Health News

Playdates and the pandemic: Can kids safely meet up?

Most days, Shannon Miller’s two sons, ages 7 and 4, play outside on their cul-de-sac in a suburb of Dayton, Ohio. But as the hours pass, more kids meet up from all over the neighborhood, until there are a dozen of them. “It’s almost like a block party,” she said. Once those children try to…

Pangolins may have incubated the novel coronavirus, gene study shows

A deep dive into the genetics of the novel coronavirus shows it seems to have spent some time infecting both bats and pangolins before it jumped into humans, researchers said Friday. But they said it’s too soon to blame pangolins for the pandemic and say a third species of animal may have played host to…

One in 10 Covid-19 patients with diabetes die within a week, study finds

One in 10 coronavirus patients with diabetes died within the first seven days of hospitalization, and one in five needed a ventilator to breathe, according to a new study by French researchers. Diabetes is one of the underlying health conditions that health experts believe put people at greater risk for developing more severe symptoms of…

Trump decision to leave WHO endangers global health, medical groups say

Groups representing infectious disease doctors, pediatricians and general physicians all protested President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the World Health Organization on Friday, saying it will make it harder to fight the coronavirus pandemic. It could also endanger children, the American Academy of Pediatrics said. “The Trump Administration’s decision to withdraw from the WHO…

Study shows 10 times more New Yorkers had Covid-19 by April than previously counted

By the end of March, 1 in 7 New York adults had Covid-19 — about 10 times higher than the official account, according to a new study sponsored by the New York State Department of Health. This adds to a growing body of evidence that the virus was much more prevalent early on in the…

CDC was ‘never blind’ to early spread of coronavirus within the US, director says

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was “never blind” to the early spread of the coronavirus in the United States, the agency’s director, Dr. Robert Redfield, told reporters on Friday. Redfield defended the CDC’s surveillance for the coronavirus and denied that the agency missed the spread of the virus across the country. “We…

US missed early chance to slow coronavirus, genetic study indicates

The United States missed out on an early chance to catch imported cases of coronavirus earlier this year, genetics experts say in a new report. Their analysis of the virus imported by the first person known to have carried the infection to the US — in Washington state back in January — shows it probably…

Avoiding a bummer summer: Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s coronavirus podcast for May 29

Summer’s coming, but for many, it will look very different. Camps and activities are getting cancelled, so families are getting creative. CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks about solutions for parents and for kids. You can listen on your favorite podcast app, or read the transcript below. Teenager: I’m not really sure about…

We have different attitudes toward social distancing, and it’s straining relationships

Andrew remembers the week everything changed. When his flight back home to Chicago landed on March 11, he returned from a family gathering to a city on the verge of shutting down. It was the week the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic. The week Andrew transitioned to a work-from-home dad, trying to “play…

Senators ask CDC for plan to fix coronavirus-related drop in vaccinations

Seventeen Democratic senators have sent a letter to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, asking for a plan to fight a “dramatic” drop in childhood vaccinations since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, the CDC reported a “notable decrease” in the number of vaccines ordered through a federal program that…

If you have ADHD, here’s how to manage working from home

As some companies shifted to working from home, some adults with ADHD hit a wall. The transition has been challenging for many. But for some adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly called ADHD, the switch means they’re struggling to stay on top of things as well as they may have in the office. A…

With the coronavirus pandemic entering a new phase in the US, world health experts shift focus to new hot spots

As the US coronavirus death toll reached the grim milestone of more than 100,000 deaths this week, world health experts are concerned about new hot spots and the CDC is projecting 123,000 coronavirus deaths by June 20. At least 1,721,750 people have been infected with coronavirus in the US and 101,617 have died, according to…

Together, We Grieve: Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s bonus coronavirus podcast for May 28

As the coronavirus’ death toll in the U.S. surpasses 100,000 victims, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes a moment to reflect on this tragic milestone and commemorate those we’ve lost. You can listen on your favorite podcast app or read the transcript below. Amith Mooliya, son of Ananda Mooliya: My dad was a…

