Researchers from the Texas A&M School of Public Health have found a link between vaping and asthma in teens who have never used conventional tobacco products.

Vaping, or the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) among teens has grown dramatically over the past several years. Although e-cigarettes have fewer toxins than regular cigarettes, they still contain a mixture of harmful chemicals and raise the risk of respiratory diseases.

The research team from @tamupublichealth analyzed data on more than 35,000 adolescents aged 13 to 17 from a national health dataset set up by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to track the health behaviors and outcomes of children and youth. They identified an association between e-cigarette use and asthma in adolescents who had never smoked conventional tobacco products.

“This demonstrates that e-cigarette use increases the risk of asthma independently from conventional tobacco product use in adolescents,” said Taehyun Roh, PhD, lead author of the study.

Read more about their findings at the link our bio.

‼️ If you work on, attend school at or frequently visit Texas A&M Health campuses, make sure you`re signed up for HSC Alert! Get emergency notifications via app, text message, computer alerts and/or RSS feed. Sign up at the link in our bio.

HSC Alert is Texas A&M Health`s emergency notification system and is separate from Texas A&M University`s Code Maroon emergency notification system. If you spend time on both the flagship and Texas A&M Health campuses, we encourage you to sign up for both HSC Alert and Code Maroon.

Texas A&M Health will use the system only to provide official notification of critical emergencies (i.e. situations that pose an imminent, physical threat to the community).

Renewed hope for those facing the challenges of epilepsy: a team of pharmacology researchers from @tamumedicine has made several breakthroughs in the use of CBD for both treating and preventing epilepsy and seizure disorders.

People with known risk factors for epilepsy face a big problem: there aren’t enough medications available to help control their seizures and prevent epilepsy. This means there is a great need for better medications to address this issue.

A team led by Regents Profesor D. Samba Reddy has made progress in determining efficacy, safety and new applications of cannabinoid therapeutics. The team`s research has resulted in the publication of five key papers featured in the May 2023 issue of the journal Experimental Neurology, and establishes a foundation for tailored and effective epilepsy treatments.

This research marks a milestone in the quest to leverage CBD’s potential for the betterment of patients’ lives, emphasizing the importance of continued research endeavors in this area of medicine.

As CBD garners recognition as a major therapy, Reddy says it is crucial to provide accurate and evidence-based information to patients, policymakers and the health care community.

“As academic researchers, our team’s goal is to provide patients and their families with scientific information that forms the foundation for the right use of medical CBD products,” he said.

Learn more about this work at the link in our bio.

Never forget. 9.11.01

Ready for a nap? Research shows that a short nap at the right time of day can improve memory, increase productivity, reduce stress and promote a healthier heart!

Dr. Steven Bender of @tamudental says just 20-30 minutes of sleep in the early afternoon can have myriad benefits. However, anything longer than 30 minutes can cause sleep inertia—that grogginess and disorientation people sometimes experience after waking from a long nap—as well as nighttime sleep disruptions. So, to maximize benefits while reducing risks, Dr. Bender suggest you:

💤 Keep naps short (20-30 minutes)
💤 Nap in early afternoon
💤 Finish napping at least four to six hours before bedtime
💤 Nap in a quiet, comfortable and dimly lit space

Read more about healthy naps at the link our bio!