October 13, 2010

TUESDAY, Oct. 5 (HealthDay News) -- The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a report that outlines new guidelines concerning the iron needs of infants and children.

(HealthDay News) -- If you smoke while you're pregnant, you're exposing the baby to a host of harmful chemicals, including carbon monoxide, tar and nicotine, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says.

(HealthDay News) -- Parenting is a tough job. And to be successful at it, you may need to take a little breather from time to time.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Low-dose exposure to the chemical warfare agent sarin may lead to long-term heart damage, a new study suggests.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) --Being black and/or being on Medicaid significantly increases the likelihood that hospitalized patients will be readmitted to the hospital within a month of their initial release, new research reveals.

TUESDAY, Oct. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly 70 percent of Americans say that they or someone they care for experienced pain in the previous 30 days, a recent survey shows.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Hispanics in the United States outlive whites by almost three years and blacks by almost eight years, according to a new report.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Scientists who identified a crucial step in how the dengue virus infects a cell say their discovery could lead to new drugs to prevent or treat the infection.

TUESDAY, Oct. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Males and females have equal math skills, a new report confirms.

TUESDAY, Oct. 12 (HealthDay News) -- As many as one in five siblings of children with autism may have subtler problems with language and speech, according to new research involving nearly 3,000 children.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Children and teens in the United States spend an average of seven hours a day using television, computers, phones and other electronic devices for entertainment, compared to an average of three hours a day watching TV in 1999, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Almost 20 percent of fifth graders in West Virginia may have elevated blood pressure, according to new research from an ongoing study identifying heart disease risk factors.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that alternative drug regimens in poor countries could help HIV-infected mothers and their infants more effectively fight off the virus that causes AIDS.

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- The legal recreational drugs known as "poppers" appear to be linked to light sensitivity and vision loss in at least several healthy individuals, a new French review of cases reveals.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Walking about six miles a week appears to protect against brain shrinkage in old age, which in turn helps stem the onset of memory problems and cognitive decline, new research reveals.

(HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com:

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- As the world held its breath Wednesday, transfixed by the rescue of the 33 Chilean miners who had been trapped underground for 69 days, early indications were that the men had survived their ordeal in surprisingly good health.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Four big offenders of good nutrition -- calories, saturated fat, trans fat and sodium -- should appear prominently on the front labels of foods so consumers can make healthier eating choices, a new study suggests.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Vivitrol (naltrexone extended release) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat and prevent relapse among opioid-dependent people who have completed a detoxification program.

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 13 (HealthDay News) -- People taking drugs called bisphosphonates, such as Fosamax and Boniva, to prevent or treat osteoporosis may be at risk for a rare type of fracture of the thigh bone, U.S. health officials warned Wednesday.