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New study shows rise in kids diagnosed with mental health conditions: What parents should know

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — As experts warn of a growing mental health crisis among kids due to the coronavirus pandemic, new data shows the mental health struggles kids faced even prior to the pandemic.

Between 2016 and 2020, the number of children ages 3 to 17 who were diagnosed with anxiety grew by 29% and those with depression by 27%, according to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics, a medical journal.

From 2019 to 2020, researchers found a 21% increase in children with behavior or conduct problems, according to the study.

“Our research highlights a critical need to support both children and their caregivers to improve families’ mental and emotional well-being,” Dr. Michael Warren, a co-author of the study, said in a statement. “This includes ensuring access to timely health care services and addressing social determinants of health to support children and families’ overall well-being.”

The study was conducted using data from the National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH), which collects data on 36 separate health-related measures, including preventive health checkups, mental health diagnoses, physical activity and caregiver well-being, according to HHS.

In addition to finding an increase in the diagnosis of mental health conditions, the study also found that children’s physical activity decreased by 18% between 2016 and 2020. In addition, the proportion of kids with unmet health care needs grew by 32%, according to the study.

The study comes on the heels of a warning last year from the U.S. surgeon general of a growing mental health crisis among young people. Organizations representing child psychiatrists, pediatricians and children’s hospitals also declared a national emergency for youth mental health in 2021.

“I’m deeply concerned as a parent and as a doctor that the obstacles this generation of young people face are unprecedented and uniquely hard to navigate and the impact that’s having on their mental health is devastating,” U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said in testimony before senators in December.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last year that emergency department visits for suicide attempts among teen girls were up more than 50% at the beginning of the pandemic compared to the same period in 2019.

Dr. Darien Sutton, a board-certified emergency medicine physician and ABC News medical contributor, said parents should realize that mental health conditions, including anxiety, may look different in kids than adults.

In children, anxiety in particular can manifest with irritability, mood changes, changes to interest in activities, and in physical conditions like stomachaches and headaches, according to Sutton.

“The first advice that I give to any parent is to have an open and honest conversation with your child at a level that they can understand,” said Sutton. “It’s important to know that your role in that conversation is to make sure that you validate and support their concerns.”

Sutton said parents should also reach out to their child’s pediatrician if they have concerns, or reach out for support through help lines like The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741. You can reach Trans Lifeline at 877-565-8860 (U.S.) or 877-330-6366 (Canada) and The Trevor Project at 866-488-7386.

Debbie Gibson celebrates 35th career anniversary with all-new tour

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

For fans thinking they’ll see Debbie Gibson in concert only in their dreams — think again. The celebrated singer is heading out on tour to mark a milestone 35 years in the music industry.

Debbie is launching a month-long tour named after and in support of her latest album, The Body Remembers. She kicks off her whirlwind 15-stop concert series in Minneapolis on June 1 and will hit cities such as Chicago, Boston, Dallas and Washington D.C., before wrapping in San Diego, California, on June 26.

Tickets to see the “Lost in Your Eyes” singer live in concert are now available to pre-order on her official website.

Debbie released her 10th studio album, The Body Remembers, last August. It was her first effort in 20 years to offer completely original songs, following her 2001 album M.Y.O.B.

She told Billboard upon its release, “The goal was to make an undeniably special, authentic, well-crafted and yet still raw album. I feel great about the fact we found that. I feel like I’ve made an undeniable album.”

Added Debbie, “I’ve lived a lot of life up to this album, and it’s all reflected here. There are chapters and chapters of other songs I’ve written, especially in the last 10 years. I knew that the next time I put something out I wanted it to be a drop-the-mic ‘wow’ moment. I feel like this is that album.”

In addition to singing her new songs on tour, she will also throw it back by performing some of her best-known and biggest hits in honor of her career’s 35th anniversary.

“That’s a hero. That’s not just another person”: Dave Grohl recalls friendship with David Bowie

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Dave Grohl has gotten to meet and work with most of his heroes over the years, but his interactions with the late David Bowie were among the most memorable.

