Parents fearing that childhood vaccines may cause autism can breathe a little easier now.  Just yesterday, the medical journal, The Lancet, withdrew the contentious 1998 study that first linked the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to autism.

As reported in a CNN article, the lead author of the study, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, “was found to have acted unethically in conducting the research.” The General Medical Council, which oversees doctors in Britain, said “there was a biased selection of patients in The Lancet paper” and that his “conduct in this regard was dishonest and irresponsible.”

Overall, the causes of autism are still unknown and may never be pinpointed to one particular variable. However, this false study provides more evidence against the idea that the MMR vaccine causes autism.  Join the conversation and share your stories about autism with icyou.

Cervical Cancer is on the decline, but there are some key pointers to keeping it there. January is Cervical Health Awareness Month and icyou is honoring it by outlining the facts and formulas for keeping you, and the women you know, cervix cancer free.

According to House Calls Tv, there are approximately 100,000 to 200,000 cases of cervical pre-cancer a year and about 11,000 to 12,000 actual cervical cancer cases each year.  Doctors say the reason so many patients can go from having cervical pre-cancer to cancer-free is the use of screenings.  In one study discussed on icyou, women who did not have cervical cancer screenings at the recommended intervals were two times more likely to have cervical cancer and five times more likely to have advanced cancer.  So, it is important to get screened by a physician once a year.

Some cases of cervical cancer are caused by HPV, Human Papillomavirus.  There are about 100 types of HPV. Approximately 30 of those are spread through genital contact (typically sexual intercourse). Around 12 – called “low-risk” types of HPV – can cause genital warts. In addition, there are approximately 15 “high-risk” types of HPV that can cause cervical cancer.  As one icyou video shows, approximately 80 percent of sexually active women will get some form of HPV by the time they are 50.

In terms of HPV, there is good news.  Since June 2006, the vaccine Gardasil has been available through physicians.  The vaccine is a series of three shots and is most effective on young women, ages 9-26, who are not sexually active yet.  Ask your doctor for more information regarding Gardasil and other upcoming vaccine options.

So remember, it is recommended that women get screened annually and consider Gardasil to prevent harmful types of HPV.  Join the discussion about cervical health by sharing your stories about cervical cancer, vaccines and staying cancer-free at icyou.

If you’ve turned on your television, radio, computer or smart phone this week, you’ve probably heard a lot of talk about Massachusetts and the election of Republican Scott Brown.  Senator-Elect Brown will fill the seat previously held by the late Edward M. Kennedy. If voting in a Republican to fill Kennedy’s seat wasn’t enough of a sting for Democrats, once Brown takes office, Senate Democrats lose control of the 60 votes needed to squash a Republican filibuster. That means the chances of passing a comprehensive healthcare reform bill have significantly diminished.

If Democrats want to pass reform legislation, they have a few options, including simply passing the Senate version as-is through the House and sending it to President Obama for signature.  However party leaders, including House speaker Nancy Pelosi have said the House simply will not take that route because of certain provisions in the bill. President Barack Obama also warned Democrats this week not to “try to jam anything through until Scott Brown is seated.”

At this point in the process, Democrats are talking about pushing a much smaller health care bill; you can find some of the elements that are likely to be included here.

Of course, no matter what happens on Capitol Hill, there are very real things you can do as a patient to improve your healthcare.  Start with this talk from “e-Patient Dave” and contribute your own observations and opinions on icyou. We want to hear from you!

Approximately 78,000 babies are born in the United States each week. Approximately 12 percent of those babies are born with birth defects; that’s 9,360 babies. January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month and to show our support of this important issue, icyou is providing you with preventative pointers.

A birth defect is any noticeable deficiency in appearance or function noticed in a child’s first year. According to icyou contributor Dr. Mona Khanna, mothers over the age of 35 and who have had children with birth defects before are at a heightened risk to have children with birth defects.  However, most babies with birth defects are not born to parents with these risk factors.

Some of the major factors with birth defects that expecting mothers and parents should be concerned with are:

• Folic Acid: Dr. Mona indicates that appropriate folic acid intake is absolutely crucial both before and during the pregnancy. It is important for a woman to have the right amount of folic acid in her diet even before she gets pregnant.

• Alcohol: It has become a widely known fact that drinking alcohol during pregnancy can be very unhealthy for the unborn child. Drinking alcohol undoubtedly increases the risk of having a child with defects, especially excessive alcohol intake.

• Smoking: Much like drinking alcohol, a smoking addiction or even occasional smoking can be harmful during pregnancy as well. Smoking often leads to low birth weight and/or developmental disabilities in children.

One final pointer is to be sure and see a doctor for pre-natal vitamins. These vitamins can be the key to keeping a mother and baby healthy. For more answers and tips about how to prevent birth defects, search “birth defects” on icyou.

Parents, teachers and doctors continue to question and investigate the causes of autism. For many, those questions center around what in a child’s environment, such as vaccinations or industrial chemicals or pollution, could have an impact. A new study looking at geographical clusters in California with noticeably high rates of autism diagnoses, sheds new light on whether such environmental factors can cause autism.

