Timothy

There are 20 conditions, which will make people eligible for vaccination in the next big group in Wisconsin. These 20 conditions include body mass index as well, which has been garnering much attention these days. Health experts have said that anyone who is in the age range of 16 years or above with a BMI of 25 or higher will be eligible to receive the vaccine from March 29. With the new condition, around 2 million residents of Wisconsin will be getting the vaccine in the next phase of the vaccination. The next phase of the vaccination will include people who are dealing with asthma, cancer, and Down syndrome. There are many studies, which show that being overweight and obese can lead to a severe reaction to coronavirus. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well has said that obesity might increase the risk of hospitalization due to COVID19 by threefold. The agency has warned that as people’s body mass index (BMI) shoots up, the risk of COVID19 as well increases. Experts have said that just like there are different degrees of asthma and diabetes, there are different degrees of being overweight as well. They have said that people with a BMI of 25 can look slim and thin. Though muscle mass is a contributing factor, people can have BMIs, which are increased for people, who might not have the same levels of risk.

Health workers are going to decide who will be receiving the vaccine first as young, muscular athletes as well have become eligible for vaccine the same day as cancer patients and people with other underlying health issues. The Directorate of Health Services (DHS) has said that there are some ways that will help pharmacies, public health departments, and health systems to make this happen. Experts have said that prioritizing people with two or more underlying health issues or starting with younger people who are in the age range of 50 to 64 years with one high-risk condition then moving to a younger age group will be feasible.

However, health authorities have yet not decided how they are going to prioritize the next group for vaccination. Dr. Matt Anderson at UW health has said that most probably the process will depend on people to help identify them as eligible for vaccination in order to avoid further lapse. Health experts have said that the process of identifying people who are eligible for the next phase of vaccination is not going to be easy. There is a possibility that there will be someone who is young and a little overweight but relatively healthy getting the shot before a person who is dealing with a severe health condition. Dr. Anderson has urged young people to be a little patient and allow people who are at a higher risk of being contracting the virus to receive the vaccine first.

In a new study, experts have found that people who are suffering from diabetes and being treated with the medicine metformin are significantly at a lower risk of death due to COVID19 as compared to those who are not being treated with the drug. The study has found that African American people are disproportionately at a higher risk of contracting the virus as compared to white people. The findings of the study have been released in the journal Frontiers in Endocrinology. The COVID19 study has looked at the risk factors that might make people more likely to contract the SARS-CoV-2 virus or die due to the disease in case they test positive for COVID19. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a new coronavirus that has some similarities to other coronaviruses. However, experts are yet to uncover how it affects people from certain groups and how to reduce the risks linked to the disease. Many past studies have shown links between certain health issues, demographic traits, and the risk of being infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus or dying due to the disease. The new study supports the early findings of observational studies and sketchy evidence.

Experts have done a retrospective observational study. They have included around 25326 people who have tested positive for COVID19 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham from February to June 2020. They have observed de-identified electronic health data to offer demographic and medical details for each participant. As per the study, only 604 people have tested positive for COVID19, which is a quite low rate of infection. Experts have said that it might be due to the number of asymptomatic health care staff and patients, who have been receiving elective procedures. They have said that around 70 percent of people who have tested positive for the disease have been dealing with high blood pressure. Around 61 percent of them have been suffering from obesity and 40 percent of COVID19 positive patients have been dealing with diabetes. Experts have looked at people with diabetes in more detail. They have said that diabetes patients who have tested positive for COVID19 and are being treated with the drug called metformin for diabetes have been at 11 percent risk of dying due to COVID19. While diabetes patients who have been diagnosed with COVID19 and have not received treatment with metformin have been at 24 percent risk of death due to the virus. The study has noted that the risk of death due to COVID19 among diabetes patients who have been taking metformin has been the same as the general population. The author of the study has said that after adjusting age, sex, race, obesity, kidney disease, hypertension, and heart failure, the beneficial effect of metformin has been the same.

