Marijuana use in US adults doubles in decade, surveys show
CHICAGO (AP) — Marijuana use among U.S. adults doubled over a decade, rising to almost 10 percent or more than 22 million mostly recreational users, government surveys show.
HEALTH (MSM)
Clinton questions plans for health insurers to merge
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Rodham Clinton warned Wednesday that two major health insurers preparing multibillion dollar acquisitions could tip “the balance of power” too far away from consumers.
UK Ebola nurse has meningitis caused by persisting virus -doctors
By Estelle Shirbon and Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) – A Scottish nurse who contracted and initially recovered from Ebola, but then suffered relapsing illness, has meningitis caused by the virus persisting in her brain, doctors treating her said on Wednesday. Pauline Cafferkey was not reinfected with the Ebola virus, doctors said, but it had remained in her body since her initial recovery and had re-emerged to cause life-threatening complications. “The
Mystery deaths in Sierra Leone spread fear of Ebola relapses
By Kemo Cham and Emma Farge FREETOWN/DAKAR (Reuters) – A poster in Sierra Leone’s crumbling coastal capital Freetown proclaims a message from an Ebola survivor called Sulliaman: “I feel 100 percent healthy!” Another beaming survivor Juliana says: “I am one of the safest people to be around!” Throughout the two-year Ebola epidemic, thousands of West African survivors have been shunned by their communities, prompting governments to sponsor messages stressing their
Clinton has 'serious concerns' about Aetna-Humana, Anthem-Cigna mergers
By Amanda Becker WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has “serious concerns” about health insurer Aetna’s plan to acquire Humana and Anthem’s proposal to buy Cigna, saying the multi-billion-dollar deals should be closely reviewed by U.S. regulators. A $37 billion plan for Aetna Inc to acquire smaller rival Humana Inc approved by the shareholders of both companies this week would make Aetna the largest provider of Medicare Advantage
Qatar says could intervene militarily in Syria but prefers political solution
Qatar, a major supporter of rebels in Syria’s civil war, suggested it could intervene militarily following Russia’s intervention in support of President Bashar al-Assad but said it still preferred a political solution to the crisis. The comments by Qatar’s foreign minister, made in a CNN interview on Wednesday, drew a swift reply from Assad’s government with a senior official warning that Damascus would respond harshly to such “direct aggression”. Gulf
Brain changes may underlie anorexia food choices
By Kathryn Doyle (Reuters Health) – Differences in brain activity may underlie some of the unhealthy eating patterns in people with anorexia nervosa, a study suggests. People hospitalized for anorexia nervosa activate unique areas of their brains while making decisions between various foods, researchers found. “This study is exciting because it is the first time that we have been able to directly study what is going on in the brain
No Longer Ashamed of the Skin I'm In
Loving myself, inside and out, has been a process. I wasn’t ever overly concerned about my dark skin or greying hair. I also never really waivered about the strength of my inner qualities like intellect or kindness. It’s the shell that covers me and the illness raging within that’s damaged it that made being comfortable with what I look like…
Slovenia to ask EU for police back-up to cope with influx of migrants
By Marja Novak and Maja Zuvela LJUBLJANA/KLJUC BRDOVECKI, Croatia (Reuters) – Slovenia said on Tuesday it would ask the European Union to send additional police forces to its border with Croatia to help it deal with thousands of migrants streaming into the tiny country on their way to Austria and beyond. About 19,500 migrants have entered Slovenia since Friday, the Interior Ministry said, when Hungary sealed its southern border, creating
Iraq cholera cases grow, spread to Kurdish region
The number of cholera cases in Iraq has risen to more than 1,800 as the epidemic spread to the northern autonomous Kurdish region, health officials said Tuesday. “There have been 1,809 recorded cases of cholera in Iraq” since an outbreak started along the Euphrates valley last month, a health ministry statement said. The Kurdish health ministry reported its first cases since the outbreak, two each in the provinces of Arbil