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EVERYTHING
Who Is Lying to Mothers About What, Sec. Kennedy?
What: RFK, Jr. is officially the top health official in America, running NIH, CDC, FDA, and the nation’s massive health insurance programs, Medicare and Medicaid. When Kennedy testified in front of the Senate, he promised to follow accepted science. But in in his first statement he couldn’t resist taking a dig at the supposed lies previously emanating from the agencies he is now running.
Key line: “’Thank you, President Trump, for your leadership, your confidence in me, and your deep concern for the health of the American people,’ Secretary Kennedy said. ‘You have truly heard the calls of the millions of mothers who simply want the tools – and the truth – so they can make informed decisions for their children.’”
Source: HHS
US Foreign Aid Freeze Hurting Millions of Women and Girls
What: The New York Times’ Farnaz Fassihi looks at how the freeze on US foreign aid has “decimated overnight” the women’s health care work that was going on around the globe. She reports that the impacts are “catastrophic” and hitting millions of women and girls seeking maternity care, contraception, cancer and HIV treatment.
Key line: “For example, as of Wednesday, about 2.5 million women and girls have been denied contraceptive care, said Dr. Elizabeth Sully, the principal research scientist at the Guttmacher Institute. That number will balloon to 11.7 million by the end of the Trump administration’s 90-day review process for foreign aid.”
Source: New York Times
BIRTH CONTROL
Hormonal Contraception Increases (Low) Risk of Stroke, Heart Attack
What: A study of *all* women in Denmark between the ages of 15 and 49 and covering 25 years found that women on hormonal contraception (with both estrogen and progestin, or just progestin) had a higher risk of stroke and sometimes heart attack. Overall, however, the risk was low for either occurrence.
Key line: “Use of contemporary oestrogen-progestin and progestin-only contraceptives was associated with an increased risk of ischaemic stroke and, in some cases, myocardial infarction except for the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine device, which was not associated with either. Although absolute risks were low, clinicians should include the potential risk of arterial thrombosis in their assessment of the benefits and risks when prescribing a hormonal contraceptive method.”
Source: BMJ
ABORTION ACCESS
Fertility Rises Along with Infant Deaths in Abortion Ban States
What: A study in JAMA found that fertility rates increased 1.7% in states that banned abortion, but that increase came with a 6% increase in infant mortality rates. In other words, there were more births, but a meaningful portion of those births were babies with lethal congenital anomalies.
Key line: “Black and other minority women saw the largest increases in fertility rates, along with those of lower socioeconomic status such as Medicaid beneficiaries and those with lower education levels. Infant mortality also surged in these groups, with deaths rising nearly 11% – almost twice the average – among Black babies, more than any other racial or ethnic group.”
Source: CNN
MENOPAUSE
Celebrity Menopause Products Abound. Are They Any Good?
What: Cheryl Wishhover has a comprehensive, irreverent, and fun rundown of all the celebrity menopause items currently for sale – and why most (all?) of it is questionable.
Key line: “Here’s where I’d like to put on my former nurse cap and complain about imprecise body part naming, though. It took me a while to figure out what this product is actually for. It’s not a lube (Stripes has one of those), or meant for internal vaginal dryness. If you click through to the ‘how to use’ tab, you are told to ‘massage onto external intimate areas.’ So this is not actually for the vagina (the internal canal); it’s meant for the labia (the outer lips).”
Source: Whatever, Nevermind
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