Health/Fitness

HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

October 21, 2015 (San Diego's East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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PETITION DRIVE LAUNCHED TO OVERTURN RIGHT TO DIE LAW

East County News Service

October 20, 2015 (Sacramento)--Opponents of California’s new Aid in Dying Law, also known as the Right to Die, have launched a signature gathering effort seeking to put a petition on the ballot to overturn the measure.


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FIND BALANCE IN CAREGIVING FOR VETERANS NOV. 5

 

By Janis Russell

October 17, 2015 (La Mesa)-On Thursday November 5, the Caregiver Coalition of San Diego and the City of La Mesa are hosting a free educational event on caring for veterans. This event is geared towards the caregivers or family members caring for a veteran. There will be educational seminars, resource fairs, and lunch is provided by AARP.

Caregivers or family members can learn about services that are beneficial to veterans as well as community resources available to caregivers. The event is from 9:30am to 2:30 p.m. at the La Mesa Memorial Center, 4975 Memorial Drive, La Mesa.


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FROM THE CHIEF’S CORNER: OCTOBER IS BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

 

By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

October 16, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--Breast cancer is the second most common kind of cancer in women. About one in eight women born today in the United States will get breast cancer at some point. The good news is that many women can survive breast cancer if it’s found and treated early. A mammogram – the screening test for breast cancer – can help find breast cancer early when it’s easier to treat.

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month is a chance to raise awareness about the importance of early detection of breast cancer.


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COUNTY, CAL FIRE LAUNCH PARAMEDIC SERVICE IN JACUMBA

 

 

East County News Service

Photo: Two Jacumba CAL FIRE firefighters stand ready to respond in a new paramedic engine at the Jacumba fire station.

October 14, 2015 (San Diego)--San Diego County Fire and CAL FIRE are making a major upgrade to fire and emergency medical services at the County’s Jacumba fire station with the launch this week of round-the-clock paramedic service. It’s the first time ever the service has been offered from the station, located south of Interstate 8 near the Mexican border.

The upgrade is part of an overall effort to increase paramedic capabilities throughout the San Diego County Fire Authority’s service area.  A new paramedic engine at Jacumba is the seventh that County Fire has added over the past few years.  Other new, County Fire-funded paramedic engines now operate out of the Otay, Jamul, Lake Morena, Pine Valley, Descanso and Intermountain stations.


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BILL TO RESTRICT ANTIBIOTICS IN LIVESTOCK SIGNED BY GOVERNOR

 

East County News Service

October 13, 2015 (Sacramento) – Governor Jerry Brown has signed the  nation’s strictest standard for use of antibiotics in livestock. 

The new law addresses concerns raised by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which estimates 2 million people in the U.S. are infected with drug resistant bacteria,  and 23,000 die each year of these superbugs. Public health officials believe the overuse of antibiotics in cattle, pigs and other livestock in meat and dairy production endangers the public health.


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BILL WOULD LET FORMER FOSTER YOUTHS KEEP HEALTH INSURANCE IN OTHER STATES

 

East County News Service

October 11, 2015 (Washington D.C.)—Seeking to help hundreds of thousands of young people who are currently a part of the foster care system and the tens of thousands who leave the system each year, Reps. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) and Jim McDermott (D-Wash.)—Co-Chairs of the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth,  have introduced H.R. 3641, the “Health Insurance for Former Foster Youth Act of 2015.”  The measure would close a loophole and guarantee that foster youth will still receive health insurance through Medicaid until they turn 26 years old,  regardless of their state of residence.


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NEW LAW MAKES HEALTH INSURERS PROVIDE ACCURATE, UPDATED PROVIDER DIRECTORIES

 

New law allows patients to be reimbursed for out-of-network care due to a mistake in an insurance company’s directory

East County News Service

October 11, 2015 (Sacramento) – Many consumers complained that after signing up for health insurance through Covered California, they learned that the healthcare plans they enrolled in had mistakes such as doctors listed who were no longer in the network.  Covered California discontinued its directory in February.  But a state audit also found many errors in directories by major health insurers including Anthem Blue Cross, Health Net and Partnership Health Plan, such as wrong phone numbers and addresses, plus inaccurate information on which doctors were accepting new patients.


