Month: August 2012

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – For youngsters who turn up their noses at fruits and vegetables, slapping a cartoon face on a healthy snack could make those choices more appealing, a new study suggests. Researchers found that when elementary school students were offered apples and cookies with lunch, kids were more likely to opt for an apple when it was branded with an Elmo sticker. One researcher not involved in the new study said parents and school administrators can take a lesson from food companies: Elmo, Dora the Explorer and SpongeBob help sell snacks, healthy or unhealthy. …

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – It may not be the first quality that most programs evaluate in their applicants, but a new study suggests athletic achievement could be the best indicator of how well a doctor-in-training will do as a resident. When residency programs evaluate medical school applicants for a few coveted spots, they typically consider grades, standardized test scores, recommendations and interviews. …

How Do Germs Get into the Swimming Pool? You Might Not Want to Know

Sixty-four patients of the San Luis Valley Regional Medical Center in Alamosa, Colo., have been notified that they need “some follow-up testing” after “an issue” was discovered involving the final cleaning process for equipment used to perform colonoscopies. Here are the details.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy may have an increased risk of asthma – even if they were not exposed to secondhand smoke after birth, a large study of European children suggests. Many studies have found that secondhand smoke may worsen kids' asthma symptoms, or possibly raise their risk of developing the lung disease in the first place. But it's been less clear if smoking during pregnancy is linked to asthma. Most studies have not been able to tease out the possible effects from those of secondhand smoke after birth. …