Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. U.S. government to require drugmakers to show prices in TV ads

The Trump administration on Wednesday said it will require drugmakers to disclose the list price of prescription drugs in direct-to-consumer television advertisements, part of the government's efforts to lower costs for U.S. consumers. The list price would be included if it is equal to or greater than $35 for a month's supply or the usual course of therapy. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said that the 10 most commonly advertised drugs have list prices ranging from $488 to $16,938 per month or usual course of therapy. Denver votes to become first U.S. city to decriminalize 'magic mushrooms'

Denver will become the first city in the United States to decriminalize magic mushrooms, based on final unofficial results on Wednesday of a ballot initiative about the hallucinogenic drug. The initiative called for Colorado's capital to end the imposition of criminal penalties for individuals at least 21 years of age for using or possessing psilocybin, widely known as magic mushrooms. Repetition helps preschoolers learn to eat healthy foods

By using the right words and repeating the phrases, adults can help young kids get over picky eating behaviors and eat healthier foods, according to a new study. Saying "Lentils will help you run faster," for instance, encourages preschoolers to understand the benefits and pick the foods they want, the study authors write in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. Takeda sells dry eye drug to Novartis to help cut debt

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd agreed to sell its dry eye drug to Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG for $3.4 billion and potential milestone payments of up to $1.9 billion, in the first divestment since its takeover of Britain's Shire. Japan's biggest drugmaker aims to dispose of $10 billion worth of assets to cut debt taken on for the huge Shire acquisition sealed in January, which catapulted it into the world's top 10 drugmakers by sales but also made it one of the most indebted. Global obesity rising faster in rural areas than cities, study finds

Global rates of obesity among people who live in the countryside are rising faster than those among city dwellers, in part due to greater access in urban areas to healthier foods and places to exercise, researchers said on Wednesday. In a study of 33 years of trends in body mass index (BMI) across 200 countries and territories, the scientists found that people worldwide are getting heavier - with average weight rising by 5 to 6 kg (11 to 13 pounds) over the period of the study - and that most of the rise is due to gains in BMI in rural areas. Health funding gap means 1,700 in Gaza may face amputations: U.N.

A lack of health funding in Gaza means 1,700 people shot by Israeli security forces may have to have amputations in the next two years, Jamie McGoldrick, the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for occupied Palestinian territory, told reporters on Wednesday. McGoldrick said 29,000 Palestinians had been wounded in protests in the past year, and 7,000 of them had gunshot wounds, mostly in the lower legs. Dementia-related marker found in former pro athletes with concussion history

Levels of a protein called tau in spinal fluid may help predict which former pro athletes with multiple concussions will end up with long lasting effects from their history of jolts to the brain, a new study suggests. Elevated tau levels found in some concussed former athletes were associated with signs of damage to brain-cell connection bundles on brain scans and with poorer performance on cognitive tests, the study team reports in Neurology. UnitedHealthcare aims to cut maternity care costs with new program

UnitedHealthcare Group said on Thursday it had launched a new program to cut maternity costs under which partner hospitals would be paid a fixed rate for care during and after pregnancy, rather than for every service rendered. Rising healthcare costs in the United States have become a topic of heated national debate and maternity care has been earmarked as a big driver of high-cost claims for large employers and health insurers. Progesterone only prevents miscarriage in women with history of pregnancy loss

Giving progesterone to women with bleeding early in pregnancy doesn't prevent pregnancy loss, except among women who have had a previous miscarriage, according to a study of 4,153 women treated at 48 hospitals in the UK. "It's great news for patients," lead author Dr. Arri Coomarasamy, a professor of gynecology at the University of Birmingham, told Reuters Health in a telephone interview. It will prevent unnecessary progesterone treatment for most women, and give extra hope to women facing a second, third or fourth miscarriage. Walmart raises U.S. tobacco purchase age to 21 starting in July

Walmart Inc said on Wednesday it will raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 across its U.S. stores starting July 1, responding to growing regulatory and political pressure to curb a surge in teenage use of e-cigarettes. It also pushed the world's largest retailer to say it discontinue the sale of fruit-and dessert-flavored electronic nicotine delivery systems.