WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Bingeing on high-calorie foods may be as addictive as cocaine or nicotine, and could cause compulsive eating and obesity, according to a study published on Sunday.

The findings in a study of animals cannot be directly applied to human obesity, but may help in understanding the condition and in developing therapies to treat it, researchers wrote in the journal “Nature Neuroscience.”

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A growing number of Americans spend more than 10 percent of their income on out-of-pocket expenses for healthcare services and insurance, according to a study published on Thursday.

The percentage of Americans with a “high financial burden for healthcare” rose to 19 percent in 2006 from 14 percent in 2001, according to the Washington-based Center for Studying Health System Change.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Women who eat lots of tuna, salmon and other foods rich in essential omega-3 oils might be less likely to develop endometriosis than those whose diets are loaded with trans fats, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

Endometriosis, which has no cure, can cause infertility. In endometriosis, pieces of the uterine lining grow outside the womb, sometimes sticking to other organs.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Nearly 1.4 million babies born in the United States in 2007 were delivered by Caesarean section, a record U.S. high and a larger number than in most other industrialized nations, health officials said on Tuesday.

In 2007, nearly one-third of all births were Caesarean deliveries, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report, noting large rises in all racial, ethnic and age groups over 10 years.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Rising cardiovascular disease rates in developing nations could threaten economic development and a concerted effort by governments, business and aid groups is needed to address the problem, the National Academies Institute of Medicine said in a report on Monday.

“Something has to be done very rapidly because if not, this will have a tremendous impact, economically speaking,” said the chairman of the committee that prepared the report, Dr. Valentin Fuster of Mount Sinai Heart, Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Extreme obesity among American children is much worse than previously believed, putting them at greater risk of serious health problems as they age, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

A study of more than 700,000 children and teens in southern California found that more than 6 percent, or 45,000, were extremely obese and more boys than girls were far too heavy, the researchers reported in the Journal of Pediatrics.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Older patients with colon cancer are less likely to receive chemotherapy after surgery than younger people but have fewer serious side-effects when they do get the treatment, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

When older patients do receive the treatment, it tends to be at a less toxic dose and over a shorter period than younger patients receive, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – More 12-year-olds in the United States admit to using potentially deadly inhalants to get high than have used marijuana, cocaine and hallucinogens combined, U.S. health officials said on Thursday.

Among this age group, alcohol was the only intoxicating substance used more than inhalants, according to data from 2006-2008 surveys on drug use and health compiled by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) – About 16 percent of
Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 are infected with
genital herpes, making it one of the most common sexually
transmitted diseases, U.S. health officials said on Tuesday.

Black women had the highest rate of infection at 48 percent
and women were nearly twice likely as men to be infected,
according to an analysis by the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – One way to achieve bipartisanship in Washington may be to tackle an issue everyone can agree on — the childhood obesity epidemic.

The Obama administration and members of Congress from both parties agree action is needed.