The Hill (11/12, Timotija ) reports that “excessive drinking continued increasing in 2022, after rising during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Researchers “found that heavy alcohol use from 2018 to 2020 jumped by 20 percent, and then increased another 4 percent from 2020 to 2022.” The spike “was seen in all regions of the U.S., races and genders, besides Asian Americans and Native Americans.” According to the study, “in 2023, over 69.3 percent of Americans said they had had some alcohol, a slight increase from 69.03 in 2022. … In 2018, it was 66.3 percent.” Meanwhile, “heavy drinking went up from 5.1 percent in 2018 to 6.3 percent in 2022.”

HealthDay (11/12, Foster ) reports that “the latest findings were culled from data in the National Center for Health Statistics’ National Health Interview Survey.”

Related Links:

— “Excessive drinking inches higher after pandemic increase: Research,” Filip Timotija, The Hill, November 12, 2024

MedPage Today (11/11, Putka ) reports, “Childhood asthma was associated with difficulties with memory and other cognitive functions, according to an observational cohort study.” In an “analysis, children with earlier onset of asthma had lower rates of memory improvements as measured by the Picture Sequence Memory Test compared with those without asthma.” Researchers found that “when children with later-onset asthma were compared with the kids without asthma, no such difference was observed.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links: — MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (11/11, Thompson ) reports, “Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder can influence a child’s weight in ways that will shape their long-term health, a new study says.” Children “with AD/HD tend to have lower birth weight, which increases their risk of developmental delays and health problems, researchers in the U.K. found.” However, “these kids also are more likely to develop obesity after age 5, a weight swing that can place even more risk upon their health in adulthood, researchers said.” The findings were published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “How ADHD May Influence a Child’s Weight,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, November 11, 2024

Healio (11/8, Welsh) said, “Body dysmorphic disorder may negatively impact quality of life and body image during pregnancy, especially during first and third trimesters, highlighting the need for interventions and support for pregnant women, researchers reported.” About “31.01% of women reported concern with weight gain associated with pregnancy and postpartum.” The findings were published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth.

Related Links:

— “Body dysmorphia during pregnancy worsens self-image, quality of life,” Richard Smith, Healio, November 8, 2024

Healio (11/8, Schaffer ) reported, “Women who traveled out of state for abortion care were more likely to incur catastrophic health expenditures, which were associated with increased symptoms of anxiety and depression, survey data show.” In a “study conducted before the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, researchers found that 42% of women who sought abortion care incurred such catastrophic expenditures, suggesting a need for expanded insurance coverage for abortion care.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

HealthDay (11/8, Mundell ) reported the study “finds that, even before the fall of Roe v. Wade, 65% of women who traveled to another state to undergo abortion incurred ‘catastrophic’ bills causing them to cut back on other necessities of life.”

Related Links:

— “Abortion-related catastrophic health expenditures tied to adverse mental health symptoms,” Richard Smith, Healio, November 8, 2024

HealthDay (11/7, Thompson ) reports, “Seniors who are drowsy during the day and find it hard to muster enthusiasm for activities could be at higher risk of a brain condition that precedes dementia, a new study warns.” These sleep-related issues “are associated with ‘motoric cognitive risk syndrome,’ a pre-dementia condition that causes slow walking speed and some memory problems, researchers explained.” Investigators found that “people with excessive daytime sleepiness and a lack of enthusiasm are more than three times more likely to develop this syndrome, compared to people without those sleep-related problems.” The findings were published in Neurology.

Related Links:

— “Daytime Drowsiness Linked to a ‘Pre-Dementia’ Syndrome,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, November 7, 2024

Psychiatric News (11/7) reports, “Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) weighed less at birth but were significantly more likely to have obesity after age five compared with those without ADHD, according to a study.” But, “elevated ADHD symptoms were not predictive of increased obesity risk until age 7 in females and age 11 in males.” The findings were published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “ADHD Associated With Lower Weight at Birth, but Obesity in Childhood,” Psychiatric News, November 7, 2024

Healio (11/6, Kellner ) reports, “Most adolescents and young adults said they would hesitate to share sensitive information” with their health care physicians “if they thought their parents could access it through online patient portals, according to a survey.” Researchers found that “55% of participants said they would change how much sensitive information they would share … and 50% would hesitate to create a portal account if their parents could see it.” The findings were published in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Study: Young patients hesitant to tell providers information their parents might see,” Carol L. DiBerardino, MLA, ELS, Healio, November 6, 2024

Healio (11/6, Friedman) reports, “Suicide rates for individuals diagnosed with cancer increased over the past 2 decades, according to results of a retrospective study.” The data indicated that “the largest increase occurred among adolescent and young adult…men,” with “the gap between that population and other subgroups” widening over time. The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Suicide rates rise among adolescents, young adults with cancer, often years after diagnosis,” Josh Friedman, Healio, November 6, 2024

Psychiatric News (11/6) reports research found that “toddlers who have more than 14 hours per week of screen time have nearly twice the odds of having a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder when they are 12 years old.” Investigators found that “children were more likely to have more than 14 hours of screen time when they were 2 years old if they were boys, their mothers had less than 13 years of education or less, or they lived in households with a family income of $60,000 or less.” The findings were published in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Excessive Screen Time in Toddlers Linked to Autism Diagnosis in Early Adolescence,” Psychiatric News, November 6, 2024