“Humans weigh choices in a brain network called the valuation system. It’s where we identify the options we’re choosing between, calculate the likely reward for each and make a choice. Close-to-home rewards ignite the system that pushes us to act. But when the rewards are distant or vague — such as influencing a sweeping government policy or making a major life change — the brain struggles to see the payoff, and motivation falters. That’s why doughnuts can win out over our health goals and why we might binge-watch a show instead of going to a town meeting, even if we’d say that the latter … Read More
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A new book reveals how health-care inequality fueled the spread of anti-science conspiracy theories. “Wellness is a $6.3 trillion industry, according to a 2024 report from the Global Wellness Institute, an industry trade group. That’s bigger than the GDP of Germany, and nearly four times the size of the global pharmaceutical industry. The real growth has been within the past 10 years—the GWI’s report calls it the “wellness decade.” And women represent most of its consumers. In a nation known for its relatively poor health, nearly everybody seems to be thinking about how to be healthy: According to a 2024 … Read More
Results could help build case for insurance coverage for prescription digital therapeutics “In a new report, the Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI) finds that Rejoyn, an app for depression from Otsuka Precision Health, and DaylightRx, an app for anxiety from Big Health, warrant further adoption because their clinical trials show strong evidence of benefits. Both apps are intended to be used alongside ongoing mental health treatment, and in most cases, the institute found the apps will save money. PHTI was founded in 2023 with $50 million to conduct independent evaluations of health technology. Its findings, both positive and negative, have ruffled feathers in the industry, and have … Read More
STAT reviewed dozens of studies, interviewed chronic disease experts, and landed on three focus areas for RFK Jr. to boost health Excerpt – Among Kennedy’s primary focuses so far has been convincing food companies to remove chemical additives and artificial dyes: an admirable goal, many nutrition experts say, but not the kind of change that would substantially improve people’s health when compared to other needed reforms. He will need to go bigger, they told STAT. However, some researchers say Kennedy is right to keep his eyes on the environment Americans inhabit — the products in their supermarkets, the toxins in … Read More
“I am an unwilling, unwitting part of the Industrial Medical-Letter-Writing Complex, which pulls every clinician, every health worker, and every patient into its roiling, gasping vortex. It is the ever-hungry ghost. With a bottomless stomach and inky black eyes, it eats good intentions for breakfast, inhales reams of paper for lunch, and takes your sanity and humanity for its dinner. It laughs at boundaries, derides common sense. It matters not how long ago it was when I last saw the patient. It matters not if I have ever met them before. It matters not who made the form, or if … Read More
The drugs treat disorders such as anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia, but stopping them abruptly can compound users’ symptoms and even endanger their lives. “Prescriptions for benzodiazepines like Xanax, Ativan and Valium have been trending down since 2016, in part because of doctors’ concerns. Even so, these medications are considered quick and efficacious, and they remain among the most commonly prescribed drugs in the country to treat conditions including anxiety and sleep disorders. In 2019, an estimated 92 million benzodiazepine prescriptions were dispensed in the United States, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Current guidelines recommend prescribing the lowest effective dose … Read More
“In the survey by Kleck and Gertz, more than 4% of gun-owning respondents reported a history of DGU within the previous 5 years. In this survey by Anestis et al, 8% of gun owners reported a lifetime history of DGU. Anestis et al. suggest approximately 489 000 DGU events of firing at or in the vicinity of a perceived threat occur each year. But combining with the number of people who either tell a threat about their firearm or show said firearm could raise that number to nearly 1.17 million annual DGU events. As these estimates fall within the previously reported range of … Read More
In a new book, the author Casey Johnston argues that pumping iron helped her “escape diet culture.” But a preoccupation with strength can take many forms. Excerpt – “Ask a man why he lifts, and that man will lie to your face,” he [Lifter, classical music critic and author of “Swole: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscle” Michael Andor Brodeur] writes. “He will assert and insist that his ‘training’ is purely in service of health, fitness, strength, endurance, stamina, and whatever other buzzwords he can throw in to throw you off the trail.” It is somewhat déclassé … Read More
“[Abstract] Efficacy of digital health (d-Health) interventions on workers’ physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, and physiological outcomes remains unclear. This umbrella review searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar up to October 25, 2024. We identified 24 systematic reviews (SRs) and selected 130 individual studies from these SRs for analysis. The AMSTAR 2 tool rated the quality of most SRs as critically low. Narrative syntheses suggested that d-Health interventions could potentially improve all outcomes compared with no intervention. However, whether d-Health interventions outperform non-d-Health interventions remains uncertain. Meta-analyses showed a significantly small effect of d-Health interventions on step counts, sedentary/sitting … Read More
“To help put alcohol taxes in perspective: the federal tax on a pack of cigarettes is now approximately $1, and states and localities can layer on additional taxes. Customers in New York City, for instance, pay a $5.35 state tax and an additional $1.50 city tax for a combined total of $6.85 per pack — far beyond the average state tax of $1.93 nationally. Meanwhile, since the mid-20th century, relative alcohol tax rates have receded by roughly three quarters and have fallen well below those in other high-income countries, in contradistinction to trends in taxation of nicotine products. It has … Read More