Nancy Shute
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One of the biggest challenges in public health challenges is reaching people in vulnerable groups. Often influential peers are recruited to help spread the word. When that technique was transferred to Facebook, at-risk Latino and African American Men were more likely to get an HIV test.
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Medications can cause rare and dangerous allergic reactions. The FDA says that the popular painkiller acetaminophen can cause those reactions, too. The agency wants people to see a doctor quickly if they get a rash while using the drug.
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Some ibuprofen and maybe some physical therapy are all it takes to make most back pain go away. But a study finds that doctors and patients are increasingly turning to fancy scans and opioid painkillers. They typically don't help, and increase the risk of addiction and overdose.
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There's a story to tell about every family's encounters with the health care system. Some are tragedies. Many are a blaze of enduring hope in the face of suffering and loss. Artist Regina Holliday brings those secret stories to life in her Walking Gallery.
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People diagnosed with ADHD as children may be more apt to be obese in adulthood, scientists say. Differences in brain biology or the impulsiveness typical of ADHD may contribute to lasting, bad eating habits.
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Supplements with the antioxidant lutein and omega-3 fatty acids didn't stop age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in the United States, a new study suggests. But other antioxidants, including vitamins C and E, do seem to help.
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Teenagers and adults as old as 65 should get screened for HIV, new guidelines say. People at higher risk of infection, including men who have sex with men and people who use IV drugs, should get retested at least once a year.
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A push to make narcotic painkillers harder to abuse means that generic versions of OxyContin won't be allowed. But drugs that are more resistant to abuse are expensive and can still be addictive.
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Henna tattoos have become a popular beach souvenir and tween fashion accessory. But some are made not with the henna plant, but with a chemical that can cause a painful allergic reaction, the Food and Drug Administration warns.
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States' attempts to refuse to pay for seemingly minor emergency room visits can't easily distinguish between the cases that merit simple care and life-threatening problems, an analysis of emergency room data finds.