Diagnoses from preliminary telehealth consultations matched in-person visits in 86.9% of cases, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open.
The research included 2,393 Mayo Clinic patients who attended a video telemedicine visit, followed by an in-person appointment for the same problem in the same specialty within 90 days. Patients used desktop computers, laptops, tablets or smartphones in their homes, while clinicians used desktop or laptop computers in offices without peripheral attachments or devices like stethoscopes, otoscopes or ophthalmoscopes.
Though the telehealth diagnosis was concordant with in-person care in 86.9% of cases overall, it did vary. The virtual diagnosis in specialty care cases agreed with the in-person decision in 88.4% of patients compared with only 81.3% in primary care. Concordance was lowest for otorhinolaryngology, or head and neck specialists, and highest in psychiatry.
“In diagnoses confirmed through clinician opinion, such as many psychiatric diagnoses, there was a significantly greater concordance between video telemedicine diagnosis and in-person diagnosis,” the study’s authors wrote. “In diagnoses necessitating confirmation through traditional physical examination, neurological testing and pathology — such as many otological and dermatological diagnoses — there was a significantly decreased concordance between video telemedicine and in-person diagnoses.”
Researchers also found the odds of diagnostic agreement decreased by 9% for every 10 year increase in the patient’s age. But concordance didn’t significantly vary between clinician types (such as physicians compared with advanced practice providers) and adult and pediatric patients, or based on length of consultation or how much experience a clinician had with video telehealth.
Researchers said one large takeaway from their study was the discrepancy between primary and specialty care, noting quicker in-person follow-up could be beneficial if primary care providers meet with patients virtually first.
“These findings suggest that video telemedicine visits to home may be good adjuncts to in-person care,” they wrote. “Primary care video telemedicine programs designed to accommodate new patients or new presenting clinical problems may benefit from a lowered threshold for timely in-person direct follow-up in patients suspected to have diseases typically confirmed by physical examination, neurological testing or pathology.”
Otolith Labs, maker of a headband wearable that aims to treat chronic vertigo, raised $20 million in a Series A round led by Morningside Ventures.
The company announced last year the device had received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation alongside the close of a $3.3 million seed round. The Breakthrough Devices Program isn’t marketing approval from the FDA, but it aims to accelerate review of products that could help treat debilitating or life-threatening conditions.
The headband emits vibrations that interact with the motion sensors in the inner ear, which could lessen vertigo symptoms. Otolith said it will use the funds to support its clinical programs, anticipated FDA approval and the commercial launch of the device.
“The closing of our Series A financing led by the expert team of investors at Morningside and the continued support of our existing investors underscores the growing momentum for the first wearable solution for a debilitating problem that adversely affects millions of Americans,” CEO and founder Sam Owen said in a statement.
“The responders in our pilot studies reported instantaneous relief from their vertigo symptoms. The data from those studies support our plan to release our nVSMn [noninvasive Vestibular System Masking] technology as an effective and well tolerated therapy for chronic vertigo.”
Credentialing and licensing platform CertifyOS scooped up $14.5 million in a Series A funding round led by General Catalyst.
Other investors participating in the raise include Upfront Ventures, Max Ventures and Arkitekt Ventures. The company announced a $4.55 million seed earlier this year.
CertifyOS plans to use the cash from the Series A to expand its commercial, product and engineering teams, improve its insurance credentialing platform, and add new offerings like hospital credentialing, privileging, network accuracy, adequacy and directory management.
“This funding reinforces market conviction around the importance of integrating provider data silos to make information accessible, transparent and actionable,” CertifyOS CEO Anshul Rathi said in a statement. “Our Series A funding will allow us to create the mid-level infrastructure that connects all of the disparate data sources currently housing primary provider data, eliminating the borders and friction to scaling networks that exist in healthcare today.”
Patient engagement and navigation platform Upfront raised $10.5 million in Series C funding.
The round was led by Baird Capital, Echo Health Ventures and First Trust Capital Partners, with participation from investors including LRVHealth, Hyde Park Venture Partners and Nashville Capital Network.
“If I were a younger person, I think I would be able to rebound from all the difficulties I’m having,” she told me. “I just never foresaw myself being in this situation at the age I am now.”
Elaine Ross
“Please help! I just turned 65 and [am] disabled on disability. My husband is on Social Security and we cannot even afford to buy groceries. This is not what I had in mind for the golden years.”
When asked about her troubles, Ross, 65, talks about a tornado that swept through central Florida on Groundhog Day in 2007, destroying her home. Too late, she learned her insurance coverage wasn’t adequate and wouldn’t replace most of her belongings.
To make ends meet, Ross started working two jobs: as a hairdresser and a customer service representative at a convenience store. With her new husband, Douglas Ross, a machinist, she purchased a new home. Recovery seemed possible.
