Health
Health weekend roundup: A mother's health mission, sleep-blocking foods, heat illnesses and more
Fox News Digital publishes an array of health pieces all week long to keep you in the know on a range of wellness topics: health care access, innovative surgeries, cancer research, mental health trends and much more — plus, personal stories of people and families overcoming great obstacles.
Check out some top recent stories in Health as your weekend continues — and prep for the week ahead.
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These are just a few of what’s new, of course.
There are many more to see at http://www.foxnews/health.
Utah mom fights for her daughter’s access to ‘life-saving’ medication
For Ruby Smart, 15, Levemir is the insulin medication that works best to control her type 1 diabetes — but the manufacturer is discontinuing it.
Alison Smart is on a mission to protect her daughter’s access to the drug. Click here to get the story.
Utah mother Alison Smart (in green sweater, pictured with Ruby Smart, age 15) is fighting for her teenage daughter’s access to diabetes medicine. (Alison Smart/iStock)
CDC warns of extreme heat dangers
Is extreme heat a public health threat?
Fox News Digital reports the findings in the latest Mortality & Morbidity Report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including a spike in emergency room visits due to heat-related illness. Doctors chime in on the potential risk. Click here to get the story.
Many regions across the United States experienced “record-breaking high temperatures” in 2023 due to extreme heat, according to the CDC. (iStock)
Surprising reason for sleep struggles
If you’re having trouble falling or staying asleep, you might be overlooking one important lifestyle factor.
Two sleep specialists reveal essential ingredients for high-quality sleep. Click here to get the story.
What you eat can have an impact on how well you sleep at night, experts say. (iStock)
The girl who can’t smile
Tayla Clement, 26, was born with a rare disorder that has made it impossible for her to smile — but she says she is grateful for it.
The New Zealand woman discusses with Fox News Digital how she overcame trauma and learned to celebrate her differences. Click here to get the story.
Tayla Clement, born and raised in New Zealand, has Moebius syndrome, a neurological disease that affects one child out of every 50,000 to 500,000. (Tayla Clement)
‘Forever chemicals’ found in water across US
A new study found that higher amounts of PFAS (perfluoroalkyl substances) were found in drinking water in certain parts of the U.S.
Public health experts weigh in on the risks of the toxic chemicals. Click here to get the story.
PFAS “hot spots” were concentrated in the Midwest, New England and the West Coast, the researchers found. (iStock)
Pick-me-ups to beat the midday slump
Is the “post-lunch coma” slowing down your productivity?
A nutritional biologist shares six proven energy-boosters to to prevent post-meal fatigue. Click here to get the story.
This week’s health recap includes stories about heat hazards, a mother’s fight for her daughter’s diabetes medication, and a little-known disruption of healthy sleep. (iStock / Alison Smart)
Drinking pure orange juice is linked to surprising benefits
A new study found that people who drank 100% orange juice consumed fewer calories than those who drank a sugar-sweetened orange beverage.
Nutritionists reacted to the findings. Click here to get the story.
Americans need more sleep and less stress
Many U.S. adults are getting too little sleep and have too much stress, according to a new Gallup poll.
Dr. Marc Siegel of New York and a sleep expert and behavioral scientist discuss the connection between disordered sleep and dangerous stress levels. Click here to get the story.
The poll showed that 63% of Americans who reported wanting more sleep also “frequently experience stress.” (iStock)
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Surviving cancer as a child or young adult may have a lasting impact on aging, new research suggests.
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center looked at whether life-saving treatments, like chemotherapy and radiation, could speed up biological aging.
They also aimed to determine whether this age acceleration was linked to cognitive issues related to memory, focus and learning.
The team analyzed blood samples from a group of 1,400 long-term survivors treated at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, using epigenetic clocks — tools that estimate biological age by examining chemical tags on DNA.
Biological age is determined based on damage the cells accumulate over time, versus chronological age, which is measured by how long someone has been alive, according to scientists.
Biological age is determined based on the damage cells accumulate over time, according to scientists. (iStock)
“These well-established aging-related biomarkers have previously been associated with neurocognitive impairment and decline in older non-cancer populations, particularly in cognitive domains related to aging and dementia, such as memory, attention and executive function,” the study stated.
Most of the group consisted of acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors, or Hodgkin lymphoma survivors. Participants were at least five years past their treatment, though some had survived for several decades.
They underwent neurocognitive testing to measure their attention span, memory and information processing speed.
CREATIVE HOBBIES KEEP THE BRAIN YOUNG, STUDY FINDS — HERE ARE THE BEST ONES TO PURSUE
Chemotherapy was found to have the greatest impact on aging acceleration. The study suggests the treatment can alter DNA structure and cause cellular damage.
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“It’s no surprise to find out that young people with cancer who have chemo early in life are affected in terms of long-term aging,” Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News, told Fox News Digital.
Participants underwent neurocognitive testing to measure their attention span, memory and speed of information processing. (iStock)
Researchers also found that cellular aging was closely linked to cognitive performance, as survivors of a higher biological age had more difficulty with memory and attention.
“Chemo poisons and damages cellular function — hopefully the cancer cells more than normal cells, but there is a significant impact on normal cells as well,” said Siegel, who was not involved in the study.
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“There is also something called ‘chemo brain,’ which causes at least temporary difficulty with memory, concentration, word finding and brain fog,” the doctor added.
The research team hopes to use these findings to focus on intervention efforts, specifically by determining when accelerated aging begins.
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“Young cancer survivors have many more decades of life to live,” lead study author AnnaLynn Williams, PhD, said in a press release. “If these accelerated aging changes are occurring early on and setting them on a different trajectory, the goal is to intervene to not only increase their lifespan, but improve their quality of life.”
The team hopes this research will help in the development of early intervention tools that aim to prevent cognitive decline. (iStock)
There were some limitations to the study. The researchers could not adjust for chronic health conditions or education because they are directly impacted by treatment.
Additionally, the study only looked at the survivors at a single point of time, so it could not directly prove causation.
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The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers for comment.
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