SARA DRINKARD---Researchers have observed that cancer, a disease with aging as a major risk factor, is appearing more frequently in younger populations than at any point in history. Generally, as a person’s age increases, so does their likelihood of being diagnosed with cancer. However, age is more than just our years on earth. Our biological age—the wear and tear on our body from lifestyle, stress, genetics, etc.—may reflect a younger or older age. Biological age is determined by nine blood-based markers: albumin, creatinine, glucose, protein, lymphocytes, cell volume, red cell distribution, alkaline phosphatase, and white blood cell count. These nine values can be used to calculate biological age and then compared to chronological age to determine if accelerated aging is present. After adjusting for bias, accelerated aging showed the strongest association with lung, stomach, and uterine cancers. This finding is logical as lungs are more susceptible to aging due to their limited ability to regenerate, and stomach cancers are linked to inflammation, which increases with age. Many young adults without a family history of cancer forego cancer screenings, so testing for accelerated aging is promising because it could identify young individuals at high risk. If researchers or healthcare providers can identify patients at higher risk due to their biological aging, lifestyle interventions such as changes in nutrition, exercise, and sleep can be implemented. ASHNA PATEL--- A new study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that more than two-thirds of children under the age of six are estimated to have been exposed to lead through their drinking water. The study analyzed lead testing data from 38,385 household tests which were conducted by the Chicago Department of Water Management. Artificial intelligence methods using algorithms were used by the researchers to estimate lead levels in tap water in parts per billion. Additionally, they conducted a risk adjusted logistic regression that determined that racial disparities played a part in lead exposure levels. ASHLYN KINGSLEY--- The definition of an opioid has gradually broadened. Initially, the definition only included a drug that comes from the opium poppy plant, and now, narcotics are included in the larger definition. An opioid is a pain-relieving substance that works with opioid receptors in your brain to produce relief. When an opioid attaches to the opioid receptors in the brain and spinal cord, it blocks pain signals and releases dopamine throughout the body, which spurs people to become dependent on the drug in an effort to feel that pleasure again. This is because the opioid receptors are in the part of the brain where you experience feelings like pain, pleasure, and addiction. While opioids can make you feel relaxed, they can also lead to feelings of nausea, drowsiness, confusion, euphoria, and a reduced breathing rate. ASHLYN KINGSLEY--- A documentary presented by the National Minority Consortia (NMC) explores the concept of the wealth-health gradient, a scale that describes the steps of the socioeconomic ladder. It reveals that not only the poor but also the middle class suffer from worse health outcomes. In order to better understand this gradient, researcher Michael Marmot conducted a study observing people’s employment pay grade hierarchy. Over 30 years, they analyzed the well-being of 29,000 British civil servants.. At that time, the accepted belief was that individuals in high-power positions had a higher rate of heart attacks. However, the study showed that it was those with little to no power who had a higher risk not only of heart attacks but of every serious health concern. The Whitehall study demonstrated the tight correlation between health and wealth. Poor Americans have twice the rate of strokes, heart disease, and risk of death, while the middle class has almost twice the rate, leading to excess deaths, especially for low and middle-income Americans. Education is a means to move up the wealth-health gradient ladder because college graduates live two and a half years longer than high school graduates. However, obtaining education depends on affordability, making it challenging to escape one's side on the gradient. DANYAL EJAZ--- Amidst the paramount decision of Roe V. Wade institutionalized by the Supreme Court on June 24, 2022, there had been uncertainty and massive upheaval amongst many in the United States about the question of when and what counts as human killing during pregnancy. Recently, an Alabama Court has many doctors confused as it has ruled that frozen embryos are counted as people. This decision is far reaching in its impact on womens’ reproductive healthcare in a state with already some of the worst abortion laws. Ashleigh Mayer, a Brimigham mothers says that “ Women who actually know what happened, feel under attack and are almost powerless.” Further, this ruling has made the assertion amidst a sweeping pro-life political agenda by higher government officials that unborn children are to be granted legal rights at the beginning of conception. Additionally, White House press secretary Karine Jean-pierre has noted that “ This is exactly the type of chaos that we expected when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and paved the way for politicians to dictate some of the most personal decisions for families.” This challenge has come after the number