FOUR THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HEALTH TODAY

1 POTENTIAL DRUGS, HEART ATTACK LINK

Teens and young adults who use cocaine, amphetamines and cannabis are more likely to be hospitalized for heart attacks by early adulthood than those who don’t use these drugs, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers examined data from 2010 to 2014 on 1,694 patients ages 15 to 22 who were hospitalized for heart attacks, and almost 9.4 million who were hospitalized for other reasons.

2 MEASLES CASES UP 300 PER CENT

The number of reported cases of measles rose 300 per cent in the first quarter of 2019 from the same period last year, the World Health Organization says. The WHO cites a mistrust of vaccines, gaps in immunization coverage and lack of access to health care. Countries most affected include the DR Congo, where nearly 5,000 people with measles died in the first 10 months of 2019; Ukraine, with 72 dying; Brazil, with 50,000 cases; the Philippines, with 44,000 cases; and the U.S., with 1,200 cases. Canada has had 113 cases this year.

3 HOW OPIOID CRISIS MISSED SOME

When the opioid crisis began, many African Americans had a layer of protection — from racial stereotypes. An analysis has projected that some 14,000 black Americans would have died had their opioid mortality rates been equivalent to that of white Americans. They received fewer opioid prescriptions, researchers think, because doctors wrongly believed they were more likely to become addicted, and had a higher pain threshold.

4 A WHALE OF A HEART RATE

Scientists have measured the heart rate of the blue whale, the world’s largest creature. The whale, which can weigh 200 tons, lowers its heart rate to as low as two beats per minute as it dives, and then up to 37 bpm after returning to the surface.