Health News Roundup: Uganda confirms another Ebola case; Restless legs syndrome linked with self-harm and suicide risk

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

'Social jet lag' linked to poorly controlled diabetes

(Reuters Health) - Diabetics with irregular sleep schedules that diverge from their internal body clocks may be at increased risk for dangerously high blood sugar, a small study suggests. Much as jetting across time zones can force a person to wake-up, eat and work at times that conflict with their body's idea of what time it is, so-called social jet lag happens when social pressures like work or school cause people to be active at times that conflict with their natural internal clock. In the study, researchers measured social jet lag by tracking the degree to which people followed one sleep schedule on work days and another on days off.

Global measles cases three times higher than last year: WHO

Every region in the world, except the Americas, is experiencing an increase in the number of cases of measles, a vaccine-preventable disease that can kill or disable children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday. The WHO's Kate O'Brien put the blame on weak health systems and misinformation about vaccines, and called on social media outlets and communities to make sure information about preventing the highly contagious disease was accurate.

FTC probes marketing practices of e-cigarette maker Juul: source

The Federal Trade Commission is investigating the marketing practices of e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc sending shares of tobacco stocks down, a person briefed on the matter said Thursday. Shares of Altria Group Inc, which has a 35% stake in Juul, fell 4.1% to $43.96 in afternoon trading after the Wall Street Journal earlier reported the probe.

Roche immunotherapy Tecentriq gains European approval for breast cancer

Roche's Tecentriq has won European approval for use against a tough-to-treat breast cancer, helping the Swiss drugmaker to widen use of an immunotherapy that has so far been eclipsed in revenue terms by more-established rival medicines. The European Commission approved Tecentriq with Abraxane for people with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer that tests positive for a protein believed to help tumors to evade attack by the body's immune system, Roche said on Thursday.

AbbVie abandons late-stage lung cancer asset Rova-T

AbbVie Inc said on Thursday it will cease to develop its experimental drug Rova-T after the treatment failed to show survival benefit in a late-stage trial for a type of lung cancer. The drugmaker acquired Rova-T through its $5.8 billion acquisition of Stemcentrx in 2016, but recorded impairment charges of about $4 billion in January after it halted enrolment of a separate study testing the therapy. An independent data monitoring committee recommended terminating the trial after an interim data analysis, the company said on Thursday.

Democrats' Medicare for All must consider union-won plans: AFL-CIO

Democratic White House hopefuls should ensure their Medicare for All proposals honor union-negotiated private insurance, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, head of the largest federation of U.S. labor unions, said on Thursday. How to best extend health coverage to millions of uninsured or under-insured Americans has been one of the early issues defining the Democratic nominating contest to take on Republican President Donald Trump in November 2020.

Restless legs syndrome linked with self-harm and suicide risk

(Reuters Health) - Having a diagnosis of restless legs syndrome may also signal an increased risk for self-harm, suicidal thoughts and suicide, a study based on U.S. insurance claims suggests. Restless legs syndrome (RLS) - an irresistible urge to move one's legs that occurs even while a person is asleep - is common but poorly understood. Among 169,000 healthy patients included in the analysis, some 24,000 had been diagnosed with RLS. Over a six-year follow-up, those with RLS were over two and a half times as likely as those without it to harm themselves or experience suicidal thinking or attempts, researchers report in JAMA Network Open.

Uganda confirms another Ebola case

Uganda reported another case of Ebola on Thursday, a nine-year-old girl who had crossed the border from neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo, where the haemorrhagic disease has killed at least 1,800 in a year-long outbreak. The health ministry said the girl, of Congolese origin, was identified by a screening team at Mpondwe border post as she tried to cross to Uganda with her mother on Aug. 28.

More fruit and cereal fiber tied to less risk of common bowel disease

(Reuters Health) - Women who get more fiber from fruits and cereals may be less like to develop diverticulitis, a common and painful bowel problem, though vegetable sources of fiber don't make much difference, a U.S. study suggests. A low fiber diet has long been linked to an increased risk of diverticulitis, which occurs when small pockets or bulges lining the intestines become inflamed. But research to date hasn't offered a clear picture of whether some forms of fiber might be better than others for minimizing the risk, researchers note in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.

No 'gay gene', but study finds genetic links to sexual behavior

A large scientific study into the biological basis of sexual behavior has confirmed there is no single "gay gene" but that a complex mix of genetics and environment affects whether a person has same-sex sexual partners. The research, which analyzed data on DNA and sexual experiences from almost half a million people, found there are thousands of genetic variants linked to same-sex sexual behavior, most with very small effects.

Also Read: Reuters Health News Summary