By Steven Reinberg
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, June 4 (HealthDay News) -- Hispanic high school students are more likely to engage in risky health behaviors, including sexual intercourse, drug use, and suicide than white or black teens, U.S. health officials said Wednesday.

While there have been substantial improvements in many behaviors among high school students, Hispanic students remain at higher risk for some risky sexual behaviors than their black and white counterparts, according to a report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

ATLANTA - Hispanic high school students use drugs and attempt suicide at higher rates than their black and white classmates, according to a new federal survey that shows a continuation of a troubling trend.

"It is disheartening that we aren't seeing progress among Hispanic teens for certain risk factors," said Howell Wechsler of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a prepared statement.

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The number of U.S. Army suicides increased to 108 in 2007, six more than the previous year, two defense officials revealed Thursday in advance of a full report to be released later in the day. About one-quarter of the suicides occurred in Iraq.

The 108 confirmed suicides among active duty soldiers and National Guard and Reserve troops that had been activated was lower than the preliminary figure released in January that suggested as many as 121 troops may have committed suicide in 2007, the Associated Press reported.

On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration announced that they are conducting a probe into the popular allergy medication Singulair because it allegedly causes depression and leads to risk for suicides. If I recall, several other drugs have lead to investigations for similar risks. Accutane comes to mind. Has anyone taking Singulair experienced these types of symptoms?

THURSDAY, March 27 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it was investigating the possibility of an increased risk of mood changes and suicidal behavior among those who take the highly popular asthma drug Singulair.

Singulair is the number one-selling drug among people aged 17 and younger. Last year, it posted sales of $4.3 billion, making it Merck & Co.'s top-selling product, according to the Associated Press.

In issuing its statement, the FDA stressed that asthma patients should not stop taking Singulair without talking to their doctor first.

SUNDAY, March 23 (HealthDay News) -- While many people view spring as a time of renewal and hope, the greatest number of suicides in the United States occur each year in April and May, notes the American College of Emergency Physicians.

Fall Out Boy bassist (and Ashlee Simpson beau) Pete Wentz has revealed that he once was so "completely lost and out of control" he tried to take his own life.

Wentz, 28, says he had seen several doctors who gave him prescription drugs but things worsened around the time his band had finished recording their major label record a few years ago.

"I got in my car. I remember I was listening to Jeff Buckley doing Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and sat there and took a bunch of [anxiety drug] Ativan in a Best Buy parking lot," Wentz says in a video for MTV's college channel MTVU.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Heather Locklear's psychiatrist is the one who called 911, after speaking with her on the phone. We're told the shrink spoke with Heather on Saturday night and was alarmed because she was "upset" and he believed she might OD on medication prescribed for depression. The call was listed with dispatch as a "suicide attempt." http://www.tmz.com/2008/03/10/heathers-d...

By Steven Reinberg EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter FRIDAY, Feb. 1 (HealthDay News) -- There's increasing evidence that the smoking-cessation drug Chantix is linked to serious "neuropsychiatric" side effects, including agitation, depressed mood and even suicide, U.S. health officials said Friday.