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Each year in the United States, hundreds of babies are born with sickle cell disease (SCD), joining the nearly 100,000 American who already live with this disease. As pediatricians, we understand the challenges parents and caregivers face when attempting to secure the best and most effective care for their children. Unfortunately, when children living with sickle cell disease become adolescents and young adults, it can become even more difficult to navigate management and treatment options as health complications including pain crises often grow more intense and frequent. The poor adherence to treatment guidelines, lack of innovation, gaps in the delivery system, and underlying discrimination also add additional hurdles that make it difficult for people living with this disease to live a normal, high quality life.

Imagine a place where you can feel happiness buzzing in the air, where children are at the center of a mini-universe, and all around them are four generations of family, overflowing with pride and affection. It’s a place where special people donate their time in a way that enriches their own lives as much as the children they serve. Most importantly, it is a place where Zuni culture, wisdom, and heritage are at the center.

World AIDS Day (December 1) is a time to remember those we've lost to HIV/AIDS, celebrate our successes in saving and improving the lives of people living with HIV, and renew our commitment to ending the HIV epidemic in the United States and around the world.

At the Cherokee Nation and Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), an active and healthy lifestyle is at the center of one of our most important programs that helps connect today’s young people to their heritage. The Remember the Removal (RTR) Bike Ride program offers EBCI members a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to retrace one of the original Trail of Tears Removal Routes. The bike ride program commemorates the forced removal of the Cherokee people from their eastern homelands as a result of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Started in 1984 by the Cherokee Nation, the original RTR Ride was made up of 20 students and their support staff. It became an annual event starting in 2009, with the Eastern Band joining in 2011 and it has continued to grow into the program it is today.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is fortunate to have an active health literacy workgroup that represents over a dozen agencies. Its mission is to advance health literacy across our department.

A genetic mutation that is believed to have occurred 7,300 years ago continues to kill thousands of persons every year in Africa.

As a medical provider for adolescents, I routinely encourage families to have their adolescents receive the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Immunizations, for HPV and other infectious diseases, save millions of lives and are widely recognized as one of the world’s most successful and cost-effective health interventions.

The suicide rate among African American children aged 5 to 11 years has increased substantially since 1993 and is persisting, according to Dr. Jeffrey Bridge, a leading researcher at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

I was excited to announce at today’s Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS meeting in Jackson, Miss., that my office – the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH) – is standing up a new team of highly qualified U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS) officers to support our regional “Ending the HIV Epidemic” initiatives in Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angeles.

Today on National HIV Testing Day, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) emphasizes the importance of getting tested for HIV, knowing your HIV status, and connecting to HIV care and treatment if you test positive. This year’s federal theme, “Doing It My Way,” sheds light on how taking an HIV test can be an empowering experience while also recognizing that you can do it in your own way. Whichever way you do it, this National HIV Testing Day, HRSA encourages those at risk to get tested for HIV.

Ed. note: This blog was originally published on https://www.hhs.gov/blog/2019/06/19/coming-together-to-confront-sickle-… Summary: On World Sickle Cell Day, HHS reflects on the work being done at the Department, across the country, and worldwide to cure Sickle Cell disease within 10 years. Hope has never been higher for people living with sickle cell disease (SCD) and their families and supporters. With the possibility of a widely available cure within reach, a pipeline of new treatments on the horizon and several initiatives underway to better utilize current tools in the

The benefits of regular physical activity occur throughout life and are essential for healthy aging. However, many older adults are not getting enough activity. In fact, research shows older adults are the least active age group. The great news is that it is never too late to start being active!

When I was a kid, every Saturday my parents would pack my older sister, younger brother, and me into the family station wagon, and we’d drive 40 minutes on Route 2 East from Boston’s western suburbs into Chinatown.

Ed. note: This blog was originally published on https://blog.samhsa.gov/2019/04/24/get-active-and-healthy-for-your-mental- health Most people know that physical activity can reduce risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic diseases, but fewer know that it is also important for mental health. Research suggests that exercise and physical activity can help to improve symptoms of anxiety and depression. People of color, particularly youth, are less likely to be physically active compared to Whites and, in general, as people get older they exercise less. Since the U.S. population

As National Minority Health Month enters its last week, it has been inspiring to experience and learn about the events and activities taking place across the nation in support of minority health.