WASHINGTON - U.S. health officials say drug abuse is a major cause of death in the United States and that prescription drugs are a big part of the problem.  Painkillers and mood-altering medications have left many people addicted, with serious results.
At the Malibu Beach Recovery Center, outside Los Angeles, residents learn yoga and other coping […]

WASHINGTON - Americans are being urged to cut back on salt, sugar and fatty meats and to eat more fish and whole grains. The recommendations are part of new dietary guidelines issued by the U.S. government, and are designed to help the majority of Americans who are overweight or obese.
The World Health Organization says obesity […]

WASHINGTON - First lady Michelle Obama and retail giant Wal-mart have launched a program aimed at improving the nutritional content of America’s foods, and making those items more affordable for millions of Americans. The initiative is part of the first lady’s campaign to promote healthier choices for children in the United States.
Wal-Mart, the world’s largest […]

WASHINGTON - This month, authorities ordered more than half a billion eggs off the shelves at American supermarkets due to fears of salmonella. More than 1,000 people have become sick after eating eggs contaminated with the disease-causing bacteria.
It’s one of the largest salmonella outbreaks ever recorded in the U.S., and the most recent in a […]

GENEVA - The World Health Organization has declared an end to the H1N1 swine flu pandemic.  In making the announcement, WHO Director-General, Dr. Margaret Chan said the new H1N1 virus has largely run its course and the world is now moving into the post-pandemic period. 
Dr. Chan says the world is no longer in phase 6 […]

WASHINGTON - The Gulf oil spill could lead to some serious public health problems, according to a new report released this week.
As the environmental and economic disaster continues to unfold in the Gulf of Mexico following the April 20 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, attention has largely focused on efforts to cap the […]

WASHINGTON - A new study has found that many firefighters and emergency medical personnel who responded in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attack on New York’s World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, continue to suffer potentially permanent lung problems. 
Seven years after two hijacked jetliners slammed into the World Trade Center towers - triggering […]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. military says it has stopped flying Haitian earthquake victims to the United States for medical care following concerns by some state governments over who will pay for their treatment.
Military officials say the evacuations were suspended Wednesday, after Florida Governor Charlie Crist asked the federal government to help pay for the care.
The […]

WASHINGTON - Tuesday’s Republican victory in a special Senate election in Massachusetts has sent political shockwaves through Washington.  The unexpected victory by Republican Scott Brown for the seat long held by the late Senator Ted Kennedy has inspired Republicans around the country, and now throws into question the fate of President Barack Obama’s domestic agenda […]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Senate is on course for a final vote early Thursday on health care reform legislation after a week of wrangling and a series of procedural votes.  Democrats have been able to hold together a 60-vote majority required to pass the bill. But, difficult negotiations with the House of Representatives lie ahead, […]

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies in Congress appear to be making progress on health care reform, and the chances of opposition Republicans blocking a reform bill now seem to be fading.  But Republicans remain optimistic about their political fortunes in 2010.
With Democratic senators standing by his side recently at the White […]

WASHINGTON - A U.S. government task force has released new guidelines on how often women should get mammograms to test for breast cancer. The task force says for most women, mammograms should start at age 50, not at the previously recommended age of 40. Not everyone agrees with the new guidelines.
Breast cancer survivor Nancy Gaul […]

WASHINGTON - Health officials around the world say they are frustrated by the shortage of vaccine to protect against the H1N1 flu. The United States and other wealthy countries have promised to donate 10 percent of their supply to developing countries. But due to a global shortage, that has not happened yet.  
So far, more than […]

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama has declared the spreading H1N1 swine flu virus to be a national emergency.
Mr. Obama has signed a proclamation which gives U.S. hospitals more flexibility if they need to handle large numbers of flu patients.
A White House statement Saturday said the proclamation allows hospitals to request waivers of some government […]

WASHINGTON - Chinese milk products tainted with an industrial chemical have now been discovered in Taiwan and the United States.
Taiwanese Health Minister Yeh Ching-chuan says low doses of melamine have been found in milk products produced in the northeastern Chinese province of Heilongjiang.  The items were sold by a Chinese subsidiary of Swiss-based Nestle Corporation.
Meanwhile, […]

HOUSTON - On the eve of the International AIDS Conference, which begins in Mexico City Sunday, researchers at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston claim to have discovered a way to destroy the HIV virus that causes AIDS. If their hopes are confirmed in further tests, it could represent a major breakthrough in […]

WASHINGTON - According to a study published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, there’s been an increase in the number of foreigners in the United States who are infected with tuberculosis. The authors are proposing a strategy to control disease among high-risk groups. 
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and […]

WASHINGTON - An executive for a maker of the drug heparin says a contaminant in the blood-thinning medication appears to have been placed there deliberately.Eighty one deaths are associated with allergic reactions to tainted doses of heparin.
Heparin is used to help patients undergoing kidney dialysis and other procedures. The medication is made by Baxter International […]

FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA– Women from coast-to-coast and around the globe once equated getting older with invisibility. Thanks to the Red Hat Society (RHS), founded 10 years ago today, perceptions began to change. In just one decade RHS has evolved from a few friends who donned red hats and purple outfits in the spirit of having fun […]

WASHINGTON - Tests on several plastic baby bottles have found they emit “very significant” levels of a chemical linked to deadly illnesses in laboratory animals. That is according to a new report released by American and Canadian environmental health groups. 
The study found 95 percent of all baby bottles on the market are made with bisphenol […]

GENEVA - International health agencies say the world is on the brink of a cancer epidemic. The World Health Organization reports 7.6 million people died of the disease in 2005. It predicts the number of cancer deaths and new cases of the disease will rise astronomically in the coming years, unless action is taken now […]

GENEVA - A new study sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows children with severe pneumonia can be effectively treated at home and do not need to be hospitalized. The World Health Organization calls this finding hugely significant for developing countries.  It says the change of treatment will save many children’s lives and take […]

WASHINGTON - Scientists have discovered that blood stored in a bank loses a vital gas that is important for transferring oxygen from the blood. The discovery may explain why a significant number of people die after receiving blood transfusions.
For the past five years, experts have wondered why people who should survive after receiving a blood […]

MIAMI - Chinese manufacturers are facing harsh scrutiny after a series of health scares involving toxic exports to several nations.  In Panama, officials are struggling to understand how a poisonous chemical made in China was wrongly mixed into a cough syrup formula, killing more than 100 people since last year.  China has denied wrongdoing in […]