Monday, October 31, 2022

CDC Director tests positive for COVID-19 in rebound case

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CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky tested positive for COVID-19 again on Sunday, 10 days after initially contracting the virus. 

Walensky, who is up to date on her vaccines, started a course of Pfizer's antiviral drug Paxlovid when she first started developing symptoms on Oct. 21. 

Her symptoms improved and she tested negative, but she tested positive again in an apparent rebound case on Sunday. 

Walensky is the third high-profile government official to experience a rebound COVID-19 case after taking Paxlovid, which was approved in December for patients at risk of severe infection. 

COVID-19 SYMPTOMS REBOUND AFTER PAXLOVID MAY BE DUE TO IMMUNE SYSTEM RESPONSE

President Joe Biden tested positive for COVID-19 in a rebound case in July after testing negative for four days. 

Dr. Anthony Fauci, who is stepping down at the end of this year, also suffered a rebound case in June. 

Walensky is now isolating at home and working virtually, the CDC said.



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Cats at college? 'Highly emotional' students may benefit from felines on campus: study

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People who are "highly emotional" may benefit from petting cats as part of animal-assisted interventions on college campuses, according to a new study published in the journal Anthrozoös.

"As most university-based animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) feature interactions with dogs, little is known about the feasibility of providing opportunities to interact with cats," according to the abstract of the research paper, "University Cats? Predictors of Staff and Student Responsiveness Toward On-Campus Cat Visitations." 

"AAIs" refers to on-campus programs that provide college students with animals in order to help students feel less stress.

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Cats can help relieve stress in the same way that petting a dog can be relaxing for some people, said authors Joni Delanoeije and Patricia Pendry.

Delanoeije is a psychologist and ethicist with Belgian university KU Leuven; Pendry is a professor in Washington State University’s department of human development.

The pair surveyed over 1,400 university students and staff from more than 20 universities for their paper. The researchers found that several factors were involved in whether a person might benefit from petting a cat. 

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People who are "highly emotional"; those who are female; those who are cat owners themselves; and those who are open to the idea of interacting with an on-campus dog were all positively associated with seeing a cat on campus.

"Emotionality is a pretty stable trait; it doesn’t fluctuate and is a quite consistent feature of our personalities," a press release about the study noted. 

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"People on the higher end of that scale," the release also noted, "were significantly more interested in interacting with cats on campus."

The research was meant to show that interventions with cats were feasible — and could help those who are averse to interacting with dogs for various reasons, said Pendry in an email to Fox News Digital.

Pendry said that initially, she thought university students and staff would not be interested in playing with a cat — but her research proved this was incorrect.

The paper gives "us information about the factors that may shape our interest in interacting with cats," she said. 

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"For example, our work shows that it is not the level of perceived stress that matters as much," she added. "Instead, our work shows that aspects of one’s personality, such as one’s level of emotionality, or the intensity of one’s feeling in response to stimuli and one’s behavioral response, are important predictors of that interest."

Not every cat is going to be appropriate for inclusion in AAIs, though.

"We should be very thoughtful about which kind of cats are most suitable for this kind of interaction," she said. 

The addition of cats into existing AAIs along with dogs created "significant positive effects on human emotion," the researchers found. 

They also determined that cats are underrepresented in these programs as a whole.

CATS QUIZ! HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT FELINES?

They found that 86% of AAI programs on college campuses involved only dogs, 5% had both cats and dogs, and 10% had cats, dogs and other animals.

Stereotypes may be to blame, in part, for why cats are not often included in AAIs. 

"Overrepresentation of dogs may reflect university administrators’ preference for providing affordable, safe, effective programs that are easy to implement and have reduced liability," the study noted.

Cats, on the other hand, are subject to "anecdotal narratives" that would suggest they are not suitable as therapy animals. 

"Examples of such narratives include cats’ unpredictable behavior leading to injuries in people, their fur being allergenic and their being intolerant of changing environments," said the paper. 

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"Such narratives are unfortunate … Cats [can] have therapeutic effects on humans through their people-oriented behavior," the paper also noted.

Dogs are perceived as more trainable and sociable compared to other animals, according to this research.

"We want to make sure that we invite only those animals who enjoy these types of interactions and those who are not overwhelmed by the stress of being transported from and to campus or living in a bustling campus environment," Pendry said in her email to Fox News Digital.

"The well-being and safety of the animals involved in any animal assisted intervention should be of paramount importance."



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Sunday, October 30, 2022

Breast cancer patients who respond well to pre-surgical treatment may be able to skip surgery: study

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Patients diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer who had a good response to targeted cancer treatment prior to surgery — otherwise known as adjuvant therapy — may be able to skip surgery and receive radiation treatment, with a low chance of cancer recurring.

That's according to a new study from researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, one of the world’s most respected centers devoted exclusively to cancer patient care and research. 

"This research adds to growing evidence showing that newer drugs can completely eradicate cancer in some cases, and very early results show we can safely eliminate surgery in this select group of women with breast cancer," said principal investigator Henry Kuerer, M.D., Ph.D., in a news release.

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He is professor of breast surgical oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, in Houston, Texas.

The Phase II trial results were published in Lancet Oncology. 

Researchers looked at the likelihood of breast cancer recurring in patients who were considered in complete remission after receiving chemotherapy and radiation without surgery. 

Thirty-one of the 50 patients who were followed had a complete response to chemotherapy — and none had a breast tumor recurrence after a median follow-up of 26.4 months, according to the study.

"These types of breast cancer usually recur in [the] first couple of years, so [the] short follow-up showed promising results," Dr. Kuerer told Fox News Digital in an interview about the study.

The patients received specific cancer-targeted therapies and chemotherapy prior to surgery, Keurer told Fox News Digital.

KATIE COURIC'S BREAST CANCER: WHAT OTHER WOMEN CAN LEARN FROM HER DIAGNOSIS

"Patients often have surgery first, but these targeted therapies increase survival. So give it first — it shrinks tumors, allowing lumpectomy vs. mastectomy," he said in an interview.

The multi-center study involved 50 women over 40 years old with early stage triple-negative or HER2-positive breast cancer and a residual breast lesion of less than 2 centimeters after standard chemotherapy treatment. 

The patients had one image-guided, vacuum-assisted core biopsy (VACB) performed. 

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If cancer was not detected on biopsy, then breast surgery was not performed and patients proceeded with standard radiation treatment. 

Of the participants, the VACB identified 31 patients as having a pathologic complete response — meaning a pathologist does not detect cancer in the tissue where the tumor was located.

"Patients who had a good response to therapy and evidence on imaging that the tumor was responding well — instead of operating, we used imaging biopsy and skipped surgery in those patients," Kuerer said.

He also explained that the high response rates, combined with the selective image-guided VACB and stringent histologic processing (studying the tissues and cells), have improved physicians’ ability to determine the patients who may not need surgery.

He said the biopsy protocol designed by MD Anderson Clinic was found to be quite accurate in the researchers' previous research. 

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS: FOX NEWS' KAYLEIGH MCENANY, GERRI WILLIS, JACKIE DEANGELIS GET REAL ABOUT DIAGNOSES

"We designed, tested and implemented the technique in 2018 and found an accuracy of 98% in this biopsy protocol," he said. 

Kuerer also cautioned that more research is needed before this process is made the standard of care.

"For the time being, standard breast cancer surgery is still necessary," Kuerer said. 

"While these results are remarkable and quite promising, it’s important for patients to know this is the very beginning of a new type of treatment for select patients."

He added, "Much longer follow-up and further studies will be necessary before this approach can be integrated into routine breast cancer care."

Keurer said researchers would continue to follow these patients to monitor their long-term outcomes.

His team noted that this is a small nonrandomized study — and that larger randomized studies are needed before changes to standard of care can be considered. 

"This is a very interesting and thought-provoking trial," Sarah P. Cate, M.D. and director of the breast surgery quality program at Mount Sinai Health System in New York, told Fox News Digital.

"Nationally, there are a few clinical trials looking at avoiding surgery for breast cancer," said Cate, who was not involved in the study.

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"However, long-term follow up is needed for these trials to be extrapolated to the general breast cancer patient and for us to know it's safe to offer."

Added Cate, who is also director of the special surveillance and breast program at Mount Sinai Health System, "This trial also had a very small number of patients who were treated without surgery. Changes to the standard of care would involve a much larger trial with many more patients."



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Friday, October 28, 2022

Tuberculosis deaths rose during COVID pandemic, reversing years of decline

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Global deaths from tuberculosis are estimated to have increased between 2019 and 2021, reversing years of decline as the COVID-19 pandemic severely derailed efforts to tackle the disease, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

Global efforts to tackle deadly diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria have suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. The health crisis has particularly hit the response to TB and led countries to fall behind in meeting targets to curb the infectious disease.

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WHO urged the world to apply lessons learnt from the pandemic to tuberculosis, which severely affects countries such as India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Pakistan.

"If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that with solidarity, determination, innovation and the equitable use of tools, we can overcome severe health threats," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

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WHO’s annual TB report estimates that tuberculosis killed 1.6 million people in 2021, above the estimated 1.5 million deaths in 2020, and 1.4 million deaths in 2019. Deaths related to tuberculosis had fallen between 2005 and 2019.

The report also warns that in the near future TB could replace COVID-19 to become the leading cause of death worldwide from a single infectious agent.

A recent report from Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria shows that while the number of people reached with treatment and prevention efforts rebounded last year, the world is still not on track to defeat these killer diseases.

About 10.6 million people were infected with tuberculosis in 2021, an increase of 4.5% from 2020, according to the WHO report.

Under its "End TB Strategy", the WHO set a target of reducing TB deaths by 35% from 2015 to 2020, but the net reduction was 5.9% between 2015 and 2021.



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Thursday, October 27, 2022

Potentially deadly fungal infections climb during COVID pandemic, WHO says

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The World Health Organization warned Tuesday that reported invasive fungal infections increased significantly among hospitalized patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In a release alongside its recently released list of priority fungal pathogens, the United Nations health agency said emerging evidence indicates that the incidence and geographic range of fungal diseases are expanding around the world due to the increases in travel as well as climate change. 

"Emerging from the shadows of the bacterial antimicrobial resistance pandemic, fungal infections are growing, and are ever more resistant to treatments, becoming a public health concern worldwide," Dr. Hanan Balkhy, WHO's assistant director-general of antimicrobial resistance, said in a statement. 

The list categorizes the pathogens into three categories, including critical, high and medium priority. 

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Of the 19 invasive fungal diseases, four were categorized as "critical priority," including Cryptococcus neoformans, Aspergillus fumigatus, Candida albicans and Candida auris.

The report says that drug-resistant infections are estimated to cause 1.27 million deaths and contribute to nearly 5 million deaths annually.

A recent study published in the journal Nature estimates that of the 150,000 fungal species described, only about 200 of them are infectious to people.

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Invasive forms of fungal infections often impact severely ill patients and those with underlying conditions. 

Populations at greatest risk of infection include those with cancer, HIV/AIDS, organ transplants, chronic respiratory disease and post-primary tuberculosis infection.

There are only four classes of antifungal medicines currently available.

The WHO said its ranking by experts — the first fungal priority pathogens list — marks the first effort to prioritize the issue. 

It calls for more evidence to inform the response to these threats, including preventing the development of antimicrobial resistance, and address the impact of antifungal use on resistance across the One Health spectrum.



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Wednesday, October 26, 2022

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Ugandan officials report 11 new cases of Ebola in the capitol since Friday

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Ugandan officials have reported 11 more cases of Ebola in the capital since Friday, a worrisome increase in infections just over a month after an outbreak was declared in a remote part of the East African country.

Nine more people in the Kampala metropolitan area tested positive for Ebola on Sunday, in addition to two others on Friday, Health Minister Jane Ruth Aceng said Monday.

A top World Health Organization official in Africa said last week that Uganda’s Ebola outbreak was "rapidly evolving," describing a challenging situation for health workers.

Ugandan health authorities have confirmed 75 cases of Ebola since Sept. 20, including 28 deaths. There are 19 active cases.

UGANDA CLAIMS EBOLA OUTBREAK SHOULD BE OVER BY END OF YEAR

The official numbers don't include those who probably died of Ebola before the outbreak was confirmed in a farming community about 93 miles west of Kampala.

Fears that Ebola could spread far from the outbreak’s epicenter compelled authorities to impose an ongoing lockdown, including nighttime curfews, on two of the five districts reporting Ebola cases. The measures were put in place after a man infected with Ebola sought treatment in Kampala and died in a hospital there.

The nine new cases reported Monday follow a similar pattern as they all are contacts of an Ebola-infected patient who traveled from an Ebola hotspot and sought treatment at Kampala's top public hospital, known as Mulago.

There is no proven vaccine for the Sudan strain of Ebola that’s circulating in Uganda.

UGANDA’S LATEST OUTBREAK OF EBOLA KILLS ITS FIRST HEALTH WORKER

Ugandan officials by Thursday had documented more than 1,800 Ebola contacts, 747 of whom had completed 21 days of monitoring for possible signs of the disease that manifests as a viral hemorrhagic fever, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tracing contacts is key to stemming the spread of contagious diseases like Ebola.

Ebola is spread by contact with bodily fluids of an infected person or contaminated materials. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain and, at times, internal and external bleeding.

Scientists don’t know the natural reservoir of Ebola, but they suspect the first person infected in an outbreak acquired the virus through contact with an infected animal or eating its raw meat. Ugandan officials are still investigating the source of the current outbreak.

Uganda has had multiple Ebola outbreaks, including one in 2000 that killed more than 200 people. The 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa killed more than 11,000 people, the disease’s largest death toll.

Ebola was discovered in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreaks in South Sudan and Congo, where it occurred in a village near the Ebola River, after which the disease is named.



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Early, surprising surge of RSV in kids has hospitals, medical centers concerned

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Hospitals and health departments are struggling to respond to an early and surprising surge of cases of RSV — respiratory syncytial virus — which is striking children across the country. 

RSV is described as a very common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Most people recover within two weeks — but RSV can be serious, especially for the very young or very old and those with compromised immune systems. 

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"Hospitals from New York to Connecticut to Illinois to California to here in Texas and Oklahoma — we are seeing cases of RSV surge beyond what is expected for this time of year," reported Dr. Laura Romano of Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, a pediatric hospital at which patients are arriving from surrounding states. 

"It is not uncommon for me to see a child from Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, who has been sent to Cooks because the hospitals in their state do not have any more beds for them," the same doctor said. 

The Connecticut National Guard confirms the organization sent a representative to a site feasibility meeting to discuss a potential "mobile field hospital" at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford. 

The planning is viewed as "pre-decisional."

At M Health Fairview Masonic Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the swiftness of care is being impacted, Fox News is told. 

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"All of a sudden our volumes have gone way up, and so we are very busy in the emergency room, which is increasing wait times," said Dr. Marissa Hendrickson, a pediatric emergency medicine physician. 

"We are sometimes caring for people in the waiting rooms, hallways, wherever we can squeeze them in."

About RSV, Dr. Janette Neshewiat, a Fox News medical contributor who is based in New York City, said, "This is a virus that can cause inflammation in the lungs. It can cause infection in the lungs like pneumonia."

She added, "And what we're seeing now is it's causing about 60,000 hospitalizations in children every year. For every three children that are hospitalized with COVID, we're seeing up to 30 hospitalized with RSV."

Many experts in the health field believe the surge in cases may be related to COVID-19 mitigation efforts. 

"Because of the pandemic and people isolating themselves from each other, several of these young children did not develop an immune response to … ordinary, common, everyday viruses," said Dr. Sankaran Krishnan, a pediatric pulmonologist at Maria Ferari Children’s Hospital in Valhalla, New York. 

While many cases of RSV resolve without advanced medical care, children who show signs of breathing trouble should seek immediate care. 

"If your child starts developing respiratory distress, breathing faster than usual, that belly going in and out with every breath, the skin between their ribs being sucked in with every breath — that's when they need to be seen by a provider as soon as possible," said Dr. Romano. 

"Take them to an urgent care. Take them to an emergency room," she added. "If at any point it looks like your baby is not breathing well at all, just bring them right to an emergency room."

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Doctors advise a variety of measures to help avoid illness, from handwashing to mask wearing — with concerns for a difficult winter and the potential for another COVID-19 surge combined with flu season. 

"Every child, especially this season, needs to be up-to-date on all their vaccines, getting their flu vaccine and especially getting their COVID vaccine," Romano advised. 

Fox News' Maria Paronich and Molly Line, as well as several Fox News affiliates, contributed reporting to this article. 



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Monday, October 24, 2022

New study finds dyslexia is linked to 42 genetic variants

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Researchers believe they have identified the genes responsible for dyslexia, a condition that makes it difficult to read or spell for millions of people. 

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Australia, the U.S. company 23andMe Inc, and the University of Edinburgh conducted what is considered the largest genetic study of dyslexia to date and published their findings recently in the journal Nature Genetics. 

The study found 42 significant genes while analyzing the relationship between millions of genetic variants and dyslexia. Researchers had access to data from 50,000 adults suffering from dyslexia and approximately 1 million adults without the disease. 

Some of the genes are major factors in language delay and other critical thinking skills that may play a role in harming an individual's academic performance. Over 30% of the genetic variants found by scientists were traced back to these cognitive difficulties, with many being associated with the functions that are essential for learning and developing skills. 

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"Our findings show that common genetic differences have very similar effects in boys and girls, and that there is a genetic link between dyslexia and ambidexterity," said the study's lead author, Michelle Luciano, who works at the University of Edinburgh for the School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences.

"Our results also suggest that dyslexia is very closely genetically related to performance on reading and spelling tests, reinforcing the importance of standardized testing in identifying dyslexia," Luciano added. 

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The genes associated with dyslexia also appear to affect individuals diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to the study. 

Chinese-speaking participants were also affected by the genetic variants, indicating that the process of reading and writing is not isolated to one language. 



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Sunday, October 23, 2022

University of Minnesota med school has students pledge to fight 'White supremacy' at ceremony

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A medical school pledge ceremony as spoken by students at the University of Minnesota Medical School is raising eyebrows for the wording students reportedly recited.

Among other promises made publicly in August, the med students were encouraged to swear an oath "to honor all Indigenous ways of healing that have been marginalized by Western medicine" — and to fight "White supremacy, colonialism [and] the gender binary."

Dr. Marc Siegel, a Fox News medical contributor, reacted to the events this weekend, saying, "That's a mess," during an appearance on "Fox & Friends Weekend" on Saturday.

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The students also noted in their pledge, "We commit to uprooting the legacy and perpetuation of structural violence deeply embedded within the health care system."

Their spoken pledge included this line: "As we enter this profession with opportunity for growth, we commit to promoting a culture of anti-racism, listening and amplifying voices for positive change."

Said Dr. Siegel about the turn of events, "If we start having to give out herbs rather than [use] the latest technology, that might actually have an influence [on] patient care."

"They're also committed to healing our planet — well, how about healing ourselves and healing our patients?" Dr. Siegel also said.

Minnesota med school students also had to say, "We vow to embrace our role as community members and strive to embody cultural humility."

Dr. Siegel noted the importance of the traditional Hippocratic oath for doctors — to "do no harm" and "the whole idea of being humble and being kind" as medical professionals.

He said that "when you start programming people on what they're supposed to say" — that becomes a problem.

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He spoke as well about the traditional white coat worn by doctors — and wondered if today's woke educators and administrators are going to request a change in the color or look of the professional garment at some point.

"We're supposed to be studying medical textbooks," Dr. Siegel also said. 

"What's wrong with this patient?' It's called the differential diagnosis. ‘Am I giving the right treatment? Am I ordering the right tests?'"

Yet those who are most concerned with being "politically correct," he suggested, may not have the same emphasis and focus on the health-based responsibilities they've studied and committed to uphold in their professional practices.

The University of Minnesota Medical School displays a "diversity" statement on its website that references the promotion of "health equity," according to an examination of the website.

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"The University of Minnesota Medical School is dedicated to providing excellence across our mission — high-quality education for students of all backgrounds; innovative and cutting-edge research and exceptional clinical outcomes that promote health equity," the site says.

"Through a variety of services and programs, we aim to engage everyone in our collective work toward inclusive excellence, promote equity in access to learning, scientific inquiry, care delivery, and celebrate our diversity through cultural experiences and opportunities on and off campus."



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Saturday, October 22, 2022

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky tests positive for COVID-19 month after getting updated booster shot

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Saturday that Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky had tested positive for COVID-19. 

She is experiencing mild symptoms and is up to date with her vaccines.

"Consistent with CDC guidelines, she is isolating at home and will participate in her planned meetings virtually. CDC senior staff and close contacts have been informed of her positive test and are taking appropriate action to monitor their health," the CDC said in an emailed statement.

In September, the director received her bivalent, omicron-specific COVID-19 booster shot. 

CDC ADVISORY COMMITTEE VOTES TO ADD COVID-19 VACCINE TO IMMUNIZATION SCHEDULES FOR CHILDREN, ADULTS

In a CVS Health tweet, she was seen posing for a photo following the shot with a thumbs up.

Walensky and health officials have warned the American public about an upcoming winter surge of COVID-19 infections. 

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They've called on the U.S. to get the booster before the end of the month. 

Following a meeting between federal officials and leading organizations representing America's physicians, nurse practitioners and physician associates, the White House said there was "broad agreement that the single-most important thing Americans, particularly the elderly, can do to protect themselves and their loved ones from COVID-19 and serious illness is to get an updated COVID-19 vaccine without delay."

In a September statement, Walensky said that boosters would provide broad protection against sublineages.

"The updated COVID-19 boosters are formulated to better protect against the most recently circulating COVID-19 variant. They can help restore protection that has waned since previous vaccination and were designed to provide broader protection against newer variants," she said.



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Mental health professionals have 'abandoned' duty of care in treatment of trans youth, therapist says

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Mental health professionals have abandoned their duty of care when it comes to treating trans-identifying youth, and the long-term effects could be disastrous, a family therapist said. 

"We've allowed our role to be changed in the public eye," Stephanie Winn, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Portland, Oregon, told Fox News. Therapists' new role is "essentially green lighting or rubber-stamping people along into these medical procedures when that's never been our role in the treatment of any other issue."

Youth access to gender transition medical therapy such as puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgery have been widely debated in recent years with critics saying minors are too young to be altering their bodies, sometimes permanently. Advocates, however, argue that such care is life-saving since untreated trans youth face higher rates of depression and suicide. 

Winn argued that a narrative has been established that encourages mental health professionals to accept a child's trans identity without scrutiny, leaving potential mental illnesses untreated. Youth experiencing suicidal ideation and other distress, consequently, aren't always getting proper care, and in some instances, may receive life-altering treatment that could cause additional issues later on, she said.

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The number of transgender teens under 18 doubled between 2017 and 2020, from .7% to 1.4%, according to UCLA research. The June report, based on government health surveys, also found that just under 43% of the 1.6 million people who identify as transgender in the U.S. are between 13 and 25.

Winn said she's becoming "increasingly concerned" about the trend of youth identifying as transgender or non-binary and "the lifelong, irreversible medical experiments that are happening to children as a result of this ideology." She added that in 10-15 years, "we're going to see a transition regret crisis, and unfortunately, we are going to have to worry about some of the most frightening mental health outcomes as part of that."

In the past two years, 25 states have introduced legislation that would restrict access to gender transition medical therapy for minors. Meanwhile, 27 states have passed legislation restricting "conversion therapy" for trans youth, which GLAAD defines as "any attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression."

Mental health professionals fear backlash and could risk losing their licenses if they try to treat gender dysphoria patients with anything besides transition therapy, according to Winn, who herself has faced such trouble.

"Many of my colleagues have abandoned our duty of care, either due to ignorance or cowardice," she told Fox News.

Gender dysphoria, as defined by Mayo Clinic, is "the feeling of discomfort or distress that might occur in people whose gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth." Diagnosed teens may be treated with puberty blockers to prevent unwanted changes, such as periods or the deepening of their voice. Later, they may receive cross-sex hormones to develop characteristics of the opposite gender — such as facial hair — as well as chest and genital reassignment surgeries.

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"A completely different standard of care" has been established for treating gender dysphoria compared to other mental health disorders as a result of public pressure and trainings from trans activists, Winn said.

The therapist believes mental health professionals, as a result, aren't doing their due diligence when treating trans-identifying youth and are prematurely affirming and ushering kids down a path of medicalization. She said such professionals aren't adequately trying to determine if their patients' feelings of gender dysphoria are manifested from other frequently associated mental illnesses, rather than the other way around. 

Assistant Secretary for Health Rachel Levine said in an April interview with NPR that "there is no argument among medical professionals — pediatricians, pediatric endocrinologists, adolescent medicine physicians, adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, etc. — about the value and the importance of gender-affirming care." 

Levine, who is transgender, pointed to numerous medical organizations that — including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry — support "evidence-based standards of care" for gender transition therapy.

"We're just told that if someone tells you they identify in this way, that's the end of the story," Winn told Fox News. "Don't ask any questions, just affirm, just agree, and then usher them along this path of medicalization."

Winn used to treat trans-identifying youth but said she stopped after activists targeted her. She told the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists in December that "strangers online," often anonymously, were threatening her and claiming that "my behavior is illegal and they have grounds for making reports because they believe I am in violation of the ban on conversion therapy."

The board opened an investigation into Winn in April but dismissed it in June, the therapist wrote on her blog.

In addition to affirming patients, Winn said mental health professionals are expected to "drive a wedge between families."

"We're expected to tell parents that they must let their children lead, even though children need structure, rules, discipline and boundaries," she told Fox News. "And that if they don't, they're bigots." 

AS A DOCTOR AND DAD, I AM ASHAMED BY HOW HORRIBLY MY FIELD MISTREATS KIDS WITH 'GENDER-AFFIRMING' THERAPIES

Failure to properly root out the cause of a child's distress isn't just irresponsible — it can be dangerous, according to Winn.

Transgender youth suffer from mental disorders including anxiety, depression, PTSD, ADHD, autism than their peers, and also face a higher risk of suicide, studies have shown. According to survey by the Trevor Project, nearly one in five transgender and non-binary youth attempted suicide in the past year — about double the rate of cisgender youth.

"Our research shows that just a single affirming adult in a young person’s life makes them 40% less likely to attempt suicide in the past year," Troy Stevenson, the Trevor Project's senior campaign manager for advocacy and government affairs, told The Washington Post in August.

BIDEN PUSHES RADICAL TRANS ACTIVISM IN SCHOOLS

Winn argued that the high rate of suicidal ideation among trans youth is often falsely attributed to stigma and discrimination. She said the stat is used to pressure doctors and parents toward affirmation.

"I think it's a very dangerous narrative," Winn told Fox News. By accepting that discrimination is a major driver behind suicidal tendencies in these instances, Winn said professionals are "ignoring the real problems" and "abdicating our responsibility" of psychoanalyzing kids to determine if there are other or additional underlying issues causing distress.

Winn, however, does not downplay the risk of suicide among troubled youth.

"Are youth expressing suicidal ideation? Absolutely. But are we treating that correctly? No," she said. 

"We need to look at—how do we do the least amount of harm, how to provide the least invasive, most effective treatments, and that means psychotherapy, not medicalization," Winn told Fox News. Rather than immediately affirming, mental health professionals should perform an assessment and investigate how long the child has experienced dysphoria and how mental health issues or life changes might be contributing, she said.

The family therapist, who often sees parents with trans-identifying children, warned that there could later be an even worse mental health crisis stemming from transition regret. 

"You have this epidemic where the barriers are getting lower and lower. There's less and less screening," Winn said. "The age of transition is getting younger. More kids are doing this. So the rate of transition regret down the line can only be expected to get higher."

Winn fears that in 10 years, we will have "a generation of 20- and 30-somethings who feel betrayed by their parents, their teachers, doctors, therapists, friends, everyone who ‘affirmed them.’" 

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Common suicide risk factors include chronic pain, loss of relationships, and an unfulfilling romantic and sex life, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Winn warned that kids who undergo medical gender transition therapy will face a higher risk of these down the line. 

"They're going to be facing the reality that they can't have kids, that they can't have sex, that their bodies feel hurt and broken and scarred and they feel embarrassed and ashamed and regretful," she said.

Advocates for Youth declined an interview with Fox News. The following trans youth advocacy and support organizations did not respond to interview requests: Equality Federation; Human Rights Campaign; National Center or Transgender Equality; National LGBTQ Task Force; Trans Youth Equality Foundation; the American College of Obsetricians and Gynecologists; Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network; Log Cabin Republicans; Columbia's Gender Identity Program; and NYU Langone's Transgender Health unit.



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Friday, October 21, 2022

Mexico reports its first H5N1 bird flu infection

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Mexico has reported a first case of the severe H5N1 strain of avian influenza, the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Friday.

The virus was detected in a wild bird in the Metepec district to the west of the capital Mexico City, the WOAH said, citing information from the Mexican authorities.

NEAR RECORD NUMBER OF US CHICKENS AND TURKEYS ARE DYING FROM AVIAN FLU

"This report represents the first isolation of a HPAI virus subtype H5N1 in Mexico, which occurred in a non-poultry bird and in one of the migratory wild bird corridors that cross the country," it said.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), commonly called bird flu, has killed poultry flocks in the United States and Europe this year, with experts concerned that the virus has not abated as previously during the northern hemisphere summer.

Mexico has experienced outbreaks of another bird flu strain, H7N3, in parts of the country in the past decade, including cases earlier this year.



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Bird flu has arrived to San Diego County

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The first case of bird flu has made its way to San Diego County as the infectious disease spreads across the country. 

The carcass of a deceased black swan that was discovered last week at Lake San Marcos has tested positive for avian flu, according to the San Diego Union Tribune. 

An unknown party discovered the body and submitted it to the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory in San Bernardino, a spokesperson for the California Department of Food and Agriculture, told local media outlets. After laboratory tests were conducted, samples from the body were confirmed positive for avian flu. 

The sample will be transferred to National Veterinary Services Laboratories overseen by the United States Department of Agriculture in Ames, Iowa, to determine the strain of the virus. 

ZOOS IN US RESPOND TO BIRD FLU OUTBREAK AS INFECTION RATES MOUNT

The United States is currently undergoing one of the worst bird flu outbreaks in years. As previously reported, 47.6 million birds have been affected this year, with the disease spreading to 42 states, according to data provided by the USDA. 

More than five million birds in the U.S. have died from the disease between January to July of this year. Infections and deaths have led to export bans, turkey shortages, and lower production of eggs while adding to the increasing food prices. 

COLORADO REPORTS FIRST HUMAN CASE OF H5 BIRD FLU IN US IN POULTRY WORKER

Avian influenza is a highly contagious pathogen that can spread from bird to bird, usually through bodily fluids, and affects their neurological and respiratory systems. Wild birds have spread the disease more than usual this year due to migration. 

However, it is extremely rare for a human to become infected by bird flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



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Thursday, October 20, 2022

The Bubonic Plague influenced evolution of the human immune system, new study suggests

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Centuries after the Black Death ravaged the medieval world, the genetic legacy of the disease still affects people to this day, according to a new study. 

The genes that may have helped individuals survive the Bubonic Plague during the 14th century make some individuals more likely to acquire certain diseases in today's modern world. 

The study, published Wednesday in the British weekly journal Nature, focuses on how germs from the past may continue to play a role in immune systems.

Centuries ago, the Black Death devastated the people of northern Africa, Europe and the Middle East. The plague is considered one of the deadliest events in recorded human history, as it killed between 30% to 50% of the population in those regions at the time. 

COLORADO REPORTS PLAGUE-INFECTED FLEAS AND ANIMALS, BLAMES DISEASE FOR 10-YEAR-OLD’S DEATH

Researchers at the University of Chicago, McMaster University in Ontario and the Pasteur Institute in Paris analyzed the physical remains of 200 individuals in London and Denmark who died before, during and after the Bubonic Plague infected the area. 

The study indicates genes that protected individuals from the plague increased the presence of deadly mutations generations down the line and are linked to today's autoimmune disorders. These disorders include Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus. 

"A hyperactive immune system may have been great in the past, but in the environment today, it might not be as helpful," said Hendrik Poinar, a researcher and author of the study, according to CBS News. 

One of the leading authors of this research, Luis Barreiro, stated this is the first scientific demonstration that proves the Black Death had a role to play in the modern evolution of the immune system. 

ZOOS IN US RESPOND TO BIRD FLU OUTBREAK AS INFECTION RATES MOUNT

However, in today's world, the once-deadly Bubonic Plague is a remnant of the past, with a couple of thousand cases popping up around the world every year. Between 2010 and 2015, 584 individuals died from the disease, many of them living in Peru, the Congo and Madagascar, according to the World Health Organization. 

The disease is able to spread through infected fleas and rats and first came to the United States at the start of the 20th century via steamboats. 



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After fentanyl killed her soulmate, recovering drug user fights to end stigma of addiction

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When Paul Francs Duffy II got a call that another person was brought to the emergency room after an overdose, he would put on his suit and head to the hospital. Duffy, as a peer support specialist, would offer support to survivors — and encourage them to seek treatment, just like he had.

But for a time, even as he worked to help other addicts, Duffy was quietly struggling with his own sobriety. 

"That's the insanity of addiction, right?" Gwen Dudley, Duffy’s partner, told Fox News. "Duffy knew from his job how dangerous this was, but he thought he had it under control."

The last time Dudley saw Duffy alive, they were arguing about him going to get treatment.

NEW JERSEY WOMAN CHARGED AFTER 2-YEAR-OLD SON KILLED BY FENTANYL OVERDOSE, OFFICIALS SAY

"He thought he might lose his job," she said. "He was fearful to reach out and admit that he had been using and get help."

"The stigma, even for people in recovery, it’s strong," Dudley, herself a recovering addict, said. 

Duffy, 32, died May 2, 2021.

"He passed away due to a fentanyl poisoning, which is what I refer to it as, because it is," Dudley told Fox News.

Since Duffy's death, Dudley has fought to end the shame associated with addiction in hopes that fewer people will silently suffer until it's too late to seek help. She's convinced stigma prevented her "soulmate" from seeking help.

"Addiction doesn't discriminate. It doesn't have a face," Dudley said. "It is everybody."

FENTANYL IN DISGUISE: EXPERT CALLS DEADLY OPIOID'S PRESENCE A 'SLOW-MOTION CHEMICAL WEAPON ATTACK'

Duffy, who went by his last name, was born and raised in Annapolis, Maryland where Dudley and her son still live. Like so many others, Duffy got hooked on opioids through a legitimate prescription — he'd initially been given OxyContin in high school for a back injury, Dudley told Fox News.

But when prescription opioids became unaffordable, Duffy turned to a cheaper and more accessible option: heroin. Later, his drug of choice became cocaine and other amphetamine-like substances, though he would still use opioids to come down from the stimulants. 

Dudley met Duffy in recovery almost five years ago. He'd been clean for about a year, but had intermittent relapses, with his longest period of sobriety stretching four years.

"Duffy was charismatic, he was funny," Dudley said. "He was giving and loving and vivacious and had a lust for life that most people don't."

The two quickly built a life together and had their son, Luca, who is now 3 years old. While in recovery, Duffy was focused on physical health and was passionate about helping others.

TEXAS HAS SEIZED OVER 336 MILLION ‘LETHAL DOSES’ OF FENTANYL DURING OPERATION LONE STAR, DPS SAYS

Eventually, Duffy got a job as a peer support specialist for the Anne Arundel County Health Department in Maryland, a position created in part of the county's effort to battle the fentanyl crisis. 

"He saved people's lives," Dudley said. "I was so proud of him." 

"He was so amazed to be able to do that as a job with everything he'd been through," she added. "Turned his pain into purpose."

Early in 2021, Duffy's mental health began to turn. The couple's hectic work schedules became even busier with a toddler — and Dudley's father died of pancreatic cancer.

"I was definitely aware that Duffy was struggling," she said. "He was very depressed."

WISCONSIN PARENTS LOSE SON TO FENTANYL, BEG OTHER FAMILIES TO KNOW THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEADLY DRUG

Duffy sought out a therapist who he ultimately didn’t connect with. Instead, he turned to alcohol, thinking it was a substance he had control over. Soon, Duffy was abusing drugs again after nearly three clean years.

Addiction is "never what you think it looks like," Dudley said. "It stems from trauma, it stems from mental health issues, it stems from pain."

"He tried to stop, but he couldn’t," she told Fox News. "He was essentially using against his will."

After two months, Duffy promised he would get help after just one more score.

But he never came home.

Duffy unknowingly bought drugs laced with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 50-100 times stronger than morphine, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse.

"Fentanyl is terrifying," Dudley said. "It keeps me up at night. It makes my stomach turn."

Dudley was headed out with Duffy's mother to look for her partner when she received a call from the hospital. Duffy had been found hours after overdosing and was still unconscious since no one with him had Narcan.

Duffy was on life support for three days before doctors declared him brain-dead due to a lack of oxygen. He was taken off life support two days later.

WHAT IS FENTANYL? HERE'S MORE TO KNOW ABOUT THE DANGEROUS DRUG 

She reflected on Duffy's reluctance to seek help. He was afraid he'd be judged for his addiction — something Dudley considers a sickness.

"To treat this as some type of moral failing to me is mind-boggling," she said. "It's really a medical issue."

"We all need to know what fentanyl is, what it's in, and educate the people around us because it's a public health crisis," Dudley added.

Drug overdose deaths surpassed 100,000 for the first time in U.S. history in 2021, according to the CDC. Over 64,000 of those deaths were due to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. 

"This is coming in over the borders," Dudley said. "The border policies are failing."

"And I don't want to make it political, but it's just a fact," she added.

FENTANYL POISONING'S SURPRISING SIGNS: WHAT PARENTS AND FRIENDS MUST KNOW

Dudley, aiming to end the stigma and make people more comfortable about seeking treatment, now works remotely as a national outreach coordinator for Ascend Recovery Center in West Palm Beach. She uses TikTok as a platform to raise awareness about the dangers of fentanyl. 

As her son gets older, "I'm going to let him know that his dad was sick," Dudley said. "That he was heroic in his own way and saved lives, but that he struggled with this illness and explain fentanyl to him."

Though she still grieves, Duffy's death has brought Dudley a new sense of purpose. 

"I would thank him for believing in my strength before I did," she told Fox News. "And showing me how to help people from the heart and not care what other people think because of the greater good."

