Women's Health / Gynecology News From Medical News Today

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Latest Health News and Medical News posted throughout the day, every day.

The American College Of Obstetricians And Gynecologists Supports Women's Access To Universal Health Care

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 05:00:00 PST - During Cover the Uninsured Week, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reiterates its position that all women should be guaranteed a package of essential benefits that includes primary and preventive care, pregnancy-related and infant care, medically and surgically necessary services, prescription drugs, and catastrophic care...

CDC Analysis Shows Genital Herpes Rates Remain High

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - Roughly 16% of U.S. residents ages 14 through 49 are infected with genital herpes, making it one of the nation's most common sexually transmitted infections, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysis released on Tuesday, Reuters reports. CDC noted that infection rates for the lifelong and incurable infection varied by gender and race. Twenty-one percent of U.S...

U.S. Maternal Mortality Rate Increases Over Last Decade

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - The maternal mortality rate in the U.S. appears to have risen over the past 10 years, reaching a rate that is four times higher than the federal government's 2010 goal, the AP/Yahoo! News reports. In 2006, the last year for which nationwide data are available, about 13.3 maternal deaths occurred for every 100,000 live births, compared with around seven deaths per 100,000 births one decade before...

Men's 'Barbarity' Should Not Be Used To Justify Mistreatment Of Women, Opinion Piece Argues

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - "'Feminism' is a loaded word in the United States," but the "simple fact is that 'the feminists' are absolutely right when it comes to the treatment of women in much of the developing world," Los Angeles Times columnist Jonah Goldberg writes...

Women Who Drink Moderately Appear To Gain Less Weight Than Non-Drinkers

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 02:00:00 PST - Normal-weight women who drink a light to moderate amount of alcohol appear to gain less weight and have a lower risk of becoming overweight and obese than non-drinkers, according to a report in the March 8 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. More than half of American adults drink alcoholic beverages, according to background information in the article...

Risk-Free Treatment For Low Female Sexual Desire

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 PST - According to the Journal of Sexual Medicine, people who engage in regular sexual activity gain several health benefits, such as longer lives, healthier hearts, lower blood pressure, and lower risk of breast cancer. However, approximately 33 percent of women may not receive these benefits due to low sexual desire...

Questioning The Benefits Of Elective Removal Of Ovaries During Hysterectomy: Evidence Suggests Procedure May Do More Harm Than Good

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 PST - Removal of the ovaries (bilateral oophorectomy) while performing a hysterectomy is common practice to prevent the subsequent development of ovarian cancer. This prophylactic procedure is performed in 55 percent of all US women having a hysterectomy, or approximately 300,000 times each year...

Low-Income Women Living In Small Cities Have Higher Chance Of Obesity

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 05:00:00 PST - A recent Kansas State University study found that the availability of supermarkets -- rather than the lack of them -- increased the risk of obesity for low-income women living in small cities. This suggests that policies to increase healthful eating behaviors might need to be tailored based on geographic location...

Utah Gov. Signs Revised Bill Allowing Criminal Charges Against Women For Illegal Abortions

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:00:00 PST - Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) on Monday signed a bill (HB 462) that would allow prosecutors to bring criminal homicide charges against women who arrange illegal abortions, the Salt Lake Tribune reports (Gehrke, Salt Lake Tribune, 3/8). An earlier version of the bill (HB 12), sponsored by state Rep...

New York Times Examines Factors Affecting VBAC Rates As NIH Conference Begins

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:00:00 PST - The New York Times on Tuesday examined efforts to increase rates of vaginal births after caesarean sections at the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation, a small hospital run by the Navajo Nation and financed partially by the Indian Health Services...

Obamas, Clinton Commemorate International Women's Day

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:00:00 PST - Marking International Women's Day at the White House Monday, President Barack Obama vowed to fight for gender equality at home and abroad, Agence France-Presse reports. The president marked the event with First Lady Michelle Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, AFP reports...

Opinions: Don't Slow Fight Against HIV, TB, Malaria; U.S. Focus On Women, Girls

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:00:00 PST - 2010 To Be 'Decisive Year' For Global Health, Global Fund Director Says In a BusinessDay opinion piece, Executive Director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria Michel Kazatchkine reflects on the organization's progress and impact on global health outcomes since its creation in 2002, as detailed in the organizations' 2010 annual report...

