disease control

Now that we have all changed our clocks and experienced the first night of an early sunset it is time to understand what the end of Daylight Saving Time can do to drivers.

The time change may disrupt sleep patterns and affect the ability to concentrate and safely operate a motor vehicle, and to highlight the dangers of fatigued drivng, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) joins the Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), and the National Sleep Foundation in recognizing Drowsy Driving Prevention Week, November 5-12, 2018.

Suicide is a public health issue that impacts everyone. For some of us, we are reminded of suicide daily. Yet, it is important to know that suicide can be prevented.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suicide is one of the top ten causes of death in the United States. The leading reason for suicide is unmanaged depression or a mood disorder. Considering that 20 to 25 percent of Americans are affected by depression, it is important to know the signs that may help save someone’s life.

With lightning and thunderstorms in the Lake Tahoe forecast for another few days, it's always good to review safety tips when caught in the middle of a storm.

You can protect yourself from risk even if you are caught outdoors when lightning is close by.

Safety precautions outdoors

- If the weather forecast calls for thunderstorms, postpone your trip or activity.
- Remember: When thunder roars, go indoors. Find a safe, enclosed shelter.

Placer County health officials have confirmed that a man who died on the North Shore of Lake Tahoe tested positive for hantavirus.

They said the resident likely contracted the virus from rodents in a private residence in the Lake Tahoe region where the resident lived and worked. Health officials do not believe the public is at ongoing risk from the source of infection associated with the fatality.

January is National Radon Action Month and the cold winter months are the best time to test for this radioactive gas. The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is offering free test kits to households in California throughout the month of January, or until supplies run out.

No community is immune to loosing one of their own to suicide. A small community faces many of the same risks as do urban centers, and, according to a recent study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suicides in rural areas are on the rise.

In just over three years there have been 23 suicides in the Lake Tahoe portions of El Dorado County:

May 1, 2014 - May 1, 2015 - 8 suicides
May 1, 2015 - May 31, 2016 - 4 suicides

Don’t have time to exercise? According to recent research, a four-minute workout might be better than 30 minutes on the treadmill. Sounds almost too good to be true, but according to fitness researchers, it’s not.

Regular exercise improves your physical and mental health. Unfortunately, many adults do not make time for their weekly 150 minutes of moderate or intense activity recommended by the Centers for Disease Control.

There has been an increase of positive pertussis, which is commonly known as whooping cough, in the Carson City and Douglas County areas of Nevada.

The Disease Control and Prevention Division at Carson City Health & Human Services (CCHHS) oversees disease surveillance and investigations in Carson City and Douglas County and is currently investigating the increase.

At this time, CCHHS is reporting the outbreak as an isolated event; however, the Health Department is encouraging families in the community to take preventive measures.

As lawmakers grapple with how best to combat the nation’s prescription painkiller abuse crisis, a recent survey is shedding light on how patients who get these medications — drugs such as OxyContin, methadone or Vicodin — sometimes share or mishandle them.

May is Hepatitis Awareness Month. Do you know the facts about hepatitis and if you may have it?

Hepatitis is a viral infection of the liver. There are three major types: A, B and C. Vaccines are available to protect against Hepatitis A and B, but none are available for Hepatitis C.

Hepatitis B and C can cause chronic infections that if left untreated can lead to liver damage, liver failure or even cancer. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Hepatitis C is the leading cause of liver transplants in this country.

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) will “make a real difference for families and communities” struggling with drug addiction, U.S. Senator Rob Portman of Ohio said Saturday. He spoke about the bill, which has bipartisan support, in a weekly Republican address.

“This epidemic does not discriminate,” Senator Portman said. “Zip codes don’t matter. It’s affecting our cities, suburban areas, and rural counties. Young or old, rich, middle class or poor, black, white, Hispanic or Asian. The grip of addiction affects all of us.”

South Tahoe Now will be presenting a series on increasing drug use among children and adults in South Lake Tahoe, current trends and solutions. This is the first part in the series: Heroin.

It is euphoria, sensory overload and beyond any pleasure you know. That is the beginning, and the average heroin user will spend years trying to find the same feeling as that first high, ended only by death, or seeking help to rid themselves of the dark beast of addiction. Those are the only two options.

The City of South Lake Tahoe and the Mental Health Collaborative have declared May 10 to 16, Mental Health Awareness Week. Throughout the week, public events and articles, like the one below, will highlight “Each Mind Matters” in South Lake Tahoe.

According to California’s Mental Health Movement and the Centers for Disease Control, half of us will experience a mental health concern in our lifetime.

Flu season is underway. Misconceptions about the flu prevent people from taking the proper precautions. For example, being out the in cold does not cause the flu. Here are a few more flu myths I hear and facts to help you stay healthy this winter.

FLU MYTHS

MYTH:If you think you have the flu, go to the doctor to get antibiotics.

As a parent, we want our children to be safe. Certain safety measures are designed to help keep children safe, like child safety seats, seat belts, and toddler gates. However, some parents may overlook one critical component to keep children healthy and safe: vaccinations. Current vaccinations are the most effective and safest they have been in history and have saved millions of lives from vaccine-preventable diseases.

The facts are startling, and, for lack of a better work, sobering. Studies show that 11% of all alcohol consumed in the U.S. is done so by youth aged 11 to 20, below the legal drinking age.

Alcohol is the most commonly used and abused drug among youth in the United States, more than tobacco and illicit drugs according to the Center for Disease Control, and is responsible for more than 4,300 annual deaths among underage youth.

The 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that among high school students, during the past 30 days:

39% drank some amount of alcohol.
22% binge drank.

The flu season is in full swing in South Lake Tahoe as well as across the country, prompting health officials to warn people of the severity.

This year the predominant flu strain in the United States is H1N1, the same one that caused the international pandemic in 2009-2010. Medical experts believe that this strain will take its toll on children and middle aged adults. So far this winter, 13 deaths have been attributed to the flu in North Carolina. In Hildago, Texas there have already been 6 deaths and 2 in Salt Lake City. Six children have died nationally during this flu season.

NEW YORK - The number of people sickened by a deadly meningitis outbreak has now reached 119 cases, including 11 deaths.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated the count on Tuesday.N...

A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mandate stipulates that starting Monday, Oct. 1, health departments can no longer provide federally-provided vaccines for people with private health...

Federal health officials say that West Nile virus cases are up 40 percent since last week and are on pace to rival the record years of 2002 and 2003.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention h...

There is an epidemic in America of increasing childhood obesity and the ill effects attributed to a chronic sedentary lifestyle and a diet high in fat. The Center for Disease Control estimates that 2/3 of the American public are obese and that childhood diabetics, asthma and cardiovascular risk factors lead to adult morbidity, diabetes and significant psychological impact on the obese children. The organization goes on to state that this may be the first generation in the history of man, that children may not outlive the lifespan of their parents.

Thirty years ago, a brief report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention described five young men with a rare form of pneumonia usually seen in people with severely depressed im...