"It's what allows me now to bring meaning to his death and take that spirit with me and help other people," Dudley said.



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Wednesday, October 19, 2022

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

US warned to prepare as COVID cases rise in Europe

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Health officials in the U.S. are bracing ahead of an anticipated winter COVID-19 surge as cases rise in Europe. 

Previously, rising infections in America have trailed Europe, including last winter's omicron spread. 

Cases started trending upward in Europe around early September, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). In its most recent report, the ECDC said "widespread increases were being observed in all indicators."

According to The Seattle Times, Washington state's King County Health Officer Dr. Jeff Duchin said in a news briefing that waning immunity, increasing gathering and a return to pre-COVID activity was leading to a surge in Europe. 

CALIFORNIA GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM ANNOUNCES COVID STATE OF EMERGENCY WILL END IN FEBRUARY 2023

"This should be a clear warning for us because in the past, major surges in Europe have been a good predictor of what we can expect to see in the U.S. in about four to six weeks," he advised.

In the U.S., data from the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center shows that there are over 38,000 daily COVID cases. 

FAUCI REJECTS COVID RESPONSE CRITICISM, SAYS IT'S 'COMPLETELY CRAZY’ TO CALL HIM POLITICAL

However, falling temperatures have sparked concerns about increased transmission, as well as the looming threat of a more infectious variant.

Omicron sublineages have been growing in prevalence in the U.S., with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing BA.4.6 and BQ.1.1 growing over the past few weeks.

This comes as masking and mitigation restrictions have either been lessened or removed entirely. 

The White House is urging Americans to get their omicron-specific bivalent booster to help stave off another surge, but just under 15 million people have received the updated shots.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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Foods that cause headaches: Choose your cheese, wine, coffee and chocolate carefully

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A migraine can be a very painful experience for many people — so pinpointing any personal triggers can help decrease the frequency of the episodes, especially when it comes to diet. 

"Dietary triggers are commonly reported by persons with migraines," said Dr. Vincent Martin, director of the Headache and Facial Pain Center at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

He is also professor of clinical medicine in the internal medicine division.

HEALTHY LIVING HABITS INCLUDE EATING DINNER EARLIER

"Triggers are very individualistic, which means foods that trigger a headache in one person may not trigger a headache in another person," added Martin, president of the National Headache Foundation.

"Common triggers include alcoholic beverages, artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and sucralose, processed meats like hot dogs, bacon and sausage — and citrus fruits," Martin told Fox News Digital. 

But personal triggers are sometimes challenging to figure out. Here are ways to help pinpoint problems — and live a healthier life.

"Some headache experts recommend keeping a food diary and recording the foods consumed and the presence of a headache or migraine on that day to determine the association between the trigger and the migraine attack," Martin noted. 

"Sugary foods can trigger headaches as well," he said.

EATING PUMPKIN MAY HELP YOU LOOK YOUNGER AND LOSE WEIGHT, EXPERTS SAY

If the food seems linked to a headache more than 50% of the time, it’s likely a trigger, Martin told Fox News Digital. 

"Different patients have different triggers, but nuts, hard cheeses, wine and alcohol are very common triggers. Patients should be aware of these and see if they get a headache several hours after ingesting these," said Dr. Louise M. Klebanoff, chief of general neurology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York. 

Some foods can trigger a headache immediately, while other foods can trigger a headache 24 hours after ingestion, according to the American Migraine Foundation.

REM SLEEP LOWER IN MIGRAINE SUFFERERS: STUDY

The foundation recommends eliminating the presumed trigger from the diet for at least one month to see if this decreases the frequency of the headaches.

"What I tell my patients is that the migraine brain does better with consistency — consistent sleep cycles, regular exercise and regular meals," Klebanoff told Fox News Digital. 

Many processed foods have multiple ingredients, but only a single ingredient may be actually trigger the migraine.

"Foods consist of many ingredients that contain many chemicals," said Lena Beal of Atlanta, Georgia, national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Beal recommends asking: "Is it truly the food or drink that is causing [the] headache — or is it one of the many ingredients or chemicals in these foods?"

Chemicals include nitrates/nitrites, phenylethylamine, sulfites, tannins, tyramine, salicylates, aspartate, added sugar, alcohol, caffeine, gluten, glutamate and capsaicin, she told Fox News Digital. 

One common drink trigger is alcohol, according to multiple reports.

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Some 35.6% of participants with a migraine reported alcoholic drinks as a trigger, with red wine reported as the most common trigger among alcoholic beverages, according to a 2018 study in the European Journal of Neurology.

Although the exact reason that wine can trigger a migraine is unclear, experts suggest certain compounds in wine, such as tannins and flavonoids, aggravate headaches, according to Health. 

And alcohol can cause dehydration — a common precipitant in developing headaches. 

Coffee, tea and chocolate are common foods that contain caffeine, according to Healthline.

Not only has caffeine been implicated in triggering a migraine, but also in curing it, according to a 2021 review in the journal Nutrients. 

The paper did not find enough evidence to recommend stopping caffeine for all migraine patients — but it did emphasize that too much caffeine or suddenly stopping caffeine can lead to a migraine. 

"Coffee is a double-edged sword — 1-2 cups a day is fine, but excessive amounts can exacerbate migraines. Again, consistency is important, so 1-2 cups a day, every day," said Klebanoff of Weill Cornell Medicine.

A small amount of caffeine may relieve an acute migraine episode, as long as this remedy is not abused, Health added. 

Aged cheeses such as blue, feta, Parmesan or cheddar cheese are among the most common reported triggers of migraines, according to a 2012 study published in Neurological Sciences.

After foods are preserved, fermented or aged for a long time, the amino acid known as tyramine forms from the breakdown of proteins, according to Healthline.

And the longer the duration the cheese has aged, the higher the tyramine content, per the same source.

Some experts suggest higher levels of tyramine cause nerve cells to release the neurotransmitter norepinephrine in the brain, which leads to headaches.

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"Tyramine is found in a number of foodstuffs, most notably aged and fermented foods and beverages," Beal said.

An amount of 10 mg of tyramine has been associated with migraine onset, but levels of 6 mg can cause migraine in patients under treatment with MAO inhibitors, which are sometimes prescribed for depression, according to the Encyclopedia of Food Sciences and Nutrition.

"Ham, bacon, deli meat, sausage and hot dogs are high in sodium nitrates, used for flavor, red color and prevention of harmful bacteria — but these foods in excess may trigger headaches," Beal told Fox News Digital.

The "elimination of each food for a few days may help determine if it’s actually the food or other underlying issue."

Monosodium glutamate, otherwise known as MSG, is naturally present in our bodies.

Yet it is also present in many foods, such as tomatoes and ingredients like hydrolyzed vegetable protein, as well as food additives, such as ketchup and barbecue sauce, according to Health. 

Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers that MSG in foods is "generally recognized as safe," a 2016 study in the Journal of Headache and Pain noted that MSG is a potential trigger for migraines.

It also said more research is needed to conclusively determine if MSG causes migraines.

The verdict is still out on whether chocolate can trigger a migraine. 

Chocolate is one of the most commonly reported triggers of migraines, according to a 2012 Neurological Sciences study.

But Klebanoff noted that "chocolate may actually be a craving rather than a trigger." 

And a 2020 review in Nutrients found insufficient evidence that chocolate is true trigger of migraines. 

Nuts such as peanut butter and all seeds are a common trigger of migraines, according to the Association of Migraine Disorders. 

NATIONAL NUT DAY: HEALTH BENEFITS OF PISTACHIOS, ALMONDS, CASHEWS AND MORE REVEALED

They contain the amino acid called phenylalanine, which can disrupt blood flow in the brain — a possible mechanism that can lead to migraines, according to the National Library of Medicine.

"The relationship between diet and migraines is a complex one," said Dr. Jennifer Bickel, a board certified headache medicine specialist and Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology who is based in Tampa, Florida.

"There are certainly situations in which a single food item always leads to a migraine, but it’s typically more complicated than that."

Bickel gave an example of drinking a glass of wine and later having a headache. 

"Perhaps you can drink a glass of red wine if you’ve had good sleep and stress is minimal — but that same glass of red wine combined with poor sleep and stress will be enough to trigger a disabling migraine."

Beal said that finding the true trigger of a headache is complicated because other factors need to be considered. 

These factors include the following:

Eyeglass prescription that might be incorrect

Headache medication changes

Skipping meals

Eating meals at different time than usual

Dehydration

Not getting enough sleep before headache started

Stress and anxiety

Stage of menstrual cycle when headache started

Weather triggers

Family history

"Most of the information about possible food triggers of headache come from patient self-reports and not from randomized scientific studies," Beal added.

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"I always encourage my patients to look not just at the foods they are eating but also at the combination of triggers of weather changes, menstrual cycles, sleep deprivation and stress," Bickel told Fox News Digital. 

"I suggest that patients avoid artificial sweeteners (Stevia is OK), MSG (many prepared foods and flavored snacks), and nitrates and nitrites (smoked luncheon meat, hot dogs)," Klebanoff said.

"Lifestyle interventions can significantly improve migraine frequency, but we also have many medications that are very effective."



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Monday, October 17, 2022

Chemical hair-straightening products may increase uterine cancer risk: NIH study

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A new National Institutes of Health (NIH) study found a link between chemical hair-straightening products and uterine cancer, suggesting that frequent users may be more at-risk.

The study, which was published Monday, tracked 33,947 racially diverse women between the ages of 35 and 74 for an average of approximately 11 years. 378 women in the study developed uterine cancer.

"We estimated that 1.64% of women who never used hair straighteners would go on to develop uterine cancer by the age of 70, but for frequent users, that risk goes up to 4.05%," study leader Alexandra White of the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Safety (NIEHS) explained.

The presence of so-called endocrine-disrupting chemicals in hair straighteners may be the cause of the link. Fragrances, parabens and phthalates may impact the endocrine's system ability to regulate hormones. 

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Earlier studies have associated endocrine disrupters with higher risks of breast and ovarian cancer.

The newly-published study found that the women who used chemical straightening products more than four times in the previous year had two and a half higher chances of developing uterine cancer, after accounting for other individual risk factors.

"However, it is important to put this information into context. Uterine cancer is a relatively rare type of cancer," White added in a statement.

BREAST CANCER AND MAMMOGRAMS: 3 KEY QUESTIONS WOMEN OF ALL AGES SHOULD ASK BEFORE THEIR SCANS

Additionally, researchers found that using hair straighteners less frequently in the past year was also associated with a higher uterine cancer risk. But the difference was not statistically significant – meaning it may have been due to chance.

NIEHS researchers concluded that, though hair straightener use and uterine cancer did not differ by race, Black women may be more at-risk.

"Because Black women use hair straightening or relaxer products more frequently and tend to initiate use at earlier ages than other races and ethnicities, these findings may be even more relevant for them," Che-Jung Chang of NIEHS said.

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According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), uterine cancer is the most common gynecologic cancer in the United States. While rare, it is more common than cervical cancer and ovarian cancer.

Reuters contributed to this report.



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Healthy living habits include eating dinner earlier — it may also help keep weight down

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The time you eat dinner in the evening significantly affects how many calories you burn during the day, your appetite and your adipose — or fat — tissue in your body, according to a study done by Harvard Medical School investigators at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. 

The study, published in Cell Metabolism, found that late eating doubled the odds of being hungry, as compared to early eating.

"Accumulating data suggest that eating earlier in the day is associated with lower body weight and improved weight loss success," senior author Frank A.J.L. Scheer, Ph.D., professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and director of the medical chronobiology program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston told Fox News Digital. 

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Scheer, who is a neuroscientist as well, said the study simultaneously looked at three mechanisms in the body that could explain weight gain associated with eating late. 

The researchers said previous studies suggested that eating late is associated with a higher risk of obesity and decreased success with losing weight — and the team wanted to understand why.

"The three [mechanisms] were hunger regulation, how many calories we burn and changes in our fat tissue," Scheer said. 

Sixteen participants in the study, he said, stayed in a laboratory to allow the investigators to control for other factors, such as how much and what participants ate, their level of physical activity, their sleep and the environmental temperature and light exposure — which may otherwise influence their measurements.

LOOK YOUNGER, LOSE WEIGHT: ADD PUMPKIN TO YOUR DIET

"We found that late eating influenced all three biological mechanisms, all in the direction that would promote weight gain," said Scheer. 

"Late eating increased hunger and appetite across the day (including related hormones), decreased the amount of calories burned across the day and changed molecular pathways in fat tissue that would promote fat growth."

First author Nina Vujović, a researcher in the Medical Chronobiology Program, said in a Harvard University news release, "In this study, we asked, Does the time that we eat matter when everything else is kept consistent."

The study's 16 participants all had a body mass index considered in the overweight or obese range — and they followed specific in-laboratory protocols. 

Each participant completed two different eating schedules: one in which they followed a strict early meal schedule — then another in which they ate the same meals but four hours later in the day.

Two to three weeks prior to starting each of the in-lab meal regimens, the participants followed a fixed sleeping and wake schedule; then, three days before entering the laboratory, the participants strictly followed identical diets and meal schedules at home.

MORNING HABITS DOCTORS AND PSYCHOLOGISTS WISH YOU WOULD DO

"We found that eating four hours later makes a significant difference for our hunger levels, the way we burn calories after we eat and the way we store fat," Vujović said in the news release. 

The participants kept a record of their level of hunger and appetite and the researchers took blood samples throughout the day, checked the participants’ body temperature and measured their energy expenditure.

The researchers explored how eating time affected the way the body stores fat by taking biopsies of the participants’ adipose tissues during laboratory testing in both the early and late eating protocols. 

They compared the difference between the two eating routines. 

The adipose tissue gene expression showed increased adipogenesis (fat storage) and decreased lipolysis (fat breakdown), which contributes to fat growth, according to the study. 

The late-eating participants also burned calories at a slower rate compared to the early eating schedule. 

The investigators also said late eating had a significant effect on the body’s hormones, leptin and ghrelin, that control appetite and a person’s drive to eat. 

HEALTHY BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE COULD HELP KICKSTART BETTER EATING HABITS IN THE NEW YEAR

They noted that leptin, which signals the body that you are full after a meal, was decreased for a span of 24 hours in the late eating schedule, compared to early eating. 

"This study shows the impact of late versus early eating. Here, we isolated these effects by controlling for confounding variables like caloric intake, physical activity, sleep and light exposure — but in real life, many of these factors may themselves be influenced by meal timing," Scheer said.

Dr. Reshmi Srinath, M.D., director of the Mount Sinai Weight and Metabolism Management Program at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City, was not part of the study but commented on it to Fox News Digital. 

"This is a small but very well done study, which supports the need to avoid late-night eating given its impact on metabolism and hunger," Srinath told Fox News Digital. 

FRUIT OR VEGETABLE? TAKE THIS QUIZ TO TEST YOUR HEALTHY FOODS KNOWLEDGE

"I generally counsel patients to finish eating by 7:30-8 p.m. and then leave the kitchen, so that they avoid excessive snacking and excess caloric intake at night," said Srinath, an endocrinologist. 

Laura Feldman, a registered dietitian nutritionist and assistant professor of nutrition at Long Island University in Brookville, New York, did not participate in the study but told Fox News Digital the findings may be difficult to replicate during day-to-day living.

CAN VITAMIN C HELP YOUR SKIN?

"The study was heavily controlled," she said. "The participants stayed in a laboratory setting for several days and all ate the same meals, participated in the same level of physical activity and had a set sleep schedule."

"This is very different than the ‘real-world’ scenarios the average person" will encounter daily.

Most people, said Feldman, base their food decisions on several factors beyond the timing of meals. 

These factors include finances, work schedules, access to food and stress and mental health status.

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"It is unclear if these results would still apply for some people, including night-shift employees," she told Fox News Digital.

The researchers acknowledged the challenge of real-life scenarios and eating schedules. 

Scheer said in a news release, "In larger scale studies, where tight control of all these factors is not feasible, we must at least consider how other behavioral and environmental variables alter these biological pathways underlying obesity risk."



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Sunday, October 16, 2022

Gates Foundation contributes $1.2 billion to the fight to eradicate polio worldwide

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The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced $1.2 billion on Sunday for efforts to eradicate polio worldwide. 

Polio was paralyzing tens of thousands of children a year in dozens of countries around the world just a few decades ago, but the virus is now only endemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan. 

Part of the success in eradicating the virus is due to the nearly $5 billion that the Gates Foundation has contributed to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. 

"Polio eradication is within reach. But as far as we have come, the disease remains a threat. Working together, the world can end this disease," Bill Gates said in a statement. 

NY POLIO FEARS ON THE RISE WITH POSSIBLE 'COMMUNITY SPREAD' OF THE DANGEROUS VIRUS

Despite the success in fighting the virus, samples of the poliovirus have been detected in wastewater this year, in New York. A 20-year-old Rockland County man became paralyzed after contracting the virus this summer. 

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency last month, urging residents to get vaccinated. 

Polio was also detected in wastewater in London earlier this year. 

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative will require $4.8 billion in funding through 2026 with the goal of vaccinating 370 million children. 

"The fight against polio has done far more than protect children against polio. It has played a key role in strengthening health systems," Melinda French Gates said in a statement. 



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Concussion controversy: Traumatic brain injury gets more attention after NFL player incident

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Did you know that a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury?

After Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was transported to the hospital on Sept. 29 after his head slammed into the ground during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals — the second blow to his head in a span of four days — the evaluation and management of head injuries ignited a national conversation about how best to manage concussions, according to multiple reports. 

Approximately 7% of children have had symptoms of concussion or a brain injury in their lifetime.

TUA TAGOVAILOA CLEARS CONCUSSION PROTOCOL, EYES POTENTIAL WEEK 7 RETURN

Yet the risk increases with age — from 2% in those five years and younger to an estimated 12% in children aged 12–17, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. 

An estimated 29% of adults self-reported experiencing a concussion in their lifetime, according to a recent research study. 

Here's a deeper dive into the issue.

"A concussion is a type of mild traumatic brain injury (or mild TBI)," said Dr. Mitul Kapadia, medical director of pediatric rehabilitation and co-director of the sports concussion program at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital, San Francisco. 

"It happens when a blow to the head or an injury makes the head move back and forth with a lot of force," he said.

He told Fox News Digital that this causes chemical changes in the brain and sometimes damage to the brain cells. 

"Patients who have experienced a concussion show a complex range of neuronal and metabolic changes, and the mechanism of injury is likely associated with shearing of nerves," added Dr. Oren Gottfried, professor of neurosurgery and clinical vice chair in the department of neurosurgery at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

WHAT IS CTE?

Loss of consciousness is not a requirement for a diagnosis of a concussion — but a concussion is graded as mild, moderate or severe, depending on the duration of consciousness and memory loss, or amnesia, that persists after the injury, according to multiple reports. 

Symptoms as experienced by the patient can vary from "just not feeling right" or "feeling down" to having a headache, blurry vision, difficulty concentrating, feeling dizzy or feeling sluggish, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Signs are what an observer, such as a parent or coach, can see.

The signs can include: appearing stunned, confused, answering questions slowly, experiencing personality changes or having difficulty in following instructions.

"The Concussion in Sport Group has outlined the signs and symptoms below as ‘red flags,’ meaning that if an athlete experiences/displays them, they should be transported to a hospital — these signs/symptoms can indicate an injury more severe than concussion," said Dr. Steve Broglio, director at the University of Michigan Concussion Center.

He noted these symptoms include neck pain or tenderness, double vision, numbness, severe or worsening headache, seizure or convulsions, loss of consciousness, vomiting or being increasingly restless, agitated or combative.

"The single biggest thing is to remove any athlete from play who is suspected of having a concussion until that person can be evaluated by a licensed medical provider," Broglio told Fox News Digital.

If parents think their teen may have a concussion, the CDC recommends first removing the teen from play, keeping the teen out of play on the day of injury — and having the teen evaluated by a health care professional.

"As a neurosurgeon who treats head injuries, I would recommend that anyone who has suffered a trauma resulting in any period of loss of consciousness that is witnessed — or if they were alone and are vague or confused on the details of the injury — to get assessed by a doctor in urgent care, [be seen] in the [emergency department], or [make a] same-day visit to your physician," Gottfried told Fox News Digital. 

LITTLE LEAGUE PLAYER SUFFERS SERIOUS HEAD INJURY AFTER FALLING FROM BUNK BED, MAKING ‘TREMENDOUS’ PROGRESS

"Also, anyone who did not have any loss of consciousness but has persistent symptoms including headaches, neurological [issues] or any of the [symptoms] associated with post-concussive syndrome needs to be assessed," he added.

A health care professional will inquire about the details of the injury and also perform a comprehensive physical exam to determine whether further workup is needed, Gottfried noted.

"The provider has the training to fully evaluate the athlete and decide if they can return or not," Broglio added.

Washington became the first state in the union to require a "removal and clearance for Return to Play" among young athletes in May 2009 — but now all 50 states have a similar law, according to the CDC.

After a patient is evaluated, a health provider may sometimes decide to order a CT scan for the person.

"A CT scan of the brain takes pictures to create images of the brain and can show if there’s a fracture or bleeding," Kapadia told Fox News Digital.

"A CT scan cannot show if you have a concussion — and [these scans] are not routinely ordered for concussions unless a doctor has concern for a fracture or bleed."

Gottfried noted that not everyone who is evaluated will require a CT or MRI, but only a provider experienced in head injuries should make this decision. 

The symptoms of a concussion generally occur right after the injury, but sometimes the symptoms may not show up until hours later, according to the CDC.

The agency recommends monitoring for signs of a concussion soon after the injury and for several days later. If the signs of symptoms are worsening, then the person should be taken to the emergency department immediately.

Concussions need to be treated appropriately because the initial injury reduces the brain's "resilience" and alters its ability to compensate, Gottfried said.

But a second injury to the head before the brain has had time to completely recover can be fatal sometimes. "Second impact syndrome (SIS), also known as repetitive head injury syndrome, occurs when an individual experiences a second head injury before complete recovery from an initial head injury," Gottfried said.

"The most common scenario is in athletes who suffer a concussion and return to their sport too early."

He noted a subset of people are genetically predisposed to an overactive response to concussion as well as a secondary injury.

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Some factors can also delay recovery from a concussion, such as a previous concussion, neurological disorders, learning difficulties or mental health issues — as well as family or social stressors, per the CDC.

"The catastrophic second impact injury results from the loss of normal regulation of blood flow to the brain, leading to massive brain swelling," Gottfried added.

"The rise in pressure is rapid and can even result in brain herniation and death." 

The NFL and NFL Players Association (NFLPA) agreed to modify the league’s concussion protocol after Tagovailoa suffered repeated head trauma last month. 

"Following the complete review, the parties concluded that while the step-by-step process outlined in the Concussion Protocol was followed, the outcome in this case was not what was intended when the protocol was drafted," a joint NFL-NFLPA statement said.

The concussion protocol will add the symptom of "ataxia" to "no-go" symptoms, in which a player will be prohibited from returning to the game and will receive follow-up care outlined in the protocol if a player is diagnosed with this condition.

It defines ataxia "as [the] abnormality of balance/stability, motor coordination or dysfunctional speech caused by a neurological issue."



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