Researchers pinpoint brain cells that drive appetite in obesity
A team at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research has discovered a group of brain cells that boosts appetite when there is a prolonged surplus of energy in the body, such as excess fat accumulation in obesity. The researchers discovered that these cells not only produced the appetite-stimulating molecule NPY, but they in fact made […]
Lumpers vs Splitters: Categorizing Prostate Cancer
In December 2010, I was diagnosed with a tiny bit — less than 1 mm — of Gleason 6 (now Grade Group 1) prostate cancer. In six biopsies with more than 80 cores over nearly 13 years, that speck of cancer is all that has been found. I have seen two urologists while on Active […]
Senate Democrats Reintroduce Sweeping Bill To Codify Federal Abortion Protections
A group of Senate Democrats reintroduced the Women’s Health Protection Act on Wednesday evening — legislation that aims to codify federal abortion protections since the Supreme Court repealed its landmark 1973 ruling Roe v. Wade. The legislation, sponsored by Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) and Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), aims to “protect a person’s ability to […]
Doc Groups Unhappy With 4.5% Cut in the 2023 Medicare Fee Schedule Final Rule
WASHINGTON — Physician groups expressed concerns over what one group called a “substantial” decrease in Medicare fee-for-service physician payments under a final rule for 2023 issued Tuesday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule includes a 4.5% decrease in the conversion factor — the multiplier that Medicare […]
Nutrition Group Has Close Ties to Food, Pharma Companies
A large U.S. nutrition group and its foundation have a “symbiotic” relationship with the food and pharmaceutical industries, according to public health researchers. In an analysis of documents obtained via a freedom of information request, key leadership for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) hold important positions in multinational food and agribusiness companies, according […]
U.S. Task Force Recommends All Adults Under 65 Be Screened For Anxiety
A U.S. advisory group of medical experts recommended all patients under the age of 65 be screened for anxiety for the first time, a major effort that hopes to expand mental health care as the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to climb. The group, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force, released its draft recommendation […]
Insufficient insulin processing leads to overweight
Overweight increases the risk of an imbalance in sugar metabolism and even of diabetes. A research group at the University of Basel has now shown the opposite is true as well: deficits in the body’s insulin production contribute to overweight. Poor nutrition, too little movement and too many pounds on the scale — lifestyle influences […]
Medicare’s Proposed Physician Fee Schedule a Mixed Bag, Doc Groups Say
WASHINGTON — Physician group responses to the proposed 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule ranged from disappointment over the proposed 4.4% overall payment cut to praise for many of the provisions related to accountable care organizations (ACOs). “The scary part for most of us is we’re getting these reductions despite the fact that we’re still fighting […]
Montana bio station researchers discuss mine risks to salmon rivers
Recently, a group of 23 science and policy experts from the U.S. and Canada published a review of mining risks to watersheds ranging from Montana to British Columbia and Alaska. The paper in the journal Science Advances brought together experts in salmon ecology, watershed science, mining impacts and mining policy to integrate knowledge across research […]
No more binge eating: Signal pathway in the brain that controls food intake discovered
A group of researchers has developed an entirely novel approach to treating eating disorders. The scientists showed that a group of nerve cells in the hypothalamus (so-called AgRP, agouti-related peptide neurons) control the release of endogenous lysophospholipids, which in turn control the excitability of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, which stimulates food intake. In […]