Then, Elaine Ross fell twice over several years, breaking her leg, and ended up having three hip replacements. Trying to manage diabetes and beset by pain, Ross quit working in 2016 and applied for Social Security Disability Insurance, which now pays her $919 a month.
She doesn’t have a pension. Douglas stopped working in 2019, no longer able to handle the demands of his job because of a bad back. He, too, doesn’t have a pension. With Douglas’ Social Security payment of $1,051 a month, the couple live on just over $23,600 annually. Their meager savings evaporated with various emergency expenditures, and they sold their home.
Their rent in Empire, Alabama, where they now live, is $540 a month. Other regular expenses include $200 a month for their truck and gas, $340 for Medicare Part B premiums, $200 for electricity, $100 for medications, $70 for phone, and hundreds of dollars — Ross didn’t offer a precise estimate — for food.
“All this inflation, it’s just killing us,” she said. Nationally, the price of food consumed at home is expected to rise 10% to 11% this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Mention the triceps kickback in certain lifting circles and you might generate some side eye looks of disappointment or even a bit of mocking laughter. This short-sighted response comes from the exercise’s unfortunate and unfair reputation of being ineffective, or being performed only by people with “less-than-serious” goals.
The dumbbell kickback was once a staple of bodybuilding’s Golden Era from the 1950s to the ’70s. However, its popularity in ’80s mainstream fitness classes diluted its muscle-building connection and it began to be performed with extremely light weights for extremely high repetitions. “To tone up without building bulk” was the popular, if misguided, logic.
Credit: Reshetnikov_art / Shutterstock
Regardless of the misinformation, the triceps kickback is a very effective tool to target the biggest arm muscle — the triceps. The triceps are also a key muscle for performance through many upper body exercises. So forget what you might’ve heard about the exercise and learn the real reasons why you should include this exercise in your training regimen.
How to Do the Triceps Kickback
The basic single-arm dumbbell triceps kickback is an isolation (single-joint) exercise that focuses solely on triceps development. It’s a great way to emphasize peak contraction of the muscle.
Step 1 — Set Up in the Starting Position
Credit: BAZA Production / Shutterstock
Stand in front of something sturdy, like a rack or a bench. Hold one dumbbell and get into a wide stance. Bend your knees slightly and lean forward at the hips while keeping a neutral spine. Aim to have your torso almost parallel to the floor. Place your free hand on the rack or bench for maximum balance and stability.
Pull your working arm up so your elbow is near your ribs and pinned close to your body. Let your forearm hang perpendicular to the floor with your palm facing in toward your body. Don’t look up or forward. Keep your head in line with your spine and your chin slightly tucked in.
Form tip: Flaring your elbow away from your body will only encourage cheating to move more weight and potentially strain your elbow joint. Keep your upper arm glued to your side. This is not an exercise to move super-heavy weight. Keep the load relatively light to ensure impeccable form.
Step 2 — Reach a Peak Contraction
Credit: IvanRiver / Shutterstock
Brace your core and exhale while flexing your triceps until your arm is completely straight. Squeeze at the top for a second to feel a maximum peak contraction. Your lower arm should be the only thing moving. This is an isolation exercise, so focus on only working the triceps.
Your hand, and the dumbbell, should pivot around your elbow. Treat your elbow like a hinge. No other part of your body should move.
Form tip: Be sure to reach full extension with each rep. In the top position, your entire arm should be nearly parallel to the ground. Because gravity offers minimal resistance against the weight in the bottom part of the movement, it’s essential to use a full range of motion and emphasize the contraction.
Step 3 — Return to the Stretched Position
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
Slowly come back to the starting position while inhaling. Again, only your forearm should move. Pause very briefly in the bottom position to avoid quickly swinging the weight down and up.
Sure, momentum might allow you to move more weight, but you will diminish the range of motion and the time under tension — both crucial for muscle mass. Swinging the weight will also put more stress on the elbow joint. More joint strain with less muscle-building is not a great bargain.
Form tip: Start each set with your weaker or non-dominant side so you have more energy and more focus. Perform all repetitions and then match the same number of repetitions with your stronger arm, even if one side is capable of more reps. This will help to balance common strength or development discrepancies between left and right arms.
Triceps Kickback Mistakes to Avoid
This exercise can be prone to bad execution because it requires light weights, so a lifter can sometimes lose focus. Learn about the most common errors and how to avoid them.
Swinging the Weight
Let’s be real for a second: cheating a few reps at the end of a session won’t smite you instantly. It can sometimes even be beneficial, for experienced lifters using it as a deliberate intensity-boosting technique. But for the vast majority of people, you should avoid cheating and swinging the weight with kickbacks or nearly any exercise.
