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Twenty-eight civil rights and health care groups announced Tuesday they have requested that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) address “dietary racism” in national school lunch programs, raising concerns to the federal agency about forcing millions of minority children to drink cow’s milk without allowing them a healthier alternative. In a letter to the USDA’s Equity Commission, the groups said the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) only incentivizes dairy milk, a policy they called “inherently inequitable and socially unjust” because children of color are more likely to be lactose intolerant. (Dress, 8/9)

For children in elementary school, regularly getting less than nine hours of sleep per night may hinder their neurocognitive development, according to a study led by University of Maryland School of Medicine researchers and published in the journal Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. The study involved 8,323 children, ages 9 and 10, who were enrolled in a large, long-term study of brain development and children’s health. Comparing children who got the recommended amount of sleep for their age — nine to 12 hours a night — with those who slept less, the new research found differences in brain regions responsible for memory, intelligence and well-being. (Searing, 8/9)

Replacing regular salt with a salt substitute lowers blood pressure and protects against life-threatening heart conditions, stroke and death from all causes, research suggests. High consumption of salt composed of sodium chloride is known to drive blood pressure up, leading to poor cardiovascular health and posing a major risk of early death. (Pare, 8/9)

Even behemoths like Amazon aren’t immune to FDA warning letters. After the regulatory agency caught wind of the sale of unapproved mole and skin tag removal agents, it cracked down on the sellers. The agency issued three warning letters to Amazon, Ariella Naturals and Justified Laboratories for selling unapproved mole and skin tag removal products via interstate commerce, an act in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). There are no over-the-counter, FDA-approved drug products for mole and skin-tag removal. (Becker, 8/9)

KHN: EPA Action Boosts Grassroots Momentum To Reduce Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’ 

The intake pumps that once drew 6 million gallons of water a day from the Oostanaula River now sit mostly dormant in this northwestern Georgia city. Local officials contend that years of contamination miles upstream sent toxic perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, into Rome’s water supply, rendering it potentially dangerous for the city’s roughly 37,000 residents. A water source switch from the Oostanaula and added treatment have reduced the traces of the chemicals running through residents’ taps, but they have not eliminated PFAS from the community’s water supply. (Miller, 8/10)

Hawaii Gov. David Ige on Tuesday outlined plans for how the state will spend $78 million it’s receiving from a multistate settlement reached with pharmaceutical industry companies over their role in the opioid addiction crisis. Ige said drug overdose deaths have exceeded traffic fatalities in Hawaii this year. Drug overdoses, including those from prescription opioids, account for 24% of all fatal injuries in Hawaii, he said. (McAvoy, 8/10)

Florida has seen an “exponential rise” in overdoses linked to fentanyl, according to the state Department of Health, which issued a public health alert in July. In Florida, and around the nation, doctors say the epidemic is now disproportionately affecting people of color. (Sheridan, 8/9)

The notion that lack of transportation can affect a person’s ability to access health care has caught the attention of policymakers in recent years. A 2017 federal survey found 4 percent of people under age 65 enrolled in Medicaid reported delaying medical care because they lacked transportation. (Benson, 8/9)