May 13, 2014
Health Digest: Cutbacks jeopardize newborns, safe water, MERS facts
A selection of recent news stories from the UW Health Sciences and UW Medicine:
Cuts to maternal-child services linked to underweight infants
A young mother learns how to plan nutritious meals for her family through the WIC food program.Lawrence-Douglas Health Dept.
A two-state study demonstrated that cutbacks in maternal-child services led to a higher number of low-birthweight newborns. UW School of Nursing researchers led explorations of the health effects of budget reductions in maternal-infant programs. The supposed cost-saving strategy ends up being uneconomical. The costs for caring for low-birthweight babies are high, both for the health-care system and for families, the researchers said. The long-term, detrimental effects of low birthweight, they added can sometimes last well into adulthood. Read more at HS NewsBeat:
http://hsnewsbeat.uw.edu/story/cuts-local-mom-child-services-linked-underweight-infants
Monumental task: Keeping the U.S. water supply safe.
The cool, clear tap water filling your glass seems like a simple pleasure. But behind the scene, many individuals, programs, and systems are at work to assure your drinking water is pure. No one wants a repeat of the contamination that turned off the faucets in parts of West Virginia. Learn how UW environmental health students and faculty are taking steps to protect water supplies locally and nationally.
http://hsnewsbeat.uw.edu/story/monumental-task-keeping-us-drinking-water-safe
Get the facts on MERS
As Middle East respiratory syndrome makes another U.S. appearance, this time in Florida, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Public Health Association and the World Health Organization ramp up efforts to inform people about the emerging viral infection. See their tips for routine infection control measures.
http://hsnewsbeat.uw.edu/story/get-facts-middle-east-respiratory-syndrome
Tag(s): health care and mental health • microbes and viruses • water management
