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Research finds strong relationship between food environment, built environment and obesity

Researchers at the University at Buffalo conducting a neighborhood-scaled exploratory study that tested the association between the food environment, the built environment and women's body mass index (BMI) have found that women with homes closer to a supermarket, relative to a convenience store, had lower BMIs, and that the greater the number of restaurants within a five minute walk of a woman's home, the higher her BMI.

3 Jul 2010

Twelve type 2 diabetes susceptibility loci identified

An international team co-led by scientists from the University of Michigan have discovered 12 more regions on the genome with DNA variants that are associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes, bringing the number to 38.

2 Jul 2010

Virus related to hepatitis C discovered in Asian bats

Viral hepatitis affects more than 500 million people worldwide and is a cause of liver failure and liver cancer. While vaccines are available for hepatitis A and B, this is not the case for hepatitis C, which affects as much as two percent of the population in the U.S. Scientists today are reporting discovery of a virus related to hepatitis C in Asian bats, which may provide insights into the origins of the hepatitis C virus and into the mechanisms by which infectious diseases move from other species to humans.

2 Jul 2010

ORS, zinc supplements and rotavirus vaccine can reduce diarrheal disease

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health urge wider use of oral rehydration solution (ORS), zinc supplementation and rotavirus vaccine to reduce the deaths from diarrheal disease worldwide.

2 Jul 2010

Draft Guidance on judicious use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued draft guidance intended to help reduce the development of resistance to medically important antimicrobial drugs used in food-producing animals.

2 Jul 2010

American Abroad Media examines intersection of religion and public health in Africa

American Abroad Media examines how religious groups and leaders are dealing with public health issues in Africa. The program consists of five segments.

2 Jul 2010

Kilimani Sesame benefits Tanzanian children

There are 8.3 million children who are 5 years and younger living in Tanzania. With limited access to formal education, can media intervention make a positive and significant impact on what these children learn? Sesame Workshop, which produces Kilimani Sesame, the Tanzanian version of Sesame Street, recently commissioned researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in full collaboration with a Dar es Salaam-based research team, to examine the effects of a six-week intervention delivering Kilimani Sesame content to 223 children.

1 Jul 2010

Study finds increased neonatal mortality among planned home births

About 1 in 200 women in the US delivers her baby at home, with approximately 75% of these low-risk, single-baby births planned in advance as home deliveries. In a study published online today by the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology (AJOG), researchers from Maine Medical Center, Portland, Maine, analyzed the results of multiple studies from around the world.

1 Jul 2010

ESMT CA study: Cutting pharmaceutical prices will reduce number of new medications

Cutting pharmaceutical prices will severely reduce the number of new medications making it to market, according to a groundbreaking independent study from ESMT Competition Analysis. For the first time, the study on 'Pharmaceutical Innovation and Pricing Regulation' clearly models and quantifies the direct link between strict regulation and low innovation.

1 Jul 2010

Florida Biomedical Research Program awards $2M in grants to Scripps Research Institute scientists

The Florida Biomedical Research Program has awarded $2 million in biomedical research grants to three scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute.

1 Jul 2010

Experts examine corporate websites dedicated to 100 best-selling prescription drugs

Dartmouth Linguistics Professor Lewis Glinert and Jon Schommer, the associate head of the Department of Pharmaceutical Care and Health Systems at the University of Minnesota, have examined the corporate websites dedicated to the 100 best-selling prescription drugs. They found a startling lack of consistency in an industry where advertising standards are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.

1 Jul 2010

U-M scientists discover 12 more regions on genome with DNA variants associated with type 2 diabetes

1 Jul 2010

Mass. reports on people who buy insurance only when sick; Wash. board considers aiding consumers get 'Plan B' referrals; ACLU sues R.I. over electronic records

The Boston Globe: "The number of people who appear to be gaming the state's health insurance system by purchasing coverage only when they are sick quadrupled from 2006 to 2008, according to a long-awaited report released yesterday from the Massachusetts Division of Insurance. The result is that insured residents of Massachusetts wind up paying more for health care, according to the report. … The report was released as state lawmakers consider proposals to make it harder for consumers to jump in and then dump their health insurance coverage" (Lazar, 6/30).

