Federal researchers say the U.S. saw record-low birth rates in 2011. (David Goehring/Flickr Creative Commons)
The U.S. saw record-low birth rates in 2011, according to TIME: The country's general fertility rate continued a steady decline that began in 2007. Drops in the birth rate are common during economic crises, but the numbers also indicate that the decline is slowing down: The birth rate fell by 1 percent in 2011, a smaller decrease than previous years. Still, experts say this trend of fewer births is here for the long-term.
Bad news for diabetics: HealthDay reports on new research that says screening for type 2 diabetes doesn't seem to have any effect on the risk of death in the general population. Researchers looked more than 20,000 people, all of whom were at high risk of developing diabetes, and found that the ones who were routinely screened for diabetes and who received care for their condition had death rates that were no different than ones for people who didn't undergo any screenings.
New research appearing in Children and Youth Services Review found that mothers who are economically and psychologically abused by their child's father early on are more likely to become depressed and spank their kids by the time they turn 5. Economic abuse refers to the withholding of money, forcing a woman to turn over her savings, or denying access to financial resources or employment.
Medical News Today reports on a survey which points to both the importance of individualized medical care for diabetic patients and doctor-patient communication: More than half of people with type 2 diabetes who took part in an international survey reported having symptoms of hypoglycemia at least once, but just one-third said they'd talked about it with their doctor during routine checkups. Hypoglycemia is a condition where your blood sugar is too low, and symptoms include blurry vision, headaches, sweating and numbness of the skin.
Here's even more evidence that sitting too much isn't good for you: HealthDay says folks who spend a lot of time sitting around are at an increased risk of kidney disease.
Also not good for you? BPA, which stands for bisphenol A, which is a chemical with a bad rap because it can do a lot of damage to the human body in a lot of different ways. MedPage Today writes about yet another way: Exposure to BPA during pregnancy can cause complications in the thyroid function of both mother and child.
Finally, if you're running an illicit online pharmacy, you probably won't be doing that very much longer: Reuters reports that the Food and Drug Administration says it has brought civil and criminal charges against more than 4,100 online pharmacies that were selling unsafe, unapproved, counterfeit and/or illegal drugs.
Photo by David Goehring via Flickr Creative Commons.
