Health/Fitness « Weekly Gravy

ADHD stimulant meds don’t increase children’s risk of psychosis, a new study says. Analysis of stimulant prescriptions among nearly 8,400 kids with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder found no evidence that the drugs caused psychosis, researchers reported May 12 in the journal Pediatrics. “Previous observational research has suggested that stimulants may play a causal role in the development of psychotic experiences in young people with ADHD,” wrote the research team led by senior investigator Dr. Ian Kelleher, chair of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh in the U.K. However, this perceived link likely is because kids who are more likely to be treated for ADHD also share factors that place them at higher risk for psychotic episodes, researchers said. These factors include more severe ADHD symptoms and a higher number of other mental health problems researchers found. “Our findings do not support a causal relationship between stimulant prescription and psychotic experiences,” the study concluded. “Rather, the association appears to be confounded by factors that both increase probability of stimulant prescription and lead to psychotic experiences.” For the study, researchers tracked the health of children participating in an adolescent brain development study in the United States. Kids 9 to 10 were recruited into the study between 2016 and 2018. Of those children, just under 6% had been prescribed one or more stimulant prescriptions. At first,… read on > read on >

A new study has found that people taking Eli Lilly’s obesity drug Zepbound lost almost 50% more weight than those using Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy. The study — published May 11 in the New England Journal of Medicine — followed 751 people across the U.S. who were overweight or obese and had another weight-related health problem. None had diabetes, The Associated Press reported. Participants received weekly injections of either Zepbound (tirzepatide) or Wegovy (semaglutide). After 72 weeks, people taking Zepbound lost an average of 50 pounds. Those on Wegovy lost about 33 pounds. That translated to a loss of about 20% of body weight for Zepbound users, compared to nearly 14% for Wegovy users. What’s more, waist size also shrank by an average of 7 inches with Zepbound and about 5 inches with Wegovy. The medications work by mimicking hormones that help regulate appetite and fullness. Zepbound targets two hormones (GLP-1 and GIP), while Wegovy targets only GLP-1, AP reported. “Two drugs together can produce better weight loss,” said lead study author Dr. Louis Aronne of Weill Cornell Medicine. He presented the results Sunday at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga, Spain. Nearly 32% of Zepbound users lost at least a quarter of their body weight, compared with about 16% of Wegovy users. In both groups, weight loss was about 6% lower in men than… read on > read on >

Children and young adults formerly covered by Medicaid are losing access to medications needed to control conditions like depression, schizophrenia, ADHD, asthma and epilepsy, a new study says. Young people need to take these meds regularly to get the best results, as interruptions can cause flare-ups of their chronic health problems, researchers said. Interruptions in these meds are occurring more often in states that have experienced the biggest drops in Medicaid enrollment during the “unwinding” process that started after the end of the COVID pandemic, researchers reported recently in the journal Pediatrics. The unwinding brought an end to Medicaid eligibility rules put in place during the pandemic. For example, children and teens who use asthma inhalers were more likely to decrease use of their meds if they lived in a state with the largest drops in Medicaid enrollment, results show. “Our findings suggest that the rapid disenrollment of young people from Medicaid during the unwinding process resulted in the disruption of chronic disease therapy,” lead researcher Dr. Kao-Ping Chua, a pediatrician and health care researcher at the University of Michigan Medical School and School of Public Health, said in a news release. “As policymakers debate whether to enact drastic cuts to Medicaid funding, they should consider the possibility that doing so could similarly disrupt chronic disease therapy for children and young adults, placing them at… read on > read on >

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers and tattoo artists that two tattoo inks have tested positive for harmful bacteria and could lead to serious infections. The affected products are: Sacred Tattoo Ink, Raven Black (CI# 77266; Lot#: RB0624, Best Before: June 28, 2027) Sacred Tattoo Ink, Sunny Daze (CI# 21095; Lot#: SD1124, Best Before: Nov. 1, 2027) FDA testing found the inks were contaminated with bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can cause infections when injected into the skin. These infections can cause red rashes, bumps or lesions and may leave permanent scars if not treated correctly, according to an FDA news release. “There is an increased risk of infection any time the skin barrier is broken,” the FDA said. Symptoms of infection can sometimes be mistaken for an allergic reaction, which can cause a delay in getting the right treatment. The FDA discovered the contaminated inks during a routine survey of tattoo products. The agency relied on microbiological testing methods typically used for cosmetics. Tattoo artists and studios are urged to avoid using or selling these specific inks. Consumers are advised to ask their tattoo artist what inks are being used and to avoid the affected products. The FDA said it is working with manufacturers and sellers to remove these products from the market. Anyone who experiences a reaction after… read on > read on >

Childhood obesity nearly triples a person’s risk for experiencing discrimination or stigma based on their weight, a new study says. Severe obesity before age 18 increased a person’s odds of experiencing weight stigma by 2.8 times, researchers reported recently in the International Journal of Obesity. Weight stigma is marked by negative or discriminatory actions related to a person’s body weight or size, researchers said in background notes. “Experienced weight stigma is definitely not about hurt feelings,” said senior researcher Dr. Jaime Almandoz, an associate professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “It’s a real public health issue that impacts mental health, physical health and access to care,” Almandoz said in a news release. “Recognizing and addressing weight stigma needs to be part of routine obesity care.” About 42% of U.S. adults 20 and older are obese, and more than 40% adults report experiencing weight stigma at some point in their lives, researchers said in background notes. Further, the number of children with obesity in the U.S. continues to rise, with about 1 in 5 teens currently living with the condition, researchers said. To see whether age influences their risk of weight stigma, researchers surveyed 686 adults receiving care at UT Southwestern’s Weight Wellness Program between 2021 and 2023. Participants had an average age of 56, and about 62% had severe obesity… read on > read on >

Women with common autoimmune inflammatory diseases are more likely than men to die from heart disease, a new study says. Women with rheumatoid arthritis, lupus or systemic sclerosis have a 50% higher heart disease-related death rate than men, researchers reported May 5 in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. “Our study highlights the significant burden of cardiovascular disease in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, which disproportionately affect women,” said senior researcher Dr. Heba Wassif, director of cardio-rheumatology at the Cleveland Clinic. “It is critical to screen for and address cardiovascular risk factors early, at the time of diagnosis and periodically thereafter,” she said in a news release. Women are two to three times more likely than men to develop rheumatoid arthritis, and about nine times more likely to develop lupus, researchers said in background notes. Systemic sclerosis also is more common among women than men, researchers said. That autoimmune disease involves the tightening and hardening of skin, potentially affecting the digestive tract, blood vessels and internal organs. For the study, researchers analyzed data for more than 127,000 heart disease-related deaths among more than 281,000 deaths associated with the three common autoimmune diseases between 1999 and 2020. Overall, heart disease deaths declined for people with these autoimmune disorders, from 3.9 to 2.1 per 100,000 in women and from 1.7 to 1.2 per 100,000 in men… read on > read on >