Latest news with #healthguidelines
New York Times
2 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
She Built a Cult Baby Formula Business. Then R.F.K. Jr. Came Calling.
The photo posted on X in March by the Department of Health and Human Services seemed innocuous. Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stands in the center, surrounded by Robert Ford, chief executive of Abbott Laboratories; Kris Licht, the chief executive of Reckitt; Patrick Lockwood-Taylor, chief executive of Perrigo; and Laura Modi, the founder and chief executive of Bobbie. The post was paired with an announcement that H.H.S. would work with these leaders to update the country's nutrition guidelines for infant formula, which have remained unchanged since 1998. But that photo set off an animated debate among fans of Bobbie, which has made its name over the last several years as an ingredient-conscious and science-based brand. Some cheered on Ms. Modi for being the only woman there and the only one representing a newcomer to an industry dominated by old gatekeepers. When Bobbie shared the photo on its Instagram page, many of its followers threw fire and heart emojis all over its comments. Others wondered if she should have been there at all, meeting with Mr. Kennedy, who they say is antithetical to everything they thought the Bobbie brand stood for. That the other chief executives in the photo didn't receive this kind of scrutiny illustrates the difficulty of being a business leader who has been vocal about their company's purpose during the current administration, when every decision about a company's values can become politically charged. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Arab News
3 days ago
- Climate
- Arab News
Saudi Arabia reports five heat exhaustion cases among pilgrims, urges precautions amid soaring temperatures
MAKKAH: As temperatures soared at the holy sites, Saudi Arabia confirmed five cases of heat exhaustion among the more than one million pilgrims who have arrived to perform Hajj rituals. All those affected received immediate medical attention and are currently in a stable condition, according to the ministry of health, which added that health teams were on high alert to respond swiftly to similar cases as part of the Kingdom's commitment to safeguarding the health and safety of pilgrims. The country's National Center for Meteorology has forecast hot to extremely hot weather conditions at the holy sites during this year's Hajj season. According to the center, maximum temperatures are expected to range between 40°C and 47°C, while minimum temperatures will vary between 27°C and 32°C. Humidity levels are projected to fluctuate between 15 percent and 60 percent. In a post on its X account, the ministry urged pilgrims to stay hydrated, avoid prolonged exposure to direct sunlight, and follow official health guidelines, such as using shaded walkways, wearing appropriate protective gear, and seeking help at the first signs of fatigue. 'If not treated promptly, heat exhaustion can escalate to heat stroke within 10-15 minutes — a life-threatening medical emergency,' the post stated. The ministry also advised pilgrims who experience heat exhaustion symptoms to begin immediate cooling measures, such as washing their hands, faces and necks with cold water and moving to a cooler area, as well as drinking plenty of cold water to rehydrate. In its post, the ministry identified headache, excessive sweating, nausea, dizziness, and severe thirst as key clinical symptoms of heat exhaustion. Multilingual awareness campaigns have been launched, and field preparedness has been reinforced, particularly in response to seasonal heat risks. The ministry had announced the health sector's readiness to receive pilgrims, revealing a 60 percent increase in bed capacity compared with last year. Fahad Al-Jalajel, the minister of health, recently confirmed the deployment of over 50,000 medical and technical personnel to serve pilgrims and emphasized the stability of the health situation, with no reported outbreaks or epidemics, according to the Saudi Press Agency. 'Health efforts began early in pilgrims' homelands by analyzing international health risks and issuing clear health requirements, including vaccinations against yellow fever, meningitis, polio, COVID-19, and influenza,' SPA reported, citing Al-Jalajel. The minister underscored the role of the health certificate as the first line of defense during the Hajj season, noting that the Kingdom's health system launched its services with the arrival of the first Makkah Route Initiative flight. As part of the Kingdom's comprehensive preparations, 14 land, air, and sea ports have been fully equipped, delivering more than 50,000 health services so far, including 140 surgical procedures, 65 cardiac catheterizations, and six open-heart surgeries, the minister said. To combat heatstroke risks, Al-Jalajel announced a series of measures in coordination with the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites. These include planting more than 10,000 trees, installing 400 additional water coolers and misting fans, and expanding shaded pedestrian pathways to protect pilgrims from extreme heat. The ministry of health has also intensified awareness efforts through multilingual campaigns, stationing field teams, launching media programs, and organizing medical missions to ensure important health information reaches all pilgrims. Al-Jalajel further revealed the establishment of a new 200-bed emergency hospital in Mina, developed in collaboration with Kidana Development Co. In addition, three new field hospitals with more than 1,200 beds have been set up in partnership with the ministries of national guard, defense, and interior. These were inaugurated 'alongside 71 emergency points, 900 ambulances, 11 evacuation aircraft, and over 7,500 paramedics,' Al-Jalajel told SPA. The minister urged pilgrims to follow health guidelines and affirmed that the Kingdom's health system is operating at full capacity to ensure a safe and healthy Hajj season for all.
