Boston.com -- Health news

WHO urges earlier treatment for HIV

Associated Press — 2009-11-30T06:32:15Z

People infected with the virus that causes AIDS should start treatment earlier than currently recommended, the World Health Organization said today.

Study backs early intervention for autism

Lindsey Tanner, Associated Press — 2009-11-30T06:30:55Z

The first rigorous study of behavior treatment in autistic children as young as 18 months found two years of therapy can vastly improve symptoms, often resulting in a milder diagnosis.

Senate set to open stormy debate on health care

Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press — 2009-11-30T06:30:08Z

With the Senate set to begin debate today on revamping health care, the solid Democratic coalition that allowed the bill to advance is fracturing already. The majority Democrats will need 60 votes again to finish, but the 60 votes may not be there anymore.

In heart of tobacco country, smoke-free zones emerge

Associated Press — 2009-11-30T05:42:33Z

Starting tomorrow, Virginia will join dozens of other states that ban smoking in restaurants, a huge shift for a state whose tobacco habit dates to the Jamestown settlement about 400 years ago.

Dieting while quitting smoking can work better

Elizabeth Cooney, Globe Correspondent — 2009-11-30T01:04:59Z

Smokers who know they should quit for their health often balk because they don’t want to gain weight - and a new health problem - once cigarettes’ appetite-suppressing nicotine leaves their bodies. Quitting smoking while starting a weight-control program may seem like a recipe for failure, and guidelines for doctors discourage embarking on both simultaneously. But a new analysis suggests ...

Medicine and spirituality

Kay Lazar, Globe Staff — 2009-11-30T01:02:52Z

Wendy Cadge is fascinated by the intersection of religion and medicine. The 33-year-old Brandeis University sociologist has spent years walking the halls of hospitals, interviewing physicians, nurses, and chaplains, and analyzing the offerings, often written on scraps of paper, that people tuck into hospital prayer books - she calls them snippets of the intimate conversations people have with God. Cadge’s ...

Is the birth control pill safe?

Bina Venkataraman, Globe Correspondent — 2009-11-30T00:58:00Z

Q. I’ve heard about lawsuits concerning certain birth control pills. How do I know if the pill I’m taking is safe?

Mind your p’s and flus

Stephen Smith, Globe Staff — 2009-11-30T00:57:44Z

Dr. Lauren Smith calls it the “Scarlet F.’’ F as in flu. And as this season of swine flu trudges forward - with run-of-the-mill influenza hot on its heels - employers and workers alike are navigating the treacherous terrain of how you encourage hacking, sniffling, wheezing colleagues to retreat to their homes and stay there until they’re better.

Equal funding for all hospitals

Richard F. Salluzzo — 2009-11-29T23:24:07Z

Caring for patients with complex medical needs and limited access to care is part of Cape Cod Hospital’s mission. These patients rely on Medicare, Medicaid (the state’s MassHealth program), and other government programs to pay for their treatment, but the programs reimburse at less than full cost.

At long last, a prescription for healthy food that’s tasty

Erica Noonan, Globe Staff — 2009-11-29T02:04:35Z

NEWTON - The doctor is in . . . her kitchen. And with her new website, Dr. Deborah Chud of Chestnut Hill hopes to find her way into yours.

Knight life

Bella English, Globe Staff — 2009-11-27T17:40:51Z

MARSHFIELD - The young knights are seated in high-backed chairs that circle a round table. There are replica swords, metallic tunics, and, most of all, missions to fulfill.

Nursing home clashes mar the golden years

Patricia Wen, Globe Staff — 2009-11-27T05:19:11Z

For weeks last summer, 87-year-old Elizabeth DeCandia dreaded being in her bedroom in the Rosewood Nursing Home. She liked the space itself - relatively large, spanking clean, and decorated with photographs of her loving family.