Experts have said that the beneficial effect of metformin might be due to its anti-inflammatory and antithrombotic properties. The study as well has noted that black people contribute to 26 percent of the Alabama population but they account for 52 percent of people who have been diagnosed with COVID19. The rate of death due to the virus among Black people has been quite different from the rate of death in white people. The lead author of the study Prof. Anath Shalev has said that being African American primarily seems to be a risk factor for contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus rather than the death due to the disease. It proves that the racial disparity, which has been reported in many past studies, might be due to exposure risk, external socioeconomic factors, and lack of access to proper healthcare. The study has shown that nearly 11 percent of people who have tested positive for COVID19 have lost their lives. In 93 percent of cases, people who have died have been over 50 years of age.

A report has revealed that thousands of people who work on computers, technicians in the lab, research scholars have been vaccinated against COVID19 without qualifying the criteria. Hospitals, which are affiliated with the University of Columbia, New York University, Harvard, and Vanderbilt, have immunized their workers who are not eligible to receive the vaccine. At the same time, millions of frontline workers are still waiting in line to get the vaccine. The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued guidelines to make sure that vaccines first reach people who are in high-risk groups. Health care workers who deal with COVID19 patients, residents, and staff members at nursing homes and people who are above 75 years of age and certain essential workers have been kept in high-risk groups. Each state in the US has come up with its own version of guidelines, but as the pressure of vaccine rollout is increasing, people have been demanding a more flexible approach. The officials from the CDC and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have said it will be apt to loosen the criteria and vaccinate as many people as possible. Still, these officials have not said that people who are in their 20s and 30s should be given the vaccine before elderly people and frontline workers, who are at a higher risk. The Commissioner of the FDA, Stephen Hahn has said that the state should prioritize groups of people who are at a higher risk of the disease.

A handful of the country’s most prestigious academic hospitals have defied the most important guidelines set by the government. Staff members who have nothing to do with patient care and who are not 75 years old and above have been given the shots. As per the report, some of these institutions have been among the first beneficiaries of the limited supplies of the vaccine in the US. A scientist from John Hopkins University in Baltimore Ruth Faden has said that connections have no place in the vaccine rollout. If vaccine rollout does not go in the right manner, the consequences will be disastrous. People need to adhere to the guidelines laid down by the government. Dr. Stanley Perlman, an immunologist at the University of Iowa has said that the CDC has never asked to include people in the first tier of the vaccine rollout who are not linked with patient care such as administrators and graduate students. Dr. Stanley Perlman is also a member of the committee that has set the guidelines for vaccine rollout in the country. Vanderbilt University in Nashville has asked all its staff members to enroll in the vaccination program regardless of they have been treating patients or not. The vaccination has started in the months of December last year when the Tennessee Hospital Association has approved inoculation for all staff members of the hospital irrespective of their job profiles. The medical center has announced that it is going to vaccinate people who are in the high-risk category, but only after they are done giving the initial vaccine dose to around 15000 people who are employed at the hospital. The Chief Communication officer at the Medical Center, John Howser has said that they have been pursuing the orders from the Tennessee Department of Health while vaccinating people from the Vanderbilt Health workforce and other people from the priority group. On the other hand, the Tennessee Department of Health has said that they have been pushed to use any remaining vaccine to immunize high priority people at the beginning of the vaccine rollout. Sadly, the authorities have tagged their own staff members as high priority people.

In Boston, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, which are affiliated with Harvard University, have vaccinated more than 26000 staff members. However, hospitals have included people who have been looking after patients as well and those who might have been exposed to the virus, and those who have been a part of clinical trials. Around 2.1 million frontline workers have been vaccinated in New York. Governor Andrew has said that hospitals that do not immunize faster to use their doses will have to pay a fine of up to $100000. The word has spread faster at research labs. Columbia University, medical centers, and hospitals have started distributing shots to everyone regardless of their eligibility. Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows have started gathering to get the vaccine. A report has said that almost everyone from a cancer research lab, which is affiliated with the Millstein Hospital, has received the shots. Although the officials from the hospital have said that people who do not need shots have not been given the shots. The vice president of the hospital has said that they have been following the directives of the New York Health Department. However, some people have been upset that they do not qualify for the vaccine. The officials have said that they have received an email from the state authorities saying that hospitals that are done vaccinating 15000 staff members who interact with patients can start vaccinating other workers. However, the email has not mentioned anything about older people and high-risk groups.

