CLEVELAND, Ohio — In this week’s Cleveland Medical News, Gretchen explores the impact of childhood sports on adult mental health, Cincinnati tackles blood cancer research and treatment, Case Western Reserve University researchers investigate “silent hypoxia,” and Ohio State University researchers find that WIC-like nutrition programs really do have a positive effect on healthy babies.
To play or not to play
Ah, youth sports. Were you last selected to make the team? Did you sit on the bench all season? Did you ever get humiliated by your coach after a poor play? Or did the lessons of hard work, dedication and sportsmanship serve you well later in life, instilling in you physical stamina, the ability to work together as a team and the desire to perform well?
A new study from Ohio State University suggests that a child’s relationship with sports can predict their mental health as an adult. And as Gretchen reports, it all depends on whether they quit or persevere. “Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as saying that playing sports is good for kids,” said one of the researchers. “It’s complicated by the reasons why kids stay in sports and why they stay or quit.”
The study found that people who played sports and then stopped had the highest levels of depression and anxiety, followed by those who never played sports, and those who continued playing sports until age 18 had the best mental health, probably because it was a positive experience for them.
Blood Cancer Hub
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center The company opened the first state-of-the-art blood cancer treatment center in the U.S. The 218,000-square-foot facility will include a treatment center focused on blood cancers. Additional buildings, including laboratories and wellness areas, are scheduled to open in 2024 and 2025.
The aim is to give patients access to a range of treatments, care and research in one place.
Once complete, the facility will employ more than 200 full-time employees, according to the university, including clinical and support staff providing access to novel, cutting-edge medical therapies such as cellular and stem cell therapies, group wellness spaces and extended care areas offering 24-hour outpatient symptom support for all cancer patients.
CWRU Research Sheds Light on “Silent Hypoxia”
One puzzling phenomenon observed during the COVID-19 pandemic is called “silent hypoxia,” where COVID-19 patients have dangerously low oxygen levels but do not exhibit the usual symptoms of oxygen deprivation.
An interdisciplinary team of scientists, including researchers from Case Western Reserve University, used a mathematical model of breathing to explore this effect and found that after COVID-19 infection, the body can compensate for reduced oxygen levels by increasing the concentration of hemoglobin in the bloodstream.
A recent study published in the journal Biological Cybernetics suggests a potential link between elevated hemoglobin concentrations in the bloodstream and the body’s response to COVID-19 infection.
WIC Enrollment Reduces Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes
When pregnant women can’t afford healthy foods, it can lead to poor outcomes for their infants, which is why the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) aims to reduce food insecurity for eligible pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women and their children.
Concerned about declining WIC enrollment, researchers at Ohio State University analyzed the data to see if WIC was beneficial. They found evidence that the food assistance program is indeed beneficial for mothers and babies.
The study, recently published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, suggests that pregnant women enrolled in WIC are less likely to have gestational diabetes, premature birth, and blood transfusions.
What’s more, mothers and babies are less likely to need to stay in intensive care, the study found.
“Food insecurity is a major issue in the United States due in part to rising food prices and concerns about congressional bills that could cut funding for WIC for the first time,” said Dr. Kartik Venkatesh, the study’s lead researcher and a maternal-fetal medicine physician at OSU. “At a time when WIC enrollment is declining, our study data provides evidence of the association between WIC and improved health during pregnancy.”
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