Study Finds Caregiving Takes Physical, Emotional & Financial Toll

Family members of older adults with disabilities provide help with many tasks, including making doctor's appointments, keeping track of medicines and providing transportation.

A new report has found that these unpaid caregivers experience emotional, physical and financial difficulties, as well as lower work productivity. Researchers estimate that 14.7 million caregivers assisted 7.7 million older adults in 2011. Caregivers who provided "substantial" help were more likely to report emotional, physical or financial difficulties.

More from the NIH

2015 KIDS COUNT Data Book

The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s annual report on child well-being — the 2015 KIDS COUNT Data Book — focuses on the state of America’s children in the midst of the country's economic recovery. While data show improvements in child health and education, more families are struggling to make ends meet, and a growing number of kids live in high-poverty neighborhoods. In addition to ranking states in several areas of child well-being, the Data Book also examines the influence of parents’ education, health and other life circumstances on their children.

You can access the Data Book and related materials HERE.

The Effects of High Cholesterol on the Body

Our bodies need healthy levels of cholesterol to function. Cholesterol is a fatty substance made by the liver and distributed throughout the body. It allows our bodies to make vitamin D and hormones, and makes up bile acids. We also get less than 25 percent of our body’s cholesterol from the foods we eat, especially animal fats.

High cholesterol means you have a lot more cholesterol in your blood than you need. Most people who have high cholesterol don’t have any obvious symptoms. A simple blood test can tell you if you have high cholesterol. If you do have high cholesterol, dietary changes, exercise, and targeted medications can help lower it and reduce your risk of developing heart disease.

See more at Heathline

Find Health Professional Shortage Areas by State & County

Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) are designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as having shortages of primary medical care, dental or mental health providers and may be geographic (a county or service area), demographic (low income population) or institutional (comprehensive health center, federally qualified health center or other public facility). Medically Underserved Areas/Populations are areas or populations designated by HRSA as having: too few primary care providers, high infant mortality, high poverty and/or high elderly population. More about shortage areas.

World Health Statistics 2014

The global target of halving the proportion of people without access to improved sources of drinking water was met in 2010, with remarkable progress also having been made in reducing child mortality, improving nutrition, and combating HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

Between 1990 and 2012, mortality in children under 5 years of age declined by 47%, from an estimated rate of 90 deaths per 1000 live births to 48 deaths per 1000 live births. This translates into 17 000 fewer children dying every day in 2012 than in 1990.

Nevertheless, nearly 18,000 children worldwide died every day in 2012, and the global speed of decline in mortality rate remains insufficient to reach the target of a two-thirds reduction in the 1990 levels of mortality by the year 2015.

More from the World Health Organization.

U.S. Health Map

With Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation‘s interactive map, you can explore health trends in the United States at the county level for both sexes in:
• Life expectancy between 1985 and 2010
• Hypertension in 2001 and 2009
• Obesity from 2001 to 2011
• Physical activity from 2001 to 2011

Learn more here.

European Social Statistics: 2013 edition

The pocketbook European Social Statistics provides a comparative overview of the social statistics available in Europe. The most recent data are presented here showing the situation in the 27 Member States and at the European and Euro area levels (EU-27 and EA-17 aggregates) where relevant as well as in EFTA (including Iceland, which is also a candidate country) and candidate countries when available (Montenegro, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey). This pocketbook, intended for both generalists and specialists, is divided into seven parts.

Each of the seven chapters focuses on an area of social conditions. Within each chapter, a range of policy-relevant indicators, as well as more descriptive data, are presented in tables and graphs and accompanied by a short commentary.

Direct link to PDF document from Eurostat.

The Measure of America: states, by well-being

The 2013-14 report Measure of America, under the auspices of the Social Science Research Council, slices and dices America’s performance not just on income, but on various metrics of health and education as well.

The rankings are based on the American Human Development Index, "an alternative to GDP" that aims to summarize not just how rich Americans are, but how we’re doing on the things that we presumably want riches for: a long and healthy life in which everyone can make the most of their talents and interests. The American index is derived from the U.N.’s Human Development Index (on which, by the way, the U.S. currently ranks third in the world, after Norway and Australia).

More HERE.

U.S. ranks near bottom of UNICEF report on child well-being

The United States ranked in the bottom four of a United Nations report on child well-being. Among 29 countries, America landed second from the bottom in child poverty and held a similarly dismal position when it came to “child life satisfaction.”

Keeping the U.S. company at the bottom of the report, which gauged material well-being, overall health, access to housing and education, were Lithuania, Latvia and Romania, three of the poorest countries in the survey.

UNICEF said in a statement on the survey that child poverty in countries like the U.S. “is not inevitable but is policy-susceptible” and that there isn’t necessarily a strong relationship between per capita GDP and overall child well-being,

More HERE or HERE>

U.S. Health in International Perspective: Shorter Lives, Poorer Health

Here are recent health statistics:

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality - Costs for Hospital Stays in the United States, 2010

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality - Emergency Department Visits and Hospital Inpatient Stays for Seasonal and 2009 H1N1 Influenza, 2008–2009

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - 1999-2009 Cancer Incidence and Mortality Data

Medical Expenditure Panel Survey - National Health Care Expenses in the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2010

National Academy of Sciences - U.S. Health in International Perspective: Shorter Lives, Poorer Health

Pew Releases Report on Health Info Online Searching

From Pew Internet & American Life Project:

Online resources join the stream of information flowing in from people's interactions with clinicians, family, and fellow patients. When respondents were asked about the last time they had a serious health issue and to whom they turned for help, either online or offline:
- 70% of U.S. adults got information, care, or support from a doctor or other health care professional.
- 60% got information or support from friends and family.
- 24% got information or support from others who have the same health condition

The Global Gender Gap Report

The Global Gender Gap Report, introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2006, provides a framework for capturing the magnitude and scope of gender-based disparities around the world. The index benchmarks national gender gaps on economic, political, education- and health-based criteria and provides country rankings that allow for effective comparison across regions and income groups and over time.

The rankings are designed to create greater awareness among a global audience of the challenges posed by gender gaps and the opportunities created by reducing them. The methodology and quantitative analysis behind the rankings are intended to serve as a basis for designing effective measures for reducing gender gaps.

Do You Know Your Cholesterol Levels?

Approximately 1 in 7 American adults and 1 in 10 American children have high cholesterol. Do you know your cholesterol levels?

September is National Cholesterol Education Month--a good time to get your blood cholesterol checked and learn more about the importance of keeping your cholesterol at healthy levels.

Risk Factors for High Cholesterol
The Difference Between "Bad" and "Good" Cholesterol
Cholesterol Medicines -- Types, Side Effects, and Warnings
What You Can Do to Lower Your Cholesterol

Reports on Oral Health; Hypertension; Hospital Costs; Causes of Death

Selected Oral Health Indicators in the United States, 2005–2008 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Expenditures for Hypertension among Adults Age 18 and Older, 2009: Estimates for the U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey

Components of Cost Increases for Inpatient Hospital Procedures, 1997-2009 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Deaths: Leading Causes for 2008 from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention