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Women's Health / Gynecology News

Height Of Black Women Declining; Obesity Might Be Related To Cause, Study Finds
A yet-to-be-released study has found shorter heights among black women born around 1980 compared with those born in the mid-1960s, a disparity that might be linked to obesity among black women, the Washington Post reports. Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 03:00:00 PST
Media Misinterpreted Study On Teen Virginity Pledges, WSJ Opinion Piece Says
The release of a Johns Hopkins University study on the sexual behavior of teenagers who take virginity pledges was followed by "a chain reaction" in the media, whose interpretation of the study "just isn't true," Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
Obama Should Lead Movement To End Sex Trafficking, Opinion Piece Says
The victory of President-elect Barack Obama "marks a triumph over the legacy of slavery, so it would be particularly meaningful if he led a new abolitionist movement against 21st century slavery -- like the trafficking of girls into brothels," New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof writes in an opinion piece. Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
Blogs Comment On Future Of Abortion Rights Under Obama Administration, 'Virginity Pledge' Study, Other Topics
The following summarizes selected women's health-related blog entries.  ~ "True Common Ground for the 111th Congress," Kay Steiger, RH Reality Check: The increased number of abortion-rights supporters in the House and Senate of the 111th Congress is "encouraging to the pro-choice community," Steiger writes. Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
Debate Over Mandatory HIV Testing Increases In Malaysia, New Cases Up Among Married Women
The Malaysian government plans to expand a rule requiring HIV screening for all couples, despite protests from HIV/AIDS experts and civil rights advocates who argue that such a policy does not prevent transmission of the virus and violates individual rights, Inter Press Service reports. A limited mandatory testing policy recently was Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
'Magnetic Bra' Gives Independence Back To Disabled And Older Women
Coventry University has helped to develop a new bra for older and disabled women which replaces traditional fastenings with magnets. Birmingham company Adaptawear has worked with the University's Health Design and Technology Institute (HDTI) to bring its front-fastening bra the latest product in its range of adaptive clothing for men and women to market. CoreBra has large finger loops to make dressing easier and is also proving extremely popular with carers. Read article... Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:00:00 PST
New Insight Into Effectiveness Of Procedure To Stop Heavy Menstrual Bleeding
Experts estimate that 20 percent of women experience excessive or prolonged menstrual bleeding at some time during their lives, particularly as they approach menopause. A new, less invasive procedure called global endometrial ablation (GEA) preserves the uterus, while decreasing menstrual bleeding and shortening patients' recovery time. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:00:00 PST
Susan Lark, MD Urges Women To Fight For Their Right To Use Bioidentical Hormones
Susan Lark, MD, noted medical researcher and women's health practitioner, is urging women to continue waging a battle against the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) steps to limit their access to bioidentical hormones. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 05:00:00 PST
Editorials Respond To HHS Provider 'Conscience' Rule
Several newspapers published editorials in response to the recent HHS "conscience" rule. The rule, which will take effect Jan. 18, significantly expands the ability of health care professionals who receive federal grants to refuse to provide medical information and services they object to on moral or religious grounds. Summaries of the editorials appear below.~ Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 04:00:00 PST
Link Between Maternity Leave, Fewer C-Sections And Increased Breastfeeding
Two new studies led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, suggest that taking maternity leave before and after the birth of a baby is a good investment in terms of health benefits for both mothers and newborns. One study found that women who started their leave in the last month of pregnancy were less likely to have cesarean deliveries, while another found that new mothers were more likely to establish breastfeeding the longer they delayed their return to work. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 04:00:00 PST
Call Centers In India Provide Reproductive Health Information To Anonymous Callers
India's National Population Stabilization Fund has opened a call center to provide reliable information to anonymous callers about reproductive health, family planning or contraception, the Washington Post reports. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:00:00 PST
Abstinence-Only Sex Education Is 'Ideology In Search Of A Methodology,' Opinion Piece Says
Although the U.S.' "national investment" in abstinence-only sex education "may not be a scam on the scale of Bernie Madoff, ... this industry has had standards for truth as loose as some mortgage lenders," syndicated columnist Ellen Goodman writes in a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette opinion piece. Goodman writes that a recent Johns Hopkins Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:00:00 PST
San Francisco Challenges Calif. Law Allowing Women To Be Charged More For Health Coverage
The city of San Francisco is challenging a California state law allowing "gender rating," a practice that permits insurance companies to charge women higher rates than men for policies in the individual health insurance market, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