How having cancer can put Covid-19 patients at higher risk of dying

Researchers are learning more about the risks cancer patients face if they become sick with Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that has swept through the world. Patients whose cancer was getting worse or spreading were more than five times more likely to die in the space of a month if they caught…

The full toll of Covid-19 on children’s mental health won’t be known for years

“Any time the doorbell rings, he runs inside and hides,” a parent recently shared with me when talking about how difficult the coronavirus pandemic has been for her 5-year-old child. “I think I have pleuritis,” a 10-year-old told me last month. “It hurts when I breathe in deep.” “Really? What else have you read?” I…

How do I make sure I’m not raising the next Amy Cooper?

It’s easy for white folks to recoil from Amy Cooper once we’ve had a front row seat to her rage-filled voice turning trembly and fragile when the 911 operator picks up. It might even be easy to recognize the death-dealing potential of her calculated weaponization of racism when the same 24-hour news cycle brings footage…

Healthy eating for kids: How to talk to them about good food habits

“Finish your plate and you can …” Eat dessert. Get a toy. Go out and play. Or just excuse yourself and get away from these horrific adults talking about their boring jobs. Bribing kids to finish all of their lima beans and broccoli is a parenting crutch with deep roots. What many don’t know, though,…

Practice sun safety to stay healthy outside during the pandemic

As we welcome sunshine and warmer weather after being hunkered down for weeks, many of us will be more excited than ever to spend time outside. But whether you are simply looking for some fresh air during a walk or hoping to get an extra dose of the “sunshine vitamin” — that is, immunity-supporting vitamin…

Confused by the science behind Covid-19? You’re not alone

Try out this riddle: If you could double over a piece of normal notebook paper 42 times, how thick would it be? The answer, though fanciful, illustrates just how hard it can be to understand exponential growth and doubling, two pieces of math that explain the spread of viruses like Covid-19. Because by the time…

New coronavirus cases are declining in parts of the US but experts say more deaths are coming

No one wants to see another horrific milestone like the one reached this week. The US death toll from coronavirus topped 100,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That means an average of almost 900 Americans died each day since the first known coronavirus-related death nearly four months ago. While the number of new…

Los Angeles County hospitals say people are waiting too long to seek treatment over coronavirus fears

Doctors at some Los Angeles County hospitals say people are waiting too long to seek medical treatment — including those infected with the coronavirus — over fears of catching Covid-19, potentially leading to more detrimental effects to their health. Los Angeles County reported 1,491 new coronavirus cases on Monday, bringing the total to 13,816, Los…

Asthma and coronavirus: Act now to decrease your chance of a serious outcome

Dr. Matt Dougherty isn’t waiting for his pediatric asthma patients or their parents to call him in a panic, frightened that a sudden cough or wheeze is due to the novel coronavirus. He’s reaching out to them, virtually, via telemedicine. “I look through my patient files, identify the ones in the past that I know…

Some US state leaders move toward reopening while death toll nearly doubles in a week

Deaths in the country nearly doubled in the past week as more governors rolled out plans to reopen their economies while other state leaders warned their case numbers are still on the rise. More than 787,900 Americans have been infected with the virus. At least 42,364 have died, about an 80 percent increase from the…

Napster founder Sean Parker announces $250 million grant to fight cancer

Apr 13, 2016 | WLSAM Staff

By Robert Mclean, CNN The man whose file-sharing service terrorized the music industry is injecting $250 million into the fight against cancer. Silicon Valley billionaire Sean Parker announced a $250 million grant on Wednesday to establish the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, which aims to increase collaboration among researchers and accelerate the development of immune…

High body fat, not BMI, linked with higher death rate, study finds

Mar 14, 2016 | WLSAM Staff

Lending support to that argument, a new study finds that the thinnest people, similar to those who have the most body fat, have higher rates of death.

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