Get the USA TODAY app Flying spiders explained Start the day smarter ☀️ Honor all requests?
NEWS
Diabetes

Health roundup: Severe childbirth complications rising

Kim Painter, Special for USA TODAY
A newborn baby girl rests in the arms of her parents. Most U.S.  women get through childbirth safely, but severe complications are rising, new data show. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Your Wednesday morning health roundup:

Childbirth dangers: Severe complications from childbirth, such as heart attack, stroke and kidney failure, roughly doubled among U.S. women between 1998 and 2009, a new report says. While such complications remain rare among the 4 million women giving birth each year, the report raises concerns about possible causes, which include more obesity, diabetes and other health problems among pregnant women. The rising ages of women giving birth could also play a role. (Reuters)

Magnet risks: Warning labels on Buckyballs and other powerful magnet toys are not keeping them out of the hands -- or digestive tracts -- of children, says a survey of 1,700 doctors who reported 204 magnet ingestions by children in the last year alone. Manufacturers are resisting calls to discontinue the products, which they say are well labeled and not marketed to children. (CNN)

Green tea and cancer: Women who drink lots of green tea appear to have a slightly decreased risk of stomach, colon and throat cancer, a new study finds. But it's not clear the tea deserves the credit, since women who drink it have other healthy habits that might play roles. (Reuters)

Today's talker: Is yoga just another form of exercise -- or is it a religious practice?Some California parents are claiming that the yoga program recently introduced to one public school system is, in fact, an attempt to teach Hindu religious values and is unconstitutional. They've hired a lawyer, who tells ABC News that the program is "dangerous to kids."

Featured Weekly Ad