Credit: lunamarina / Shutterstock
If you swing and cheat, you will only actually work your triceps through a very short portion of the range of motion, and the exercise will provide a limited triceps-building stimulus. Moreover, this will result in more stress to the elbow joint and you don’t want to develop tendonitis — that’s the best way to keep having small arms.
Avoid it: Make sure you control the eccentric (lowering the weight), and even pause for a dead-stop at the bottom briefly. If you focus on only moving your forearm, you basically cannot cheat. If your elbow moves, you’ve started doing a dumbbell row, not a triceps kickback.
Not Locking Out Your Arm
If you don’t completely extend your arms and squeeze your triceps in a hard lockout, you lose most of the benefits of this exercise because of the resistance curve. At the start of the lift, there is almost no resistance at all because the dumbbell isn’t directly moving against gravity. The hardest part of the exercise is in the shortened range when the muscle is contracted.
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
If you don’t lockout, which can happen if you try using too much weight, then you don’t really work your triceps’ most challenging part of the range of motion. That ends up making the exercise easier and less efficient for muscle growth.
Avoid it: Make sure you use a proper weight that allows you to fully lockout your arm. If you can’t pause at the top for a second, the weight is too much.
Benefits of the Triceps Kickback
Even though the exercise is often overlooked and disrespected, the triceps kickback has unique benefits for your triceps training and will help you get bigger, stronger arms.
Muscle Growth
This exercise is focused on directly training the triceps, specifically for hypertrophy (muscle growth). Indeed, this exercise thrives with lighter weight and a longer time under tension, which is a great way to build muscle and create an aesthetic physique. (1)
Credit: Bojan656 / Shutterstock
Moreover, as an isolation exercise, it is the perfect fit for developing a mind-muscle connection and accumulating triceps-specific volume without taxing other muscle groups, which are both beneficial for muscle growth. (2)(3)
Pressing Strength
Triceps strength, and the pushing pattern in general, are involved in many sports like volleyball, American football, combat sports, etc. And let’s not forget strength sports like powerlifting.
Sure, the triceps kickback won’t create pure neurological strength like training the heavy bench press or overhead press, but building larger triceps muscles can eventually improve strength. (4) So if you’re interested in performance, fit this into your accessory training.
Training the Shortened Range
Many triceps exercises such as skull crushers emphasize the lengthened range of motion and stress the stretched position. The triceps kickback, on the other hand, focuses on the shortened or contracted portion. Because of its resistance curve, the exercise is relatively easy in the stretched position and much more challenging in the peak contraction.
This can provide a novel stimulus, help develop a stronger mind-muscle connection, and unlock new gains, because training variety can be better for motivation and hypertrophy in itself. (5)
Easy on the Elbows
The triceps kickback can be invaluable for experienced lifters with cranky joints. Because the upper arm is in a higher position than the forearm, and joint isn’t being strained through the entire range of motion, the elbow can move more freely without significant stress.
If you have nagging pain in your elbows, shoulders, or wrists, or if you’re prone to tendonitis, make the kickback appear regularly in your training plan.
Muscles Worked by the Triceps Kickback
The aim of the exercise is to train your triceps, but some postural muscle will be recruited as well to hold the position.
Triceps Brachii
This is the biggest arm muscle and the main target of the kickback. It is made of three heads. Two of them (the medial and the lateral head) go from the elbow to the humerus (upper arm bone). These are responsible for extending the arm.
Credit: nkotlyar / Shutterstock
The long head also extends the arm, but because it is attached to the scapula, it also extends the shoulder and raises the arm. Because the upper arm is positioned alongside the torso, the triceps kickback emphasizes the lateral and medial heads.
Back
The whole back — upper back, lats, and lower back — work to maintain a parallel body position and stabilize the working arm during the kickback. The back’s involvement should be limited to the muscles working statically to hold your body’s position without movement.
However, if the kickback is performed improperly, the back muscles (specifically the upper back and lats) may become more significantly recruited, drawing muscular stress away from the triceps.
Who Should Do the Triceps Kickback
The goal of the kickback is to add meat onto your triceps. So if you’re looking for bigger, stronger arms — like plenty of people in the gym — you can include this lift in your training regimen.
Beginners
Some people advise that beginners to avoid single-joint exercises and focus primarily on the big basics (multi-joint compound lifts like presses). This is generally sound advice, but isolation work can also have benefits for newer lifters.
By improving the mind-muscle connection with specific muscles, they can feel that muscle work more effectively, which leads to better growth and body awareness. Exercises like the triceps kickback also help to directly train muscles which may be under-worked when compound exercises are overemphasized.
Physique Enthusiasts
Whether your goal is to look better or to compete in a physique show, the triceps kickback is a perfect fit. Performing this exercise allows you to increase triceps volume without fatiguing other muscle groups, leading to focused muscle growth.