Speaking to the Australian TV show 7.30, Grohl recalled the first time he ever saw Bowie in person: He was standing in the photo pit at a British festival where they were both performing, with Grohl, of course, lower down the bill.

“I stood in the photo pit and looked at him and it was like seeing an alien,” Grohl says. “You know, it was like seeing a UFO for the first time, like, ‘Oh, my God, it’s real’. That’s something I’ve never seen before.”

After Grohl ended up meeting Bowie and, later, recording a song with him, his admiration for the icon increased.

“Getting to meet him, all of that feeling coming down to Earth, realizing, ‘Oh, my God, what a gentleman!” says the Foo Fighters front man. “‘What a brilliant, sweet, kind, outrageously funny person.'”

“Watching him step in front of a microphone and begin to sing and you realize, ‘Wow, that voice – that’s real, that just comes out of his mouth, that iconic voice,’” Grohl notes. “The great thing about it is that it really humanizes everything. We’re like, ‘Wow, that’s a real person.’ It’s reassuring, but at the same time, you’re like, ‘That’s a hero. That’s not just another person. That’s David Bowie.’”

In the same interview, Grohl also recalls meeting Elton John and Paul McCartney, how he learned to play drums, and more.

Court win for Bob Saget’s family as judge bans release of records relating to his death

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

A Florida judge has ruled in favor of Bob Saget‘s family: No photos or body camera footage involving the late comedian’s sudden death can be released to media outlets.

The Saget family had sued to block the release of records and photos of Saget’s death earlier this year, arguing that the pain they already felt would be exacerbated if any of it was published.

The family won a permanent injunction on Monday as they continue to mourn the man beloved by many.

Legal expert and trial attorney Tom Porto spoke with ABC’s Good Morning America about the possible reasoning behind the judge’s decision. “This is such a sensitive topic area, that being a death and having photos…you know, the public adoration for Mr. Saget didn’t trump those privacy interests of his family in this scenario,” Porto said.

The Saget family said they’re grateful the judge granted their request to preserve the late actor and comedian’s dignity, as well as their privacy rights.

Just over two months ago, Saget, 65, was found unresponsive in his hotel room hours after performing a stand-up comedy set in Orlando, Florida. The Orange County medical examiner determined that Saget died of a head injury likely sustained in a fall.

Meanwhile, ABC News has obtained the police report of the investigation, featuring interviews with those who had interacted with him prior to his death, and redacted descriptions of the state of his hotel room.

The report also detailed that Saget’s injury to the back of his head was severe enough it “broke the orbital bones at the front of the skull.” That led to a reexamining of his hotel room so investigators could determine what could have caused it.

Police closed the case after not finding anything that contradicted he was injured in an accidental fall.

‘Look at Me: XXXTENTACION’ debuting on Hulu in June

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The new Hulu documentary on the late XXXTentacion has a release date.

Look at Me: XXXTENTACION will hit the streaming service on Friday, June 10. The film will explore how Florida teenager Jahseh Onfroy went on to become a successful SoundCloud rapper and one of the most streamed artists in the world.

The documentary will include commentary from family and friends, as well as never-before-seen archival footage.

XXXTentacion was shot and killed in Broward County, Florida in 2018. He was 20 years old.

White House says first cuts to COVID efforts will hit Americans next week as funding stalls in Congress

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Americans will feel the impact of funding cuts to U.S. COVID response next week, senior administration officials said on Tuesday, as efforts to get more money from Congress sit stalled.

The first impacts will be felt by uninsured Americans, who will no longer be able to submit claims for tests or COVID treatments starting next week, they said. In two weeks, claims to cover vaccinations will no longer be accepted — meaning the program that has been covering people without insurance throughout the pandemic will effectively end.

Anyone seeking monoclonal antibody treatment for COVID will also face a tougher battle starting next week, officials said, when the government plans to cut supplies to states by 30%.

And a new purchase for hundreds of thousands more monoclonal antibody treatments, planned for March 25, will be canceled, senior officials said.

