Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 1d

www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

‘Exercise snacks’ can improve heart fitness and muscle strength, new research finds

For people who don’t already exercise, short bursts of deliberate activity significantly improved cardiorespiratory fitness.

www.nbcnews.com

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 1d

Even small amounts of aerobic activity strengthens the network of tiny blood vessels—capillaries—that remove waste from muscles. Consistent activity also improves the amount of energy cells can provide These changes make it easier to exercise for longer periods of time or at a higher intensity.

1 1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 1d

Short workouts create key changes in the body that make intensifying workouts easier. Within a couple of weeks of getting exercise, aerobic activity initiates cellular changes that increase the amount of plasma in the blood, which allows the blood to deliver more oxygen to the muscles.

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 13d

“Spear has built the Berlin Wall around the secretary,” an agency official tells Vanity Fair. www.vanityfair.com/news/story/m...

Meet Stefanie Spear, RFK Jr.’s “Attached at the Hip” HHS Deputy

Once a radical environmental activist, Spear has transformed herself into a powerful gatekeeper at the center of MAHA.

www.vanityfair.com

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 13d

A new report shows the program has spent at least $54 million on administrative costs alone.
www.propublica.org/article/geor...

Georgia’s Medicaid Work Requirement Program Spent Twice as Much on Administrative Costs as on Health Care, GAO Says

Republican lawmakers cite Georgia’s Pathways to Coverage as a national model for federal Medicaid work requirements that are set to take effect in 2027. A new report shows the program has spent at lea...

www.propublica.org

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 16d

“I don’t think he’s aware of my work,” McCanlies said, “or most of the literature that’s been published on what the causes of autism are.”

1 1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 16d

McCanlies was stunned. The work had been done.

“That’s exactly what I’ve been doing!” she said to her husband, Fred. www.propublica.org/article/rfk-...

RFK Jr. Vowed to Find the Environmental Causes of Autism. Then He Shut Down Research Trying to Do Just That.

While touting a $50 million initiative to identify the causes of autism, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is helping lead an administration that is rolling back protections against pollution and toxic chemicals,...

www.propublica.org

1 1 1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 16d

RFK Jr. said he believed an environmental toxin was responsible for the dramatic increase in the condition and vowed to gather “the most credible scientists from all over the world” to solve the mystery.

Nothing like that has ever been done before, he told an interviewer.

RFK Jr. Vowed to Find the Environmental Causes of Autism. Then He Shut Down Research Trying to Do Just That.

While touting a $50 million initiative to identify the causes of autism, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is helping lead an administration that is rolling back protections against pollution and toxic chemicals,...

www.propublica.org

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · 28d

Two kids died in a school shooting in Evergreen, Colorado today.

Aaron Weiss @aweiss.bsky.social · 28d

Someone shot up my kid's school today, and our governor is paying tribute to a guy who thought that is an acceptable price to pay for having the Second Amendment.

Jared Polis has failed Colorado.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Governor Polis Orders Flags to Half-Staff to Honor the Anniversary of September 11th and the Passing of Charlie Kirk

1 4

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Sep 2

ALS does not have one single cause, which makes targeting the origin of the disease particularly challenging. Small drug companies are designing ALS drugs that target ultra rare genetic causes of ALS––even if the drugs can only be used by a handful of people.

www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

A tailor-made drug slowed a man's ALS. Is it the future of treatment?

About 20% of ALS cases today have a known genetic underpinning, but experts are discovering new mutations — and drug targets — every year.

www.nbcnews.com

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 21

"Families, many with children, were left sifting through the ashes of what little they had managed to bring with them." apnews.com/video/israel...

Israeli strike destroys tents housing displaced people in Gaza

An Israeli strike destroyed roughly 100 tents in Deir al-Balah sheltering people who had already fled fighting in other parts of the Gaza Strip.

apnews.com

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

But as the plant's popularity grows, particularly in the West, people who have traditionally used the plant in religious and coming of age ceremonies are grappling with an important question: who gets to profit? www.theguardian.com/society/2023...