This is very valuable, for instance, if you lack overall arm development, or if you need to create a balanced and symmetrical physique by correcting muscular imbalances.
Strength Athletes
If you’re an athlete that requires pressing strength such as a powerlifter, strongman/strongwoman, or CrossFit athlete, then triceps training is essential. Including the triceps kickback can be surprisingly effective for strength athletes.
The relatively light weight and high muscular tension allows them to increase triceps training volume without aggravating their elbows, which are usually already beaten up by heavy lifting.
How to Program the Triceps Kickback
The kickback is a single-joint exercise and as such, it is not ideal for moving heavy weights because additional muscles will be excessively recruited. The kickback is most effective using moderate to light weight to stimulate muscle growth and zero-in on working the triceps.
Moderate Weight, Moderate Repetitions
The time-tested bodybuilding scheme of three to four sets of 10 to 12 repetitions will be your kickback bread and butter. This is a very efficient way of increasing volume leading to muscle growth.
Light Weight, High Reps
This exercise can really shine with higher reps because of its resistance curve, cumulative time under tension, and its low impact on the joints. Performing two to four sets of 15 to 20 repetitions can serve as an amazing finisher to really scorch your triceps. It can also be a great way to start your arm workout by really warming-up your elbow joints.
Triceps Kickback Variations
The single-arm dumbbell kickback is a great exercise in itself, but you can tweak it to better suit your goals or provide a different feeling. Here are the main kickback variations.
Cable Triceps Kickback
Instead of using dumbbells, use a cable. Instead of attaching a handle, grab the cable by the “ball” at the end, just above the cable clip. This allows you to keep a neutral hand position without straining your wrists.
The exercise may not seem like much because of the relatively lighter weight, but the cable provides constant tension through the lift, even more than using a dumbbell. This stimulates the triceps throughout the entire range of motion, which will increase the time under tension and lead to improved muscle growth.
Pronated Kickback
This subtle variation was popularized by bodybuilding coach John Meadows. Using a pronated (palms-down) grip will emphasize the medial head of the triceps. Using two dumbbells at once also changes the total-body stability requirement.
Because your forearm is slightly rotated, this variation will also address forearm and wrist health. You can even perform a type of superset, beginning with reps of pronated kickbacks and then immediately transitioning to standard neutral-grip kickbacks.
Two-Arm Dumbbell Kickback
This variation is pretty straight-forward: Perform the standard triceps kickback with both arms at the same time. This will slightly decrease the weight you can lift because the muscle focus is “divided” between both arms.
This variation also requires more work from your core, back, and legs to stabilize yourself because you don’t have a free hand to brace on an outside support.
Triceps Kickback Alternatives
If you’re still not convinced to incorporate kickbacks, here are some alternatives that will share similar benefits to spice up your training. Variety will challenge the muscles differently, promoting new muscle growth.
Triceps Pushdown
If you’ve got access to a cable station, you can perform this fundamental exercise. The triceps pushdown, sometimes called a pressdown, emphasizes the peak contraction and isn’t very stressful on the elbow joints.
Use an attachment that allows you to extend your arms completely — a rope handle is often most effective. As with the kickback, be sure to keep your arms close to your body and only move your hands and forearms without swinging your elbows.
Decline Dumbbell Skull Crusher
The standard flat bench skull crusher is an effective exercise, but using a decline bench gives it a twist to focus more on the medial and lateral heads of the triceps. The arm angle doesn’t provide as much stretch or long head stimulation, but can offer more tension in the top position.
Using a pair of dumbbells allows your arms to move freely and reduce strain on your wrist and elbow joints, compared to performing the exercise the a barbell or EZ-curl bar.
Overhead Dumbbell Extension
If you want to emphasize the long head of the triceps, this variation is for you. Performing triceps extension with your arms extended above your shoulders will focus more on the lengthened range and will significantly recruit the long head because it’s involved in raising the arm.
Because this movement emphasizes the stretched position, be sure your elbows and shoulders are thoroughly warmed up. It’s not an ideal first-exercise in your triceps workout, but it can be a key player in building larger arms.
FAQs
Do I have to train my arms directly?
It depends on a few variable. If you’re a short-limbed lifter, your arms will probably be significantly stimulated with compound exercises like the bench press, overhead press, rows, and pulldowns. But if you’re dealing with long arms, you should train them directly because your leverage on big lifts is different and the biceps and triceps are often under-stimulated in those movements.
Ultimately, if you’re interested in having bigger arms, it’s a good idea to include at least some direct training, especially if you’re a more advanced lifter. If you’re a competitive athlete, you should skip direct arm training in-season and keep that energy for your sport-specific training. Accumulating too much training volume can cause burnouts, stagnation, or even regression.
