Tap water, unlike most bottled water, contains fluoride. Experts say the decreasing reliance on tap water and the popularity of bottled water is responsible for a decline in dental health, especially among kids. (Diane Hammond/Flickr Creative Commons)
Another provision of the Affordable Care Act kicks in today, reports KPCC – one that will give more than 5 million California women free preventive care, including domestic violence screenings, FDA-approved contraception, breastfeeding counseling and a "well-woman visit." Also, effective in 2014, health insurance companies won't be allowed to charge more for women's policies than they do for men's.
The debate over bottled water usually focuses on the environment, but HealthDay says there's also a health aspect: Experts are saying that because the vast majority of bottling companies do not elect to put fluoride in their water, and because people are relying less on tap water (which contains fluoride) these days and more on bottled water, the population's risk of worse dental hygiene and cavities is up. That's especially true for kids, who have more and more "visually evident tooth decay."
Feeling anxious, depressed or lonely not only reduces quality of life – it increases chances of death. ABCNews.com reports a new study that looked at more than 68,000 people and found that folks who reported symptoms of psychological distress, as they called it, were more likely to die from heart disease, cancer or injuries. That news is particularly sobering considering HealthDay's news that rates of major depression skyrocket during girls' teen years, with about five percent of 12-year-old girls and 15 percent of 15-year-old girls experiencing a major depressive episode in the past year. That's a threefold increase.
There's hopeful news for the psychologically distressed, however: TIME says exercise can improve mood and motivation, particularly for people with heart failure. Depression is common among folks with heart failure, and a new study found that exercise can be a key part of their health regimen. That's consistent with previous research that suggests that exercise is an effective treatment for depression.
And that means exercise could become key for a lot more Americans in the near future, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that more Americans have at least two chronic health diseases. HealthDay says the findings report the number of people 45 and older with multiple diseases, notably diabetes and hypertension, rose over the past decade.
To care for those people, of course, hospitals will have to be on-point, and a new study says many aren't: Burnout among nurses, says HealthDay, is linked to an increase in hospital infection rates. Researchers found that job-related exhaustion among nursing staff adds millions to the country's health care bill each year. They study says by focusing on alleviating nurse exhaustion, hospitals could improve nurse and patient well-being, in addition to cutting costs.
And finally, if you bought a device or special seat that's designed to help prevent someone from accidentally leaving a baby or toddler behind in the car, hopefully you kept the receipt: According to MSNBC, a team of experts say they don't work.
Photo by Diane Hammond via Flickr Creative Commons.
