HMONG TV: From WellShare International and UCare via Instagram, VERBATIM: “Through our partnerships with @ucarehealthplan, @3hmongtvnews1 and @hmong.nurses.association, we are helping to raise awareness of preventative health practices in the Hmong community.” POST: https://fluence-media.co/3W8m2Um (SPONSORED: UCare)
RESOLUTIONS: Via Newsweek, VERBATIM: “Resolutions concerning health, exercise, or diet are on the top of Americans' list for what they want to change in 2025, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Goals related to finances or relationships are also popular among the 1,251 adults who were polled between December 5 to 9.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41ZAnpN
PRIORITIES: Via Associated Press, from a poll asking Americans about their priorities in 2025:
SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3Cbwx26
WEARABLES: Via TechTarget, VERBATIM: “Though wearable technology has been used in the healthcare industry since the 1940s, it has advanced rapidly in the past few decades. Not only is the technology becoming more widely used for remote patient monitoring, but it is also increasingly applied outside the hospital amid a boom in consumer-facing healthcare wearables. In 2023, about 35% of U.S. adults reported using wearable healthcare devices, up 8 percentage points from 2018, according to a Morning Consult poll that surveyed 2,201 adults.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gL6iyC
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
UNITEDHEALTH: Via Reuters, VERBATIM: “Three UnitedHealth-owned insurance companies collectively must pay over $165 million for engaging in widespread deceptive conduct that misled thousands of consumers in Massachusetts into unknowingly buying supplemental health insurance, a state court judge has ruled. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell on Monday hailed Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Helene Kazanjian's decision, saying it awarded the state the largest civil penalties it has ever recovered under the state's consumer protection law.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fIBcqc
FISH: From Mike Mosedale via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “In a study published in the December issue of the academic journal Science of The Total Environment, researchers from the University of Minnesota, the Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Geological Survey and other agencies collected walleye and perch from 21 Minnesota lakes — 12 infested with zebra mussels, nine uninvaded — and then tested for mercury. The results of the three-year survey are alarming: In lakes with zebra mussels, mercury levels in walleyes were found to be on average 72 percent higher than in walleyes from uninvaded lakes. For perch, the number is an astonishing 157 percent.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gIdfAp
BIRD FLU: From Kirsten Mitchell via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “Health officials in Louisiana reported the first human death linked to bird flu in the United States just days after Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz approved more than $1.2 million to research avian influenza in wildlife . . . The newly approved money will go to researchers at the University of Minnesota's College of Veterinary Medicine to study the emerging threat of avian influenza. Partnering with a network of wildlife rehabilitators and tribal biologists, they will collect and test samples from wild birds and mammals for the virus. ‘I have no doubt that we are just sitting on the edge of this disease, this virus,’ said Nancy Gibson, co-chair of the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources. Gibson called the virus a ‘time bomb,’ and said no one knows the true extent of the disease, which poses a threat to wildlife and humans.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3PqJAQk
RFK JR: Via The Hill, VERBATIM: “Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy (La.), the incoming chair of the Senate HELP Committee, said Sunday that President-elect Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services secretary is ‘wrong’ when it comes to vaccinations. Discussing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination on Fox News, Cassidy, a physician, said, ‘Vaccinations, he’s wrong on, and so I just look forward to having a good dialogue with him on that.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4fN8Aw6
GENDER: Via NBC News, VERBATIM: “As policymakers around the world debate whether minors should have access to transition-related medications, a study published Monday in the nation’s premier pediatric medical journal found that the drugs are rarely prescribed to youths. Less than 0.1% of adolescents with private insurance in the United States are transgender or gender-diverse and are prescribed puberty blockers or gender-affirming hormones, according to the findings published in JAMA Pediatrics.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3BOARV7
THIS MONTH: Via Minnesota Department of Health, VERBATIM: “With doors and windows shut tight against the cold, dangerous levels of cancer-causing radon gas can build up in homes during the winter months, posing a health risk to Minnesotans. Health officials are reminding Minnesotans that now is the time to test or retest their home for radon. Radon is a colorless, odorless gas that occurs naturally in Minnesota soil and can enter homes through cracks and other openings in the walls or foundation.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4a4oBfT
STUDY: From Lynda De Widt via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “In a new study, Mayo Clinic researchers and collaborators have described — for the first time — the prevalence of autoimmune diseases in the U.S. Their research, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, reports that about 15 million people are estimated to have one or more of 105 autoimmune diseases. The study also found that autoimmune diseases occur most often in women and identified the top autoimmune diseases by prevalence, sex and age.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3PptdDx
