. The drug significantly reduces the risk of severe kidney events, heart problems and death from any cause in patients who have both conditions, researchers found. “These benefits signify a profound clinical impact saving kidneys, hearts and lives for patients with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease,” said researcher Vlado Perkovic, provost of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. “Additionally, the reassuring safety findings further support the strong potential value of [Ozempic] in this population.” Chronic kidney disease affects more than 800 million people worldwide, and is particularly common among people with type 2 diabetes, researchers said in background notes. Ozempic was originally developed as a treatment for diabetes, as it helps control the release of insulin and keeps blood sugar levels lower. Its potential benefits for weight loss were later tested and approved. However, its potential to help people with kidney disease had not been fully examined, researchers said. For the study, investigators recruited more than 3,500 patients who had both kidney disease and type 2 diabetes. Patients were randomly chosen to receive weekly Ozempic (semaglutide) or a placebo. Patients taking Ozempic had a 24% lower risk of kidney problems, heart disease and death related to either the… read on > read on >

One of the toughest decisions seniors face is when to give up their keys and stop driving. Even slight changes to the ability to remember, think and reason can lead a senior to decide to stop driving, a new study finds. Impaired cognitive function foreshadows the decision of many seniors to give up driving, even more so than age or physical changes related to Alzheimer’s disease, researchers found. And routine brain testing — in particular, screening meant to detect the earliest and most subtle decline — could help older adults make safe driving decisions while still preserving their independence, the study concluded. “Many older drivers are aware of changes occurring as they age, including subjective cognitive decline,” said researcher Ganesh Babulal, an associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. “Doctors should discuss such changes with their older patients,” Babulal added in a university news release. “If risk is identified early, there is more time to support the remaining capacity and skills, extending the time they can drive safely, and to plan for a transition to alternative transportation options to maintain their independence when the time comes to stop driving.” For the study, researchers tracked 283 people with an average age of 72 who drove at least once a week and had no cognitive impairments at the start. The participants… read on > read on >

For decades, the responsibility for birth control has fallen largely on women, but new research suggests a birth control pill for men might one day become a reality. How does it work? It targets a protein required for fertility, scientists report. The protein, called serine/threonine kinase 33 (STK33), is enriched in the testicles and is specifically required to create functional sperm, they explained. A drug that inhibits STK33, called compound CDD-2807, blocked the ability of male lab mice to fertilize female mice, researchers reported May 23 in the journal Science. “We were pleased to see that the mice did not show signs of toxicity from CDD-2807 treatment, that the compound did not accumulate in the brain and that the treatment did not alter testis size,” said researcher Courtney Sutton, a postdoctoral fellow in pathology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. “Importantly, the contraceptive effect was reversible,” Sutton added in a Baylor news release. “After a period without compound CDD-2807, the mice recovered sperm motility and numbers and were fertile again.” Previous research had shown that naturally occurring mutations in STK33 leads to infertility in both mice and men by causing abnormal sperm with poor movement. These mutations cause no other health problems. “STK33 is therefore considered a viable target with minimal safety concerns for contraception in men,” said researcher Dr. Martin Matzuk, director of… read on > read on >

The rate at which Americans under the age of 65 suffered a stroke rose by about 15% between 2011 and 2022, new government data shows. That was true even among the young: The rate of stroke jumped 14.6% among people ages 18 to 44 during the study period, researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. It’s not clear why stroke rates have risen so sharply, but rising rates of obesity and high blood pressure are likely contributing factors. Another reason could be that people are better now at spotting the signs of a stroke, said a team led by Yui Fujii, of the CDC’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention. “Better recognition of stroke signs and symptoms might have potentially contributed to increased stroke prevalence, because earlier stroke treatment contributes to improved outcomes” and more survivors, his team said. Stroke remains the fifth leading cause of death in the United States. According to the National Institutes of Health, each year 795,000 Americans will suffer a stroke, and about 137,000 will die. In the new report, Fujii’s group tracked 2011-2022 data from a U.S. national health surveillance system to spot trends in stroke incidence among Americans aged 18 and older. Overall, stroke increased by 7.8% among Americans during those 11 years, the data showed. The rate of stroke among seniors remained… read on > read on >

