NIH leading implementation of National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act; calorie labels modestly influence people’s food choices; cancer is more common in young women than men – Morning Medical Update

Author(s):

Austin Littrell

Key Takeaways

NIH is leading efforts to implement the National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act, focusing on research, care, and services for Parkinson’s and related disorders.
Calorie labeling in food outlets results in a small but significant reduction in calorie selection and purchase, averaging a 1.8% decrease.
Young women face nearly double the cancer diagnosis rate compared to young men, driven by breast and thyroid cancers.
Despite being the second leading cause of death, cancer mortality rates continue to decline in the U.S.

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NIH leading implementation of National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act

On Friday, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced their intention to lead the implementation of the National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act, which was signed into law on July 2, 2024. The act establishes a Federal Advisory Council on Parkinson’s Research, Care and Services, in addition to calling for the creation and regular updating of a national plan to prevent, diagnose, treat and cure Parkinson’s, ameliorate symptoms and slow or stop progression, according to an NIH news release. The plan will also target other neurodegenerative Parkinsonisms.

People tend to choose foods with lower calories when they’re labeled

A Cochrane study, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge, University College London, Bath Spa University and the University of Oxford found that calorie labels in supermarkets, restaurants and other food outlets resulted in a small reduction in the calories people selected and purchased. The average calorie reduction was 1.8%, which is equal to 11 calories in a 600-calorie meal, or about two almonds.

Young women are significantly more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than young men

According to the American Cancer Society’s “Cancer Statistics, 2025,” published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, middle-aged women have a slightly higher cancer risk than middle-aged men, and young women are almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with cancer as young men. Notably, breast and thyroid cancers in women are driving the increase.

Cancer mortality, however, continues to decline, despite remaining the second leading cause of death in the U.S., and the leading cause of death in people younger than 85 years old. CNN Health has more.