Health Buzz: Asbestos Health Emergency and Other Health News

EPA Declares Public Health Emergency A fter Montana Mine Poisons Locals

The Environmental Protection Agency declared its first ever public health emergency yesterday in a Montana community where residents were poisoned by asbestos from a nearby mine, the Associated Press reports. At least $125 million over the next five years will go toward cleaning up the town of Libby, where local miners wearing contaminated clothes and shoes unknowingly tracked asbestos from the mine into their homes. Another $6 million of federal grant money will go toward medical care for an estimated 500 people with asbestos-related illnesses. Those include residents of another town, Troy, Mont., who've also developed illnesses like lung cancer and asbestosis, the Washington Post reports. More than 200 people have died from asbestos poisoning linked to the mine, which is now closed, according to AP.

Learn how only a few days of exposure to air pollution can affect your lung cancer risk. Breathing polluted air for even a short time can cause genes to undergo reprogramming, which may affect a person's risk of developing cancer and other diseases, Italian researchers found. Lung cancer is still the leading cause of cancer death in the United States.

America's Best Children's Hospitals

Today U.S.News & World Report released its annual rankings of the best pediatric medical facilities in the United States. This year, the number of specialties covered in America's Best Children's Hospitals increased from six to 10. The top 30 children's hospitals are ranked in cancer, diabetes and endocrine disorders, digestive disorders, heart and heart surgery, kidney disorders, neonatal care, neurology and neurosurgery, orthopedics, respiratory disorders, and urology. A small number of children's hospitals—10 out of the 160 surveyed and the 98 that responded—were ranked in all 10 specialties. This unusually capable group constitutes the Honor Roll. It is the first appearance of a pediatric counterpart to the Honor Roll in U.S. News's Best Hospitals rankings.

Fewer than 3 percent of the roughly 5,000 hospitals nationwide have deep expertise in caring for children with serious problems. U.S. News's Sarah Baldauf lists 12 tips for parents seeking the best pediatric hospital care for their kids.

Men and Health: This Father's Day, Look After Your Man's Health

Men live an average of 75.1 years in America, according to the latest data. Women, by comparison, enjoy a life expectancy of 80.2 years. Most of the things that shorten men's lives are preventable, U.S. News's January Payne reports. Obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are more often found in men; smoking and binge drinking are more commonly practiced by men than by women.

However, women seek more medical attention: They are up to three times more likely than men to visit the doctor. Those routine checkups are important for detecting underlying health problems like diabetes, Payne writes, and that's why Father's Day is as good a day as any to urge men you care about to care for themselves. Nearly a third of men who have diabetes don't know they have it, which is one reason why men are 30 percent more likely than women to die from that disease. Aside from seeing a doctor annually, men should maintain a healthful diet and exercise routine and quit smoking and drinking in excess to lengthen their lifespan, Payne reports.

Consider these 11 things to know about prostate cancer. And for more news, see U.S. News's men's health page.

—Megan Johnson

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