Health Newsfeed – Johns Hopkins Medicine Podcasts

DNA fragments found in your blood, so called circulating cell free DNA, come from your cells as they die. Both genetic material and DNA from your energy plants, known as mitochondria, can be found, and both are implicated in increased … How does circulating DNA contribute to accelerated aging? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Circulating cell free DNA fragments are found in your bloodstream when cells die and release what’s inside. Some of that DNA is your genetic material and some comes from mitochondria, the power plants of your cells. Johns Hopkins geriatrics expert … Are circulating DNA and inflammation related? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

You may have heard the term ‘liquid biopsy.’ Most often referring to cancer detection, such technology aims to find materials circulating in the blood that give clues to a tumor’s presence. Now such a strategy is being used to look … Can a blood test for DNA predict Alzheimer’s disease and frailty? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Some cancer tests and prenatal assessments already use DNA found circulating in someone’s blood to look for certain cancers or assure the health of a fetus. Now Peter Abadir, a geriatrics expert at Johns Hopkins, and colleagues are using such … A blood test looking for your DNA is proving increasingly useful, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

You have quite a lot of the genetic material DNA circulating in your bloodstream. Peter Abadir, a geriatrics expert at Johns Hopkins, is looking at DNA from two different sources to provide information on aging. Abadir: The genomic DNA is … Your own genetic material from two cellular locations can be found in your blood, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Immunotherapies for cancer can be lifesavers, but they can also provoke an overwhelming immune response that can be life threatening. Now a Johns Hopkins study may help pinpoint who is at risk for this type of reaction. Kimmel Cancer Center … It may now be possible to tell who is going to react badly to some forms of cancer therapy, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

People with a type of advanced colorectal cancer who were treated with two different immunotherapy drugs did much better than a group treated with a standard type of chemotherapy, a new study reports. Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson at … Using two immunotherapies in colon cancer helps, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

As cancer cells grow, a study looking at their three dimensional architecture reveals that they become more like cells normally seen in fetal life. Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson says that may be the key to enabling … Studying cancers in three dimensions has revealed a kind of regression, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

An effort is underway to characterize cancerous tumors in three dimensions, with an eye toward a more complete understanding of their behavior. A series of papers have recently come out describing what’s been seen so far. William Nelson, director of … What are we learning from studying cancers in three dimensions? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

When cancer exists in the body it has a three dimensional structure, an architecture, that only now is being looked at in detail to understand better how cancers behave. Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson at Johns Hopkins explains. Nelson: … What can a 3D atlas of cancer teach us? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Childhood obesity is a worldwide problem with long term health implications, especially cardiovascular disease. Now a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin has shown a personalized program of text messages to parents of very young infants staved … Text messages meeting people where they are allow children to avoid becoming obese, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

While childhood obesity is a widespread problem, the children who are most at risk to develop this disabling condition are already those with fewer educational opportunities and lower income. Now an intervention using text messages helps to close this gap … Childhood obesity rates keep rising, but a text based intervention can help. Read More »

Childhood obesity is a worldwide problem that keeps accelerating, with the kids most at risk from already disadvantaged groups. Now a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin shows that a comprehensive texting intervention helps, with kids whose … Helping kids most at risk for obesity is possible, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

New parents are motivated people. That’s one observation from a new study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin using a text-based intervention to prevent early childhood obesity. Perrin says parents both helped design the intervention and were participants. … Parents were pivotal in the success of a study to prevent childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Can a texting intervention to parents of very young children prevent the development of obesity in their offspring? A study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin shows the answer is yes. Perrin: We enrolled 900 kids. We did … Getting to kids and parents very early in life may be key to preventing obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Engaging parents in developing a host of text messages around healthy behaviors for infants and young children was pivotal to the success of a study showing it is possible to avoid childhood obesity. The study, co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics … Parents are invaluable when it comes to avoiding childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

How can we stem the rising tide of childhood obesity? Start in infancy and engage parents personally. That’s the conclusion of a study co-led by Eliana Perrin, a pediatrics expert and study author, using a variety of text messages crafted … Specific text messages to parents help slow down childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Obesity is a complex condition that all too often begins in childhood. Now a comprehensive program using educational materials and personalized text messages has been shown to enable parents to stave off the early development of obesity in their young … What sorts of messages help parents prevent obesity in their young children? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

With about one in five children in the US falling into the obese range, trying to find a way to intervene effectively is top of mind for many pediatricians and public health experts. That’s because childhood obesity paves the way … Can texting prevent obesity in young children? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Preventing obesity in young children is possible using a program of texting new parents, a study co-led by Johns Hopkins pediatrics expert Eliana Perrin has shown. All parents enrolled in the study received written information on sleep, diet, activity and … A comprehensive text program can help prevent childhood obesity, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

H5N1 is shorthand for the strain of influenza that’s been worrying some public health experts this summer since being found in multiple herds of cows. Now at least two people have turned up positive with a slight variation on the … What’s the best strategy for staying ahead of emerging flu strains? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Even if you have high blood pressure when it’s measured in your doctor’s office, you may not really have it at all. That’s according to Tammy Brady, author of a Johns Hopkins study looking at the impact of arm position … What’s the best practice for measuring your blood pressure at home? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Taking a look at blood pressure should begin in childhood so good habits can be instilled, Elizabeth Tracey reports Arm position is just one factor when it comes to obtaining an accurate blood pressure reading. That’s according to Tammy Brady, … Read More »

Both arm position and resting for a moment before measurement are things to consider if you have a high blood pressure reading. Those are the conclusions of two studies by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, … If your blood pressure measures high it’s wise to consider a couple of things, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Besides arm position, must rest also be a part of blood pressure measurement? Elizabeth Tracey reports Arm position matters when it comes to accurate blood pressure measurement, a Johns Hopkins study by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert, shows. … Read More »

Incorrect arm position when your blood pressure is being measured may result in a mistakenly high reading, a study by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, and colleagues has shown. Brady says since home blood pressure … If you measure your own blood pressure, pay attention to your arm position, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Vital signs like blood pressure may be measured by a number of clinicians during a medical visit, and all of them need to be trained and recertified periodically. That’s according to Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns … Taking a blood pressure right is more complicated than it might seem, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

High blood pressure is associated with cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes, so keeping it under control is important. Yet many times blood pressures are measured without consideration for arm position, resulting in higher readings than would be seen … How high might your blood pressure be if your arm isn’t properly positioned? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Turns out when you get your blood pressure measured, arm position is critical. That’s according to a study led by Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health promotion expert at Johns Hopkins, who showed that suboptimal arm positions increase the top number … What should your arm position be if you’re having your blood pressure measured? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

One of the most important things you can do to prevent the number one cause of death – cardiovascular disease – is to keep your blood pressure under control, and that starts with measuring it. Tammy Brady, a cardiovascular health … Accurate blood pressure measurement is harder than it seems, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »