Childhood trauma associated with chronic fatigue syndrome
Individuals who experience
trauma during childhood appear more likely to develop chronic fatigue syndrome
as adults, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of General
Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Individuals with chronic fatigue
syndrome reported higher levels of childhood trauma exposure. Trauma was
associated with a six-fold increase in the risk of having the condition. Sexual
abuse, emotional abuse and emotional neglect were most closely associated
with chronic fatigue syndrome.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/childhood-traum.php
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Teens frequently mention risky behaviors on social networking sites
About half of teens reference
sex, substance use or other risky behaviors on their publicly available online
profiles, according to a report in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics
& Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. However, a second
article reports that a brief e-mail from a physician shows promise in reducing
mentions of sex on social networking Web sites. More than 90 percent of adolescents
have Internet access and about half use social networking sites, according
to background information in the articles.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/teens-frequentl.php
Majority of teens discuss risky behaviors on MySpace, studies conclude
In a pair of related studies
released by Seattle Children's Research Institute and published in the January
2009 issue of Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, researchers
found that 54 percent of adolescents frequently discuss high-risk activities
including sexual behavior, substance abuse or violence using MySpace,
the popular social networking Web site (SNS). The studies, Adolescent Display
of Health Risk Behaviors on MySpace, and Reducing At-Risk Adolescents' Display of Risk
Behavior on a Social Networking Web Site, were led by research fellow Megan
A.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/majority-of-tee.php
Studies reveal lifelong gender difference in physical activity
Females of all ages are
less active than their male peers. Two studies, presented at a major academic
conference, reveal the gender difference in activity levels among school children
and the over 70s. Both studies show males to be more physically active than
females. A study focusing on primary schools in Liverpool (UK) gives the
first evidence of the difference in girls' and boys' activity levels in the
playground. The preliminary results of a National Prevention Research Initiative
(NPRI) funded project on activity levels among the over-70s mirror these results.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/studies-reveal.php
***CIVIC ENGAGEMENT/PHILANTHROPY***
Luce Foundation Grant to UC Santa Barbara Will Advance Understanding of Religion's
Impact on Global Humanitarian
and Human Rights Efforts
"Since religion plays
such a vital role in world affairs, it is mandatory that we understand better
how it both helps and hinders humanitarian efforts in building a global civil
society," said Mark Juergensmeyer, director
of the Orfalea Center and an international expert
on religious violence and conflict resolution who will lead the three-year
project.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/luce-foundation.php
Chabot Space &
Science Center's Galaxy
Explorers Program Awarded Grant From the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
Chabot Space & Science Center's year-round program for high school
students, Galaxy Explorers, received a grant from the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation.
Galaxy Explorers perform live public science demonstrations, explain interactive
exhibits, deliver mini science workshops, outreach to community centers and
work at Chabot's popular summer camps.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/chabot-space-sc-5.php
***COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT***
HUD TO SPEED PROCESS FOR
AWARDING GRANTS
In an effort to accelerate
the process of awarding grants to State and local governments, non-profit
organizations, and other community-based applicants, the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development announced a new streamlined funding process.
HUD will now announce funding notices on a program-by-program basis, an action
that will speed up the application process for prospective grantees that would
otherwise be required to wait for the publication of HUD's comprehensive funding
notice.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/hud-to-speed-pr.php
***ECONOMIC SECURITY***
HUD AWARDS $49 MILLION IN
GRANTS TO HELP LOW-INCOME FAMILIES GET JOB TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT
Housing and Urban Development
Secretary Steve Preston announced that public housing agencies in 48 states,
the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico will receive nearly $49 million
to provide low-income people with the necessary job training to put them on
a path toward self-sufficiency. Funded through HUD's
Housing Choice Voucher Family Self-Sufficiency Program (HCV/FSS), the
grants allow public housing agencies (PHAs) to work
with welfare agencies, schools, businesses, and other local partners to develop
a comprehensive program to help participating individuals develop the skills
and experience to enable them to obtain jobs that pay a living wage.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/hud-awards-49-m.php
Unemployment Compensation Service Phone Lines Open Later, Now Include
Sundays
Out-of-work Pennsylvanians
will now be able to file claims for unemployment compensation benefits six
days a week. Labor & Industry Acting Secretary Sandi Vito announced that
as part of the department's on-going efforts to increase access to services
for laid- off workers, call-in hours for the unemployment compensation toll-free
phone number, 1-888-313-7284, will now be available Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4:30
p.m. The additional Sunday hours mark the
first time call centers will be available to answer every type of unemployment
compensation question.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/unemployment-co.php
***EDUCATION***
Using Student Data to Improve Teaching and Learning
This report from MDRC
contains findings from an evaluation of a program in the Boston Public Schools
that seeks to improve reading instruction and student learning through one
type of data-driven instruction. The program provides teachers with formative
assessments that they can use to measure what students do and do not know,
along with professional development on how to understand and use the data
generated by those assessments.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/using-student-d.php
Transcendental Meditation reduces ADHD symptoms among students: New
study
The Transcendental Meditation
technique may be an effective and safe non-pharmaceutical aid for treating
ADHD, according to a promising new study published this month in the peer-reviewed
online journal Current Issues in Education. The pilot study followed a group
of middle school students with ADHD who were meditating twice a day in school.
