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Alcohol, Cannabis , trauma? Cannabis, or marijuana, has been deemed the "gateway" drug for years, carrying the stigma that its use is a pathway for potential abuse/use of "harder drugs". Although the studies have shown that alcohol as the actual gateway drug Cannabis is still attributed to drug use. What is hardly mentioned is the fact that trauma, sustained over long periods of time, actually alters the brain's prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for risk taking behaviors, moral...

Disparities between the health of whites vs. that of minorities in the United States are wide and pervasive, and have been for decades. Some of the largest and most persistent health gaps are between whites and blacks. Black Americans experience significantly higher rates of cardiovascular disease, HIV, certain cancers, diabetes, asthma, and infant and maternal mortality than white Americans do. On average, white Americans live three years longer than black Americans; in high-poverty...

On a Sunday that took its sweet time warming up, Ariana Velasquez sat down in a bustling school cafeteria to write thank-you letters to a few people who are rich, not so rich or maybe not even close to rich. To the Mexican immigrant with three kids in local schools, they're just people who care. "I don't know who they are, just their names," Velasquez said at Santee Elementary in East San Jose. Lifting an ink pen, she put her words to paper in Spanish. "I just think a personal letter says it...

Every parent’s worst nightmare. These are the words one mother used in a magazine article to describe her child having schizophrenia. When hearing her daughter’s diagnosis, another mother blurted out that she’d wished she had leukemia or some other disease instead. Even after the doctor told her that schizophrenia is much more treatable than leukemia, she said she’d still prefer leukemia. * We see schizophrenia as a devastating diagnosis. We assume that our loved ones are doomed to a...

Are you coping with cancer, either as a patient or a caregiver? If so, you’re almost certainly under a tremendous amount of emotional stress — a state that has been shown to weaken the immune system , which is the last thing you want. Your inclination may be to stay home and nurse your troubles in private. But newly published research points to a far better choice: Head out to choir practice. A British study of cancer patients and caregivers found a mere 70 minutes of singing not only lifted...

The federal government debuted a program on Monday to provide housing for the very poorest residents in America. The National Housing Trust Fund is a new affordable-housing program, one that creates permanently affordable housing for extremely low-income households. Julián Castro, Secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, announced that $174 million in allocations for the National Housing Trust Fund would be available soon. He and other officials from HUD, along...

During the last decade, advocates and policymakers in Connecticut and Illinois won contentious battles to keep young offenders in juvenile court until they turned 18 years old. Now, supporters of those efforts want to go even further, saying a wave of research into adolescent brain development makes the case for treating young adults differently from mature adults. Lawmakers in both states are considering legislation that would raise the age of juvenile jurisdiction through age 20. The move...

Juvenile justice is a delicate dance between the court, families and the community. Juvenile justice began as a recognition that youth/children are different from adults and benefit from the rehabilitative nature of the court system. However, communities can demand youth be “taught a lesson” and pressure may be placed on courts to move toward detention placements over community-based treatment/rehabilitation. Accountability for a crime is necessary, but in the context of teaching and the...

Carolyn Rossi has been a registered nurse for 27 years, and she's been fiercely protective of infants in her intensive care unit — babies born too soon, babies born with physical and cognitive abnormalities and, increasingly, babies born dependent on opioids. As clinical manager of the nurseries at the Hospital of Central Connecticut , Rossi works in the neonatal intensive care unit. Like many hospitals across the country, the facility near Hartford has seen a dramatic rise in recent years...

Few children who are abused or in dysfunctional homes come to school ready to share their traumas. Instead, they throw a chair or curse at the teacher before storming out. To react to those outbursts with affection and understanding means recognizing children — including teenagers — are not necessarily in control of their behavior. That can be a bitter pill to swallow, even for those who understand behavioral science and brain chemistry. And it’s difficult to communicate what a difference it...

Whether the Duchess of Cambridge herself can fairly be thanked (or blamed) for the trend, the Kate Middleton effect is real: The “nude” pump has become, in recent years, a go-to shoe for many women. It’s simple, and elegant, and a nice option for those who want a matches-basically-everything alternative to black. As the stylist service Urban Darling puts it: “When it comes to wardrobe staples, the nude pump in particular, is at the top of my list.” Except: Nude, as a concept and a color, is...

This was produced by KPJR Films, and edited by Jen Bradwell.