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For decades, researchers and medical professionals considered sleep loss a by-product or symptom of another, more “primary” condition, such as depression or anxiety. In other words, first comes the anxiety, and then sleep loss follows. Today we know that this order can be reversed. In fact, sleep loss and anxiety, depression or other mental health conditions may feed into one another, creating a downward spiral that is exceedingly difficult to break. (Eti Ben Simon, 8/15)

New data show that more US women are dying from alcohol than ever before. Public health authorities need to adopt more effective strategies to help women realize when their drinking is a problem. Considering the many marketing messages pushing a “rosé all day” lifestyle, that campaign will be an uphill battle. (Lisa Jarvis, 8/15)

Too many therapists assume the role of advocate — possibly rendering them worse than no therapist at all. Their patients should dump them and find replacements who are brutally unafraid of crushing their egos. (Foster Kamer, 8/16)

Three and a half years after the pandemic halted in-classroom education, scrambling the worlds of students throughout the country, parents are seeing a rebound in their children’s mental health. As the new school year starts, parents are reporting that their kids are improving academically, too. (Jill Cook and Will Johnson, 8/16)

Where you will see what lies ahead for many other countries, including the United States, is in rural areas and regional cities outside greater Tokyo: lots of people aging and dying, and relatively few giving birth and raising kids. (Bina Venkataraman, 8/15)

In late July, as parts of the southern U.S. approached 30 days of temperatures exceeding 100 degrees, President Biden took to the podium to announce a plan to mitigate the impacts from extreme heat. During this speech, the president reiterated a truth surprising to most people: Heat kills more people in the U.S. than any other weather-related event. (Ashley Ward, 8/16)

Safe drinking water is a fundamental human right. Yet, year after year, families in my community still struggle with lead-contaminated drinking water — and it’s coming straight from their faucets. The Southeast Side of Chicago is made up of several vibrant communities, full of old houses like mine, plagued by many environmental impacts including dangerous lead service lines that bring toxic, contaminated drinking water into our homes, schools, day care centers, senior living facilities, restaurants and more. For too long, we have lived under constant threat from poisoned water that harms our health and jeopardizes our children’s futures. Enough is enough. (Vanessa Bly, 8/16)

If you’re thinking about retiring, or are already covered by Medicare, you might be overwhelmed by all the choices out there. No wonder so many people make poor choices about their plan. At the same time, those mistakes can be disastrously costly: Healthcare matters more the older we get, and we also need more of it. With that in mind, here’s a look at the mistakes people make all too often when selecting Medicare options, how they can make better choices—and which types of plans I recommend. (Amitabh Chandra, 8/15)

The nation’s health faces a dual threat — one anticipated, the other, self-inflicted. Covid-19 has not gone away; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that infections are showing signs of a late summer wave. The new strain, EG.5, spreads easily and is more resistant to neutralizing antibodies but does not, to date, seem to be more virulent. The second threat does not take the form of a new pathogen. Rather it’s an attack on the CDC itself. (Steve Brozak and Richard Marfuggi, 8/16)