The Mayor of Los Angeles County Eric Garcetti has said that the COVID19 pandemic is taking a serious toll on the city as the virus spreads quite faster through the households and residents let their guard down. He has claimed that the world’s most populated city has been reporting a new case of COVID19 every six seconds. Eric Garcetti has said that the news of vaccine rollout has made people relaxed and they have stopped taking precautionary measures hoping that the vaccine will protect them from contracting the virus. He has said that this is not the time people should relax as this virus preys on people’s weaknesses and exhaustion. Although the county has seen high obedience of mask-wearing and people have been abiding by the stay home orders, but still, the state continues to report enormous numbers of new cases. Around 12400 new cases have been reported in Los Angeles County alone. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has said that this is the fastest pace of new cases since the pandemic has started. The county has a population of 40 million people, which is a fourth of the state’s total population. In Los Angeles County, around 40 percent have COVID19 patients have lost their lives.

The State Department of Public Health has said that the state has seen another 181 deaths and nearly 45350 new confirmed cases on Sunday, which brings the total number of state’s COVID cases to 2.4 million. More than 26530 people have lost their lives due to the disease in California, which makes it the third state to cross 25000 deaths since the outbreak has hit the US. As per the data from John Hopkins University, New York has reported around 38000 deaths due to the virus and Texas has seen more than 27000 deaths so far. The officials from San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles have said that they have found two confirmed cases of the new strain of the virus, which seems to be more infectious than the original one. There have been four confirmed cases of the new strain of the virus in San Diego County. The new variant of the virus has been identified in Colorado and Florida as well. Health experts have confirmed that two confirmed cases of the new mutant virus have been found in the same household in the Big Bear area of San Bernardino County. The San Bernardino County Department of Public Health has said that one of the patients has contracted the virus from a traveler, who has returned from the UK. The patient who has caught the virus has started showing symptoms of the disease three days after contracting the virus.

Health officials have been investigating whether the traveler who has returned from the UK is a resident of the Big Bear area. They are also examining whether the person who has returned from the UK has been infected with the new strain of the virus. The officials from Governor Gavin Newsom’s office have said that California’s Fire and Rescue Mutual Aid System, which is usually used in response to wildfires, floods, and natural calamities will help those hospitals which have stretched their capacity. Paramedics and emergency medical workers are being sent out for a 14-day operational period to help emergency rooms and other hospital sectors that are dealing with a lack of staffing. As per the state records, more than 26000 people have been hospitalized across California on Sunday, whereas 4500 people have been admitted to the intensive care unit. In the San Francisco Bay Area, there has been a COVID19 outbreak at the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Emergency Department, where are around 44 staff members have been infected with the disease. The southern states of the US have been majorly impacted by the latest surge in cases from the agricultural San Joaquin Valley to the Mexico border. Hospitals in these states are flooded with COVID19 patients and intensive care units are struggling with the lack of beds for patients who have been recently diagnosed with the virus. Ambulances are forced to wait in bays for more than eight hours before transferring patients inside hospitals. In some cases, doctors have no choice other than to treat the patients inside the ambulance. Officials have said that there has been an increase in cases among homeless people around Los Angeles County, which has overwhelmed the health system. The rate of infection has increased significantly among homeless people after Thanksgiving and since then it has continued to shoot up.

