Category Archives: Healthy Hints

Covid Update

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While we’re all tired of all this Covid stuff and while you might not think so, it is still important to get vaccinated for Covid!

The booster is effective against the JN.1 which will likely become dominant by the holidays.Protect yourselves, and your family and friends.

PS: Probably best to wait a few months if you’ve recently been infected with Covid.

If you like to do your own research, start here:

“Administration of an updated monovalent mRNA vaccine (XBB.1.5 MV) to uninfected individuals boosted serum virus-neutralization antibodies significantly against not only XBB.1.5 (27.0-fold) and the currently dominant EG.5.1 (27.6-fold) but also key emergent viruses like HV.1, HK.3, JD.1.1, and JN.1 (13.3-to-27.4-fold)”

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.11.26.568730v1

MRI reveals brain changes in people with long COVID

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MRI scans have revealed long-lasting microstructural brain changes in patients after COVID-19 infections, according to a study to be presented at RSNA 2023 meeting in Chicago.”

https://www.auntminnie.com/resources/conference/rsna/2023/article/15658603/mri-reveals-brain-changes-in-people-with-long-covid

Midlife belly fat linked to increased Alzheimer’s risk

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Yet another reason to lose weight 🧐

“People with higher amounts of visceral abdominal fat in midlife may be at increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease”

https://www.auntminnie.com/resources/conference/rsna/2023/article/15658479/midlife-belly-fat-linked-to-increased-alzheimers-risk

Lilly Drug Lowers Heart Disease Risk Factor in Just One Dose

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This is a revolutionary development for cardiac disease (and probably stroke too!)

“A single dose of Eli Lilly & Co.’s experimental drug cut a risk factor that signals heart disease by 94% for almost a year, a first-in-human study found. 

Lilly’s lepodisiran, given at the highest dose, reduced a heart disease-linked protein to undetectable levels for 48 weeks. The research raises hopes that an annual vaccine-like shot could eliminate lipoprotein (a) in people whose genes put them at high risk, said Steve Nissen, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio who led the study.”

My Favorite Epidemiologist on navigating viruses during the holidays!

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We now have not only COVID but also Flu and RSV. Here are some steps which may help you avoid getting ill and spending more time with your family (that’s if you want to!)

Steps to consider:

  • Vaccination (consider all 3 – Flu, Covid & if over 65, RSV)
  • Immunity from prior infection (🙏)
  • Masks
  • Ventilation (open windows, meet outside)
  • Filtration

Contagious Period from Symptom Onset

  • Flu: 5 to 7 days after symptoms
  • -RSV: 3 to 8 days
  • -Covid: 6-10 days

Treatment

  • Paxlovid, especially if over 65

https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/its-the-holiday-season-here-are-simple

Marijuana use linked with increased risk of heart attack, heart failure

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Research Highlights:

  • As more people across the U.S. use marijuana for medical and recreational reasons, two new studies suggest its regular intake may damage heart and brain health.
  • In one study, daily use of marijuana raised the risk of developing heart failure by about one-third, even after considering other factors, compared to people who reported never using marijuana.
  • In a second study, older people with any combination of Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol who used marijuana, significantly increased their risk for a major acute heart or brain event while hospitalized, compared to those who reported not using marijuana.

https://newsroom.heart.org/news/marijuana-use-linked-with-increased-risk-of-heart-attack-heart-failure

Nearly Everyone With Mild Cognitive Impairment Goes Undiagnosed

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See a CNMRI Neurologist if you’re having memory concerns.

Millions of people over the age of 65 likely have mild cognitive impairment, or MCI—minor problems with memory or decisionmaking that can, over time, turn into dementia. But a pair of recent studies both concluded that 92 percent of people experiencing MCI in the United States are not getting diagnosed at an early stage, preventing them from accessing new Alzheimer’s treatments that may be able to slow cognitive decline if it’s caught soon enough.

https://www.wired.com/story/nearly-everyone-with-mild-cognitive-impairment-goes-undiagnosed/

Tai chi helps boost memory

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The study found that people who practiced a simplified form of tai chi called Tai Ji Quan twice a week for about six months improved their score by 1.5 points. This increase may not sound like a lot, but study author Dr. Elizabeth Eckstrom says “you’ve basically given yourself three extra years” of staving off decline. The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

A person with mild cognitive decline can expect to lose, on average, about a half point each year on the test, and once their score drops under 18, people experience quite a bit of impairment from memory loss and cognitive decline, Eckstrom explains.

So, based on these results, “if you’re able to keep doing [tai chi] two or three days a week on a routine basis, you’re going to get extra years before you hit that decline into dementia,” she says.

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/11/06/1210507968/thai-chi-word-games-cognition-mentally-sharp-meditation-motion

Sitting down all day is killing us. The cure is surprisingly simple — and difficult

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“After setting out to pinpoint the minimum amount of movement needed to offset the harms of our sedentary lives, Columbia University Medical Center researchers found that five minutes of gentle walking every half an hour does the trick.”
https://apple.news/AtphLTZHoRDy_rw0xp8O-BQ

The Sleep Habit More Important than Getting 8 Hours

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“A recent study looking at sleep and longevity found that sleep “regularity”—going to bed and waking up at consistent times with few mid-slumber interruptions—matters more than how long you sleep. Sleeping six hours every night on a consistent schedule was associated with a lower risk of early death than sleeping eight hours with very irregular habits.

The study adds to a growing understanding of the links between sleep and longevity. Research in recent years has shown not only how important sleep is for health and lifespan, but also that the duration of sleep isn’t the only thing that matters.”
https://apple.news/A4A2DDlHuRE-VmYWV0pngRg