Hits & Misses – 2009/6/9
Sleep: It reduces colds, heart disease and obesity.
Lessons from Canada (where everyone is in the public plan).
What "pay-or-play" could mean for employers: $6,000 annual fine for failure to provide health insurance.
Tag: "heart disease"
Jun 09, 2009 | 3 comments | by John Goodman
Red Tooth and Claw
Another depressing finding about my favorite food:
A new study of more than 500,000 Americans….. found that, other things being equal, the men and women who consumed the most red and processed meat were likely to die sooner, especially from one of our two leading killers, heart disease and cancer.
May 01, 2009 | 4 comments | by John Goodman
Obesity Update
Just eyeballing it, looks like each 10 pounds is worth a year of life.
Adults who are… about 40 or more pounds over a healthy weight… may be cutting about three years off their lives, mostly from heart disease and stroke. Those who are… about 100 or more pounds over a healthy weight, could be shortening their lives by as many as 10 years… similar to the effect of lifelong smoking.
Kids are fatter if fast food is nearby.
A fast food restaurant within about 500 feet of a school may lead to at least a 5% increase in obesity at that school.
Michigan baseball park to offer 4,800-calorie burgers.
Anyone who eats the entire… behemoth in one sitting will receive a special T-shirt.
Mar 26, 2009 | 3 comments | by John Goodman
Statins for the Healthy Eventually Means Almost Everybody
Two new studies:
One of the studies, led by Gregg Fonarow of UCLA, examined 131,000 hospital admissions for heart disease and found that at least half of the patients had normal LDL levels. The other study [gated, but with abstract], called JUPITER, involved 18,000 people. It showed that giving a cholesterol-lowering statin to older people with normal LDL cut their risk of heart attack and stroke in half.
The implications:
JUPITER suggests that millions more older people – as many as 11 million, Yale researcher Erica Spatz reported this month – should be getting statins. That would bring the total to about 45 million people, or 80% of all men older than 50 and all women older than 60. [link]
Feb 27, 2009 | 2 comments | by John Goodman
Hits & Misses #2 – 2009/2/26
One-third of New York Medicaid patients don't bother to re-enroll. Paperwork is one problem.
Health IT in the UK. They text message STD test results to teenage patients.
Anger kills. But only in people who already have a heart problem.
Wyoming creates HSA pilot program. It's an alternative to Medicaid.
For-profit company creates products for the uninsured. $85 physician visits and 20% off on tests.
Feb 26, 2009 | 3 comments | by John Goodman
How Government is Keeping Telemedicine from Saving Stroke Victims
The most widely used treatment for stroke victims is a clot-busting drug called tissue plasminogen activater (tPA), but it must be administered within three hours of the first symptoms.
Problem: timing is critical, and an expert doctor must decide whether tPA is appropriate. But many hospitals do not have an expert.
Solution: telemedicine.
Obstacle: state laws that prohibit practicing across state lines and the Stark Amendments, which prevent financial arrangements between physicians and facilities. [link]
Feb 25, 2009 | 2 comments | by John Goodman
Health Insurer’s Latest Idea: Eat Right, Drink Right, and Avoid the Docs
The Texas Association of Health Plans newsletter reports that:
…It is widely known that the three leading causes of death in the country are heart disease, cancer and stroke. However, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists the "actual" causes of death to be lifestyle-related. It reports that three leading actual causes of death to be (1) poor diet/lack of exercise; (2) tobacco use; and (3) alcohol abuse.
It also quotes Dr. Christine Cassell, president of the American Board of Internal Medicine, as observing that "There is a stark correlation between reduced utilization and better outcomes."
So, stop smoking, stop drinking, eat tofu, avoid medical care and….maybe…. just maybe….we'll lower your premiums.
Jan 27, 2009 | 8 comments | by Linda Gorman
Obesity Update
The good gene: “With the mutated gene, people break down triglycerides unusually quickly. And, the investigators find, they also have low levels of LDL cholesterol, which at high levels increases heart disease risk. They have high levels of HDL cholesterol, which is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease. And they appear to have arteries relatively clear of plaque.”
The bad gene: “This is among the strongest human evidence we have that APOC3 is bad…. People with diabetes have high levels of APOC3, high levels of triglycerides and an increased risk of heart disease.”
Dec 18, 2008 | 2 comments | by John Goodman
Recessions: Good or Bad for Your Health?
The studies are mixed. So is the reasoning. On the one hand, a downturn increases stress (thought to be bad for health). Also, with less income, people find health care less affordable. On the other hand, a Tara Parker-Hope article in The New York Times says:
Economic studies suggest that people tend not to take care of themselves in boom times – drinking too much (especially before driving), dining on fat-laden restaurant meals and skipping exercise and doctors' appointments because of work-related time commitments.
Read More » »
Oct 20, 2008 | 4 comments | by John Goodman
