75 Hard fitness challenge draws expert warnings as toned-down versions gain traction

An extreme, all-or-nothing fitness regimen is going viral again as millions seek rapid weight loss and mental toughness through its relentless daily rules. But as health experts warn the intensity may be unrealistic for many people, lighter versions of the challenge are also picking up steam.

Fueled by social media buzz and dramatic celebrity transformations, the viral 75 Hard challenge, created in 2019 by entrepreneur and podcaster Andy Frisella, requires participants to follow a rigid lifestyle regimen "without compromise."

The rules include two 45-minute workouts each day — one outdoors — a strict diet with no cheat meals or alcohol, a gallon of water daily, 10 pages of nonfiction reading and a daily progress photo. Miss a single task in the 75 days, and the challenge resets to day one.

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"The mental changes are 100x greater than the physical changes," Frisella says on the challenge’s website. "This isn’t another temporary Band-Aid program," he promises.

Supporters say the program builds discipline and accountability and has given many participants a clean slate at the start of the new year.

Experts, however, warn that extreme doesn’t always mean effective, especially for long-term weight loss and health.

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"Any program that promises weight loss needs to take you into a calorie deficit," said Dr. Milica McDowell, a Montana-based exercise physiologist and doctor of physical therapy. "If you are burning more calories than you are consuming, yes, you will lose weight."

But she cautioned that the results often don’t last.

"The challenge with the 75 Hard workout is that when you stop doing it — which would mean burning fewer calories — and you do not change your eating and drinking behaviors, it is likely that whatever weight you lost during the challenge will come right back," McDowell told Fox News Digital. 

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"I do not consider this to be a sustainable way to lose weight," she said.

The Cleveland Clinic also says the program’s rigid, two-a-day structure may do more harm than good for people without a strong fitness base, particularly those with chronic medical conditions. Even drinking a gallon of water a day may be excessive for some people, depending on body size and health needs, it notes.

Medical professionals also urge caution for people with joint or heart problems, no exercise background, a history of eating disorders, or already demanding schedules.

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For those drawn to 75 Hard’s structure, experts suggest modifying the program to suit individual needs.

Variations like "75 Medium" and "75 Soft" have emerged that dial down the intensity with fewer workouts, more relaxed diets and simpler habit targets designed to be more sustainable.

"A softer start lowers the activation energy for behavior change [and] reduces all‑or‑nothing thinking," Fatima Cody Stanford, an obesity medicine physician scientist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, told USA Today.

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The approach can reduce the risk of injury, exhaustion and people quitting altogether, Stanford said.

"I think people are realizing it's OK to be gentle with yourself," Morgan Manning, a 26-year-old media and marketing professional from New York City, told USA Today. 

Her TikTok video announcing she was trying the "soft" version received over 60,000 views.

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"These versions feel more human," said Jesse Ramos Jr., a certified personal trainer and owner of BBT Fitness NYC. "They allow people to build discipline without burning out, getting injured or hating the process," Ramos told Fox News Digital.

"Fitness shouldn’t feel like punishment," he added.

Experts agree that consistency matters more than intensity when it comes to long-term weight loss and health.

Robin DeCicco, a certified holistic nutritionist from New York City, previously told Fox News Digital that she encourages clients to focus on sustainable habits like simply moving more, eating more whole foods and drinking more water than they were before, rather than following rigid rules.

"Healthy habits that change into long-term behaviors are what make people healthier into the future," DeCicco said.

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Early Parkinson’s could be detected decades before symptoms with simple blood test

A new study from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, along with Oslo University Hospital in Norway, may have discovered a way to detect biomarkers of Parkinson’s disease in the blood up to decades earlier.

In the very early stages of the disease, the body goes through changes related to DNA repair and stress in cells. These changes leave detectable clues in the blood before major brain damage occurs, according to a press release for the study.

This could allow for early detection of Parkinson's, when treatments might have a better chance of slowing or preventing serious damage.

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The processes of DNA repair and cellular stress response can occur for up to 20 years in Parkinson’s patients before motor symptoms fully develop, according to the researchers.

The team used machine learning to discover patterns linked to these processes, which were not found in healthy individuals or patients who were already diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

Annikka Polster, assistant professor at the Department of Life Sciences at Chalmers, who led the study, suggested in a statement that the study has found an "important window of opportunity" in which the disease can be detected "before motor symptoms caused by nerve damage in the brain appear."

"The fact that these patterns only show at an early stage and are no longer activated when the disease has progressed further also makes it interesting to focus on the mechanisms to find future treatments," she added.

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Polster confirmed that the study highlighted biomarkers that "likely reflect some of the early biology of the disease," which "paves the way for broad screening tests via blood samples: a cost-effective, easily accessible method."

The findings were published in npj Parkinson’s Disease.

The researchers plan to further develop tools to more easily detect these active mechanisms and understand how they work, according to the university.

The team predicts that within five years, blood tests for early Parkinson’s diagnoses could become more common within clinical practice. They are also optimistic about the development of new drugs to prevent or treat the disease.

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"If we can study the mechanisms as they happen, it could provide important keys to understanding how they can be stopped and which drugs might be effective," Polster said. 

"This may involve new drugs, but also drug re-purposing, where we can use drugs developed for diseases other than Parkinson’s because the same gene activities or mechanisms are active."

The researchers acknowledged that the study had some limitations, including that the gene activity measured in the blood only partly matches what's happening in the brain.

External factors, such as medication use, may have affected the results, they added.

Also, the study population may not represent all people, so findings may not apply broadly.

More than 10 million people around the world are estimated to be living with Parkinson's disease, according to the Parkinson’s Foundation. About 90,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed each year.

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Numbers are expected to continue rising, as Parkinson’s is the second-most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s.

While research is advancing, there is currently no cure for the disease, although medications are available to manage symptoms.

Common motor symptoms include tremors, slowed movement, muscle stiffness, balance and walking difficulties, a shuffling gait and freezing episodes. 

Non-motor symptoms include loss of smell, sleep problems, constipation, fatigue, depression or anxiety, speech and swallowing changes, cognitive slowing and reduced facial expression, according to Parkinson's Foundation and Mayo Clinic.

Danish Anwer, a doctoral student at the Department of Life Sciences at Chalmers and the study’s first author, detailed in a statement how Parkinson’s impacts the brain.

"By the time the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease appear, 50% to 80% of the relevant brain cells are often already damaged or gone," he said. "The study is an important step toward facilitating early identification of the disease and counteracting its progression before it has gone this far."

Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel agreed that Parkinson's is a "very difficult disease" with an increasing global impact.

"By the time you have actual motor symptoms affecting gait, tremor, etc., a large majority of affected cells have been damaged and destroyed," he told Fox News Digital.

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Siegel called the new research "exciting," suggesting that it "opens the door for earlier and more effective diagnosis and treatment."

Fox News Digital reached out to the study authors for comment.

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Colorado declares disaster emergency as presumptive bird flu outbreak hits facility with 1.3M chickens

Colorado Lt. Gov. Dianne Primavera on Thursday declared a disaster emergency for a massive outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Weld County north of Denver.

The Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) told local outlet FOX31 News there was a presumptive positive test for HPAI, also known as the bird flu, at an egg laying facility in the county.

CDA officials told the outlet dead chickens are being tested at the facility, which is home to 1.3 million chickens, due to an "elevated mortality report."

It is unclear how many birds are potentially infected.

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HPAI was first detected in the U.S. in February 2022, impacting wild birds and poultry.

Records released by the CDA show there was a rash of outbreaks in Weld County in July 2024, affecting three commercial poultry facilities housing a total of nearly 3.4 million chickens.

Though the names of the businesses are not public, one of the affected facilities reported having 1,313,800 chickens.

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It is unclear if that facility is the same facility potentially affected in the latest outbreak.

The state's declaration activates the State Emergency Operations Plan and directs the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) to take all necessary and appropriate actions to assist the affected jurisdictions with their response, recovery and mitigation efforts. 

The action also authorizes the use of disaster emergency funds and allows the OEM to mobilize state resources, make contracts and awards using emergency procurement procedures and encumber and expend funds as determined by the director of the OEM.

At the time of the declaration, Primavera was acting as governor; Gov. Jared Polis was in Washington, D.C., attending a Colorado River negotiation meeting.

The governor's office said the decision was made in coordination with Polis.

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Daredevil climber's brain shows no fear during extreme stunts: Experts reveal why

U.S. professional rock climber Alex Honnold upped the ante during his recent urban climb in Taiwan. 

The daredevil athlete scaled the Taipei 101 skyscraper on Jan. 25 with no ropes or protective equipment. The event was streamed live on Netflix, as Fox News Digital previously reported.

Honnold successfully reached the summit of the 101-story steel building in just an hour and 31 minutes, waving his arms in victory at the top. He later noted the view was "amazing," even though it was windy.

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As a career climber, Honnold's conquests have included major mountain ranges across the U.S., plus Greenland’s massive sea cliffs — three times the size of the Empire State Building.

In a 2016 experiment, neuroscientist Jane Joseph set out to discover what in Honnold’s brain possessed him to take on such scary climbing by scanning it. 

The doctor was one of the first to perform fMRI scans — functional magnetic resonance imaging — on "high sensation seekers," according to a Nautilus report.

Joseph and a team of technicians found that Honnold’s amygdala showed little activity in reaction to images that would typically trigger fear and stress reactions.

"Nowhere in the fear center of Honnold’s brain could the neuroscientist spot activity," the report noted.

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The researchers flipped the experiment, introducing a reward task where Honnold could win money. Normally, a control subject’s amygdala and other brain structures "look like a Christmas tree lit up," Joseph said.

But Honnold’s was "lifeless in black and white." Activity showed only in the regions that process visual input — confirming that he was awake and looking at the screen.

"There’s just not much going on in my brain," Honnold told Joseph. "It just doesn’t do anything."

Dr. Daniel Amen, the founder of Amen Clinics and a California-based psychiatrist, did not scan Honnold’s brain but is an expert in brain imaging.

In the brain scans of other extreme athletes and adrenaline junkies, Amen said there’s often lower baseline activity in the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in fear inhibition, impulse control and risk evaluation.

In these individuals, there is also a strong activation of reward and motivation circuits, or dopamine pathways, according to Amen.

"Meaning, high stimulation feels normal — or even necessary — for them to feel engaged," he said. "Some also show reduced reactivity in the amygdala, so situations that trigger fear in most people don’t produce the same alarm response."

He added, "In short, their brains are less easily ‘scared’ and more strongly driven by challenge and novelty."

Based on nearly 300,000 brain scans done at Amen Clinics, Dr. Amen noted that in people like Honnold who are "elite extreme performers," the key difference compared to the average brain is "exceptional top-down control."

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"The prefrontal cortex stays online and organized under stress, allowing precise focus, emotional regulation and decision-making in high-risk environments," he said. "Fear circuits activate just enough to sharpen attention — but not enough to overwhelm performance."

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Brains like Honnold’s are also often "very efficient" in sensory-motor integration, or when vision, balance and motor planning "work seamlessly together."

"Instead of panic, the brain enters a highly regulated, flow-state pattern where attention is narrow, calm and precise," he said.

In the average brain, fear circuits tend to activate faster and louder, according to Amen — and the prefrontal cortex "tends to go offline" under threat, triggering hesitation, overthinking or panic.

"Most people experience a strong mismatch between perceived risk and control, which is protective for survival but limits extreme performance," he said.

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"For the average person, high adrenaline disrupts accuracy and judgment; for extreme athletes, it organizes the brain," he said. 

"Their brains are not reckless — they are better regulated under stress, whereas the average brain prioritizes safety and avoidance."

Fox News Digital’s Jessica Mekles contributed reporting.

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'High January’ fuels cannabis boom as experts flag some serious health dangers

The popularity of cannabis continues to rise in 2026, with statistics showing that around 15% of Americans are current users, and more than 22% have used it sometime in the past year.

As more people cut out alcohol amid the Dry January trend, dispensaries have reported a surge in marijuana sales, leading to what some industry insiders and media outlets have dubbed "High January."

While the drug has been touted for potential medical benefits — including pain relief, reduced anxiety and improved sleep — experts have warned about health risks associated with cannabis use.

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"There’s a widespread belief that marijuana is ‘natural’ and therefore harmless," Corey Gamberg, a mental health and addiction specialist who serves as executive director of the Rockland Recovery Center and Massachusetts Center for Addiction, told Fox News Digital.

"In reality, today’s products are far more potent than in previous decades, and we’re seeing very real mental, emotional and physical consequences in clinical settings every day."

Trent Carter, a board-certified nurse practitioner, addiction recovery expert and founder of Renew Health, an outpatient treatment center in New Mexico, noted that marijuana has become a more commonly accepted substance — but he has seen some negative effects in his own patients.

"As time went on, I discovered that the vast majority used marijuana to treat a number of mental and physical issues, only to induce a litany of other symptoms as a result," he shared with Fox News Digital.

Gamberg cautioned about marijuana’s effects on people with underlying anxiety, depression or trauma histories.

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"Some users initially feel calmer, but honestly we often see increased anxiety, panic symptoms, emotional blunting, and in some cases paranoia or psychosis," he told Fox News Digital. "For vulnerable people, marijuana can certainly worsen mental health rather than relieve it."

This can be particularly risky with today’s cannabis products that contain high levels of THC, added Gamberg. 

A recent study from Truveta, a health data company that aggregates de-identified electronic health records from a large network of U.S. health systems, found that emergency department visits for cannabis-induced mental health disorders rose nearly 50% between 2019 and 2020 and remained elevated through 2023.

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"While people with mental health conditions are more likely to use cannabis, evidence also suggests cannabis use may be linked to earlier onset of certain psychiatric disorders," Brianna Cartwright, principal research analyst for Truveta, noted in a statement to Fox News Digital.

Regular marijuana use affects all areas of brain function, including attention span, memory and motivation, according to Gamberg.

"Clinically, we see people describe feeling ‘stuck’ — less emotionally responsive, less driven and less engaged with life," he said. "This can interfere with work, relationships and recovery from other mental health conditions."

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Gamberg warned that the developing brain is especially sensitive to THC. 

