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More than half of America’s youngest adults — 56 percent of those ages 18 to 25 — are overweight or obese, according to Johns Hopkins research, published in JAMA. Using data from a nationally representative sample of 8,015 people in that age bracket, the researchers compared average weights over the past four decades. In that time, that population’s average body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat based on a person’s height and weight, had increased by 4.6 points — from 23.1 (considered normal weight) to 27.7 (considered overweight). That shifted the number of overweight young adults from about 18 percent in the late 1970s to nearly 24 percent by 2018. (Searing, 12/5)

A third of children lacked adequate and continuous insurance coverage from 2016 to 2019, a new study says. The number of underinsured children grew by 2.4 million during the three-year period, bringing the number of kids with inadequate coverage to 23.7 million, according to a paper published in the journal Pediatrics Monday. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine analyzed data from the annual National Survey of Children's Health and found the increase was mainly driven by increased rates of inadequate private insurance. (Tepper, 12/6)

An experimental drug from Stoke Therapeutics reduced the frequency of convulsive seizures in children with a rare form of epilepsy called Dravet syndrome, the company said Friday. The study results are early and far from conclusive, but show the potential for a novel, RNA-based treatment to target the underlying genetic cause of the devastating childhood disorder, said Stoke CEO Ed Kaye. (Feuerstein, 12/3)

Kristy Bassel was two months pregnant when she saw a flyer about doula services at her doctor’s office. “I really didn’t know what a doula was, so I Googled it,” Bassel said. “I have a small support system because I lost both of my parents, so I figured I would call to find out what a doula could offer.” After meeting her doula, she knew she was in good hands. (Causey, 12/1)

Black children suffer from more severe chronic illnesses when compared with white children, and two new studies show it isn't about biology. It's about inequities. (DeMio, 12/5)