State wildlife officials have informed that a contagious disease outbreak has emerged in rabbits, which has been spreading across many parts of Utah. Experts have said that the outbreak is known as Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease. The officials from the Utah Division of Wildlife have found confirmed cases of the disease across northern and southern Utah. As per the experts, a calicivirus leads to this disease, which majorly hits rabbits including wild and domestic European rabbits. A non-profit rabbit rescue organization called House Rabbit Society has said that the disease outbreak has reduced the rabbit population in the US, said the experts. The US Department of Agriculture has said that the virus does not impact human health.

The disease has emerged in China in 1984 for the first time, although experts think it has originated in Europe. There have been many confirmed cases of the disease in Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and the Mediterranean. Experts have seen that the virus has not been found to affect rabbits or hares native to North America such as cottontails, snowshoe hares, and jackrabbits before 2020. However, the House Rabbit Society has found that the disease is killing these species now. Experts as well have said that a new virus RHDV2, which has originated in France in 2010, has rapidly been transmitted across Europe and the Mediterranean. The virus has been found to be a swift and sudden killer. In most cases, rabbits do not exhibit any symptoms of the disease and die suddenly. The death rate in rabbits due to this disease is between 40 to 100 percent. They usually die due to internal bleeding.

The officials have said that the virus transmits through proximity with infected rabbits or indirect contact with dead objects, rabbit products, food, and water. The disease can spread through mechanical vectors and predators such as insects, rodents, pet dogs and cats, and birds as well. The virus can live in the atmosphere for months and infect through the urine or feces of infected rabbits or from predators, who have consumed infected rabbits, said Utah officials. Some cases of the disease have been reported in New York, the Southwest, and the Pacific Northwest. The same outbreak has been seen in some areas of Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, and some parts of Mexico as well. Utah Wildlife officials have advised people to be vigilant about rabbits that are bleeding from their mouth and keep disinfecting hands or equipment which might have been used in handling infected animals.

Experts have included one more issue in the list of drawbacks of plant-based diets. They have said that such diets are linked with a higher risk of bone fractures. A large longitudinal study has found that vegans and vegetarian people might be at a higher risk of bone fractures as compared to people who eat meat. The findings of the study have been released in the journal BMC Medicine. As per the US National Cancer Institute, fractures are common among old age people and adults. However, past studies have shown that vegetarian people have a low bone density as compared to non-vegetarians. Bone density can be defined as the number of minerals such as calcium and phosphorus found in a certain volume of bone. People who do not eat meat are identified with considerably lower intakes of calcium and protein. The link between vegans and a higher risk of bone fractures has been uncertain until now.

This has been the first large-scale study, which has looked at the risk of total fractures and fractures at different parts of the body in people having different diet regimes. The lead author of the study Dr. Tammy Tong has said that there have been nearly 4.1 more cases of fractures among vegetarian people and 19.4 more fracture incidents per 1000 people having plant-based diets over a time span of 10 years. Nearly 55000 healthy adults have been given a questionnaire consisting of questions on their diet, socio-demographic traits, lifestyle, and medical history from 1993 to 2001. Experts have divided them into categories such as meat eaters, fish eaters, vegetarians (no fish and no meat but diet included dairy products and eggs), and vegans (no animal product). In 2016, experts have found a total of 3941 fractures among the participants. They have found that vegans with low intakes of calcium and protein have been at a 43 percent greater risk of fractures on hips, vertebrae, and legs. While vegetarians and fish eaters have been at a higher risk of hip fractures as compared to meat-eaters. Nevertheless, experts have said that the risk has been reduced when they have considered their BMI (Body Mass Index) and enough intakes of calcium and protein. However, the risk has been on the higher side for vegans.

The findings of the study coincide with other researches as well, which has found a link between bone health, calcium and protein intake, and BMI. Other experts have said that there are many limitations to this study like the majority of the participants in the study have been white European women. Therefore, the findings of the study cannot be generalized to others. The authors of the study have not been able to derive any data on calcium supplementations. They as well have not been able to find causes behind reported fractures. Nutrient intake of the participants has been self-reported by the participants themselves, it has not been objectively evaluated. Hence, there is a need for further researches to validate the findings of this large-scale study.