Researchers at the University of California, Davis looked into ten geographical areas in California (map), each of which had a proportion of children diagnosed with autism 70 percent higher than in surrounding areas. The question becomes, if so many children in one region are diagnosed with autism is there an environmental cause in these specific locations?

They found that areas with higher-educated, older and Caucasian parents had more diagnoses of autism than the general population. This is not to say that babies born to parents in these demographics or in these areas are genetically predisposed to autism but simply a suggestion that having an older, more educated, Caucasian parent translates to a higher chance of a diagnosis. It is important to remember that there are many undiagnosed cases of autism and that just because a region has higher diagnoses, does not mean another region has fewer overall cases. In other words, highly educated parents typically have more and better access to healthcare, which in turn can mean a higher likelihood than the general population of getting an accurate diagnosis of autism.

So, while the study and its stipulations may be somewhat convoluted and difficult to grasp, the bottom line is that environmental factors are not the cause for the higher proportions of autism cases in these areas. These results are comforting to parents in these clusters because they now know that there was not “something in the water,” that increased the likelihood of autism in their children.

Learn more about autism on icyou

As Congress inches closer towards passage of a comprehensive healthcare package, icyou reflects on the long and winding road that led to the precipice of reform legislation. It’s legislation that will invariably affect nearly every American in the coming years.

Since the early part of the 20th century, politicians have initiated efforts to achieve universal healthcare, beginning with the 1912 Presidential campaign of Theodore Roosevelt. Fast-forward past a New Deal legislation attempt, the establishment of Medicare and Medicaid, and the failure of the 1993 Clinton healthcare plan and you get a broad, if woefully brief, picture of the countless efforts that provide backdrop for the historic turn of events in 2009.

Riding a wave of support and backed by a majority in Congress, President Barack Obama began his term by setting an ambitious timetable (the end of summer) for passage of a comprehensive healthcare reform bill. It’s legislation his campaign focused on heavily during the 2008 election. To kick off the effort, members of his transition team helped organize and encouraged more than 30,000 Americans to participate in healthcare community discussions over the winter holidays.

In March, Mr. Obama held White House Forum on Health Reform where several citizens presented a report that reflected the concerns and suggestions contributed as part of those community discussions. Not surprisingly, the report found that many Americans believe healthcare costs are too high and accessing quality coverage is too difficult.

When the weather heated up, so too did the debate over the direction of reform. Summer 2009 saw both tea parties to oppose democratic healthcare legislation and coffee parties to support those efforts. The debate largely focused on whether to included a government-run insurance, or public option, in the bill. Meanwhile, Mr. Obama went into campaign mode as his initial wish to have a bill on his desk by the end of August came and went.

By fall, Americans saw significant action in the halls of Congress. In November, the House approved its comprehensive healthcare reform plan. The House bill includes a government-run insurance plan, or public option. Abortion proved to be a hotly contested issue and after last-minute negotiation, members voted not to allow health plans bought with any government subsidies to cover the procedure.

The nation quickly turned its attention to the reform battleground of the Senate. It took a number of late-night, early-morning votes and plenty of compromises and deals to pass its version of a healthcare bill, which it did in a climactic Christmas Eve morning vote (60-39). Unlike the House bill, the Senate bill does not include a public option. Also, unlike the House Bill, the Senate Bill would separate payments for abortion coverage so that no federal dollars would cover the procedure.

The close of 2009 brings more than 30 million uninsured Americans significantly closer to coverage than at the start of the year. Yet, there are still plenty of hurdles ahead. The most significant being the Senate Bill and the House Bill are two very different pieces of legislation. In the days ahead, look for the debate to focus on abortion, the “public option”, and how to finance a reform package. These bills must be reconciled before President Obama can set the centerpiece of his domestic policy on the American table. If or when he does, he will have accomplished something that has eluded presidents for decades.

Early Monday morning, when most of us were asleep, members of the U.S. Senate took a giant leap toward passing their version of a health care bill. They voted along party lines (60 to 40) to limit debate on the legislation, which paves the way for a final vote. On Tuesday, additional procedural steps cleared. If Senate Democrats hold ranks, the chamber could pass the more than 2,000-page bill before Christmas.

Civics doesn’t have to be your favorite subject to understand the historic nature of these events. Monday’s vote brings more than 30 million uninsured Americans one step closer to coverage. Yet, there are still plenty of hurdles ahead. The most significant being the Senate Bill, once passed, and the House bill are two very different pieces of legislation as currently written. These bills must be combined before President Obama can say “signed, sealed, delivered” on the centerpiece of his domestic policy.

In the days ahead, here’s what to look for:

The Abortion Coverage Debate – The House bill does not allow health plans bought with any government subsidies to cover abortion. The Senate Bill, as it stands,   would separate payments for abortion coverage so that no federal dollars would cover the procedure. According to The Washington Post, the language in the Senate bill is “drawing contempt from both sides.”