The psychedelic ibogaine can treat addiction. The race is on to cash in

Clinics and scientists around the world aim to turn a profit from a powerful Gabonese plant – but it’s an ethical and legal wild west

www.theguardian.com

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

Iboga, the plant that ibogaine comes from, is a protected, sacred plant in Gabon. It's still mostly illegal to export the plant from Gabon.

2 1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

The government official I interviewed with for the article confirmed that most ibogaine used around the world has been poached from Gabon or Cameroon, or comes from poached seeds.

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

I spent 7 years following the often elicit ibogaine trade, and the ibogaine clinics that have sprung up as a response to the U.S.'s opioid crisis. Part of that story appeared in The Guardian in 2023.

1

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

Ibogaine is in the headlines again. The psychedelic –– which is native to parts of Central Africa –– appears to uniquely be able to interrupt withdrawal, opening a window of opportunity for people addicted to opioids to get sober. However, almost nothing in this world is without cost.

8 4

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Aug 11

Personalized cancer vaccines are big in cancer research right now, but an early trial found that an off-the-shelf vaccine could prevent hard-to-treat pancreatic cancer from coming back. www.nbcnews.com/health/cance...

One-size-fits-all pancreatic cancer vaccine showed promise in early trial

The vaccine doesn't prevent cancer from happening in the first place, but an early-phase trial found it could reduce the odds of recurrence.

www.nbcnews.com

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 30

If someone’s T cells are defective, beta HPV (a different type than alpha HPV, which is linked to cervical and other cancers) can integrate into skin cells’ DNA, making them cancerous. www.nbcnews.com/health/cance...

A type of HPV can cause skin cancer in people with weakened immune systems, report finds

A type of HPV, commonly found on the skin, could trigger skin cancer in people with weakened immune systems.

www.nbcnews.com

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 21

Genetics are far from the only risk factor associated with obesity in adulthood, but experts say giving people a score like this one, which can help them understand their unique genetic risk factors, could be a powerful tool. www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

A genetic test could predict the odds of obesity, allowing for early interventions

Scientists looked at the genes of millions of people to determine which ones are linked to obesity — and developed a way to screen people before age 5.

www.nbcnews.com

2

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 16

Affordability policies like Medicaid expansion had the biggest weight on access. www.nbcnews.com/health/women...

Birth control access: Scorecard evaluates family planning policies across the U.S.

When it comes to ease of finding affordable contraception, a new report shows 'stark' differences from state to state.

www.nbcnews.com

1

Reposted by Kaitlin Sullivan

NBC News @nbcnews.com · Jul 14

Vaccine skeptics have long blamed aluminum for various health issues, but a new study of over 1 million people found no link between the ingredient and 50 chronic conditions, including autism, allergies and autoimmune diseases.

Study finds no link between aluminum in vaccines and autism, asthma

The study included more than 1.2 million people in Denmark who got childhood vaccines.

nbcnews.to

22 120 350

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 14

"Partly because they have, for a long time, had such a unified health system. Everyone is tracked for life from birth and you can go back for many years and ask, ‘Can we find a link between something that happened in the past and in the future?’”

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 14

Epidemiological studies out of Scandinavia that utilize countries' meticulously kept health records are of unique quality, one source said. www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-...

Study finds no link between aluminum in vaccines and autism, asthma

The study included more than 1.2 million people in Denmark who got childhood vaccines.

www.nbcnews.com

1 1

Reposted by Kaitlin Sullivan

acasadevall1.bsky.social @acasadevall1.bsky.social · Jul 9

Quoted here about the increasing problem of drug resistance in Aspergillus isolates.
www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

Fungal infections are getting harder to treat

The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus tops the World Health Organization's list of worrying fungal diseases. It's growing increasingly resistant to the first-line drug used to treat it.

www.nbcnews.com

5 9

Kaitlin Sullivan @kaitsulliva.bsky.social · Jul 9

“Basically everywhere we look for drug-resistant isotopes, we find them. We are seeing this azole drug-resistance happening throughout the U.S. Those rates will likely climb.”

www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

Fungal infections are getting harder to treat

The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus tops the World Health Organization's list of worrying fungal diseases. It's growing increasingly resistant to the first-line drug used to treat it.

www.nbcnews.com

1