"Early and frequent marijuana use is linked to long-term changes in cognition, emotional regulation, and increased risk of severe substance use disorders later in life," he told Fox News Digital. "This is one of the most concerning trends we see in treatment."

Recent studies have suggested that marijuana users may face an elevated risk of heart attack and stroke.

A meta-analysis by French researchers, published in the journal Heart, reviewed multiple studies of more than 400 million patients to assess the link between cannabis and major adverse cardiovascular events.

The results noted a significant increase in risk of major cardiovascular events, including a 29% higher likelihood of heart attack, 20% higher risk of stroke and twice the chances of cardiovascular death.

The danger was highest for people who used cannabis at least once a week.

While marijuana’s mild sedating and relaxing effects can sometimes help people who have difficulty falling asleep, experts say there are several important things to consider before using it as a sleep aid. 

"THC suppresses rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, disrupting normal sleep architecture and interfering with essential processes such as neural plasticity, memory consolidation and emotional regulation," said Chelsie Rohrscheib, a neuroscientist and sleep specialist at Wesper in New York.

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"This leads to chronic REM sleep deprivation and eventual REM rebound when marijuana use is discontinued."

Clinical research has also linked chronic use of marijuana with decreased deep sleep and higher rates of sleep fragmentation, Wesper noted. 

"So, while using marijuana may initially improve sleep quality, it should not be used long term," she concluded.

Gamberg agreed that marijuana can disrupt "healthy sleep architecture."

"Over time, users often experience poorer sleep quality, vivid dreams or nightmares during withdrawal, and increased reliance on marijuana just to fall asleep," he said.

There is a widespread misconception that cannabis is not addictive and that it cannot lead to a substance use disorder, according to Nicole Short, clinical psychologist and assistant professor of psychology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who focuses on cannabis use disorder.

"This is untrue — it is possible to become physiologically dependent on cannabis and it is possible to develop a cannabis use disorder," she told Fox News Digital. "There is always a risk of addiction related to cannabis use, and it is difficult to treat once it is developed."

Approximately 30% of people who use the substance develop cannabis use disorder, a clinical condition marked by an inability to stop using it despite significant negative effects, according to the CDC. 

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Symptoms include cravings, unsuccessful quit attempts, tolerance and withdrawal. Stopping can lead to irritability, insomnia, anxiety and mood changes, according to Gamberg.

In December 2025, President Trump issued an executive order calling for marijuana to be changed from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which would mean it has an accepted medical use and lower potential for abuse.

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The executive order cited a 2023 FDA review that found scientific support for the use of medical marijuana to treat pain, anorexia and nausea/vomiting.

"The reality is that the United States's treatment of cannabis as a Schedule I substance is inconsistent with its medical value and potential for addiction compared to other substances," Riana Durrett, director of the Cannabis Policy Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told Fox News Digital.

"The president's executive order strongly supports research, which can help with misconceptions about cannabis, whether that is a misguided belief that it cures anxiety or support for further research into cannabis as a treatment for pain," she went on. 

"The one thing everyone should agree on is that more research and evidence-based policymaking is needed in this area."

Dr. Dustin Sulak, an integrative physician and co-founder of Healer, a cannabinoid wellness company based in Maine, noted that the effects of cannabis on the brain and body are not the same for everyone.

"They vary significantly based on dose, potency, age and pattern of use," he told Fox News Digital. "Much of the public confusion around cannabis comes from treating all exposure as the same."

Sulak agreed that high doses can have negative effects on attention, memory, anxiety, sleep and heart health, but noted that low-dose, orally administered cannabinoids "used intentionally" in adults and older adults have shown to have benefits. 

"These include improved quality of life, better sleep, reduced anxiety, better pain control, improved appetite, and in many cases, reduced reliance on higher-risk medications," he said.

"Any discussion of cannabis' effects on mental health, heart health and sleep should distinguish between high-potency recreational use and low-dose, medically guided use. Without that distinction, conclusions can be misleading."

Carter emphasized that people deserve access to "objective, forthright information" about marijuana and its impact on well-being.

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"The conversation surrounding cannabis cannot be laced with fear-mongering, judgment or misinformation, and at the same time, users should be aware that a substance capable of altering the brain may come with a cost, especially with consistent use," he added.

Anyone who is experiencing negative health effects of cannabis should see a medical professional for help.

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Men face hidden heart risk years earlier than women, study suggests

Men are at a much higher risk of heart attacks than women earlier in life, a new study reveals.

Researchers at Northwestern University found that men start to develop coronary heart disease years earlier than women, with differences emerging as early as the mid-30s, according to a press release.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (JAHA), analyzed data from more than 5,000 adults, aged 18 to 30, from the mid-1980s through 2020, as part of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) analysis.

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Men reached a 5% incidence of cardiovascular disease, including heart attack, stroke and heart failure, at around 50 years old compared to 57 for women.

Coronary heart disease, which is when blood vessels that supply the heart muscle become narrowed or blocked, was the main driver of the difference, as men reached a 2% incidence more than a decade before women. Stroke and heart failure emerged later in life.

Men's risk began rising faster at around age 35 and remained high throughout midlife, according to the research. Everyone in the study was under 65 years old at the last follow-up. 

Current guidelines generally recommend cardiovascular risk assessment beginning around age 40, which some experts say may miss an important window for early prevention.

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Heart disease develops over decades, with early markers detectable in young adulthood, according to senior study author Alexa Freedman, assistant professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

"Our findings highlight the importance of promoting heart health screening and prevention in young adulthood, especially for young men," Freedman told Fox News Digital.

The researchers emphasized the importance of looking beyond standard measures of heart risk, like cholesterol or blood pressure, and considering a "broader range of biological and social factors."

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Dr. Andrew Freeman, cardiologist and director of clinical cardiology at National Jewish Health in Denver, was not involved in the study but commented on the findings.

"We have always known that men tend to manifest and typically die earlier from things like heart attacks and strokes compared to women," he told Fox News Digital.

Although the study did not identify why more men are predisposed to heart issues than women, Freeman said factors like hormonal differences, diet and physical activity could come into play. 

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"The standard American lifestyle makes us all sick, and then men seem to be more prone to developing this disease earlier," the cardiologist told Fox News Digital. 

"We are more exposed to toxins than ever before in virtually every part of our food supply," he went on. "We already know well that air pollution, light pollution and sound pollution are all associated with earlier heart disease."

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Americans are also more sedentary, get less sleep, are more stressed and are less socially connected — all of which can increase cardiovascular diseases, Freeman added.

"I think this study is really underscoring that it's time for some big changes," he said.

The doctor shared the following five "healthspan" tips to help prevent heart health issues.

Freeman also recommends addressing any comorbidities, like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity.

Those at a higher risk of cardiovascular events may want to consider earlier screening, although Freeman suggested that early prevention efforts should apply to everyone.

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"Coronary disease is manifesting earlier than ever here in the U.S., and we need to do everything we can to clean up our lifestyles and reduce our disease burden," he said. "If you're a man, you've got to be extra aggressive earlier in life."

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Simple weight-loss quiz may pinpoint why some diets fail — and how to boost success

Weight loss can be highly dependent on each individual's habits and relationship with food.