I can’t stop my elbow from flaring. Why is that?
The first culprit could be weight. If the dumbbell is too heavy, flaring your elbow out will recruit extra muscles (in your back and shoulders) to help lift the load, but it’s at the potential detriment of your joints and it will reduce triceps activation.
If you’re certain that you can control the weight, it could be a matter of mobility. If your upper back or shoulder mobility is compromised, it will result in protruded, forward-pointing shoulders that prevent you from keeping your elbows close to you. You should include a mobility routine in your workouts with exercises like band pull-aparts and wall slides.
Let’s Get Pumping
The triceps kickback’s bad reputation is unfair and unfounded. Don’t let any misinformed knee-jerk reactions or cliches steer you away from this classic arm-builder. It’s a versatile movement that lets you hit your tris with light weight, high tension, and minimal joint strain. It’s definitely time to remind today’s gyms that kickbacks are for serious lifters.
References
Burd NA, Andrews RJ, West DW, Little JP, Cochran AJ, Hector AJ, Cashaback JG, Gibala MJ, Potvin JR, Baker SK, Phillips SM. Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. J Physiol. 2012 Jan 15;590(2):351-62. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200. Epub 2011 Nov 21. PMID: 22106173; PMCID: PMC3285070.
Calatayud J, Vinstrup J, Jakobsen MD, Sundstrup E, Brandt M, Jay K, Colado JC, Andersen LL. Importance of mind-muscle connection during progressive resistance training. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2016 Mar;116(3):527-33. doi: 10.1007/s00421-015-3305-7. Epub 2015 Dec 23. PMID: 26700744.
Schoenfeld BJ, Contreras B, Krieger J, Grgic J, Delcastillo K, Belliard R, Alto A. Resistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy but Not Strength in Trained Men. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2019 Jan;51(1):94-103. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001764. PMID: 30153194; PMCID: PMC6303131.
Reggiani C, Schiaffino S. Muscle hypertrophy and muscle strength: dependent or independent variables? A provocative review. Eur J Transl Myol. 2020 Sep 9;30(3):9311. doi: 10.4081/ejtm.2020.9311. PMID: 33117512; PMCID: PMC7582410.
Baz-Valle E, Schoenfeld BJ, Torres-Unda J, Santos-Concejero J, Balsalobre-Fernández C. The effects of exercise variation in muscle thickness, maximal strength and motivation in resistance trained men. PLoS One. 2019 Dec 27;14(12):e0226989. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0226989. PMID: 31881066; PMCID: PMC6934277.
By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 7, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Patients suspected of having amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may soon be able to get a diagnosis much more quickly, not wasting the precious time many have left, new research suggests.
In 2020, a blood test for ALS based on microRNA (short segments of genetic material) was developed by scientists from the company Brain Chemistry Labs, but it required precise protocols for shipping and storage of blood samples, which were maintained at −80° Celsius. That meant many doctors and neurologists couldn’t use the test.
Now, researchers from the company, Dartmouth’s department of neurology and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report they have been able to replicate the original test with blood samples that were not collected and maintained under such stringent requirements.
They did so by comparing blinded blood samples from 50 ALS patients from the U.S. National ALS Biorepository with 50 healthy “control” participants. The investigators found that in this new test the genetic fingerprint of five microRNA sequences accurately discriminated between people with ALS and healthy individuals.
“We were surprised that the microRNA test worked for samples collected from a variety of investigators under differing conditions,” said first author Dr. Sandra Banack.
The doctors are now verifying the new blood test, and Brain Chemistry Labs, in Wyoming, has applied for a patent on the test, according to a company news release.
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is an incurable neurological disease. Currently, the lag time between when symptoms begin and diagnosis is given is over a year. An inaccurate diagnosis can occur in about 13% to 68% of cases. Unfortunately, most ALS patients die between two to five years after diagnosis.
The findings were published online Aug. 29 in the Journal of the Neurological Sciences .
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke has more on ALS.
SOURCE: Brain Chemistry Labs, news release, Aug. 31, 2022
French powerlifter Samantha Eugenie is now the IPF World Junior Record holder in the raw deadlift for the 63-kilogram category. On Aug. 31, 2022, Eugenie pulled 216 kilograms (476.28 pounds) at the 2022 IPF World Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. You can see the lift in the Instagram post below, shared by the IPF.
Weighing in at 62.7 kilograms (138.2 pounds), Eugenie lifted in a sumo stance and used a mixed grip while wearing a singlet and a weight belt when she made the successful attempt. She went three for three on the deadlift, having pulled 200 kilograms (441 pounds) and 210.5 kilograms (464 pounds).
As of this writing, she is 11.5 kilograms (25 pounds) away from the all-time junior world record in the deadlift. Jordanne Panton pulled 227.5 kilograms (501.6 pounds) at the 2021 USAPL Europa Dallas Showdown meet.
