Public Health Roundup: Petaluma Student Defies Medical Odds; Berkeley’s Soda Tax Drives Up Water Consumption
California news organizations also cover public health stories on the aging paradox and veganism.
Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
Brock Albee Couldn’t Walk, Now He Runs Cross Country At Dominican University
[Brock] Albee’s story could begin with Bell’s palsy or being bound to a wheelchair or relearning how to speak or the seizure or being held out of school for two months or being teased in Little League, but we might as well start with the first of his four brain surgeries. Brock was 3. Caroline, his mother, received a call from a day-care provider on Nov. 1, 2000. Her young son was unconscious. Two hours after that, Brock underwent emergency brain surgery at Children’s Hospital in Oakland. In the space of just two hours, Brock went from your normal fun-loving, active kid to surgeons taking three hours to save his life. (Padecky, 8/24)
San Jose Mercury News:
Soda Tax Drives Poor To Water, UC Berkeley Study Finds
Consumption of soda and other sugary drinks in the city's low-income neighborhoods has dropped by more than a fifth since the enactment of a voter-approved excise tax, a UC Berkeley study shows. Measure D, a 1-cent-per-ounce tax on the distribution of sugary beverages, passed Nov. 4, 2014 by a better than 3-1 margin, despite a more than $2.4 million campaign by the soda industry to derail it. (Lochner, 8/25)
Los Angeles Times:
The Aging Paradox: The Older We Get, The Happier We Are
Yes, your physical health is likely to decline as you age. And unfortunately, your cognitive abilities like learning new skills and remembering things is likely to suffer too. But despite such downsides, research suggests that your overall mental health, including your mood, your sense of well-being and your ability to handle stress, just keeps improving right up until the very end of life. (Netburn, 8/24)
KPCC:
Italian Lawmakers Consider Ban Of Veganism For Kids — What Are The Pros And Cons?
Restricting kids to a vegan diet could be considered child abuse punishable by jail time in Italy if a new proposal by a lawmaker in that country passes.The new law is in response to the mayor of Turin, Italy, saying she wanted her town to be Italy’s first “vegan city.” The text of the bill (in Italian) says that parents who force their kids to eat vegan are imposing a diet that is “devoid of essential elements for healthy and balanced growth.” While it doesn’t outright ban veganism country-wide, if passed it would make it difficult for parents to impose the diet on their children. (8/24)