Medscape
4 days ago
- Business
- Medscape
Canada Targets PCPs With New Hypertension Guideline
Hypertension Canada has released a guideline that aims to enhance the standard of hypertension management in primary care settings with evidence-based, pragmatic, and easy-to-implement recommendations. The guidance is based on the World Health Organization's HEARTS framework to improve hypertension control and reduce cardiovascular burden. The previous guideline was published in 2020. 'For the 2025 guideline, a new approach was selected in view of the declining rates of hypertension control in Canada,' guideline committee co-chairs Rémi Goupil, MD, University of Montreal, and Gregory Hundemer, MD, McGill University, both in Montreal, told Medscape Medical News . 'The first step is this Primary Care Hypertension Canada guideline, which is tailored specifically to primary care providers, who manage 90% of people with hypertension.' Gregory Hundemer, MD The guideline, published online in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, was designed from inception with primary care in mind, and most members of the writing committee were primary care providers, they said. The target users are family physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, and pharmacists, as well as policymakers and patients and caregivers affected by hypertension. 'The guideline provides pragmatic diagnostic and treatment algorithms, listing specific drugs, their dosage, and the sequence in which they should be prescribed,' they added. 'Patient voices were included in all steps of the process, and a patient-specific guideline is published alongside the primary care guideline.' Rémi Goupil, MD Key Recommendations The guideline committee made nine recommendations covering hypertension diagnosis and treatment. The most important recommendations , according to Goupil and Hundemer, are: 1. Defining hypertension as a blood pressure (BP) ≥ 130/80 mm Hg, provided it is confirmed with an out-of-office BP assessment. 'Lowering of the hypertension diagnosis threshold will significantly increase the number of people labeled with hypertension in Canada, although only a small fraction is expected to require pharmacotherapy initiation,' they said. 'This new threshold reflects the growing evidence regarding the cardiovascular risk reduction associated with lower blood pressure levels.' All adults with hypertension should initiate treatment (healthy lifestyle changes with or without pharmacotherapy) to target a systolic BP < 130 mm Hg. Start with low-dose combination therapy (ideally as a single pill combination) when pharmacotherapy initiation is needed. Specifically, this includes drugs from two of the following three complementary classes of medications: Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs), thiazide or thiazide-like diuretics, and long–acting dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers (CCBs). Other recommendations include: Healthy lifestyle changes for all adults with hypertension. Pharmacotherapy initiation for hypertension for adults with BP ≥ 140/90 mm Hg and for adults with systolic BP 130-139 mm Hg at high cardiovascular disease risk. If BP remains above the target despite the recommended two-drug combination therapy, three-drug combination therapy consisting of an ACEI or ARB, a thiazide or thiazide-like diuretic, and a long–acting dihydropyridine CCB is recommended. If BP remains above target despite three-drug combination therapy at maximally tolerated doses, the addition of spironolactone is recommended. 'This guideline is only the first step in Hypertension Canada's approach,' Goupil and Hundemer said. 'The next step is the comprehensive guideline, in which specific topics will be evaluated in-depth to provide recommendations for more specific situations, such as the optimal management of hypertension in diabetes or in resistant hypertension.' The comprehensive guideline is expected in 2026. HEARTS to Boost Implementation Canadian Cardiovascular Society spokesperson Sheldon Tobe, MD, professor of medicine at the University of Toronto and Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Toronto, commented on the guideline for Medscape Medical News . Sheldon Tobe, MD 'We have evidence that Canada's position of best blood pressure awareness, treatment, and control in the world has been slipping, and that was before the pandemic,' he said. 'One of the reasons is loss of support for dissemination and implementation by the Public Health Agency of Canada more than a decade ago. The promotion of the HEARTS framework will help to bring policymakers into the implementation of blood pressure control again. The simplified approach to one BP target will facilitate dissemination efforts as well.' A concern, however, is the small number of people involved in creating the guideline. 'In the past, a very large part of the hypertension community was involved, which ensured that there was widespread agreement with the process and results,' said Tobe, who was not involved in developing the guideline. 