Overall, Eugenie went eight for nine on the day, with her only miss being her second attempt at the squat with 172.5 kilograms (380 pounds), which she cleaned up on her third attempt. She went on to win the 63-kilogram world junior championship at the meet.
Samantha Eugenie (63KG) | All-Time Raw Competition Bests
Squat – 172.5 kilograms (380.3 pounds)
Bench Press – 105 kilograms (231.5 pounds)
Deadlift – 216 kilograms (476.2 pounds)
Total – 493.5 kilograms (1,088 pounds)
According to Open Powerlifting, this was the 20-year-old’s tenth powerlifting meet. The deadlift and bench press lifts are personal records as well. She was 10 kilograms short of her best squat effort. On May 14, 2022, Eugenie successfully squatted 182.5 kilograms (402.3 pounds) at the FFForce French Youth Athletic Strength Championships.
Eugenie may have been wearing the gold medal at the end of the meet, but she wasn’t satisfied with how her day went.
“To be honest I’m not proud of my performance. I did a lower total than my last comp and I know why. I will work harder for it to not happen again,” she wrote in the caption of her Instagram post. “I’m not proud of my total but I’m proud of the title and the journey to this day.”
As of this writing, there is no official word on when Eugenie will compete again. If she doesn’t compete again, then this record will cap off a year that also saw her break four junior world records at the French Nationals in May.
During the past 20 years in NYC, I’ve spotted a gazillion celebrities, and I rarely fan-girl out. But! The other day, I passed Cyrus Ferguson on the street and grabbed my friend’s arm. “That guy is hilarious on Instagram!” I told her. So, when he reached out about doing a home tour, I immediately said yes. Here’s a peek into the top-floor apartment of Cyrus and Brooke Brazer, his equally awesome spouse…
How did you two meet? Brooke: “We lived in the same freshman dorm in college. We were a will-they-won’t-they couple.” Cyrus: “It was all about fleeting glances across the room, or our elbows touching while watching a movie.”
Who made the first move? Brooke: “Well, finally, on Valentine’s Day, I was like, ‘This is a silly corporate holiday,’ and he was like, ‘Totally.’ And then he leaves me a flash drive where he sang a song he had written for me and played three instruments!” Cyrus: “I like the big romantic gesture. I love a story; I love a bit. So, I was like, Okay, when I asked her out, it has to be part of an elaborate treasure hunt or scene. And then she was like, ‘Can we just date?’ and I was like, ‘Oh! Yeah! Yes, please!’”
Where did you find the amazing green painting? Brooke: “Cy made that!” Cyrus: “I wanted a big piece of abstract art. I couldn’t afford one from a real artist, so I had an ongoing Craigslist search for ‘extra large canvas.’ Eventually, I found a Brooklyn painter who was selling giant canvases, and I walked one back across the bridge, and I had the idea to put acrylic paint in a spray bottle and just spray it.” Brooke: “I came home one day and there were tarps everywhere, and the fan was full speed, and Cy was like, ‘Look what I’m doing!’ You could tell it brought him joy.” Cyrus: “There’s one area that drips and kind of bothers me, but I’ve accepted that life is imperfect.”
KITCHEN:
Shelves: Ikea. Ceiling light: Etsy. Kettle: Target. French press: Le Creuset, similar. Tiffany lamp: vintage on Craiglist.
What a pretty blue! Cyrus: “The apartment used to be ketchup and mustard colored, but our friend, who lived here before us, DIY-ed the blue kitchen cabinets. She had a vision! We wanted to infuse our own footprint, so we installed lights and fans.”
What do you love most about the apartment? Cyrus: “We lived here during a time when the outside world was chaotic and scary, so our home was a retreat. We love living in a city and always will, but at the same time, we want to feel like we’re in a countryside cottage. It’s gratifying when people come in and say, ‘Wow, I love how your apartment FEELS.’” Brooke: “I came from having roommates, and this was our first time living together, so it was really fun to combine our styles.”
How would you describe your styles? Brooke: “I like fuzzy bouclé textures, and Cy has an eye for vintage.” Cyrus: “I grew up obsessed with eBay, Etsy, Craigslist, Facebook marketplace. I have my list of ongoing searches: ‘vintage nightstand,’ ‘9×12 vintage rug pink.’ Tiffany-style table lamp was one of my big searches for a long time, and we found that one!”
I’m always curious with house tours: what’s wonky about the place? Cyrus: “The bathroom. When you’re on the third floor of an older Brooklyn brownstone, it takes a long time to flush. You have to hold the flusher down for like 10 seconds.” Brooke: “Whenever we had people over, I didn’t know how to tell every single person. So, I handwrote a note: “Hello! I am an old toilet!’ etc. I also explained how to use the bidet. It ended with ‘Enjoy?’”
