'I won't have anywhere to go': Recovery home residents talk effects of federal cuts
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NBC News
a day ago
- NBC News
Recovery home residents face impact of federal funding cuts
Fresh Start, a recovery program based out of Tennessee, is facing the impacts of state and federal budget cuts. NBC News' Kate Snow visits one of the recovery homes and talks to the women whose lives are being impacted.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Popular supplement taken by millions of Americans leaves woman HOSPITALIZED for liver damage
A New Jersey woman has vowed never to take a supplement again after she nearly lost her liver to a wellness pill. Katie Mohan, 57, began taking turmeric in March after seeing a doctor on Instagram say it could fight inflammation and joint pain. She bought the supplement online, and started taking the pills daily, believing they would boost her health. But a few weeks later, she began suffering from stomach pain, nausea and fatigue, then her urine turned dark, a warning sign of serious liver damage. It wasn't until Mohan heard about a man suffering from similar symptoms that she started to connect the dots. While taking daily doses of turmeric supplements, he was hospitalized due to liver damage. 'A light bulb went off in my head,' she told NBC News, who first revealed her story, 'and I said, 'Oh, my gosh! I wonder if this is what's wrong with me?' She went to the ER, where a blood test quickly revealed that her liver enzyme levels were 60 times higher than normal. Doctors said she was just 'one step' from liver failure, which would have led to needing an organ transplant. The turmeric supplements she took were pills that contained about 2,250 milligrams (mg) of curcumin, which gives turmeric its color, per pill. This is about 11 times the daily dose recommended by the World Health Organization for an average woman weighing about 150lbs. Turmeric, a golden-colored staple in curries, is generally safe to consume, particularly in foods. It has exploded in popularity in recent years particularly among arthritis patients, amid claims the supplement can help reduce inflammation and soothe joints. But doctors warn that it is possible for the supplement to cause liver damage, which may be because it can trigger an immune reaction in the organ. In Mohan's case, she was hospitalized for six days and received an IV drip. But her doctors said she was fortunate that the injuries were not much worse. Dr Nikolaos Pyrsopoulos and a hepatologist at NYU who treated her, said: 'It was very serious. Katie actually was one step before full liver damage, liver failure, requiring liver transplant.' She was able to recover in part because the liver is one of the few organs in the body that retains the ability to completely regenerate itself. Amid her recovery from the ordeal, Mohan said: 'I'll never put another supplement in my body again.' Describing her symptoms, she said: 'I just did not feel well generally. I also noticed that despite drinking a lot of water every day, that my urine was darker.' About 11million Americans now take turmeric regularly, estimates suggest, particularly those who suffer from arthritis, amid claims it can help to ease joint pain. But amid the surge in popularity, there has also been an uptick in liver transplants due to supplements. A 2022 study found that between 1995 and 2020, the number of people who suffered liver failure due to a supplement had surged eight fold. Turmeric supplements have exploded in popularity online amid claims the substance can reduce inflammation, ease pain, improve memory and even fight cancer.
NBC News
3 days ago
- NBC News
Gaza babies' lives at risk as Israel blocks fuel used in hospitals
Babies receiving critical care in Gaza risk becoming much sicker or even dying in the coming days as the enclave runs out of fuel and hospitals are forced to turn off incubators, doctors warn. Walking down a row of incubators in the neonatal unit of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, Dr. Ahmad Al-Farra, head of the facility's pediatric unit, shared each baby's story one by one. "This baby is a full-term baby," he told NBC News' crew on the ground Thursday, gesturing at a tiny figure tucked into an incubator, wrapped in only his diaper and with an oxygen tube fixed to his nose with surgical tape. "As you can see, he is depending on the mechanical ventilation," Al-Farra said. "If the electricity was cut off ... this baby will not survive." His warning evokes memories of early on in the war, when a number of infants died at hospitals in northern Gaza after repeated warnings that a military assault in the area would end up being fatal for the babies. Nasser Hospital is just one of several facilities in Gaza facing "imminent shutdown" as fuel stocks in the enclave run out, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned Wednesday. The closure of vital units would most likely result in patients' deaths, including in the intensive care and neonatal units, it said. OCHA added that the "total ban on fuel entry" enforced by Israel for around 130 days was to blame for the shortages, which it said has also severely impacted water, sanitation and hygiene services. While Israel in May lifted a blockade that prevented the entry of food, medical supplies and other vital items, it has only allowed in a limited amount of aid, including"basic" food supplies. "The real threat to babies in Gaza isn't a lack of fuel — it's Hamas," David Mencer, a spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said in response to a request from NBC News for comment to the warnings of a fuel crisis at hospitals in the enclave. "They hijack fuel for terror, not hospitals," he said. Mencer did not answer the question as to whether more fuel would be allowed to reach hospitals in Gaza in the near future. COGAT, the Israeli military's liaison with the Palestinians, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Dr. Mohammad Saqer, director of nursing at Nasser Hospital, told NBC News that the facility only had around 3,000 liters (790 gallons) of diesel left. He said it needed 4,500 liters (1,190 gallons) daily to operate all departments effectively. Already, he said, the hospital had turned off electricity for some departments, funneling power to only the most vital units. "The situation is very catastrophic because the electricity will abruptly go off within 24 hours," Saqer said. "This means that a lot of patients, especially in the ICU in addition to other departments, are subject to inevitable death." Hospitals across the enclave have struggled to operate throughout the war, after being hit hard in Israel's offensive. Of the territory's 36 hospitals, none are fully functioning; 18 are providing partial services and 18 are not working at all, according to World Health Organization data last updated Monday. Saqer, meanwhile, called on the international community to step in and help get fuel to Gaza's hospitals in order to "save the lives of the children." His call came as the European Union foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said in a post on X on Thursday that E.U. officials had reached a new deal with Israel to allow much-needed food and fuel into the enclave. Kallas said the deal could result in 'more crossings open, aid and food trucks entering Gaza, repair of vital infrastructure and protection of aid workers." Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar acknowledged the deal at a conference in Vienna, according to The Associated Press.
