�������ýҕ�l

Financial woes, coupled with a barrage of horrifying scenes from Ukraine as Russia continues its invasion, have pushed a majority of Americans to unprecedented levels of stress, according to a new report from the American Psychological Association. The association's annual "Stress in America" poll, published Thursday, found that U.S. adults — already weary from two years of the Covid-19 pandemic — are now overwhelmingly troubled by inflation and the war in Ukraine. (Edwards, 3/10)

While still jarringly high, U.S. suicide rates fell in 2019 and again in 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last month. The year-over-year rate declined by 3 percent overall, falling by 8 percent among women and 2 percent among men. But there were some stark outliers. Notably, suicides among Latino men increased by nearly 6 percent. (Morris, 3/9)

As the warmer weather comes with spring, so does a pest that seemingly grows in virulence each year: the tick. This year, officials from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection are cautioning those venturing outside that “the rare but dangerous” deer tick virus, or DTV, has been detected at high levels in ticks for the first time in several areas of the state, and as close to Philly as Montgomery County. DTV is a type of Powassan virus, which the CDC says has increased in recent years, mostly in the Northeast and Great Lakes regions from late spring to midfall, when ticks are most active. Pennsylvania began detecting DTV-positive ticks after it launched its five-year tick surveillance program in 2018. (Kummer, 3/10)

Dogs may also be a doctor's best friend. For patients suffering from pain in the emergency room, just 10 minutes with a four-legged friend may help reduce pain, according to a study published Wednesday. The results support what dog lovers everywhere have long suspected -- canine affection cures all ills -- as well as provides a bit of optimism for patients and health care providers frequently grappling with strapped hospital resources in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. "There is research showing that pets are an important part of our health in different ways. They motivate us, they get us up, (give us) routines, the human-animal bond," said lead study author Colleen Dell, the research chair in One Health and Wellness and professor at the University of Saskatchewan. (Holcombe, 3/9)

For more than a decade, Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has worked to reduce Black cancer rates through a program that emphasizes prevention and healthy living habits. Body & Soul is a national, evidence-based initiative that’s recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Paulette Clark, a longtime parishioner at Mt. Zion, set up the church’s Body & Soul program with help from the Iowa Cancer Consortium. Church members created a community garden. Volunteers tend to it year round, and the vegetables are distributed to whoever wants them. Clark recruited a certified fitness instructor from within the congregation to teach classes at the church. (Krebs, 3/8)

For decades, radiation has been a cornerstone of thyroid cancer care. But it may soon be phased out entirely for many thyroid tumors as emerging research casts doubt on whether it benefits patients. A study published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that surgery alone might be sufficient to cure the lowest-risk thyroid cancers, and that follow-up treatment with radioactive iodine offers no additional benefit for these patients. (Chen, 3/9)