How did you choose the wall color? Brooke: “We went with a white with a slight mauve undertone, since that has a more soothing effect, says some study.” Cyrus: “We need as much of that as we can!” Brooke: “We are all about the mental health around here. For the bedding, I liked the soft brown color.” Cyrus: “I was skeptical, but in our design relationship, I tend to be the sourcer of ideas, and Brooke has the good gut instinct to say, yes, that’s the one. It worked out well.”
What’s your bedtime routine? Cyrus: “We do indulge in end-of-day TikTok. We’ll watch 30 to 40 videos, which is kind of like watching an episode of TV because they’re all like one minute.” Brooke: “My love language is sending TikTok clips to someone I love and watching them watch it. ‘Oh, I knew that would make you laugh!’”
By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 7, 2022 (HealthDay News) – Juul Labs said Tuesday it will pay $438.5 million, without acknowledging wrongdoing, to settle dozens of lawsuits filed over company practices that may have fueled widespread vaping among American teens.
“This settlement with 34 states and territories is a significant part of our ongoing commitment to resolve issues from the past,” the company said in a statement. “With today’s announcement, we have settled with 37 states and Puerto Rico, and appreciate efforts by Attorneys General to deploy resources to combat underage use.”
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong applauded the news.
“We think that this will go a long way in stemming the flow of youth vaping,” Tong said during a news conference Tuesday. “We are under no illusions and cannot claim that it will stop youth vaping. It continues to be an epidemic. It continues to be a huge problem. But we have essentially taken a big chunk out of what was once a market leader.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is still deciding whether it will allow Juul to sell its products in this country. After the agency issued a ban on the company’s vaping products in June, Juul appealed the decision and the court ruled that the company could continue to sell some of its products until the appeal has been heard in court.
In the latest investigation conducted by about three dozen states, it was found that Juul appealed to young people with its youthful models, free e-cigarette samples and flavors like crème brulee and mango. Not only that, about 45% of the company’s Twitter followers were between the ages of 13 and 17.
Tuesday’s settlement would prohibit Juul from practices that include marketing to youth, funding education in schools or misrepresenting its products’ nicotine levels, though the company has already changed some of what it does following pressure from parents and public officials.
Settlement funds will be paid over six to 10 years, the New York Times reported. In Connecticut, the state plans to use its $16 million share for cessation programs for vaping, nicotine and addiction. Texas is receiving $43 million. Virginia will get $16.6 million.
“It was Juul who came on the scene and opened this terrible Pandora’s box,” Meredith Berkman, who co-founded Parents Against Vaping E-Cigarettes, told the Times. “No amount of money can erase the harm caused by Juul’s targeting of and marketing to teens whose use of the company’s stealth-by-design flavored products led many kids to suffer severe nicotine addiction and physical harm.”
Berkman joined the group in 2018 after her son came home from school in the ninth grade and talked about a Juul representative speaking at a school assembly and describing its products as “totally safe.”
The group has heard from hundreds of families who have said their children became addicted to vaping Juul and similar devices, Berkman said, with some teens becoming gravely ill.
A recent U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey hints at new trouble: While fewer students are now using e-cigarettes, products from the company Puff Bar, which makes vapes flavored like candy and fruit, are now the favorite.
The FDA continues to try to rein in new products in candy flavors and colors, even as some companies have moved to selling synthetic nicotine, which wasn’t regulated until March when Congress gave the FDA the power to regulate synthetic nicotine products. The agency is still sifting through about a million applications from non-tobacco nicotine product makers it received this spring, the Times reported.
States involved in this latest settlement are Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Juul settled earlier with North Carolina, Washington, Louisiana and Arizona.
Nine additional lawsuits remain, including in New York and California, the Times said. About 3,600 lawsuits in California were consolidated, representing individuals, school districts and local governments.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on e-cigarettes.
At 19 years of age, Agata Sitko has enjoyed a terrific 2022 season on the competitive lifting platform. Her latest output at the 2022 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Sub-Junior and Junior Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, from Aug. 27 to Sept. 4, 2022, is another impressive notch in the Polish athlete’s strength belt.
Sitko broke the raw bench press IPF world record in the 84-kilogram division with a 147.5-kilogram (325.2-pound) press. While Sitko’s figure came during a Sub-Junior and Juniors competition, it is a new all-time IPF world record for all age groups in her weight class.
Sitko ranked first overall in the 84-kilogram Juniors category. Here’s an overview of each of Sitko’s top raw stats from this contest, including a competition personal record (PR) in the deadlift:
2022 IPF World Classic Junior Championships | Agata Sitko (84KG)
Note: Sitko typically competes in the 76-kilogram division. Of her 13 sanctioned meets at the time of this article’s publication, nine were at 76 kilograms.