The “Public Option” Debate – The House includes a government-run health insurance plan. The Senate bill, as it stands, does not. Many icyou members have weighed in on the issue, both for a public plan and…

The How-To-Pay-For-It Debate – In the House Bill most of the money would come from a tax surcharge on people who make more than $500,000 a per year and couples who make more than $1 million dollars aper year. The Senate bill, -as it stands,- would tax expensive “Cadillac health plans”. The Senate would also increase the Medicare payroll tax for people who make more than $200,000 a year and couples who make more than $250,000. Both bills expect to get more than $400 billion from cuts in Medicare and other federal programs. However many people say the numbers just don’t add up; in particular icyou member, DrMDK says tort reform is not addressed in the current legislation.

Throughout the debate, lawmakers have had to make lots of compromises and what some would call “deals.”. The New York Times examines some of the very specific beneficiaries in the current Senate bill.
Do you think the process is working or has it become “Let’s Make a Deal”? We would love to hear from you.

As we count down to 2010, we are taking some time to look back at the major health headlines of this past year.

If you had never heard of the “Swine Flu,” you certainly have now.  All of the questions and fears surrounding H1N1 began in April as the first few cases became known, but of course the concerns about this flu have not subsided.  To deliver the latest information regarding H1N1, icyou developed the H1N1 Swine Flu Information Channel, which continues to bring you updates on the signs and symptoms, vaccines and spread of this pandemic strain of flu.

The start of 2009 also brought the beginning of a new presidency.  Barack Obama took office in January and thus began another health hot topic: healthcare reform.  “Obamacare” has not passed yet and needless to say there are quite a few differing opinions. But one thing is for sure: we will undoubtedly hear more about these reform efforts in the upcoming year.

To catch up on healthcare reform progress that you may have missed and to stay informed on the latest updates, check out the Barack Obama Healthcare Reform Channel for videos from the White House, various political perspectives and people like you.

Other issues abounded. Here are some of the top health stories and medical breakthroughs uploaded to icyou in 2009:

Stem Cell Research sheds new light on Pancreatic Cancer
Salmonella found in peanut butter
“Octomom” makes headlines with in-vitro fertilization
New Mammography Guidelines
Interest in understanding and preventing army suicide
Artificial Retina gives hope for restoring sight
JAMA study finds common strain of influenza resistant to anti-viral medications

Wondering what else people were watching on icyou? Here are some of the top channels and videos of the year:

Tara Stiles Yoga Channel
Ani Phyo’s Raw Food Cooking
Therapy Dogs Help Wounded Warriors
Topics: Parkinson’s Disease
Topics: Fitness/Exercise
Topics: Politics/Policy

In addition to these issues, here are some of the top searches that brought people to icyou this year:

Ovulation
TMJ Relief
Colonoscopy Procedure
Muscular Skeletal System
Laparoscopic Hysterectomy

For more of what we were watching in 2009, check out any of the 26 “Pulse” updates from throughout the year.

It has been an eventful and exciting year for health news and it’s not over yet.  We look forward to presenting more videos and the latest information and trends in the year to come.

People are beginning to eat like animals.  Certain species of animals only eat raw plants found in nature, and now so do many humans.  Eating raw, completely uncooked fruits, vegetables and nuts has become a trend in home kitchens and chic restaurants.  Some eat raw because they want to take a stand against animal cruelty, but many do it simply for the health benefits they believe a raw food diet offers. icyou features several channels focused on those who prepare, eat, and swear by raw food.

On icyou, you’ll see that some people go to extremes when it comes to beginning a raw food diet, while others gradually and more permanently incorporate it into their lives.  For example, on RawFoodMedia’s Channel, one film maker challenges herself to eat only raw food for 30 days straight.  Find out how much weight she lost and if she would ever recommend or commit to this lifestyle.

Others, however, like contributor Daniel Nadaeu made a less drastic crack at a raw food diet.  He was already vegan, but switched to a raw vegan diet.  Check out his homemade recipes, athlete-specific pointers, and how he proves certain nutritional myths wrong.

If you are inspired to try raw foods for yourself, both Jennifer Cornbleet and Ani Phyo have a variety of recipes that simulate the taste and texture of some of your non-raw favorites.  Phyo says that preparing food in the microwave removes 100% of its nutritional value, so food heated in the microwave is essentially empty calories.  Check out her creative alternatives, like raw lasagna, burgers and cookies.

If you have tried a raw food diet, want to share recipes, or never want to go near a raw diet we would love to hear from you.  Join the discussion on icyou.com.

CNN featured a story today about a New York woman named Barabara Campbell whose eyesight has been partially restored after receiving an experimental electronic eye implant.

[Read the full article here]

Campbell, who had been suffering from a debilitative blinding disease called Retinitis pigmentosa, is one of only 14 people in the United States participating in an FDA-approved study of the artificial retina — a microchip implanted in the eye to stimulate damaged cells.

You can learn more about the artificial retina and the technology behind it in this video from The National Science Foundation.

While a bionic eye may sound like something out of science fiction,  the artificial retina brings us one step closer to making it a reality.