Cases top 1,000 for second day in a row; September has highest number of covid-19 deaths; Beshear says all that's a wake-up call

State Department for Public Health graph, adapted by Kentucky Health News Graph by Daniel Desrochers of the Lexington Herald-Leader, adapted by Kentucky Health News By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News With more than 1,000 new coronavirus cases reported two days in a row and the highest number of covid-19...

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Feds give state $7 million to help deal with lingering behavioral-health impacts of 2019 flooding in 21 Eastern Kentucky counties

Grant will help three southeastern regions, highlighted by roughly patterned area. Kentucky is getting a $7 million federal grant to expand behavioral-health services in 21 Appalachian counties to help deal with the effects of severe weather in the region last February and March. “Many counties in Eastern Kentucky...

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Whole grains or no grains? Food labels can be misleading

Food labels contain a wealth of information: calories, serving size, and the amounts of fat, sugar, vitamins, and fiber contained in a food, among other things. But do consumers know how to effectively use this information? A recent study showed that some consumers are struggling, especially when it comes to understanding whole grains. Recent study highlights consumer confusion For the study, published in Public Health Nutrition, researchers conducted...

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Anthem settles states' lawsuit over data breach that affected 2.3 million Kentuckians; state will get more than $1.9 million

Image from CoreRecon.com Kentucky will get $1,929,942 from Anthem Inc. as part of a 43-state settlement for a data security breach that "compromised the personal information of 78.8 million Americans," said a news release from Attorney General Daniel Cameron. Anthem, the state's leading health insurer, "also agreed...

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Former Kentuckian recovering from serious health challenges offers hope and advice for others in similar situations

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Kentucky has its second highest day of coronavirus cases, 1,018; Beshear urges mask wearing, asks schools not to take fall breaks

State Department for Public Health map; for a larger version, click on it. By Lisa Gillespie Kentucky Health News Tuesday marked the second highest day of new coronavirus cases since the pandemic arrived in March, with 1,018 people newly testing positive for the virus.  “We need you to wear a facial covering;...

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Sick child this school year? Planning for the inevitable during a pandemic

Children get sick; it’s part of life. They catch colds, they get fevers, they throw up and get diarrhea. Most of the time, it’s nothing at all. But this year, as we struggle through the COVID-19 pandemic, every sniffle will be complicated. The problem is, the symptoms of COVID-19 can be not just mild, but similar to the symptoms of all the common illnesses kids get all the time. Symptoms can include fever, even a mild one cough (that you don’t have...

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Ky. could be heading to its third major escalation of virus cases, just as most of the state's children are returning to schools

State graph, adapted by Kentucky Health News; for a larger version, click on it. By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News After Kentucky hit the highest number of weekly coronavirus cases yet, Gov. Andy Beshear said a "third escalation" has begun, and called on Kentuckians to commit to a sense of urgency in their...

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Treating mild hypothyroidism: Benefits still uncertain

Your thyroid, a tiny, butterfly-shaped gland located in front of your windpipe (trachea) and below your voice box (larynx) can have a profound impact on your health and well-being. Throughout life, your thyroid is constantly producing hormones that influence your metabolism. These hormones affect your mood, energy, body temperature, weight, heart, and more. A brief overview of hypothyroidism Your thyroid produces two kinds of thyroid hormones: T4,...

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State hits the White House red zone for coronavirus cases, but has fewer counties in red or yellow zones than previous week

Table from White House Coronavirus Task Force report; for a larger version, click on it. The latest report from the White House Coronavirus Task Force puts Kentucky it its worst danger zone for number of cases, but has fewer counties in that zone and the two others. "Kentucky is in the red zone for cases, indicating...

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Case numbers virtually assure worst week yet; student parties near UK stir worry about campus cases thwarting K-12 classes

Students partied on University Avenue in Lexington Saturday. (Herald-Leader photo by Alex Slitz)  By Al Cross Kentucky Health News The state recorded 456 more cases of the novel coronavirus yesterday, virtually guaranteeing that it will report the highest weekly number of cases once the numbers are checked and...

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First webinar of annual health forum shows much work needed to improve the lives of Ky. children; effects of covid-19 still unknown

By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News The first of five webinars focusing on policies and programs that reduce the chances of disease and unhealthy behaviors that often begin in childhood opened with a slew of data that shows the state has much work to do in this arena, with an expectation that the pandemic is only going to make things worse.   But not to despair, Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates, offered a message...

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A message to Kentucky journalists: Don't let fatigue and friction discourage you from covering the pandemic

Illustration from Medium.com By Al Cross Director and professor, Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, University of Kentucky; publisher, Kentucky Health News Just as some people are tiring of taking precautions against the novel coronavirus, helping it spread, I'm sure some newsrooms are tiring of...

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973 new cases, 4th highest, making biggest week yet; Beshear asks for mask wearing, says he sees less of it sometimes

Kentucky recorded 973 new cases of the novel coronavirus Saturday, the fourth highest daily number of the pandemic, and making almost certain the week will set a record. Gov. Andy Beshear said in a press release, “We are on pace to have the single highest week in terms of positive cases that we’ve ever had.” The state reporting week is Monday through Sunday; the daily unadjusted totals in the calendar week that ends today is 5,113 cases, the highest...

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