Even moving up a weight class, Sitko made seemingly effortless work of the previous bench press record. The Polish athlete’s new world record bench press surpassed Daniella Melo’s top mark from the 2021 IPF World Classic Championships by 10.5 kilograms (23.1 pounds).
Had Sitko stayed at76 kilograms, she would’ve surpassed her bench press record in that division by a smaller 2.5-kilogram (5.5-pound) margin.
Versatility on Display
In a year full of records and achievements, Sitko has staked a claim as a powerlifter to keep a keen eye on. For example, in seven 2022 contest appearances, Sitko won on six occasions. Sitko broke five equipped world records at the 2022 European Junior Championships in early May. She then eclipsed some of her marks with three new equipped world records at the 2022 World Games in mid-July.
Not many athletes can say they own the IPF raw total (585 kilograms (1,289.7 pounds)) and equipped world records (726 kilograms (1,600.56 pounds)) in the same division. Yet, according to the IPF database, that’s precisely the position Sitko sits in with her past accomplishments as a 76-kilogram competitor.
Note: With a 704.5-kilogram (1,553.1.pound) total from the European Championships, Sitko also possesses the IPF equipped total world record in the 84-kilogram weight class.
While it’s unclear what the next steps are for Sitko, it seems evident she’s pushing the petal to the barbell metal. Even as the leaves turn orange and the nights grow colder as fall approaches, it may not be long before the powerlifter adds another record to her resume.
Sept. 7, 2022 – Child development experts expressed dismay that a Missouri school district is reviving paddling as punishment despite overwhelming scientific evidence against it.
“So much research has been done over the years that demonstrates that corporal punishment is harmful to children,” says Allison Jackson, MD, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Child Abuse and Neglect.
Cassville Public Schools’ announcement that it would reinstate corporal punishment after a 21-year hiatus amounts to “going backward,” she says.
According to news reports, Cassville Superintendent Merlyn Johnson said a recent school system survey showed students, parents, and teachers were concerned about discipline issues. Some parents proposed corporal punishment as a solution, but only if other methods have failed, and parents or caregivers give their consent.
Evidence Showing Harms
Asked about the district’s decision, groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association, Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, and the American Academy of Family Physicians stressed their long-standing opposition to corporal punishment in schools.
These organizations pointed to decades of research showing that hitting children does not improve behavior or motivate learning, and can backfire by leading to greater aggression, academic problems, and physical injury.
A 2016 report from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development concluded that physical force in U.S. schools is disproportionately used on students who are Black, male, or have disabilities. Corporal punishment is regarded as an international human rights violation, the report noted.
George Holden, PhD, a professor emeritus of psychology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, says he was “discouraged, but not surprised” at the district’s revival of corporal punishment. Although corporal punishment in public schools has been on the decline, 19 states have not banned it.
According to the 2016 report, 14% of school districts used corporal punishment and 163,333 students in public schools were subject to the practice during the 2011-12 school year. Corporal punishment is concentrated in the Southeast. Half of all students in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Alabama attend a school that uses the practice.
The report noted that only two states, New Jersey and Iowa, have barred corporal punishment in private schools.
Jackson, Holden, and other experts say mindsets are slow to change, and people who grew up with parents who hit them may be defensive or dismissive of criticisms. Some educators and parents may believe that physical punishment works because it temporarily interrupts bad behavior, the experts say.
Moving Away from Physical Force
Still, more schools are shifting from letting teachers use corporal punishment and instead are harnessing restorative practices, collaborative problem-solving, and positive behavioral interventions and supports, says Holden, who’s president of the nonprofit U.S. Alliance to End the Hitting of Children.
FredericMedway, PhD, a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of South Carolina, said many districts now say physical punishment is used as a last resort, which was not the case in decades past.
But he says he doubts schools will stop using corporal punishment until families stop the practice.
Doctors can play an important role in intervening with new parents, says Jackson, who leads the Child and Adolescent Protection Center at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC. She suggests that doctors ask new caregivers about how they plan to address challenging behaviors, and offer guidance.
Medway says well-child visits should include assessments of behavior that might provoke disciplinary action, such as impulsivity and refusal to comply with rules, which can be addressed with early mental health treatment and parenting guidance.
An Academy of Pediatrics publication, Effective Discipline to Raise Healthy Children, describes alternatives to corporal punishment and advises doctors to offer parents behavior management strategies and referrals to community resources such as parenting groups, classes, and mental health services. The academy also offers tips for parents on its website.
Alison Culyba MD, PhD, chair of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine’s Violence Prevention Committee, says health care professionals can “use their voices” to inform local, state, and national policy discussions about the health impacts of corporal punishment on children.