1 Jul 2010

Secondhand smoke exposure during pregnancy causes permanent genetic damage in newborns

Newborns of non-smoking moms exposed to secondhand smoke during pregnancy have genetic mutations that may affect long-term health, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health study published online in the Open Pediatric Medicine Journal. The abnormalities, which were indistinguishable from those found in newborns of mothers who were active smokers, may affect survival, birth weight and lifelong susceptibility to diseases like cancer.

1 Jul 2010

Eisai signs agreement with Arena Pharmaceuticals GmbH to commercialize lorcaserin

Eisai Inc., the U.S. pharmaceutical operation of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd., announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Arena Pharmaceuticals GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc., for exclusive U.S. rights to commercialize lorcaserin, a drug candidate for potential use in the treatment of obesity, including weight loss, for patients who are obese (Body Mass Index or BMI ≥ 30) or overweight (BMI ≥ 27) with at least one weight-related co-morbid condition.

1 Jul 2010

Latest health disparity report examines trend of higher tobacco use among LGBT community

The American Lung Association's latest health disparity report, Smoking Out a Deadly Threat: Tobacco Use in the LGBT Community, examines the trend of higher tobacco use among the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the need for additional research specific to this community.

1 Jul 2010

CDC issues new guidelines on detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infections

Today the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new and important guidelines on the detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infections, the causative agent of tuberculosis. In these landmark guidelines, CDC advises that Interferon Gamma Release Assay blood tests are now preferred over the 100+-year-old tuberculin skin test for diagnosing TB infection in certain populations, including people who typically do not return for the necessary reading of TST results, and those who have received Bacille Calmette-Guerin as a vaccine or for cancer therapy

1 Jul 2010

Study examines long-term effect of TBI on women's reproductive health

After a brain injury, women often ask how the injury will affect their fertility, pregnancy and postpartum health. Now a new study provides some much-needed answers. Published in the June issue of the Journal of Women's Health, the study is the most comprehensive investigation to date of women's health issues after traumatic brain injury.

1 Jul 2010

Behavioral intervention program can reduce incidence of HIV, STIs among female sex workers: Researchers

A team of researchers from the University of California San Diego and Mexico has found that even a modest behavioral intervention program averaging just 35 minutes can measurably reduce the incidence of HIV and sexually transmitted infections among female sex workers in the U.S.-Mexico border region - and that the program succeeds at comparatively little expense.

1 Jul 2010

Call for incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies

Three leading scientific and health policy organizations today launched a global drive for signatories to the Vienna Declaration, a statement seeking to improve community health and safety by calling for the incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies. Among those supporting the declaration and urging others to sign is 2008 Nobel Laureate and International AIDS Society (IAS) Governing Council member Prof. Fran-oise Barr--Sinoussi, co-discoverer of HIV.

30 Jun 2010

Public Health News and Research

Research finds strong relationship between food environment, built environment and obesity

Twelve type 2 diabetes susceptibility loci identified

Virus related to hepatitis C discovered in Asian bats

ORS, zinc supplements and rotavirus vaccine can reduce diarrheal disease

Draft Guidance on judicious use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals

American Abroad Media examines intersection of religion and public health in Africa

Kilimani Sesame benefits Tanzanian children

Study finds increased neonatal mortality among planned home births

ESMT CA study: Cutting pharmaceutical prices will reduce number of new medications

Florida Biomedical Research Program awards $2M in grants to Scripps Research Institute scientists

Experts examine corporate websites dedicated to 100 best-selling prescription drugs

U-M scientists discover 12 more regions on genome with DNA variants associated with type 2 diabetes

Mass. reports on people who buy insurance only when sick; Wash. board considers aiding consumers get 'Plan B' referrals; ACLU sues R.I. over electronic records

Secondhand smoke exposure during pregnancy causes permanent genetic damage in newborns

Eisai signs agreement with Arena Pharmaceuticals GmbH to commercialize lorcaserin

Latest health disparity report examines trend of higher tobacco use among LGBT community

CDC issues new guidelines on detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infections

Study examines long-term effect of TBI on women's reproductive health

Behavioral intervention program can reduce incidence of HIV, STIs among female sex workers: Researchers

Call for incorporation of scientific evidence into illicit drug policies

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

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