With this in mind, new research from City St. George’s, University of London, found that categorizing people into "eating profiles" can help people achieve lasting results.

The study was based on an online quiz developed by the university, which led participants through 17 questions asking about their behavioral habits regarding emotional eating, dieting and exercise.

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Quiz-takers were grouped into four profiles, or phenotypes, based on their responses: Purple Lavender, Red Chili, Yellow Saffron and Green Sage.

The quiz then offered tailored advice for building a healthier long-term lifestyle, including how to stick to personal goals, improve dietary choices and incorporate more movement.

The U.K. study participants were enrolled in a 12-week digital weight-loss program, in addition to seven weeks of tailored advice.

Those who took the quiz and identified with a profile showed "significant" engagement in the 12-week program compared to those who did not. They were also more likely to stick to it, according to the university.

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Quiz-takers also recorded more meals, communicated with health coaches more frequently and lost more weight on average.

"Phenotype-tailored weekly advice was associated with substantially higher engagement in a real-world digital program, although short-term weight differences were not statistically significant," the authors concluded in the study, which was published in JMIR Formative Research.

Although the study was not randomized, followed participants for only a short time and relied on self-reported weight, the results suggest that adjusting digital weight-loss programs based on how people typically eat and behave could help more users stick with them, the researchers said.

Larger, randomized trials with longer follow-ups are "warranted to determine whether increased engagement translates into clinically meaningful weight loss," they added.

Fox News Digital reached out to the study authors for comment.

According to the researchers, "Red Chili" is characterized by "high maladaptive and hedonic eating, low self-regulation and high psychological avoidance."

This means Red Chili members may feel their eating is out of control, use food to cope with negative emotions, feel guilty about their eating habits and tend to ignore problems. This group also tends to follow restrictive diets, but then overeats when it doesn’t pan out.

"Yellow Saffron" is based on "high hedonic eating and reward reactivity and low maladaptive eating."

These individuals may find it difficult to resist overeating, choose foods based on taste rather than health benefits, and frequently crave foods high in calories, fat and sugar.

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"Purple Lavender" represented "low self-regulation and high psychological avoidance, as well as low maladaptive and hedonic eating."

This group tends to set goals and pursue them temporarily, but may give up upon confronting an obstacle. Purple Lavenders may lose enthusiasm after starting to make changes and find it difficult to continue, as well as ignore problems and challenges.

"Green Sage" is characterized in the quiz as "low maladaptive and hedonic eating, high self-regulation and low psychological avoidance."

These individuals often need clear guidance in making positive lifestyle changes, yet put off working toward goals when they lack motivation.

People in Green Sage may tend to not do the recommended amount of physical activity for their health or eat the recommended amount of vegetables for their diet, even if they often cook at home.

Los Angeles-based registered dietitian-nutritionist Ilana Muhlstein praised the "really intuitive" quiz.

"It really hits on the emotional and behavioral side of weight loss that people struggle with the most," the California-based expert told Fox News Digital.

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"It did an amazing job once it identified your eating type, giving you mindset shifts and descriptors on what to work on," she went on. "It’s no surprise to me that it made a significant difference in the motivation and adherence to the weight-loss plan early on."

As the results found no significant difference at the seven-week mark, Muhlstein suggested that this means the researchers "have to work on better follow-up measures" to help people stay more consistent.

Certified holistic nutritionist Robin DeCicco added that it "makes sense" to acknowledge habits and behaviors around food to promote weight loss and health goals.

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"Health is an individualized topic. There is no general way of eating that suits each person, because behavior and personality play such a role," the New York expert told Fox News Digital. 

"Following a generic diet of what to eat and what to avoid doesn’t result in any sort of meaningful change unless personality types, behaviors and habits are addressed."

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Alzheimer’s risk tied to how the body handles sugar after eating, study finds

People who tend to experience blood sugar spikes in the hours after eating could face a higher risk of a common brain disorder.

Using the UK Biobank, a new study led by the University of Liverpool analyzed genetic data for more than 350,000 individuals between 40 and 69 years of age, according to a press release.

The researchers examined genetic markers linked to how the body processes sugar, then used a technique called Mendelian randomisation to compare disease rates in people who were genetically predisposed to higher blood glucose.

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They determined that people with elevated blood sugar two hours after eating (a condition called postprandial hyperglycaemi) were 69% more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

In those participants, the disease was not associated with any changes in brain size or evidence of damage.

Other markers of glucose regulation — including fasting glucose, fasting insulin and measures of insulin resistance — were not significantly associated with Alzheimer’s risk, the researchers noted.

The findings were published in the journal Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.

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"This finding could help shape future prevention strategies, highlighting the importance of managing blood sugar not just overall, but specifically after meals," lead author Dr. Andrew Mason said in the release.

Tanya Freirich, registered dietitian and CDCES (certified diabetes care and education specialist) in North Carolina, said the link between the increased genetic risk for high blood sugars and Alzheimer's is consistent with previous studies. 

"Over time, high blood sugars damage blood vessels in the brain, which increases the risk of memory and learning problems," Freirich, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.

DAIRY CONSUMPTION LINKED TO LOWER DEMENTIA RISK IN SURPRISING NEW STUDY

"The brain is dependent on glucose for fuel, so any restriction of that source due to damaged blood vessels can further harm the brain’s functional connectivity. Excess glucose also impairs our brain's functioning."

New Jersey-based registered dietitian Erin Palinski-Wade agreed that the study points to postprandial glucose control as a potential target for protecting the brain.

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"This study suggests that when it comes to brain health, it’s not just whether someone has diabetes that matters, it’s how high blood sugar rises in the two hours after eating," Palinski-Wade, who also was not involved in the new research, told Fox News Digital.

"Interestingly, traditional fasting glucose and insulin levels were not linked to Alzheimer’s risk, which suggests we may be missing part of the picture if we only focus on fasting labs and overlook what happens after meals."

The link between blood glucose spikes and dementia outcome wasn’t confirmed in a separate Alzheimer’s genetic dataset, which raises questions about the findings applying to wider populations, the published article noted.

People in the UK Biobank also tended to be limited to healthier, White British participants.

"We first need to replicate these results in other populations and ancestries to confirm the link and better understand the underlying biology," said senior author Dr. Vicky Garfield in the release.

There’s also a risk that some dementia diagnoses were inaccurate or missed entirely, as the study relied on medical records and self-reporting.

"If validated, the study could pave the way for new approaches to reduce dementia risk in people with diabetes."

While some people may have a genetic propensity for increased blood sugar spikes after eating, Freirich noted that dietary choices can make a big impact.

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She recommends eating balanced meals that include vegetables, protein and complex carbohydrates, as well as reducing intake of excess sugar and choosing whole grains instead of refined grains.

The expert is also a proponent of boosting fiber intake, noting that the daily goal for adults is between 25 and 35 grams per day.

"Fiber is helpful for improving blood sugar stability, but is also beneficial for heart health, digestion and reducing inflammation, all of which contribute to improved brain health," Freirich said.

She also suggests restricting sodas, juices, sugar-sweetened tea and coffee drinks, and limiting desserts.