Making those cuts now will keep the U.S. monoclonal antibody supply on-hand until late May, officials said, when they predict the U.S. will fully run out of antibody treatments.

“These are immediate, near-term consequences, some of which we’re having to act on this week, next week, and the first week of April. So time is not on our side. We need the funding immediately,” one senior administration official told reporters.

Biden and his administration have warned for weeks that there was not enough money left to support critical COVID-19 response efforts, including testing at the current pace, purchasing more COVID-19 treatments and acquiring more booster shots.

But pleas for Congress to allot billions more in its latest funding bill fell short last week, leaving government relief efforts strained.

The White House is expected to lay out more details of the cuts in a letter to congressional leadership later Tuesday, senior officials said, and have held meetings on Capitol Hill since February briefing members of Congress on the funding shortfalls.

In a statement highlighting what it said would be the impact, the White House said, “The federal government does not have adequate resources to purchase enough booster vaccine doses for all Americans, if additional doses are needed.

The administration officially requested $22.5 billion earlier this month.

Officials also warned about a faltering defense against any new variants, if more funding isn’t granted by Congress.

“We want to be clear, waiting to provide funding until we’re in a worse spot with the virus will be too late,” an administration official said.

Lack of funding will hamper USAID efforts to vaccinate people abroad, officials said, meaning that “large unvaccinated populations worldwide will increase the risk of new deadly emerging variants emerging that could evade our current vaccines and treatments.”

And in the instance of a new variant, the U.S. would not have the money to buy new variant-specific vaccines for all Americans to get vaccinated, if that becomes necessary, officials warned.

Research on new vaccines and treatments will also be affected by cuts, officials said, including progress on a pan-coronavirus vaccine, which could protect against a range of variants.

On testing capacity, the administration said that current domestic supply will get Americans through June, despite earlier warnings that Americans would see less testing availability starting this month.

“Without additional funding, we do not have the ability to maintain our domestic testing capacity beyond June,” a senior administration official said.

“And because it takes months of ramp up to rebuild capacity, failure to invest now will leave us less prepared for any potential future surges. So, providing funding only when cases rise is far too late to make a difference,” the official said, noting that the U.S. felt the impact of that mistake firsthand during the omicron surge.

Preparing for future surges is becoming increasingly relevant again as cases rise in the U.K. and China due to the BA.2 variant, which is a more transmissible strain of omicron.

But for now, the path forward for COVID-19 relief is murky.

The White House’s request was chiseled down to less than half as much in Congress last week, before it was later cut from the larger spending bill entirely.

Approval for more funding hinges on agreement from Republicans in the Senate, who oppose more spending and say they weren’t given clear warning on the need for more money until too recently.

“Before we would consider supporting an additional $30 billion for COVID-19 relief, Congress must receive a full accounting of how the government has already spent the first $6 trillion,” a group of 25 Republican senators wrote in a letter to the White House in early March.

But Democrats in the House were also splintered last week after leadership agreed to dip into funding that was already allotted to state governments to cover the latest request.

On Tuesday, a senior administration official steered clear of any specific advice for Congress to get the funding approved, but said there is “precedent” for bipartisan support for COVID relief under the previous administration.

“I’m a superhero!” Marvel Studios drops first trailer to Disney+ show ‘Ms. Marvel’

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Marvel Studios has dropped the first trailer for its latest small-screen MCU adventure: the Disney+ series Ms. Marvel.

Newcomer Iman Vellani stars as Kamala Khan. Like her Marvel Comics character, she’s shown trying to balance her dreams of being a superhero with her reality as an awkward high schooler in a traditional Pakistani Muslim family in New Jersey.

“It’s not really the brown girls from Jersey City who save the world,” Kamala laments to a friend at one point.

The trailer hints that Kamala’s powers were acquired differently than they were in the books: It seems for the series, a special bracelet grants her the ability to alter her appearance, leap through the air on plasma pools, and “embiggen” herself — that is, shape-shift her fists and other body parts to deliver cosmically-powerful blows.