MUSHROOMS: From Jason Rantala via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “A task force is recommending the decriminalization of magic mushrooms. A nearly 200-page report from the Minnesota Psychedelic Medicine Task Force said psilocybin mushrooms show evidence they may improve mental health.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4h8eBEF
MED DEBT: Via KFF Health News, VERBATIM: “The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Tuesday issued new regulations barring medical debts from American credit reports, enacting a major new consumer protection just days before President Joe Biden is set to leave office. The rules ban credit agencies from including medical debts on consumers’ credit reports and prohibit lenders from considering medical information in assessing borrowers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4j3SUY5
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep.-Elect Kari Rehauer
Rep.-Elect Wayne Johnson
Rep. Elect Julie Greene
Rep. Elect Keith Allen
Rep. Elect Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
BABIES: From CentraCare via Facebook, VERBATIM: “Not every hospital welcomes their New Year's Baby on New Year's Day! We welcomed four more New Year's babies across our system.” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/3BYWuC0
ATHLETES: Via St. Louis Public Radio, VERBATIM: “Concussions are a known risk for athletes playing at a recreational or professional level. They lie on the spectrum of brain injuries with symptoms including headaches, dizziness and sensitivity to light and sound after a blow to the head or neck. Discussions around concussions oftentimes focus on male athletes in sports like football. But in recent years, research has started to highlight a concerning trend. Concussions for female athletes have tripled in the past two decades. However, there’s little research to explain why that is.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3DOmpwT
AI: From Susan Murphy via Mayo Clinic, VERBATIM: “Mayo Clinic researchers have pioneered an artificial intelligence (AI) tool, called OmicsFootPrint, that helps convert vast amounts of complex biological data into two-dimensional circular images. Omics is the study of genes, proteins and other molecular data to help uncover how the body functions and how diseases develop. By mapping this data, the OmicsFootPrint may provide clinicians and researchers with a new way to visualize patterns in diseases, such as cancer and neurological disorders, that can help guide personalized therapies. It may also provide an intuitive way to explore disease mechanisms and interactions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gZknc9
BABY FOOD: Via CNN, VERBATIM: “For the first time in history, the US Food and Drug Administration has established guidance for levels of lead in processed baby foods that are sold on supermarket shelves and online. The agency’s action, announced Monday, only provides guidance to industry and is not enforceable. Under the new guidelines, baby food manufacturers should have no more than 10 parts per billion of lead in baby yogurts, custards, puddings, single-ingredient meats, processed fruits and vegetables, and mixtures of fruits, vegetables, grains and meat.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gLnjsx
CIGARETTES: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “The Biden administration is a step closer to lowering the amount of nicotine in cigarettes after an 11th-hour proposal cleared a key White House review. Why it matters: The Food and Drug Administration rule, whose precise language hasn't been made public, offers the administration one more chance to address the harms of smoking after it punted on banning menthol in tobacco products.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/409MQEy
COVID: From U.C. San Francisco via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “An extended course of Paxlovid appears to help some patients with long Covid, according to a case series by UC San Francisco researchers that suggests this treatment option holds promise for some of those struggling with debilitating symptoms. These results are at odds with recent research that has failed to show the antiviral can alleviate persistent symptoms of the disease.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/42470CF
ŌMCARE: From Allison Kaplan via Twin Cities Business, VERBATIM: “Bloomington-based Ōmcare has developed a way to safely dispense medicine to aging individuals from afar, and this week, the health tech startup’s Home Health Hub makes its first appearance at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas as part of the ‘AgeTech Collaborative’ from AARP. Ōmcare’s Home Health Hub is a physical medicine dispenser with remote health management.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3CaE1m1
MAYO: From Mayo Clinic via PRNewswire, VERBATIM: “The Mayo Clinic Diet, a science-driven weight management program rooted in Mayo Clinic's healthcare expertise and one of the top-ranked diets of 2025 according to US News & World Report, is introducing new features in 2025 to enhance user success and adapt to evolving health trends. These updates focus on personalization and accessibility, aligning with Mayo Clinic's mission to deliver innovative, evidence-based health solutions.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4h8CL1T
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
SOCIAL CUES: From Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory via Science Daily, VERBATIM: “Imagine you're at a dinner party, but you can't smell the food cooking or hear the dinner bell. Sounds like a dream, right? What if it wasn't? ‘When we experience the world and interact with people, we use all our senses,’ Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Professor Stephen Shea says. ‘That's true for animals and humans.’ However, that's not always the case in developmental disorders like autism. These conditions can affect how the brain processes incoming information, making it difficult to interpret the social cues that drive conversations, dates, and other interpersonal activities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/40lI9ca
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