of pregnancies under IVF has grown dramatically within the past decade and many Assisted Reproductive Technologies are becoming popular amongst many who cannot conceive naturally. The problem is that now when a woman wants to apply a few embryos to conceive the amount of children desired, if more embryos are left over, this could lead to a problem as the destruction of these embryos could lead to criminalization by the doctors in office. ASHNA PATEL--- There has been a staggering increase in the number of measles cases around the world. Measles is an extremely contagious virus; 90% percent of unprotected people will become infected if exposed. It is a fairly preventable disease requiring two doses of a vaccine during childhood. However, due to declining vaccination rates, the death toll has climbed up. Other risks include encephalitis, pneumonia, diarrheal diseases, and meningitis. The lowest vaccination rates can be seen in low income countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa. Less than 50% of the children in these countries receive the first dose. Insufficient vaccination coverage is due to conflict and unstable health systems. For example, conflict in Ethiopia causes health services to be disrupted and displacement of health care workers. Additionally, many people in Ethiopia belong to nomadic communities so they may not have access to health centers that provide these life-saving vaccines. SARA DRINKARD--- On the night of February 11th, many Americans were in their homes, crowded around their TVs watching the Superbowl, while displaced Palestinians were densely packed into Rafah, a southern “safe-zone” city of the Gaza Strip, in an attempt to escape the four-month long war between Israel and Hamas. Israeli forces have been relentlessly bombing Gaza since October 2023 as a defense against Hamas, resulting in 30,000 Palestinian fatalities. Rafah’s normal population of just under 300,000 has now shot up to over 1.4 million due to promises of civilian safety from Israel. However, on February 12th, in an Israeli operationcondemned by the US and Egypt, Israel used four Hamas brigades in Rafah as justification to continue their attacks into the promised civilian safe-zone of Rafah. Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt have threatened repercussions if Israel moves into Rafah. The latter even warned of suspending the 40-year-old Camp David peace treaty with Israel if Israeli troops continued their assault into Rafah, as Egypt fears its close proximity would force Palestinians into Sinai. Attacks on Rafah will likely not allow Israel to achieve their goal of “eradicating Hamas”, as they initially claimed Hamas were neutralized to north Gaza only, but later retracted this, and they are under increasing pressure to call off the assaults. Hamas has also stated they will not release anymore hostages until Israel withdraws from Gaza. ASHLYN KINGSLEY --- Maternal health is the well-being of women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period. Despite global progress, 287,000 women worldwide have lost their lives during and after pregnancy in 2020. In 2021, there were 1,205 deaths in the United States, up from 861 in 2020 and 754 in 2019, reflecting a need for urgent reform. Compared to other high-income countries, the maternal mortality rate in the United States is ten times the average of between 2 and 3 deaths per 100,000. Maternal health is a growing concern, especially in the United States where maternal deaths are rising. SARA DRINKARD --- Despite Native American (NA) communities being generally community-oriented and surrounded by support, these communities face disproportionate suicide rates. Since 2015, suicide rates among NAs have increased 20%, despite the only <1% increase in the total US population (Stone, 2022). From 2017-2022, NAs comprised 25% of Montana’s suicide rate, despite only making up 6.5% of the state’s population (One of the highest percentages in the country) (Rosston, 2022). In other minority and ethnic community, rates have also increased, but none to the extent of NA communities, despite decades of research into suicide prevention by the CDC. Why is this? Could this be due to the fact that most suicide prevention efforts lack cultural relevance or sensitivity? Maybe the underfunding and under-resourcing of Indian Health Services, especially in more rural areas. NAs were found to have more adverse upbringings and childhood experiences, which could also contribute to these high rates (Giano et al, 2021). NA’s face some of the worst intergenerational trauma as a result of years of colonization, discrimination, relocation, and overall poor treatment by the US government (Ehlers et al, 2022). ASHNA PATEL --- Cancer diagnoses among the young adult population are increasing worldwide, particularly those under the age of 50. Under the age of 50 includes individuals aged anywhere from 14 to 49 years. According to a study conducted in 204 countries, there was an increase of 79.1% in early-onset cancer diagnoses between the years 1990 and 2019. Breast cancer still remains the most common type of cancer to affect young adults. However, gastrointestinal cancers, which include cancers of the colon and appendix, have shown the highest increase with the rate rising by 15%. A significant concern of the prevalence of cancer among younger people is that they have an increased risk of the cancer metastasizing. |