Blogs Comment On Abortion Coverage In Health Reform, International Women's Day, Other Topics

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:00:00 PST - The following summarizes selected women's health-related blog entries. ~ "Stupak's Abortion Argument: Still More About Class Than Choice": Washington Post's "Ezra Klein": The "practical effect" of Rep. Bart Stupak's (D-Mich...

Controlled Study Finds Possible Early Warning Signs For Autism Spectrum Disorders Within Families

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 05:00:00 PST - A new study suggests a trend toward developing hyperactivity among typically developing elementary-school-aged siblings of autistic preschoolers and supports the notion that mothers of young, autistic children experience more depression and stress than mothers with typically developing children...

Novel Program Translates Behavioral And Social Science Research Into Treatments To Reduce Obesity

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 05:00:00 PST - Under a $7.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, Rush University Medical Center is developing a novel program, called WISHFIT, to help pre-menopausal women reduce visceral fat through a sustained increase in physical activity and reduction in stress...

Washington, D.C., To Become First U.S. City To Distribute Free Female Condoms

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - Washington, D.C., soon will become the first city in the U.S. to distribute female condoms at no charge, the Washington Post reports...

Sex Education, Contraception Key To Lowering Abortion Rate Among Blacks, Guttmacher CEO Writes

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - In a New York Times letter to the editor published on Monday, Guttmacher Institute President and Chief Executive Sharon Camp calls for the U.S. to "get serious about providing better health care and more educational and economic opportunities for black women...

Unequal Health Care, Neglect, And Sex-Selective Infanticide, Abortion Lead To Large Gender Gap In Asia, Report Finds

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:00:00 PST - "Nearly 100 million women across Asia have 'disappeared' because of a huge and growing gender gap that has fatally deprived them of access to health care and food and has led to widespread abortions of female fetuses, according to a U.N. report released Monday," the Associated Press reports. The U.N...

Politico Opinion Pieces Argue For U.S. Investment In Global Women's Issues

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 03:00:00 PST - On International Women's Day, Politico published two opinion pieces discussing the benefits of U.S. aid to support women overseas. ~ Dana Perino, Politico: "Empowering one woman is an investment in the future of families and countries," Perino -- a former press secretary to President George W. Bush -- writes in an opinion piece discussing her work with Women ONE2ONE in Africa...

Light To Moderate Drinking Linked To Less Weight Gain In Middle Aged Women

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:00:00 PST - A new study from the US found that normal weight women in their 40s and older who drank a light to moderate amount of alcohol gained less weight and had a lower risk of becoming obese and overweight compared to their non-drinking counterparts...

Washington Post Opinion Piece Draws Attention To Breast Ironing In Cameroon

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:00:00 PST - In a Washington Post opinion piece on Sunday, freelance writer Jamie Rich examined the Cameroonian practice of breast ironing, in which women use heated plantain leaves or hot stones to "flatten adolescent girls' developing breasts, intending to protect the girls from the dangers of sex, consensual or otherwise...

Global Fund Releases Latest Impact Data, Projections For Improving Global Health In Next Decade

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:00:00 PST - By 2015, mother-to-child HIV transmission will be virtually eliminated and deaths from malaria and tuberculosis will continue to decline if health investments for the diseases are maintained or scaled up, according to an annual results report published Monday by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Agence France-Presse/Africasia.com reports (3/8)...

Women's Group Support Can Improve Birth Outcomes

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 PST - Community support groups can reduce neonatal mortality, and lower rates of maternal depression-provided that the population coverage is wide enough and the programmes are appropriately designed. These are the conclusions of two Articles, published Online First in The Lancet. Participatory women's groups have shown promise in trials in Nepal, reducing neonatal mortality by about one-third...

What Is Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)? What Are The Benefits And Risks Of Hormone Replacement Therapy?

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 PST - Hormone replacement therapy, commonly known as HRT is a treatment used to replace hormones that the body is no longer producing because of the menopause. The hormones that need replacing are estrogen and progesterone. The therapy is based on the notion that the treatment may prevent discomfort caused by diminished circulating estrogen and progesterone hormones...

Equal Rights And Opportunities For Women And Girls Essential For Better Health

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 09:00:00 PST - Today, on International Women's Day, the world reflects on how to ensure equal rights and opportunities for women and girls. Everyone must fight against discrimination and inequalities that compromise the health of women and girls around the world...