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Health Highlights: Aug. 17, 2008

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

High Incidence of Suicidal Thinking Among College Students: Survey

More than half of 26,000 college students who completed a Web survey said they had thought about committing suicide at least once in their lives, University of Texas at Austin researchers say.

Fifteen percent of respondents said they had seriously considered suicide, and more than 5 percent said they had actually attempted to kill themselves at least once, psychologist David J. Drum and co-authors reported Sunday in a news release to coincide with their planned presentation at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association in Boston.

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The survey of students at 70 colleges and universities was administered in the spring of 2006. It also found:

Six percent of undergraduates and 4 percent of graduate students said they had seriously considered suicide at least once in the prior year.
The most common reasons for suicidal thinking were: wanting relief from emotional or physical pain, problems with romantic relationships, and problems with school or academics.
Fourteen percent of undergraduates and 8 percent of graduate students who seriously contemplated suicide in the prior year actually made a suicide attempt.
Nineteen percent of undergraduate attempters and 28 percent of graduate attempters needed medical attention.
Half of those who attempted suicide tried overdosing on drugs.

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Food Container Chemical Not Harmful, U.S. Government Scientists Find

A chemical used in the making of baby bottles and other food containers is not dangerous, U.S. Food and Drug Administration researchers have decided.

The Associated Press reports that FDA scientists have confirmed the agency's original decision that the chemical bisphenol A, which hardens plastic, is not a threat to either infants or adults. The European Food Safety Authority made a similar finding in late July.

Trace amounts of bisphenol A have been found to leach into food containers, the FDA acknowledged, but the agency's scientists said they found no evidence that such small amounts were harmful, the AP reported.