Scientists have found that babies who are born via C-section are at more than double the risk of childhood asthma and allergies as compared to those who are born via vaginal birth. A new study has analyzed 700 children in the US to validate the findings. Experts have found a strange link between babies born through C-sections and developing asthma and allergies at the age of six. A Caesarean section is a procedure, which is performed to deliver the baby through incisions in the abdomen and uterus. Experts have said that C- section refrains babies from getting some valuable microorganisms from their mother’s birth canal. It as well deters the development of the immune systems in babies. In some cases, it can increase the risk of respiratory conditions by two-fold in babies, who are born via C-section, said the experts. This surgical procedure is preferred by nearly one in four pregnant women in the UK. It restricts the child’s ability to receive probiotic microscopic organisms during birth.

This study carries some implications for identifying the role of C-section in twisting the baby’s microbiota. Microbiota can be defined as Microbiome as well; it consists of collective genomes of microorganisms in a specific atmosphere. The study has found that the microbiome forms in those babies as well who are born through C-section but it might take longer than those children who are born via natural birth. The author of the study, Dr. Martin Blaster has said that each generation of mothers passes on this microbiome to the next generation as the baby is covered with these beneficial germs during natural birth. He has said that babies who are born via C-section take a little longer to develop a normal microbiome. At that time when their immune system is in the developing stage, they are at a higher risk of being diagnosed with certain ailments such as asthma later in life, said the expert.

Scientists have compared the impact of vaginal birth and C-section in 700 children through the first year of their lives. They have examined children’s fecal samples during different phases such as one week, one month, and one year. They have analyzed the effect of c-section delivery on the variety and maturity of gut microbial composition in the first year of children’s life. They have tried to observe whether the gut microbial composition is linked to a higher risk of having asthma within the first 6 years of their lives. At the end of the study, experts have found that the risk of asthma and other allergies has increased by more than two-fold at the age of six in children who are born via C-section. They as well have observed certain changes in gut microbial composition. Experts have said that by the age of one, children who are born via C-section have been at a lower risk of asthma if their gut microbial has recovered and has started to grow normally. Experts have said that the findings of the study do not discourage women to opt for a life-saving procedure in the case of an emergency.

The UK study has revealed that most of the devastating effects of statins are not triggered by the drug rather it occurs due to people believing that it will make them fall ill. Experts have said that people having a pre-conceived notion that cholesterol-lowering drugs will make them sick is a phenomenon called a nocebo effect. It contributes to 90 percent of health issues linked to cholesterol-reducing drugs. The British Heart Foundation as well as acknowledged the findings of the study. Experts from Imperial College London believe that the results of the study will encourage people to stay on statins. Statins are a category of lipid-reducing drugs, which lessen the risk of heart ailments. These drugs are one of the most frequently prescribed medicines in the UK.

Experts have reported that around 8 million people in the UK take cholesterol-lowering drugs to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Nevertheless, up to a fifth of them have discontinued their medications due to side effects it causes such as muscle ache, fatigue, joint pain, and feeling sick. A nocebo effect, when people expect that a drug will make them worse and eventually it does, has been observed in many other medicines as well. This statin study has taken place at Hammersmith hospital. The study has enrolled nearly 60 patients who have stopped taking such drugs due to side effects in the past. All the participants have been given 12 bottles. Four of them have been filled with a months’ worth of statins, four of them have been filled with dummy pills, and four have been empty bottles. Experts have asked them to score the severity of their symptoms from zero to 100 every day for a year.

Scientists have found that 90 percent of the severity of their symptoms has been prevalent among people who have been taking dummy pills thinking, it might be a statin. The author of the study Dr. James Howard has claimed that side effects of the drug are triggered by the act of consuming tablets not due to the material inside it. The study has found that the symptoms of such patients have been so bad that they have stopped taking the tablets on 71 occasions including when they have been taking dummy pills during the study. Experts have said that be it the nocebo effect or chemicals in the drugs, some people genuinely find it difficult to consume these drugs. However, during the study, half of the participants have been able to restart their medications. The author of the study has said that the nocebo effect is exactly the opposite of the placebo effect.