Prior research shows ADHD children have slower brain development and a reduced
ability to cope with stress.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/transcendental.php
Education practices influence women engineer shortage, MU study finds
As the need for engineering
professionals grows, educators and industry leaders are increasingly concerned
with how to attract women to a traditional male career. A new University of Missouri study found the impact of the engineering
curriculum and obstacles, including self-efficacy and feelings of inclusion,
can impede women's success in the predominantly male discipline of engineering.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/education-pract.php
***HEALTH***
Interruptions in Medicaid Coverage and Risk for Hospitalization for
Ambulatory Care-Sensitive Conditions
A review of hospital discharge
data in California revealed that interruptions in Medicaid
coverage increased the risk of hospitalization for ambulatory care sensitive
conditions such as heart failure, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary
disease, which can often be managed in an outpatient setting. Hospital admissions
for these conditions may signal a decline in health status among patients
who no longer have access to preventive and primary care services because
of an interruption in their health care coverage.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/interruptions-i.php
Nationwide Health Information Network Advances: Foundation for Interoperable
Health Information Exchange Established
The work of the Nationwide
Health Information Network has come a long way in the last year to create
a health information exchange environment that fosters public-private cooperation
to empower consumers to benefit from electronic health information, Secretary
Leavitt said. We need to continue to encourage the development of electronic
health information exchange that balances each individuals
right to access their health information and provide robust protection and
security of personal health information.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/nationwide-heal.php
HHS Issues Final Regulation to Protect Health Care Providers from Discrimination
The right of federally funded
health care providers to decline to participate in services to which they object, such as abortion, is affirmed
by a final regulation that has been issued by the U.S. This rule protects the right of medical
providers to care for their patients in accord with their conscience. HHS
officials are charged with working with any state or local government or entity
that may be in violation of existing statutes and the regulation to encourage
voluntary steps to bring that government or entity into compliance with the
law.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/hhs-issues-fina.php
***NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT***
IRS Finalizes Revised Form 990
Last week, the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) finalized its revised Form 990 and
990-EZ information returns which many tax-exempt organizations are required
to file in the coming year. In addition, the IRS has also released an updated
schedule and
filing instructions. The finalized forms, which will be used by filers
beginning in 2009, contain several changes that may impact the amount of information
charities must submit to the IRS including, among other revisions, new details
on compensation, governance practices and information related to affiliated
organizations.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2008/12/irs-finalizes-r.php
***NUTRITION AND HEALTHY LIVING**
Can't chalk it up to 'baby fat'
Despite recent widespread
media attention given to studies that have indicated one-third of American
children have a weight problem, a new study shows just one-third of children
who are overweight or obese actually receive that diagnosis by a pediatrician.
The study, led by researchers at the MetroHealth System and Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, also stresses that this failure to
diagnose appears to mostly impact children who may most greatly benefit from
early intervention.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/cant-chalk-it-u.php
***SENIORS***
Moderate drinking can reduce risks of Alzheimer's dementia and cognitive
decline
Moderate drinkers often
have lower risks of Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive loss, according
to researchers who reviewed 44 studies. In more than half of the studies,
published since the 1990s, moderate drinkers of wine, beer and liquor had
lower dementia risks than nondrinkers. The researchers note there are other
things besides moderate drinking that can reduce the risk of dementia, including
exercise, green tea, education and a Mediterranean diet high in fruits, vegetables,
cereals, beans, nuts and seeds.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/moderate-drinki.php
Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center link blood
sugar to normal cognitive aging
Maintaining blood sugar
levels, even in the absence of disease, may be an important strategy for preserving
cognitive health, suggests a study published by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center. The study appeared in the December
issue of Annals of Neurology. The findings suggest that exercising to improve
blood sugar levels could be a way for some people to stave off the normal
cognitive decline that comes with age.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/researchers-at-1.php
***SUBSTANCE ABUSE***
New findings shed light on why smokers struggle to quit
Just seeing someone smoke
can trigger smokers to abandon their nascent efforts to kick the habit, according
to new research conducted at Duke University Medical Center. Brain scans taken during normal
smoking activity and 24 hours after quitting show there is a marked increase
in a particular kind of brain activity when quitters see photographs of people
smoking.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/new-findings-sh.php
Third-hand smoke: Another reason to quit smoking
In the January issue of
Pediatrics, researchers at MassGeneral Hospital for Children (MGHfC)
and colleagues across the country describe how tobacco smoke contamination
lingers even after a cigarette is extinguished a phenomenon they define as
"third-hand" smoke. Their study is the first to examine adult attitudes
about the health risks to children of third-hand smoke and how those beliefs
may relate to rules about smoking in their homes.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/thirdhand-smoke.php
Smokers with stroke in the family 6 times more likely to have stroke
too
A new study shows that people
who are smokers and have a family history of brain aneurysm appear to be significantly
more likely to suffer a stroke from a brain aneurysm themselves. The research
is published in the Dec.
31, 2008, online issue
of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, and will appear in the
Jan. 6, 2009, print issue of Neurology.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/smokers-with-st.php
'Recovery coaches' effective in reducing number of babies exposed to
drugs
About 11 percent of the
4 million babies born in the U.S. each year have been exposed to alcohol
or illicit drugs in the womb, according to a June 2006 report by the National Center on Substance Abuse and Child Welfare.
If removed from the home by child protection, these children tend to remain
in foster care longer, and chances are very low that they will be reunited
with their parents. However, a groundbreaking study indicates that recovery
coaches can significantly reduce the number of substance-exposed births as
well as help reunite substance-involved families, saving state child-welfare
systems millions of dollars in foster-care and other placement costs.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/recovery-coache.php
Substance abuse adds millions to Medicaid's total health care costs
People with substance abuse
disorders cost Medicaid hundreds of millions of dollars annually in medical
care, suggesting that early interventions for substance abuse could not only
improve outcomes but also save substantial amounts of money, according to
a comprehensive study that examined records of nearly 150,000 people in six
states. All six states showed that medical care and behavioral health care
costs were higher with those who abused drugs and alcohol compared to those
who did not.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/2009/01/substance-abuse-2.php