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DEFIBRILLATORS LAW SIGNED BY GOVERNOR

 

East County News Service

October 10, 2015 (Sacramento) - Senate Bill 287, the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Safety Act, has been signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown.  The bill was authored by State Senator Ben Hueso, a Democrat representing San Diego and southern portions of East County.


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SCIENCE AND HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS

October 10, 2015 (San Diego's East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

·         DNA segments predict sex orientation, study says (U-T)

·         Why It Was Easier to Be Skinny in the 1980s (The Atlantic)

·         First patient receives stem cell treatment for blindness (CBS)

·         Wherever You Go, Your Personal Cloud Of Microbes Follows NPR

·         Taking blood pressure drugs at bedtime lowers diabetes risk (SD Union-Tribune)

·         Turing Pharmaceuticals Retreats From Plan To Raise Price Of Daraprim (NPR)

·         Sad To Say, Most Remedies For Hot Flashes Fizzle (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

·         Volcanoes cooled earth in the past, constrain warming from excess CO2 (Climate Wire)

·         Germany now faced with thousands of aging wind farms (YahooNews)

·         Volkswagen rigged tests on 2.8 million cars in Germany, Berlin says (Reuters)

·         Not just an electric car, but one that runs on salt water (CS Monitor)

·         Mercedes-Benz’s self-driving truck hits the open road (CS Monitor)

·         Spotted Jellyfish Sighting In Chula Vista Another Sign Of El Niño  (KPBS)

·         Wild horse genome reveals hidden costs of domestication( CS Monitor)

·         Could 'rewilding' allow crops to fight pests without chemicals? (CS Monitor)

·         EU Safe Harbor ruling sends shock waves across tech industry (CS Monitor)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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STEP OUT: WALK TO STOP DIABETES OCT. 18 TO HELP BENEFIT SANTEE PROGRAM FOR KIDS

 

October 9, 2015 (Santee)--The American Diabetes Association (ADA) in San Diego will raise money for programs and services for people living with diabetes at its Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes, a fundraising walk on Sunday morning, Oct. 18, at NTC Park at Liberty Station, 2455 Cushing Road, San Diego.

One of the ADA’s East County programs to receive support from Step Out will be Camp Wana Kura, a summer day-camp held at Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve for children with diabetes.


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WEST NILE DEATH IN EL CAJON; COUNTY CONFIRMS 5 NEWS CASES

13 more cases suspsected, including 2 deaths as outbreak widens

County News Service

October 8, 2015 (San Diego) – Five new patients are confirmed to have been infected with West Nile virus, bringing the total number of people who have contracted the mosquito-driven disease this year to 11. These include  the second fatality this year localy---a 73-year-old El Cajon man who died October 4.

One newly confirmed case was detected after a routine blood donation last week by a 56-year-old San Diego woman had symptoms consistent with the virus, and three other cases confirmed by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) in patients who were hospitalized in September: a 77-year-old San Diego woman, a 53-year-old San Diego man, and a 60-year-old Ramona woman.

In addition, there are 13 suspected San Diego County cases pending confirmation by CDPH, including two suspected deaths.


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COUNTY SEEKS INPUT FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMS

 

October 8, 2015 (San Diego)--Do you or a loved one have a mental health challenge? Do you have ideas about what behavioral health programs and services are needed in your community?


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NEW INVADER: ASIAN TIGER MOSQUITO FOUND IN COUNTY

 

October 3, 2015 (San Diego)--Another daytime-biting, invasive mosquito thought to have been killed off here more than a decade ago has been discovered in San Diego County.