A new study has revealed that eating tree nuts such as almonds, hazelnut, and walnuts can trigger beneficial changes in the quality of sperm. Experts have claimed that diet is a lifestyle and environmental factor, which impacts the quality of sperm among men. They have analyzed the diet pattern of 72 non-smokers and healthy male participants in the study. The participants have reported that they have been following a western-style diet. Such a diet usually includes red meat and processed foods. Scientists have asked 48 of them to include at least 60 grams of nuts in their diet, which is around 2 ounces for at least 14 weeks. While the rest of the participants have continued to take their western-style diet.

For the first time, scientists have demonstrated the effects of specific foods on sperm quality in humans. Towards the end of the study, experts have found that for people who have included nuts in their diet, 36 genomic regions of sperm DNA have shown a biological process called methylation, which is essential for normal development. At the same time, for people who have been following a western-style diet without tree nuts, 97.2 percent of genomic regions of sperm DNA have displayed hypermethylation. The findings of the study have confirmed that adding nuts in the regular western diet affects the sperm DNA methylation in specific regions. The lead author of the study, Albert Salas Huetos has said that there are some sensitive regions of the sperm epigenome, which react to the diet we take, and it can lead to certain changes in sperm quality. It affects sperm’s ability to fertilize as well.

The new study has been done by the Human Nutrition Unit of the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, the Pere Virgili Institute of Health and CIBERobn, and the University of Utah. It is an extension of a past study, which has been done in 2018. The 2018 research has clearly mentioned that men who have included nuts in their daily diet have been identified with improved sperm count, viability, motility, and morphology. The findings of the new research have been released in the journal called Andrology.

Reactive oxygen molecules at high concentrations, which are known as oxidants are quite damaging for cells in all living beings. However, a new study has found that low levels of the oxidant called hydrogen peroxide can trigger an enzyme, which can reduce the rate of aging in yeast cells. Antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E are known for eliminating oxidants, which might react with essential molecules in the body and damage their natural function. Cells of the body develop a strong defense mechanism to ward off these oxidants. A high amount of oxidants can lead to serious damage in the cell membranes and DNA. These oxidants are produced in the body through normal metabolism. This study has been done by experts from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. Earlier, health experts have thought that oxidants are harmful agents only, however, now they have started to understand that they can trigger positive effects as well.

Experts have said that a low amount of hydrogen peroxide can do wonders. It is a chemical compound, which is used for hair and tooth whitening. However, at the same time, it is quite dangerous in high concentration. It is a metabolically formed oxidant. Scientists have been analyzing an enzyme known as Tsa1. It is an element of a group of antioxidants, which is called peroxiredoxins. Past studies have shown that these enzymes participate in the defense mechanism of yeast cells against damaging oxidants. The lead author of the study has confirmed that peroxiredoxins do help in increasing the life span of a variety of organisms if they are combined with reduced calorie intake. It is a known fact that less calorie intake can extend the life span of many living beings from yeast to monkeys. Many studies have confirmed that prompting peroxiredoxins can delay the process of aging in a range of living beings when they get low calories via food.

In the new study, experts have found that the Tsa1 enzyme needs a certain amount of hydrogen peroxide to be activated to join in the process of reducing the aging in yeast cells. Experts have seen that Tsa1 does not impact the levels of hydrogen peroxide in aged cells rather it needs a small quantity of hydrogen peroxide to slow down the activity of a central signaling pathway when the cells receive low calorie. This process ultimately halts the cell division and other processes related to the formation of building blocks of the cells. During this process, the cell’s defense against stress is activated which as well helps them to age slowly. Experts have said that the study highlights the molecular causes behind ailments like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes, which turn more chronic with age. With the new findings, experts have come one step closer to identify how oxidants can as well reduce the aging process.