When flu hits, health specialists urge passing up holiday meals

Stephanie Ebbert, Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T05:30:45Z

For today’s Thanksgiving feast, Emilio Ruggeri was planning to serve antipasto and soup and an array of appetizers including coconut shrimp and stuffed mushrooms before the turkey and all the trimmings. The two dozen family members filling his Canton home might be stuffed even before the turkey, he figured.

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2009-11-26T05:30:45Z

Health pushes firms’ tax up

Kay Lazar, Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T05:26:54Z

The Patrick administration intends to double a key tax on employers in an effort to save health insurance for thousands of laid-off Massachusetts workers, after a fund to help them has been virtually drained by the highest unemployment rates in three decades.

Cautious hope as H1N1 cases fall statewide

Elizabeth Cooney and Stephen Smith, Globe Correspondent | Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T05:24:27Z

The swine flu epidemic appears to be waning in Massachusetts, doctors and hospitals said yesterday, though state health officials are not yet ready to declare that the worst is over and specialists warned that the flu often comes in waves.

For mother, baby, Thanksgiving’s time to go home

John R. Ellement, Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T05:19:48Z

A Cambridge mother brought her daughter home for the first time yesterday, 141 days after she was born at a Boston hospital, where the baby weighed just 1 pound 8 ounces.

In health care debate, both sides being heard

2009-11-26T03:58:24Z

WASHINGTON - President Obama’s top aides met frequently with lobbyists and health care industry heavyweights as his administration pieced together a national health care overhaul, according to White House visitor records obtained yesterday by the Associated Press.

At last, a prescription for healthy food that tastes good

Erica Noonan, Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T02:05:45Z

NEWTON - The doctor is in . . . her kitchen. And with her new website, Dr. Deborah Chud of Chestnut Hill hopes to find her way into yours.

At last, a prescription for healthy food that tastes good

Erica Noonan, Globe Staff — 2009-11-26T01:17:08Z

NEWTON - The doctor is in . . . her kitchen. And with her new website, Dr. Deborah Chud of Chestnut Hill hopes to find her way into yours.

Hearings over tainted water begin

Kathleen Moore, Globe Correspondent — 2009-11-26T01:16:58Z

The state Department of Public Utilities last week conducted the first in a series of hearings to determine who will pay the estimated $440,000 bill for last summer’s water contamination in Milford, but officials say a decision is likely to take months.

Cancer screening advice raises ration fears

Rob Stein, Washington Post — 2009-11-23T05:44:14Z

WASHINGTON - President Obama’s vision for making health care in America more effective and efficient collided last week with the realities of the nation’s medical system and fears that broad administrative changes would lead to rationing of care.

Why does eating quickly seem to lead to weight gain?

Bina Venkataraman — 2009-11-23T01:48:37Z

Q. Why does eating quickly seem to lead to weight gain, and what can you do to help yourself slow down?

Is there any way to predict the onset of schizophrenia?

Judy Foreman — 2009-11-16T02:38:45Z

Q. Is there any way to predict the onset of schizophrenia? A. There may be a way of predicting which teenagers at high risk for full-blown schizophrenia will go on to develop the disease.

Does swearing relieve pain?

Judy Foreman — 2009-11-09T02:33:20Z

Q. Does swearing relieve pain? A. Holy @//!#!, does it ever! Or so concludes a British study published recently in the journal NeuroReport.

Is there a link between heart disease and gum disease?

Judy Foreman — 2009-11-02T02:33:26Z

Q. Is there a link between heart disease and gum disease? A. There is growing evidence that there is, indeed, such a link, and if you have either condition, you should pay extra attention to treating the other as well. That’s the conclusion of a “consensus’’ statement written by leading gum disease specialists and cardiologists published online earlier this year ...

Are the elite academic hospitals always a patient's best choice?

Marcella Bombardieri, Globe Staff — 2008-12-28T05:00:00Z

Dr. Donald M. Berwick may be the most influential figure in a global movement to improve the quality of healthcare. His organization enlisted 4,000 American hospitals in a campaign to dramatically drive down medical mistakes that kill tens of thousands of people a year.