Are Doctors Overprescribing Opioids to New Mothers? + Other Stories
Every week, we corral our favorite wellness stories from around the internet—just in time for your weekend reading.
“I Lost Everything”: The Obscene Cost of Being a Woman with a Chronic Health Problem
Vice
The US medical system presents numerous hurdles for women living with chronic pain, from misdiagnoses to the financial stress of medical debt. Journalist Ivana Rihter gives us a window into why this affects some women more than others.
A New Way to Fight Crop Diseases, with a Smartphone
The New York Times
New technologies may help farmers protect their crops from harm and guard the global food supply so that what they grow actually makes it from farm to table. One promising new development: a handheld sensor that can quickly diagnose serious crop diseases, like late blight, using a smartphone.
In a 1st, Doctors in U.S. Use CRISPR Tool to Treat Patient with Genetic Disorder
NPR
For the first time, CRISPR, a gene-editing technology, has been used to treat a US patient with a genetic disorder (sickle cell anemia). This advancement is just a glimpse at the possibilities that altering our genome holds for preventing and treating diseases.
Nearly 50% of New Mothers in U.S. Prescribed Opioids during Last Decade, Study Finds
Forbes
According to a recent study, the US saw a sharp increase in women receiving opioid prescriptions for pain associated with childbirth. Now doctors are looking for alternative treatments.