Three months after starting one of the new GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, more than a quarter of patients have already quit the medications, and by a year from first use more than a third have stopped, new research shows. Reasons for quitting Wegovy, Ozempic or similar drugs may include cost or gastrointestinal side effects, said a team led by Urvashi Patel, of the Evernorth Research Institute in St. Louis. The drugs’ price tag could be a big factor: Wegovy (semaglutide) costs about $1,300 per month, for example. “Each 1–percentage point increase in out-of-pocket cost per a 30-day supply of GLP-1 agonist was associated with increased odds of discontinuation,” Patel’s group noted. They published the findings May 23 in the journal JAMA Network Open. The St. Louis team looked at information from a major U.S. drug database on the use of GLP-1 meds by adults from early 2021 through to the end of 2023. Tirzepatide (Zepbound) was excluded from the list of GLP-1 meds because it was only approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at the end of 2023. The database of nearly 196,000 patients found that by three months after starting a GLP-1 drug, just over 26% of users had already discontinued use; by six months that had risen to just under 31%, and by a year out 36.5% had stopped taking their GLP-1… read on > read on >

For decades, Todd Vogt has been dedicated to the sport of rowing, believing he was in peak physical condition. Then, a series of symptoms began to emerge, turning his life upside down. “My left arm stopped swinging, and I felt incredibly fatigued,” Vogt, 49, recalled. “Eventually, a tremor developed in my hand, and I slowly began to realize something was wrong.” That was in 2018. Since then, he has navigated life with Parkinson’s disease, managing his symptoms and maintaining his rowing career. This summer, he will compete in the Paralympic Games in Paris. But the journey has been anything but easy. Parkinson’s disease affects about 1.5 million people in the United States, with symptoms that include tremor, muscle stiffness, slow movement and problems with coordination and balance. These symptoms typically worsen over time. In Vogt’s case, he faces challenges such as fatigue, weakness and involuntary tremor in his left hand and foot. Despite these obstacles, he believes his rigorous exercise routine has played a crucial role in managing the disease. “I believe all the exercise I’ve been doing has delayed the progression,” he said. Vogt’s introduction to rowing came during his freshman year at the University of Buffalo in 1992. His passion for the sport was immediate, leading him to row competitively throughout college and beyond. After college, he transitioned to coaching, a role that… read on > read on >

About 1 in 9 American children have ever received an ADHD diagnosis, slightly more than the number of kids currently being treated for the disorder, a new study shows. About 7.1 million kids (11.4%) have ever been diagnosed with ADHD, according to findings published May 23 in the Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology. Incidence appears to be rising: Approximately 1 million more children ages 3 to 17 had received an ADHD diagnosis in 2022 than in 2016, researchers found. About 6.5 million children (10.5%) currently live with ADHD, or about 93% of those who’ve ever been diagnosed, researchers found. Among kids currently dealing with ADHD, about 58% have moderate or severe ADHD and 78% have at least one other disorder, results show. Nearly 54% of current ADHD patients have been prescribed medication for the disorder, and 44% have received behavioral treatment in the past year, researchers found. However, nearly one in three kids (30%) haven’t received any ADHD-specific treatment, results show. ADHD is more common in the United States than in other countries, the researchers found. For the study, researchers analyzed more than 45,000 interviews conducted as part of the 2022 National Survey of Children’s Health. “Public awareness of ADHD has changed over time,” the researchers said. “With increased awareness of symptoms related to attention regulation, ADHD has been increasingly recognized in girls,… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Moms, Even When Kids Reject Your Advice, It’s Still Helping Them

Had a Joint Replaced? Your Infection Risk May Rise After Chemotherapy

Stay Safe From the Sun & That Backyard Grill This Memorial Day

Ozempic Lowers Odds for Death, Illness in People With Kidney Disease and Type 2 Diabetes

Subtle Mental Declines Occur Before Older Folk Quit Driving

New Steps Towards a Male Birth Control Pill

Stroke Rates Are Rising, Especially Among the Young

Costs, Side Effects Drive Folks to Quit New Weight-Loss Meds

‘Moving Forward’: Battling Parkinson’s, He’s Rowing His Way to Paralympic Games

1 in 9 U.S. Children Have Been Diagnosed With ADHD