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"In addition to diet, a short burst of activity after eating, such as a walk, can also help lower your blood sugar spike after eating," Freirich said.

Anyone who has questions about blood sugar levels should have a discussion with a doctor about tests to assess risk.

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Sleep timing could directly impact chances of heart attack or stroke, study suggests

Adults who consider themselves "night owls" tend to score lower in cardiovascular health assessments and face a higher risk of heart attack or stroke.

That’s according to a new study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, which examined how a person’s chronotype — their natural tendency to be active in the morning or evening — is linked to overall heart health.

The researchers looked at 14 years of UK Biobank data for around 300,000 adults averaging 57 years old, according to a press release for the study.

EASY NUTRITION TWEAK COULD TRANSFORM YOUR SLEEP — STARTING THIS EVENING

Around 8% of the participants described themselves as "definitely evening people," which means they stayed up very late. Another 24% said they were "definitely morning people," as they tended to wake up earlier and go to bed earlier.

The largest "intermediate" group, which included 67% of participants, said they were unsure or in neither group.

Each person’s heart health was determined using the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 score.

"Life’s Essential 8 is a comprehensive assessment that includes activity levels, diet, blood pressure, cholesterol, use of nicotine, sleep patterns, weight management and blood sugar," shared Dr. Bradley Serwer, an interventional cardiologist and chief medical officer at VitalSolution, an Ingenovis Health company.

MEN WITH 'BEER BELLIES' MAY FACE SERIOUS HEART DAMAGE REGARDLESS OF WEIGHT

The researchers also looked at incidence of heart attack or stroke over the follow-up period.

They determined that people who were more active in the evening ("night owls") had a 79% higher risk of poor cardiovascular health compared to the intermediate group, and a 16% higher risk of heart attack or stroke, the release stated.

People who identified as being more active in the morning had slightly better heart health scores. The link was more pronounced in women than men.

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"'Evening people' often experience circadian misalignment, meaning their internal body clock may not match the natural day-to-night light cycle or their typical daily schedules," said lead study author Sina Kianersi, Ph.D., a research fellow in the division of sleep and circadian disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, both in Boston, in the release.

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"Evening people may be more likely to have behaviors that can affect cardiovascular health, such as poorer diet quality, smoking, and inadequate or irregular sleep."

Serwer, who was not involved in the study, noted that lifestyle habits played a significant role in these findings.

"Cardiovascular disease has multiple contributing causes," the Maryland-based cardiologist told Fox News Digital. "Sleep is just one variable — and the importance of high-quality, restorative sleep should not be undervalued."

The findings could help doctors tailor lifestyle and medical interventions to help prevent cardiovascular events, the researchers noted.

The study did have some limitations, chiefly that it does not prove that staying up late causes heart problems, but only establishes an association.

Also, the study relied on people reporting their own schedules, habits and health, which could be skewed.

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Finally, the people included in the UK Biobank are primarily White and tend to have better health than the general population, the researchers noted, which means the results may not be widely generalized.

Serwer added, "While quality sleep is important, further studies are required to show exactly what sort of impact sleep alone has on cardiovascular health."

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Doctors share alcohol recommendations for men vs women as guidance shifts

The new federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggest simply limiting alcohol intake for better health.

The shifted guidance challenges previous standards that listed moderate drinking limits — one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men.

A standard drink is about 12 ounces of beer, five ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of liquor, according to experts.

HIGHER STROKE RISK LINKED TO CONSUMING CERTAIN AMOUNT OF ALCOHOL, STUDY FINDS

Heavy drinking is defined as four or more drinks per day for women and five or more drinks per day for men, per the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).

Drinking this amount of alcohol within two hours is typically considered binge-drinking, which causes more than half of alcohol-related deaths in the U.S.

"It increases the risk of falls, burns, car crashes, memory blackouts, medication interactions, assaults, drownings and overdose deaths," the group cautions on its website.

Many patients may believe their heavy drinking is not a concern because they can "hold their liquor," but having a high alcohol tolerance is actually more of a reason to worry, the NIAAA mentioned.

"People with this trait tend to drink more and thus have an increased risk of alcohol-related problems," the Institute stated. 

"Patients who drink within the limits of the Dietary Guidelines, too, may be unaware that even if they don’t feel a ‘buzz,’ driving can be impaired."

Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel said he agrees with the shifting guidelines because any set standard sends an "unintentional message that some amount of alcohol is safe."

LITTLE-KNOWN PRESCRIPTION PILL IS HELPING AMERICANS DRINK LESS ALCOHOL

"Setting an arbitrary number doesn’t mean much, especially since people tend not to follow it anyway," he told Fox News Digital. 

"Not only that, but since alcohol is addictive, what starts out as one drink quickly becomes two … it is a social lubricant and there is a positive side, but it is also a toxin."

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Siegel suggested that there should be further guidelines surrounding the risks alcohol poses for the liver and heart, in addition to the dangers of drinking while driving.

"The less you drink, the better," he said. "Alcohol impairs judgment, may easily be mixed with other harmful drugs like cannabis, [and can] lead to severe and fatal car accidents."

Isaac Dapkins, M.D., chief medical officer and designated institutional official for the Family Health Centers at NYU Langone, noted the importance of limiting alcohol.

While men and women differ depending on age, body size and other environmental factors, women’s bodies can metabolize less alcohol than men, the doctor told Fox News Digital. 

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In a separate interview with Fox News Digital, Dr. Mark Hyman, co-founder of Function Health in California, highlighted how women are at an increased risk of developing certain cancers due to hormonal shifts.

Meanwhile, men may be more likely to binge-drink, the doctor noted, as just one heavy drinking episode could increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. 

Hyman debunked the myth that drinking can be good for heart health. 

"There are no cardiovascular health benefits to drinking alcohol," he said. "These assertions were based primarily on observational research, with a lot of confounding factors."

The doctor added, "Less [alcohol] is better, and abstinence is best. No one should start drinking — or keep drinking — because they think it’s good for them."

Dapkins recommends that individuals see their primary care doctor to discuss their personal risk.

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"There is no longer a ‘one size fits all’ status for most conditions," he said. "There is so much new information discovered about how to characterize an individual's risk based on family history, behaviors and current medical conditions."

For anyone who has a personal history of tobacco use — or a family history of breast cancer, atrial fibrillation or substance abuse — Dapkins' advice is to avoid alcohol.

"There is a significant association between alcohol intake and atrial fibrillation (or A. Fib.), high blood pressure, and breast, mouth and throat cancers," he cautioned. "A. Fib. can cause a stroke and is directly associated with alcohol intake."

For those with no personal or family history, the concern would be less, according to Dapkins.

"If you choose to drink moderately, your doctor may be able to detect health conditions early to reduce your risk," he went on. "The best option is to have a trusted clinician with whom you maintain a long relationship."

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Woman's painful reaction to wine leads to life-changing cancer discovery

One woman’s uncomfortable reaction to alcohol led to a grave discovery.

Hollie Thursby, 28, a mother of two from the U.K., told Kennedy News and Media that after giving birth to her second son, Jack, she began experiencing unusual symptoms.