And while she has fun with the powers she’s always dreamed about, it appears others are after Kamala: At one point, armed agents are shown stalking her high school, evidently on the hunt for her.

“I always thought I wanted this kind of life, but I didn’t imagine any of this,” she admits.

That said, she’s pretty enthused about her new identity. “I’m a superhero!” she excitedly tells a friend, before running away smiling.

The series debuts June 8.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

16 million: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” now the RIAA’s top-certified single of all time

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Congratulations are in order to Lil Nas X and Ellie Goulding, because the RIAA gave them additional bragging rights on Tuesday: They respectively earned all-new Diamond and Platinum certifications.

Lil Nas X, who just recently returned to the public eye after an unexplained four-month hiatus, sees his smash hit debut single “Old Town Road” officially certified Diamond. The Diamond certification is for 10 million units sold, but “Old Town Road” has actually sold over that amount: The RIAA has certified it for sales of 16 million.

That makes it the highest-certified song of all time, replacing the previous leaders, Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive,” Gotye‘s “Somebody That I Used to Know” and The Chainsmokers‘ “Closer,” all of which have been certified for sales of 14 million units.

Ellie Goulding also got some metal: Her sophomore album Halcyon is officially two-times Platinum for sales of more than two million units. The studio effort, which dropped in October 2012, contained the hits “I Need Your Love” and “Anything Could Happen.” The 2013 reissued version features Ellie’s four-time Platinum hit “Burn.”

Disney’s Encanto also enjoyed some love from the RIAA, with its soundtrack earning Gold certification, while two of its tracks — “Surface Pressure” and “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” are now Platinum.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Maren Morris’ son Hayes gets first pair of glasses: “He looks so cute”

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

It turns out a love of country music isn’t the only quality Maren Morris passed on to her son.

On her Instagram Stories, Maren revealed that her and husband Ryan Hurd‘s son, Hayes, who turns two on March 23, had to get his first pair of glasses. But he’s not doing it alone.

“Hayes had to get glasses today and the entire household is now wearing fake frames to inspire him to keep them on (I have lasik),” the singer explained, alongside a photo of her wearing a pair of faux glasses while Hayes’ can be seen in the background wearing his new specs. “It’s not working so far lol.”

“Hayes had to get glasses today and he looks so cute but I also feel awful that I passed my awful eyesight onto him,” Maren adds on Twitter, sharing in the thread that her son has made a habit out of “ripping them off” his face.

The singer’s post inspired other moms to chime in about their children’s experiences wearing glasses, including Cassie Kelley, wife of Lady A’s Charles Kelley, who shared an adorable photo of their six-year-old son, Ward, wearing glasses as he walks down the hall at school.

“Welcome to the club!” Cassie writes below the photo, with Maren replying, “I cannot” with a crying face and praise hands emojis.

In addition to the glasses, Hayes recently got his first pair of cowboy boots.

Hear Five for Fighting’s ode to Ukrainian Pres. Zelenskyy, “Can One Man Save the World”

March 15, 2022 by WDNY Radio

In his 2006 single “World,” Five for Fighting‘s John Ondrasik asked, “What kind of world do you want?” Now, in a new song, he’s asking, “Can One Man Save the World?”

In this case, that “one man” is Ukrainian president Zelenskyy, who has earned the admiration of many since the Russian invasion. In a statement, John says, “Like so many of you, I have been inspired and in awe of Pres. Zelenskyy, his wife Olena, and the Ukrainian people since Putin’s invasion. Their courage and determination in the face of the Russian onslaught gives hope and fortitude to all freedom-loving people.”

“Who is this comedian/This steel that is Ukrainian?” John sings of Zelenskyy, who actually used to be a comedian. “Can one man save the world/In a thousand years/will they say your name/Or is this all in vain?”

“In Zelenskyy, I sense we are witnessing a modern-day Winston Churchill, but will he get the support he desperately needs to deter Putin’s cold war ambitions?” John adds in a statement. “It makes you ask yourself: ‘Can One Man Save The World?’”

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