CDC: More Than 40% Of Latino Adults Suffered Depression During Pandemic

Noticias Telemundo:
Latino Mental Health Crisis Grows During Pandemic 

Over 40% of Latino adults have reported symptoms of depression during the pandemic, in contrast to 25% of white non-Hispanics, the CDC reports. The emotional distress is especially acute for Latinos who had COVID-19, some of them tell Noticias Telemundo. (Franco, 5/13)

Axios:
Eva Longoria To Help With Farmworkers Mental Health Project 

Actor and filmmaker Eva Longoria Bastón is lending her name to help bring mental health services to farmworkers in the U.S. A new program called “Healing Voices,” launching this month in California and Florida, will study the needs of 100 farmworkers and determine how to bring more services to workers in the fields. (Contreras, 5/13)

In other public health news —

WJCT 89.9 FM Jacksonville:
FDA OKs First Overnight Contact Lenses For Myopia Management 

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first overnight orthokeratology contact lenses that manage myopia, also known as nearsightedness. The Acuvue Abiliti Overnight Therapeutic Lenses, produced by Jacksonville-based Johnson & Johnson Vision,  temporarily reshapes a patient’s cornea to reduce the rate of axial elongation. Myopia worsens when there is axial elongation in a person’s eyes, or when their eyeball’s length grows. (Wood, 5/13)

CNN:
How Processed Food Drives Diet-Related Diseases 

As a nutritionist, I have been privy to lot of debate in the nutrition world about which foods keep us healthy and which foods actually cause disease. Different foods offer different nutrient benefits for overall health. And even packaged foods can be enjoyed as part of a healthy diet. “The food industry works diligently to deliver a consumer marketplace full of healthy, accessible, nutrient-dense food and beverage choices,” said Krystal Register, registered dietition and director of health and well-being at FMI — The Food Industry Association, in a statement to CNN. But I know the unhealthy eating habits I see are often related to eating too many ultraprocessed foods rich in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. (Drayer, 5/13)

The New York Times:
How Exercise May Help Us Flourish

Our exercise habits may influence our sense of purpose in life and our sense of purpose may affect how much we exercise, according to an interesting new study of the reciprocal effects of feeling your life has meaning and being often in motion. The study, which involved more than 18,000 middle-aged and older men and women, found that those with the most stalwart sense of purpose at the start were the most likely to become active over time, and vice versa. The findings underscore how braided the relationship between physical activity and psychological well-being can be, and how the effects often run both ways. (Reynolds, 5/12)

NBC News:
Two Boys, 11 And 17, Arrested In Connection With Violent Robbery Of Elderly Asian Man

Two boys, including an 11-year-old caught driving a stolen car, were arrested Wednesday after a violent robbery of an elderly Asian man in Northern California, officials said. The 80-year-old victim was strolling near the 14200 block of Acapulco Road in San Leandro, about 12 miles south of downtown Oakland, Saturday afternoon when two people in hoodies jumped him and swiped his Fitbit in an attack captured on a home security camera. (Li, 5/13)

The Hill:
Accused Murderer Robert Durst Diagnosed With Bladder Cancer, Lawyers Ask For Indefinite Postponement Of Trial

Robert Durst, the subject of the HBO crime documentary “The Jinx” who is on trial for murder, has been diagnosed with bladder cancer that is not being treated, CNN reported on Thursday, citing Durst’s attorneys. Durst’s legal team is now asking that his trial, which is set to resume on Monday, be postponed indefinitely due to a “myriad of life-threatening health issues,” CNN reported. (Schnell, 5/13)

In news about covid’s economic toll —

NBC News:
Ohio, Georgia Join Growing List Of GOP-Led States Opting Out Of Federal Unemployment Benefits

The Republican governors of Ohio and Georgia announced on Thursday their respective states will opt out of receiving federal enhanced unemployment benefits, joining a growing list of GOP-led states dropping the pandemic-related benefit. (Clark, 5/13)

Bloomberg:
McDonald’s, Amazon Accelerate Push Toward Higher Minimum Wage

As the U.S. economy rebounds from the ravages of Covid-19, the country’s biggest corporations find themselves in need of workers, putting upward pressure on pay. Retail giants, fast-food chains, and ride-hailing companies are offering higher wages and cash payments. Referral and signing bonuses, rarely needed before to fill entry-level, low-wage jobs, are now commonplace. These incentives represent a slow but steady march toward a goal that lawmakers and labor activists have pursued for years, with limited success: a higher minimum wage, approaching $15 an hour. (Sasso, 5/14)