'This included the interprofessional community of nurses and dietitians, in addition to pharmacists and doctors. If the HEARTS framework is formally adopted by Canada, this will be very helpful.' Regarding specific recommendations, he said, 'The guideline has suggested that the preferred initial combination therapy will be irbesartan and hydrochlorothiazide, including splitting the pill, which strays off-label. This might be off-putting to some Canadians who don't realize that almost all of our antihypertensives are now generic and are fairly inexpensive.' Furthermore, he said, 'I was disappointed that the issue of drug shortages, which have greatly impacted blood pressure management in Canada recently, was not mentioned in more detail. There does not seem to be any focus by policymakers on a sustainable supply for these lifesaving medications.' The funding for this initiative was provided by Hypertension Canada. Goupil reported receiving research grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Kidney Foundation of Canada, Fonds de recherche du Québec — Santé, and Université de Montréal, as well as holding unpaid positions as a board member of the Canadian Society of Nephrology and vice president of the Société québécoise d'hypertension artérielle. Hundemer reported receiving research grants from the CIHR, the Kidney Foundation of Canada, and The Ottawa Hospital Academic Medical Organization, and is the Lorna Jocelyn Wood Chair for Kidney Research at The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. Tobe reported receiving honoraria for lectures and payments to support accredited continuing medical education programs from AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, CHEP+, Eisai, GSK, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, KMH, Novo Nordisk, and Otsuka. He also reported participation in a living kidney donor safety study sponsored by the CIHR, serving as a volunteer board member for the American Hypertension Specialist Certification Program, a volunteer co-chair for C-Change, and serving as physician organization chair of the implementation arm of C-Change for CHEP+.
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- Health
- Globe and Mail
Canada revamps standards around ‘forever chemicals' in water
What's in your drinking water? On Prince Edward Island, the provincial testing program shows potable water in some communities have higher levels of toxic 'forever chemicals' than is recommended by Health Canada. To what extent this affects other provinces is unclear – PEI is currently the only province that systematically tests water supplies to make sure they hit federal targets for toxic chemicals. Patrick White is The Globe's water reporter. He explains the safety concerns surrounding 'forever chemicals' in our water, why the health agency revamped its guidelines and looks into why other provinces are slow to adapt. Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at thedecibel@
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Officials warn of contamination in popular fish species caught locally: 'We have different guidelines for ... sensitive populations'
The Minnesota Department of Health has updated its guidelines on fish consumption from certain waterbodies in the state based on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance contamination data. MPR News reported in mid-April that the Minnesota Department of Health issued new warnings about PFAS in certain fish. Roughly 44 water bodies in 10 counties, both in the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota, are included in the new guidelines. People should avoid all fish from the Minnesota River Valley ponds and Long Meadow Lake in Hennepin County. Warnings also advise limited consumption of Mooney Lake bass, George Lake walleye, and yellow perch and common carp from Otter Lake, McCuen Creek, Bear Creek, and the Crow River's south fork. However, guidelines were loosened for one lake, with the Department of Health saying that one serving of smelt caught from Lake Superior per week is OK — previously, it was one serving per month. The updated guidelines indicate officials are finding higher concentrations of PFAS in these areas and species. PFAS are synthetic chemicals used in the manufacturing of products like non-stick cookware, stain-resistant fabrics, and food packaging. These forever chemicals accumulate in the body and are linked to certain health issues. According to WebMD, the presence of PFAS can cause high cholesterol, low birth weight, early puberty, childhood obesity, decreased fertility, hormone changes, weakened immunity, thyroid problems, and more health issues. Angela Preimesberger, who leads the health department's fish consumption guidance program, said, "It's really important that people understand that our guidelines are affected by where you're fishing and who you are, and that we have different guidelines for people that are in sensitive populations." Sensitive populations include pregnant women, children under 15, and women who are breastfeeding or plan to become pregnant. Other populations are advised to consume these fish with caution and in limited quantities. PFAS also harm the environment. They build up in animals, causing reproductive, immunity, and developmental problems. This can weaken populations and topple ecosystems, reducing biodiversity that is vital to a healthy planet for everyone. Officials have implemented several standards regarding drinking water, swimming areas, and seafood contaminated by high levels of PFAS. However, removing these chemicals is difficult, requiring targeted filtration, osmosis, or ion exchange, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. It can't be done on a large scale, either. Do you worry about having toxic forever chemicals in your home? Majorly Sometimes Not really I don't know enough about them Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Preventing the manufacture of more forever chemicals is crucial. The 3M Company contaminated groundwater, lakes, and rivers in the Minnesota area for decades. Holding brands accountable for their environmental impact can drive progress toward cleaner water and a cooler planet. Supporting environmentally conscious brands and advocating for strict regulations and corporate policies can also make a difference. Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