At a checkup for her son, who was a couple of months old, Thursby mentioned that she was experiencing "unbearably itchy skin," which is known to be a post-partum symptom. The doctor suggested it was due to changing hormones.

DEADLY CANCER RISK SPIKES WITH CERTAIN LEVEL OF ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION, STUDY FINDS

Thursby added that she occasionally drank a couple glasses of wine. Although she kept the drinking to a minimum, she described having "a lot of pain" down the side of her neck.

"Really quite painful and uncomfortable," she said, according to the report.

The mother also reported feeling extremely exhausted, which she assumed was due to caring for her children throughout the day.

"I also felt like when I got to bed that someone was sitting on my chest," she shared.

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In July 2025, Thursby discovered a lump on the side of her neck that she described as "really quite big," but wasn’t painful, Kennedy News and Media reported.

"It was hard, it didn’t move, but it was there," she said. "When I turned my neck to the side, you could see it."

Thursby’s symptoms turned out to be a form of blood cancer — Stage 2 Hodgkins lymphoma, which means it is in two or more lymph nodes, according to Cancer Research U.K.

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Common symptoms include swelling of the lymph nodes, heavy sweating, weight loss, itching, persistent cough or shortness of breath, high temperatures, and pain in the stomach or lymph nodes after drinking alcohol.

"Pain when you drink alcohol is actually a known side effect of Hodgkin lymphoma," she said, per the report. "It's something about the acidity in the wine and not when you drink other alcohol."

While alcohol-related pain in Hodgkins lymphoma patients has been "an accepted scientific consensus" since the 1950s, cases are rare, Healthline confirmed.

Thursby reportedly began chemotherapy in November, noting that the hardest part is not being able to care for her kids after losing her own mother to a blood disorder called myelodysplasia.

"I grew up without a mum, and it was horrendous. I can't do that to the boys," she told Kennedy News and Media. "We're all devastated, but we all know now, and we've got a treatment plan, which is what we need."

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"I'm just doing everything I can to get better for them. I keep telling myself this is only temporary, I just need to keep going."

Anyone experiencing pain or other concerning symptoms after consuming alcohol should consult a doctor for guidance.

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Red light therapy could boost brain health in certain groups, new research suggests

Red light therapy has been shown to reduce brain inflammation, protecting people who experience head trauma from long-term health consequences, a University of Utah study has shown.

Brain damage from repeated impact over the years is known to cause cognitive symptoms, ranging from memory issues to full-blown dementia, particularly affecting soldiers and athletes.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive, degenerative brain disease linked to repeated head impacts rather than a single injury, according to Mayo Clinic.

ALZHEIMER’S SCIENTISTS FIND KEY TO HALTING BRAIN DECLINE BEFORE SYMPTOMS

More than 100 former NFL football players have been posthumously diagnosed with CTE, according to the new study, which was published in the Journal of Neurotrauma.

Other research has shown that military personnel in active combat suffer from similar issues, as do first responders and veterans.

In the new study, the researchers recruited 26 current football players to understand more about the impact of red-light therapy on brain injuries.

The participants received either red light therapy delivered by a light-emitting headset and a device that clips into the nose, or a placebo treatment with an identical device that doesn’t produce light. Players self-administered the therapy three times a week, 20 minutes each time, for 16 weeks.

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"My first reaction was, ‘There’s no way this can be real,’" said first author Hannah Lindsey, Ph.D., in the university press release. "That’s how striking it was."

Players using the placebo treatment experienced increased brain inflammation over the course of the season. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans taken at the end of the season showed significantly more signs of inflammation than at the beginning of the season, the study found.

For players who used red-light therapy during the season, their brain inflammation didn’t increase at all.

ALZHEIMER'S RISK COULD RISE WITH COMMON CONDITION AFFECTING MILLIONS, STUDY FINDS

Previous studies have shown that red light, if powerful enough, can penetrate the skull and reach the brain, where it may reduce inflammation-related molecules.

"When we first started this project, I was extremely skeptical," said Elisabeth Wilde, Ph.D., the senior author on the study. "But we’ve seen consistent results across multiple of our studies, so it’s starting to be quite compelling."

The study was conducted using a small sample size, which led to different levels of inflammation in the treatment and control groups, the researchers acknowledged.

Future large randomized clinical trials will be "crucial to back up the results" in larger populations, they noted.

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"We’ve been trying to figure out how to make sports safer, so that our kids, friends and family can participate in sports safely for the long term while they’re involved in activities that give them happiness and joy," Carrie Esopenko, Ph.D., second author of the study, said in the release.

"And this really feels like part of the hope for protecting the brain that we’ve been searching for."

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The team plans to recruit 300 people with persistent symptoms from TBI or concussion for a randomized controlled trial in 2026, with a focus on first responders, veterans and active-duty service members.

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Depression, anxiety and other disorders may have the same genetic cause, study finds

Psychiatric disorders can share common genetic influences, which means parts of DNA can be at the root of more than one mental condition, new research has found.

The study, led by researchers at Texas A&M University and published in Nature, could explain why many mental health conditions occur together, according to a press release.

The researchers examined DNA data for more than one million individuals who had any of 14 childhood and adult-onset psychiatric disorders, and then compared it to data from five million individuals with none of the disorders.

FDA CLEARS FIRST AT-HOME BRAIN DEVICE FOR DEPRESSION

The disorders were sorted into five groups: compulsive disorders (like OCD and anorexia), schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, neurodevelopmental disorders (such as autism and ADHD), internalizing disorders (depression, anxiety, PTSD), and substance-use disorders.

Each pattern is linked to 238 tiny differences that influence how the brain works and offer clues about why some conditions overlap while others differ. Some traits, like suicidal thoughts and loneliness, were linked to all five patterns.

For the schizophrenia-bipolar group, the strongest genetic links were found in brain cells that send "go" signals and help enable communication between different regions.

FEELING LONELY? SIMPLE 5-3-1 RULE COULD HELP YOU MAKE MORE CONNECTIONS

In contrast, internalizing disorders (like depression, anxiety and PTSD) are more strongly linked to cells that help brain signals travel faster, the researchers found.

"By uncovering shared genetic roots, we can start thinking about treatments that target multiple disorders instead of treating each one in isolation," said co-author John Hettema, M.D., Ph.D., in the release.

The team relied on genome-wide association studies, or GWAS, which compare the DNA of large groups of people with and without a given condition. These studies scan millions of common genetic markers to find tiny differences that are more common in people who have the disorder.

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The researchers then compared each disorder with every other one to see how much their genetic risk overlapped. They did this using a technique called genetic correlation, which reveals whether the same genetic variants contribute to multiple conditions.

Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist, brain imaging doctor and founder of Amen Clinics in California, said the biggest takeaway of the study is that the current method of diagnosing mental illness is "broken because it’s not based on biology."

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"This new study confirms that mental health disorders share deep genetic connections, especially involving brain development and synaptic function," Amen, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.

"What this means is that conditions like depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and ADHD aren’t isolated silos — they’re part of overlapping biological systems that start in the brain, often as early as in utero."

Amen emphasized that mental illness should be regarded as a brain health issue rather than a collection of psychological symptoms.