Study Finds 'Virginity Pledges' Do Not Affect Likelihood Of Premarital Sex, Reduce Contraception Use
Teenagers who make "virginity pledges" to remain abstinent until marriage are just as likely as teens who do not make such pledges to have premarital sex and are less likely to use condoms and other birth control methods, according to a study published in the January issue of Pediatrics, the Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
Survey Of Spanish-Speaking Women Finds Most Are Missing Benefits Of Folic Acid
Only 17 percent of Spanish-speaking women of childbearing age in the United States are taking a multivitamin containing folic acid daily, according to the first nationally representative folic acid awareness survey to focus on this population. Folic acid can prevent neural tube defects (NTDs), serious birth defects of the brain and spine such as spina bifida and anencephaly, which are more prevalent in the Hispanic population than other racial or ethnic groups. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:00:00 PST
Democrats Debate Action To Reverse Ban On Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Democratic leaders are debating whether to use an executive order or draft more permanent legislation to reverse the Bush administration's 2001 restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, a top priority for congressional Democrats and President-elect Barack Obama, the New York Times reports. According to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif. Read article... Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:00:00 PST
Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Women's Health - Australia
This paper summarizes the recent 'Indigenous Women's Health' meeting outcomes and gives recommendations on how the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (RANZCOG) can improve the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and infants. Read article... Fri, 02 Jan 2009 02:00:00 PST
The Woman's Hospital Of Texas Makes Milestone, Delivers 9,000th Baby Of The Year
The Woman's Hospital of Texas (Woman's) had a monumental delivery with the arrival of its 9,000th baby born in 2008. At 8:57 a.m., parents Oscar and Gabriela Garcia, along with Woman's, welcomed Kamilah -- a healthy, 7 pound 6 ounce baby girl -- to the world. Woman's has delivered more than 170,000 babies since opening its doors in 1976, according to the Department of State Health Services, Vital Stats Unit. Read article... Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:00:00 PST
Why Are (the Best) Women So Good At Chess? Participation Rates And Gender Differences In Intellectual Domains
The lack of women at the top level of intellectually demanding activities like science and chess is often attributed to their inferior cognitive abilities. We show in chess that although the best men are better than the best women, the difference is little more than would be expected given the much greater number of men who play. Read article... Thu, 01 Jan 2009 01:00:00 PST
Vitamin Supplements Do Not Reduce Cancer Risk, More Evidence
US researchers studying the effect of beta carotene, vitamin C and vitamin E, either singly or in combination, on over 7,000 women found the supplements did not reduce their risk of getting cancer compared to women who did not take the supplements. However an expert who reviewed the study said that while the overall message was there was no link, it uncovered some interesting evidence that should not be overlooked. Read article... Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:00:00 PST
Child's ADHD Diagnosis Is Tied To Mother's Health Status
The probability of having one's child receive an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis involves a mother's own medical conditions and her use of health services prior to having the child, a new study finds. What is not clear, however, is whether the effects are due to biological, environmental or psychosocial factors - or some combination of these. Read article... Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 PST
Study First To Pinpoint Why Analgesic Drugs May Be Less Potent In Females Than In Males
Investigators at Georgia State University's Neuroscience Institute and Center for Behavioral Neuroscience are the first to identify the most likely reason analgesic drug treatment is usually less potent in females than males. This discovery is a major step toward finding more effective treatments for females suffering from persistent pain. Read article... Tue, 30 Dec 2008 01:00:00 PST
Poor Maternal Health Care Widespread In Eastern Burma
Access to maternal health-care is extremely limited and poor nutrition, anemia and malaria are widespread in eastern Burma, which increases the risk of pregnancy complications, says new research published in the open access journal PLoS Medicine. Read article... Tue, 30 Dec 2008 01:00:00 PST
Contraception Doesn't Go Better With Coca-Cola
One of the reasons why Coca-cola is not an effective spermicide is because sperm are faster and may reach an egg in time to fertilise it, says an expert in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today. The author, Deborah Anderson, a professor in obstetrics and gynaecology at Boston University and Harvard Medical School, writes that Coca-cola douches were allegedly used during the 1950s and 60s as a contraceptive when other methods were not easily available. Read article... Mon, 29 Dec 2008 02:00:00 PST
Horseback Riding: Impact On Sexual Dysfunction And Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms In Men And Women
Does Persistent Perineal Impact Increase Likelihood of LUTS and Sexual Dysfunction? UroToday.com - Bicycle riding has been reported to be related to male sexual dysfunction. Dr. Shaheen Alanee and colleagues from Minneapolis hypothesized that similar force impacts might be seen in equestrian sports. They sought to evaluate the effect of horseback riding on urinary symptoms and sexual dysfunction in men and women. Swimmers were used as a control group. Read article... Sat, 27 Dec 2008 01:00:00 PST