Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Depressed kids more likely to play choking game

Children and adolescents who suffer from depression or behavior problems may be more likely to play potentially fatal "choking games" to achieve a euphoric high than young people who don't have mental health issues, a French study suggests. Roughly one in 10 teens and pre-teens have participated in this dangerous game at least once, researchers report in Pediatrics. The risk was more than doubled, however, for young people with symptoms of depression or conduct disorders. The digital drug: Internet addiction spawns U.S. treatment programs

When Danny Reagan was 13, he began exhibiting signs of what doctors usually associate with drug addiction. He became agitated, secretive and withdrew from friends. He had quit baseball and Boy Scouts, and he stopped doing homework and showering. But he was not using drugs. He was hooked on YouTube and video games, to the point where he could do nothing else. As doctors would confirm, he was addicted to his electronics. U.S. citizen leaks data on thousands in Singapore with HIV, government says

An HIV-positive American has leaked online the names of 14,200 Singaporeans and foreigners also diagnosed in the city-state with the human immunodeficiency virus, the Health Ministry said on Monday. U.S. citizen Mikhy Farrera Brochez lived in Singapore from 2008 and was convicted in 2017 on numerous drug-related and fraud offences, including lying to the Ministry of Manpower about his own HIV status, the Health Ministry said. Germany seeks medical marijuana producers for home grown supply

Germany has accepted bids for supply contracts from 79 prospective cannabis growers as the country seeks to develop its own medicinal marijuana industry and reduce reliance on imports from Canada and the Netherlands. The country's drugs regulator BfArM said on Monday it aimed to select growers between April and June, for a total cannabis procurement volume of 10,400 kg over four years. It declined to name the bidders. Thailand to revoke foreign patent requests on marijuana

Thailand on Monday effectively revoked all foreign patent requests for the use of marijuana, after fears foreign firms would dominate a market thrown open last month when the government approved the drug for medical use and research. The junta-appointed parliament in Thailand, a country which until the 1930s had a tradition of using marijuana to relieve pain and fatigue, voted to amend the Narcotic Act of 1979 in December in what it described as "a New Year's gift to the Thai people". New website aims to guide women with IBD through safe pregnancies

Women with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) can have healthy pregnancies with proper planning and care, according to a new initiative from a major medical society aimed at dispelling myths surrounding the disease. The IBD Parenthood Project from the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) educates women with IBD about how to manage their condition to avert risks while conceiving, carrying a child and giving birth. Israeli cabinet approves law to allow medical cannabis exports

Israel's cabinet approved on Sunday a law to allow exports of medical cannabis in a move expected to boost state revenues and the agriculture sector, and which frustrates critics who fear it could lead to more recreational use of the drug. The bill, backed last month by parliament, allows companies approved by the health regulator and police to export medical cannabis to countries that permit its use. Israeli media said exports could start in as little as nine months. 'Greed' fueled Insys founder's opioid bribe scheme: prosecutor

A lawyer for Insys Therapeutics Inc's one-time billionaire founder on Monday denied that he had any role in the U.S. opioid crisis as a federal prosecutor told jurors he ran a scheme to bribe doctors to prescribe an addictive fentanyl spray. John Kapoor, the drugmaker's former chairman, and four colleagues are the first painkiller manufacturer executives to face trial over conduct authorities say contributed to an opioid abuse crisis that has killed tens of thousands of people a year. Israel's InterCure to ramp up medical cannabis production: chairman

InterCure plans to expand into 10 countries in the next two years to meet growing demand for medical marijuana, chairman Ehud Barak said on Monday. InterCure, a holding company of small medical firms, bought medical cannabis developer Canndoc in September and later hired Barak -- a former army commando and Israeli prime minister -- as chairman.

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