"What this study adds is another layer of biological insight, especially for people at risk," he said. "Eventually, it could lead to screening tools that identify vulnerabilities in childhood, allowing for early interventions before symptoms ever become severe."

The researchers emphasized that genetics alone don’t determine whether someone will have these disorders, just as they don't determine medical conditions like hypertension and diabetes.

Instead, the genetic traits "set the stage" by increasing or decreasing one’s inherent risk, the authors say, which then can be triggered by other factors, like stress.

Amen agreed that "association is not causation," and that "we’re not yet at the point where doctors can prescribe based solely on genetic profiles."

"Just because a gene is linked to a disorder doesn’t mean it causes it — or that changing it changes the outcome," he said. "The environment still matters. Genetics load the gun, but stress, trauma, diet, infections, toxins and head injuries pull the trigger."

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The brain expert also emphasized the importance of pairing genetic screening with brain imaging.

"If we get this right — and combine genetic research with brain imaging, digital phenotyping and clinical neuroscience — the entire landscape of mental health care will change," he predicted. "We’ll no longer be diagnosing based on symptoms alone. We’ll be diagnosing based on objective, biological data."

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Deadly cancer risk spikes with certain level of alcohol consumption, study finds

Drinking heavily and consistently over an adult’s lifetime could lead to a higher risk of colorectal cancer, according to a study published in the journal Cancer by the American Cancer Society (ACS).

The study analyzed 20 years of data from more than 88,000 U.S. adults to determine how long-term drinking impacted the risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC) or precancerous colorectal adenomas (polyps).

The participants reported their average weekly intake of beer, wine and liquor intake during four age periods — 18 to 24, 25 to 39, 40 to 54,  and 55 and older.

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"Heavy drinkers" were identified as having more than 14 drinks per week and "moderate drinkers" had between seven and 14 drinks per week.

The observational research revealed that consistent heavy drinking over adulthood was linked to a higher risk of colorectal cancer, especially rectal cancer.

Heavy lifetime drinking was associated with a 25% higher overall CRC risk and nearly double the risk of rectal cancer. Moderate lifetime drinking had a lower overall CRC risk.

Compared to light drinkers, the consistently heavy drinkers had about a 91% higher risk of CRC.

EXPERTS REVEAL WHAT ‘REASONABLE’ DRINKING LOOKS LIKE – AND WHO SHOULD AVOID ALCOHOL

For colorectal adenomas (precancerous polyps), higher current lifetime drinking did not show a strong pattern, although former drinkers showed a significantly lower risk of non-advanced adenoma compared to current light drinkers.

Out of the 88,092 participants, 1,679 were diagnosed with colorectal cancer.

The authors noted that the research was limited, as it was observational and not based on a clinical trial. It also hinged on self-reported alcohol use.

The findings suggest that consistently heavy alcohol intake and higher average lifetime consumption "may increase CRC risk, whereas cessation may lower adenoma risk," the researchers stated. Associations "may differ by tumor site," they added.

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The link between drinking alcohol and cancer is not a new discovery, according to health experts.

In a recent episode of the podcast "The Dr. Mark Hyman Show," Dr. Mark Hyman, chief medical officer of Function Health in California, detailed how even moderate drinking can impact "nearly every organ system in the body," due to metabolic stress, inflammation, impaired detoxification and its effect on hormones.

Drinking has been found to increase the risk of many cancers, metabolic dysfunction, gut microbiome disturbances and mitochondrial toxins, Hyman said.

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"Bottom line, alcohol taxes every major system in your body, especially your liver, your brain, your gut, your hormones," he warned.

In a previous interview with Fox News Digital, Dr. Pinchieh Chiang, a clinician at Circle Medical in San Francisco, shared that taking a break from drinking alcohol for longer periods of time can "reshape health more profoundly."

"Over months to a year, we see sustained improvements in blood pressure, liver function and inflammation," she said. "Those changes directly affect long-term heart disease and stroke risk."

Chiang added, "Reducing or eliminating alcohol lowers the risk of several cancers, including breast and colorectal, over time."

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Fox News Digital reached out to the study researchers for comment.

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Unexplained nighttime noises provoke fear, sleepless nights as residents seek answers

A mysterious hum is reportedly plaguing the residents of Cincinnati, keeping people up at night and even disturbing them psychologically.

Residents of the Northside, Clifton and Camp Washington neighborhoods have been reporting the disturbances since December. The noises are said to be louder and more noticeable at night.

"We were hearing this siren-like quality noise — whirring, oscillating, going up and down," said Clifton resident Shaun Herold, who contacted local news outlet WKRC about the noises.

MYSTERIOUS HUM RATTLES AMERICAN CITY AS RESIDENTS REPORT SLEEPLESS NIGHTS AND RISING FEAR

"My son came up to me and said, ‘Dad, the tornado sirens are going off,’" Herold said. "Usually, it starts at about 10 p.m. It can go till 3 a.m., 4 a.m. But it’s quite unpredictable."

"It kind of stresses me out ’cause I don’t know what it is. It’s kind of scary," added his son, Elijah Herold.

Herold said he spent one entire night tracking how many times he heard the noise going on and off. The duration of the noises can vary from a few seconds to several minutes.

"I feel like it’s definitely like a foreign sound," Northside's Brendan Marcum told the news outlet. "Some nights it would be a little louder, some nights it would be a little quieter."

"It kind of stresses me out because I don't know what it is, and it's kind of scary," added another resident.

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Hundreds of Cincinnati residents have shared their theories about potential sources of the sound on social media, ranging from biblical to supernatural.

On Reddit, other users blamed the recycling plant. "My favorite theory is River Metals Recycling," one person wrote, claiming that the plant moved neighborhoods when the original location "wouldn't put up with the noise from its metal shredder any longer."

Others suspect the noise is coming from a failing turbocharger on a diesel train engine at the nearby CSX Queensgate, a major freight rail yard in Cincinnati. 

While the yard routinely generates loud, mechanical sounds, residents say they’ve never heard anything like this before.

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WKRC reported that an anonymous source sent recordings of the locomotive, claiming it to be the source of the sound. However, a spokesperson for CSX told the news station that he "has not heard a noise like that on our property" and suggested it could be coming from another location.

He added that any equipment requiring maintenance is "handled through established operating and mechanical protocols."

"We just hope to get to the bottom of it, figure out what it is, and if it’s, you know, a temporary thing or not," Herold told the news outlet. "And hopefully the community can rally if it’s not temporary, because it’s really impacting us."

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City officials recommend that residents report the noise to 311, the city’s non-emergency line.

Fox News Digital reached out to Cincinnati officials for updates.

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Toxic wild mushrooms linked to 3 deaths as state officials issue urgent warning

Consumption of death cap mushrooms — often mistaken for safe, edible lookalikes — has been linked to a deadly outbreak in California.

The mushrooms, officially called Amanita phalloides, contain toxins that can cause amatoxin poisoning, which can lead to severe illness or even death.

In the California cases, the poisonings caused severe liver damage in both children and adults, resulting in three deaths, three liver transplants and 35 hospitalizations as of Jan. 6, according to the California Department of Public Health.

HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT AT CENTER OF HEALTH ALERT OVER RAT-BORNE DISEASE

The CDPH warned the outbreak was linked to consumption of "wild, foraged mushrooms" and urged Californians not to pick or eat wild mushrooms at this time.

The officials stated in a report that death cap mushrooms are "still poisonous even after cooking, boiling, freezing or drying."

The California Poison Control System (CPCS) identified cases across Northern California and the Central Coast, spanning regions from Sonoma to San Luis Obispo between Nov. 18 and Jan. 6.

Affected individuals ranged from 19 months to 67 years old. Officials blamed the recent rainfall for the overgrowth of the toxic mushroom.

Common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain and dehydration, which can occur within six to 24 hours after ingesting the poisonous mushroom, stated the CDPH report.

CONTAMINATED OYSTERS SPREAD FATAL FLESH-EATING BACTERIA IN TWO STATES

"You might not get symptoms for the first five or six hours, and that's just by nature of the breakdown of the toxin in the stomach. Then you get the nausea, vomiting and diarrhea," Dr. Lauren Shawn, M.D., a board-certified emergency medicine physician and medical toxicologist at Northwell Health Phelps Hospital in Sleepy Hollow, New York, told Fox News Digital.

Although symptoms can resolve within a day, serious or even fatal liver damage can still occur two to four days later. 

DOZENS SICKENED AS POTENTIALLY DEADLY FUNGUS SPREADS IN SOUTHERN STATE

After the initial stomach issues subside, the toxin continues to invade the liver cells and stops them from making RNA (ribonucleic acid), which the body needs to make healing and protective proteins.

"It takes some time for the toxin to actually damage the cell, which is why people don't show up with liver failure until a day or two after," Shawn said.

Amatoxin "damages many types of cells in the human body, but especially liver cells," Dr. Adam Berman, the associate chair of emergency medicine and a medical toxicologist at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York, told Fox News Digital.

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"Because of the damage caused by the death cap mushroom, the liver is no longer able to function properly. Without a functional liver, the body begins to fail and can quickly die," the doctor warned.

As there is no widely available rapid test to detect amatoxin poisoning, clinicians rely on exposure history, symptoms and liver tests, according to experts. 

Anyone who has consumed this type of mushroom should follow up with their primary care physician or a liver specialist to monitor for liver failure, doctors recommend.

"Ideally, if you have leftover mushrooms, bring them in or take pictures of them, because hopefully a poison center can call a mycologist and actually identify what the mushroom is," Shawn advised.

Toxicologists agree with the California health agency’s warning to avoid foraging wild mushrooms.

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"The death cap mushroom can look to the untrained eye like many common and non-toxic mushrooms, which often makes it often difficult to spot and avoid," Berman told Fox News Digital. "Because of this, it is best to not go looking for wild mushrooms to eat, especially in areas where the death cap mushroom commonly grows."

Shawn agreed that it is also not worth the risk.

"There's a saying, ‘there are old mushroom foragers, there are bold mushroom foragers, but there are no old, bold mushroom foragers,’" she told Fox News Digital. "It's a risky thing and you really have to know what you're doing."

The CDPH recommends that individuals purchase mushrooms from trusted grocery stores and retailers, to be careful when buying them from street vendors, and to keep children and pets away from wild mushrooms. 

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Those in the area who have ingested a death cap mushroom should contact the CPCS hotline at 1-800-222-1222 and seek medical attention right away, health officials advised.

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Viral videos show ripped gym bros collapsing during Pilates workouts

Pilates may have a reputation for being "girly," but a new social media trend is crushing the assumption that it’s easy.

Male athletes and "gym bros" are being humbled by the challenge of Pilates and sculpt — workouts that are typically dominated by women.

Viral videos show men wincing, clenching and shaking their way through classes, both on mats and on strengthening machines called reformers.

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Melania Antuchas, a Florida-based hot Pilates and sculpt instructor, jumped in on the trend, posting videos of private classes with men that have received millions of views.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Antuchas, who teaches a 50-minute signature class combining strength training and mat Pilates, said that athletic men find the class surprisingly difficult due to their training history.

"We target the tiny muscle fibers, so it's the muscles that you don't use in the gym," she said. "We're using those big quads in the gym, we're using heavy weights, but with just your body weight and heel raises and a band and the layering, that is the true challenge. They're not used to challenging their balance, their mobility, their instability."

"After I taught that first initial class for all men, every single one of them was asking for the next one because of how much it challenged them," Antuchas added.

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After recently hosting the men of the Raleigh Rugby Club, Raleigh Pilates in North Carolina posted a video where the men appear to struggle through sets of leg lifts, lunges, shoulder presses, abs and stretches on the reformer.

Studio owner Rae Matthews noted that Pilates challenges "stronger people" differently, as athletes and weightlifters typically focus on "big global muscles," while Pilates asks them to "slow down, stabilize and control movement through full range of motion." 

"A lot of people are surprised because the exercises look small, but they feel really intense because the work is coming from deep stabilizers rather than momentum or brute force," she told Fox News Digital.

Pilates was originally developed by Joseph Pilates in the 1920s to help rehabilitate injured soldiers and ballet dancers, according to Brookelyn Suddell, director of group fitness strategy and development at Crunch Fitness in New York. 

The method aimed to put muscles under controlled tension to build strength, flexibility and mobility, which is the "foundation for effective movement," she told Fox News Digital.

Today, Pilates has incorporated more equipment, sculpt techniques for strength training, and heated settings, Antuchas noted.

"It’s a slow and controlled, non-stop, low-impact workout," she said. "It's about precision, it's about control, it’s about core strength."

Suddell added that Pilates builds a "special kind" of balanced and functional strength, working the stabilizers around each joint.

"That means your whole body is working in harmony, from your core to your limbs," she said. "Even our Crunch CEO Jim Rowley — a Marine vet, lifelong lifter and all-around powerhouse — credits Pilates with skyrocketing his core strength and mobility."

The experts agreed that men can benefit from the exercise just as much as women, as the practice can improve their overall gym performance, athletic pursuits, posture and longevity.

"I think the key to getting more men involved is reframing Pilates as intelligent strength training and injury prevention, not a soft workout," Matthews said.

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The primary reason that most people seek strength training and Pilates is to help with lower back pain, according to Antuchas.

The trainer warned that no one should feel pain during a Pilates and sculpt workout, and that modifications should be made as needed, particularly when there is strain in the neck or lower back.

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Antuchas, who teaches all ages ranging from 18 to 70+, said her workouts are intentionally challenging without requiring extra equipment, as the foundational movements are demanding enough on their own.

Those new to Pilates should consult a doctor before starting to make sure it is appropriate for them.

"People should be mindful if they have recent injuries or surgeries; chronic back or neck pain; hip, shoulder, knee limitations; or limited spinal mobility," Suddell advised.

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Matthews agreed that those with acute injuries, recent surgeries, osteoporosis or pregnancy should work with "well-trained, educated instructors who understand modifications."

"When Pilates is taught thoughtfully, it's actually one of the safest and most supportive forms of movement available, but expertise matters so much."

from Health News Today on Fox News https://ift.tt/gclKoTC

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