Getting Away From Artificial Lighting May Help Reset Circadian Rhythms, Improve Sleep, Study Suggests.

reports in the two-part study, researchers “equipped five people with wearable devices that measured when they woke up, when they went to bed and how much light they were normally exposed to.” The researchers “also measured their melatonin levels in a lab.” Following those assessments, “everyone went on a week-long camping trip...during the winter.” They found that “people’s internal clocks were delayed during their normal schedules” and “also had higher melatonin levels.” In the second part of the study, researchers observed people who “went camping for just a weekend” while others stayed home. Investigators found that individuals “who stayed home stayed up later than usual and slept in,” while those “on the two-day trip” saw a shift in their internal clocks. http://time.com/4656550/camping-sleep-insomnia/

Is That Burger Wrapped in Harmful Chemicals? Fast food packaging contains fluorine that can leach into food

It's not just the fast-food burger and fries that are unhealthy -- the packaging they come in might be bad for you too, scientists said. Of 407 fast-food packaging samples tested, 33% had detectable levels of fluorine, a marker for a class of highly fluorinated chemicals known as PFASs (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), reported Laurel Schaider, PhD, of the Silent Spring Institute in Newton, Mass., and colleagues. Previous research has linked PFASs with cancer, thyroid disease, immunotoxicity, low birth weight, and decreased fertility. These chemicals are used in food packaging because of their water- and grease-resistant properties, and research has shown they can leach into food, the authors wrote in Environmental Science & http://www.medpagetoday.com/Endocrinology/GeneralEndocrinology/62851?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2017-02-02&eun=g721819d0r&pos=0

heart failure Patients Should Get Their Flu Shots Preventing respiratory infection seen as especially helpful in vulnerable population

http://www.medpagetoday.com/InfectiousDisease/URItheFlu/62864?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2017-02-02&eun=g721819d0r&pos=1

Measles In New Jersey: Alert Issued As More Cases Discovered

In 2017, the state is already on a pace to surpass all measles cases reported over the past two years. http://patch.com/new-jersey/hoboken/measles-new-jersey-alert-issued-more-cases-discovered

Endocrine Society Issues Updated Clinical Practice Guideline For Pediatric Obesity.

“The Endocrine Society released an updated evidence-based clinical practice guideline on the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity with lifestyle changes.” The guideline, called “Pediatric Obesity – Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention: An Endocrine Society Clinical Practice Guideline,” was published online in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. http://www.empr.com/news/child-obesity-lifestyle-modifications-psychological-complications/article/635031/

Lupus: A Continuum of Disease? Incomplete lupus is often mild, but can progress, cause damage

Patients with "incomplete lupus erythematosus" (ILE), who have some features of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) but do not fulfill the stringent disease criteria, typically have milder disease -- but a subset of patients have major organ manifestations, accrue organ damage, or go on to develop full-blown SLE, according to a large lupus registry study. Lupus is a highly heterogeneous disease, affecting multiple organ systems and often in overlapping patterns. The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) requires four of its criteria to be met for the diagnosis to be made, but a substantial number of patients have fewer and have been variously described as having possible, latent, probable, or incomplete lupus. http://www.medpagetoday.com/Rheumatology/Lupus/62832?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2017-02-01&eun=g721819d0r&pos=1

Gestational Weight Gain and Pregnancy Outcomes: No Link No impact in outcomes for overweight or obese pregnant women

http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/SMFM/62771?xid=nl_mpt_Weekly_Education_2017-02-01&eun=g5883165d1r there were no significant differences between the two treatment groups in adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as diagnoses of gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, gestational hypertension, or birth weight over 4,000 grams. "This may call into question previously described associations between excess gestational weight gain and pregnancy outcomes," Peaceman said in his report at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine annual pregnancy meeting. "However, this is only an initial data evaluation, and it should not lead to a conclusion that efforts to control gestational weight gain should now be abandoned."