- Recession Affecting Women's Plans to Have Children: Survey
- Personal Emergency Response Button Poses Choking Hazard: FDA
- New OxyContin Offers 'Limited' Resistance to Abuse: FDA
- Exercise Boosts Postmenopausal Women's Cardiovascular Fitness
Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:
Recession Affecting Women's Plans to Have Children: Survey
A growing number of American women want to delay having babies because they're worried about the recession, according to a survey released Wednesday by the Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit reproductive health research group.
However, financial problems are making it difficult for many women to be able to afford birth control.
The nationally representative survey was conducted in July and August and included 947 women, ages 18 to 34, with household incomes of less than $75,000, the Washington Post reported.
Among the findings:
- Because of the recession, 31 percent of the women said they want to delay getting pregnant, 28 percent want fewer children than previously planned, and 7 percent now don't want to have any more children.
- Fifty-two percent of the women said they were financially worse off than a year ago and nearly three out of four reported worrying more about money. Fifty-seven percent of respondents with children said they worried more about taking care of their kids.
- Nearly 25 percent of the women said they'd delayed a gynecological or birth control visit in the past year in order to save money, 23 percent said they were having more difficulty paying for birth control than in the past, and 8 percent said they sometimes didn't use birth control in order to save money.
"The recession is putting many women and their partners between a rock and a hard place," said Sharon Camp, Guttmacher's chief executive and president, the Post reported. "They want to avoid an unplanned pregnancy more than ever, but for many of them, the ability to afford the birth control they need is getting harder than ever."
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Personal Emergency Response Button Poses Choking Hazard: FDA
A type of personal emergency response button worn around the neck poses a choking hazard, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned Tuesday.
Between 1998 and 2009, there were six reports of serious injury or death, including four deaths in the United States, after the cord on the Philips Lifeline Personal Help Button became entangled on other objects, the FDA said.
The choking risk is greatest for people with mobility limitations or for those who use wheelchairs, walkers, beds with guard rails, or other objects that could entangle with the device's neck cord.
Users and caregivers should consult with health-care providers to determine which style of emergency button is best for an individual patient, the FDA said. Some emergency buttons are worn on the wrist.
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New OxyContin Offers 'Limited' Resistance to Abuse: FDA
A new version of the painkiller OxyContin is somewhat harder to abuse than the current version, say U.S. health officials.
The new version, made by Purdue Pharma LP, has a plastic-like coating that's designed to make it more difficult to crush, snort or inject the drug, the Associated Press reported.
On Tuesday, U.S. Food and Drug Administration scientists said the new version's resistance to abuse is "limited," but "may provide an advantage over the currently available OxyContin."
Last year, an FDA advisory panel told Purdue that it needed to conduct more tests to demonstrate the tamper resistance of the new version. On Thursday, the panel will decide whether new data submitted by Purdue is sufficient to recommend approval of the new version of OxyContin, the AP reported.
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Exercise Boosts Postmenopausal Women's Cardiovascular Fitness
Despite changes in hormones and body composition, postmenopausal women show significant cardiovascular improvements when they do regular, vigorous exercise, according to a U.S. study.
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