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ACLU SUES TO STOP CATHOLIC HOSPITALS FROM WITHHOLDING CARE TO PREGNANT WOMEN WITH PREGNANCY COMPLICATIONS

 

East County News Service

October 3, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Pregnant women seeking emergency care at Trinity Health hospitals, a chain of 80 Catholic hospitals nationwide, have become septic, experienced hemorrhaging, contracted life-threatening infections and suffered severe pain for days after being denied medical care during pregnancy complications including miscarriages, a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) contends.

In some cases, the water or membrane surrounding a fetus burst during early stages of pregnancy, meaning a baby could not survive, but the mother’s life was in danger without termination of pregnancy.  However the Catholic hospitals’ directives prohibit doctors from terminating a pregnancy for any reason, even when a miscarriage is in progress. Their doctors are also banned even from telling a woman than an abortion could save her life or health.

The ACLU filed the suit on behalf of women members including some who live in cities or counties where Trinity is the only hospital providing emergency care for obstetrical and gynecological conditions or is the only hospital that takes the member’s insurance.


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FREE FLU SHOTS FOR EVERYONE OVER 6 MONTHS


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ANTI-VAXERS SEEK BALLOT INITIATIVE TO OVERTURN NEW VACCINATION LAW

 

East County News Service

September 30, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Seeking to overturn California’s new vaccination law, opponents have submitted petitions to the Secretary of State.  The measure needs 365,000 signatures from registered voters but it will take approximately a month to determine whether there are enough valid signatures to qualify for the November 2016 ballot.


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DISNEYLAND FAN FROM EAST COUNTY HAS UNIQUE SURGERY TO ALLOW HER TO CONTINUE MONTHLY VISIT TO THEME PARK

 

64-year-old Casa de Oro woman undergoes aortic endograft procedure for complex abdominal aortic aneurysms

Story provided by Sharp Healthcare

September 26, 2015 (Casa de Oro)--You could say Lura Kienzle is a bit of a Disney fanatic.The 64-year-old gleefully boasts that she and her “Mousekapals,” a tight-knit group of six friends from San Diego, visit the Disneyland theme park in Anaheim about once a month.

But that monthly trek had to be put on the back burner last September when Kienzle started to not feel well.


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LOCAL LYME DISEASE PATIENTS PLAN PROTEST AT MAJOR MEDICAL MEETING IN SAN DIEGO OCT. 7-11 OVER DIAGNOSTIC “DENIALISM”

 

East County News Service

September 27, 2015 (San Diego)--The CDC estimates that there are more than 300,000 cases of Lyme disease every year in the United States. However, many experts dispute that, saying the true number is likely well over a million. Ticks carrying Lyme disease are found in San Diego County,  the County’s Environmental Health Department reports.

A coalition of groups representing Lyme disease patients plan protests outside the Infectious Diseases Society of America ((IDSA) at its meeting in San Diego October 7-11.

“Because of rampant “Lyme denialism” by the CDC and the medical establishment, hundreds of thousands of additional cases of Lyme disease go undiagnosed and untreated—and people are left to suffer,” says Jen Williams, a spokesperson for the coalition of patients and their advocates. The Centers for Disease Control endorses Lyme disease guidelines for physicians determined by the IDSA—and insurance companies use those guidelines to deny payment or Lyme treatment, the groups contend.


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SCIENCE AND HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS


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HEALTH FAIR SATURDAY IS EAST COUNTY'S LARGEST FREE HEALTH FAIR

 

 

September 23, 2015 (La Mesa)--The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce will present “Health Fair Saturday,” the East County region’s largest annual free community-wide health fair, from noon to 4 p.m.Saturday, Sept. 26, at Grossmont Center, 5500 Grossmont Center Dr., La Mesa, near the movie theaters at the mall.


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MEDICAL MINUTE: WHAT IS A HOSPITALIST?

 

By Dr. Larry Emdur

September 23, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--After a successful career as a board-certified internist and pulmonologist, Dr. Larry Emdur decided to become a hospitalist at Alvarado Hospital. A hospitalist is a fast-growing profession in which a physician’s primary focus is the general medical care of hospitalized patients.

The hospitalist profession has grown rapidly over the last decade because it allows hospital patients to be seen and treated by an in-house physician, rather than waiting for their regular doctor to come by after work or between patients. Not only is this more convenient and cost-effective for the patient, but it can improve patient safety.


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GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL TO KEEP TODDLERS IN REAR-FACING CAR SEATS UNTIL AGE 2

By Miriam Raftery

September 21, 2015 (Sacramento)—Governor Jerry Brown has signed Assembly Bill 53 into law. It requires drivers to secure children in rear-facing car seats until at least age 2, unless the child weighs over 40 pounds or is more than 40 inches tall.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) supported the bill,  citing a study that found children younger than 2 are 75 percent less likely to be killed or injured in a car crash if they're in a rear-facing car seat.


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SCIENCE AND HEALTH HIGHLIGHTS

September 18, 2015 (San Diego's East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

SCIENCE AND TECH

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

LEGISLATURE ADJOURNS WITHOUT FIX REQUIRED BY FEDS FOR MEDI-CAL FUNDING

 

 

Senator Joel Anderson urges Governor to veto spending for preschool and protecting Monarch butterflies, calls for money to be used on services for disabled,Medi-Cal providers and in-home support services

By Miriam Raftery

September 14, 2015 (Sacramento)—The state Legislature adjourned without approving a change required by the federal government to avoid losing $1.1 billion in Medi-Cal funding.  Democrats and Republicans are pointing fingers, with each blaming the other.


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WELLNESS WEDNESDAY AT THE HERRICK COMMUNITY LIBRARY

“The Wise Use of Medication” on Sept. 23

September 14, 2015 (La Mesa) -- Medicines can treat health problems and help you live a healthier life but must be used correctly.

The Grossmont Healthcare District’s Dr. William C. Herrick Community Health Care Library will host a free program on “The Wise Use of Medication” from 10 to 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 23. Tips and suggestions will help attendees understand how to be safe and use medicines wisely, including information about over-the-counter and prescription medications, as well as key questions to ask your doctor or the pharmacist.


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BILL TO REGULATE MEDICAL MARIJUANA HEADS TO GOVERNOR’S DESK

 

 

East County News Service

September 12, 2015 (Sacramento)—A trio of bills to regulate medical marijuana in California have passed the Legislature and now await Governor Jerry Brown’s signature. 

The measures cover the full gamut of the billion dollar cannabis industry, from farming to dispensaries, all to be licensed for transportation and distribution under a new Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation in the Department of Consumer Affairs. In addition to state licenses, local city or county licensing will also be required, so jurisdictions with bans or restrictions can keep them and voters can also weigh in on issues such as taxing the growing or sale of medical marijuana.


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TWO LIKELY HUMAN WEST NILE VIRUS CASES REPORTED IN SANTEE AND SAN DIEGO

 

September 11, 2015 (Santee)--The death of a 79-year-old San Diego woman on Sept. 8 and the recent hospitalization of an 80-year-old Santee woman are under investigation as probable West Nile virus cases, the County Health and Human Services Agency announced today. The 80-year-old woman is currently recovering.


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MEDICAL MINUTE: IS WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY RIGHT FOR ME?

 

 

Free Seminar Sept. 17 at Alvarado Hospital

By Dr. Vadim Avulov

If you are considering gastric bypass surgery to lose weight, a therapeutic effect is often the reduction or elimination of type 2 diabetes. Gastric bypass reduces the amount of nutrients absorbed by the small intestine, which appears to result in metabolic changes that have a beneficial effect on diabetes.

If you are considering surgical weight loss, gastric bypass is a popular procedure because of its success rate. Even better, it can now be performed minimally invasively, which makes it much safer with quicker recovery.


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS


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