BA.5 is now the dominant COVID variant in the U.S., and it has drifted so much from the original strain that protection from the first vaccine doses are now less effective. Recent studies show that those boosted once last year have seen substantial reductions in immunity this year.
People who are vulnerable, including older people and those with significant health issues, are at substantial risk of becoming infected over the next eight to 12 weeks given the extremely high contagiousness of these strains and the broad community spread. Being current on vaccination is the best way to reduce the likelihood of ending up in the hospital.
An April study in Nature Magazine with 563,465 participants ages 60 to 100 who had received their first booster more than four months previously found this: Substantial reductions in hospitalizations and deaths among those who received a second booster compared with those who had received only their first booster.
So, for better protection, it is recommended that you receive a second booster sooner rather than later. Please call our office to arrange for your booster.
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Source: MedPage Today • July 13, 2022
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Can Antioxidants Prevent Dementia?
Science has just uncovered another good reason to include kale, spinach, broccoli and peas in your diet.
Higher levels of specific carotenoid antioxidants in blood may help guard against age-related dementia, new research suggests. Carotenoids are pigments which play a major role in the protection of plants
Investigators have recently found that individuals with the highest baseline levels of such antioxidants were less likely to have dementia decades later than their peers with lower levels.
These types of antioxidants are found in green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, broccoli and peas. Others are found in fruits such as oranges, papaya, tangerines, and persimmons.
“Antioxidants may help protect the brain from oxidative stress, which can cause cell damage,” reported a researcher with the National Institute on Aging. The researchers tested associations and interactions of serum vitamins A, C and E, and total and individual serum carotenoids and interactions with incident Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and all-cause dementia. They analyzed data from 7283 participants in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) who were at least 45 years old at baseline and followed for an average of 16-17 years.
This relationship remained strong in models adjusted for sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors but attenuated in subsequent models.
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Source: Medscape Family Medicine • Best Antioxidants to Prevent Age-Related Dementia Identified? • May 5, 2022
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Healthy Living Can Slash Odds of Men Dying from Lethal Disease
We’ve known for a long time that genes can put some men at a heightened risk of prostate cancer, but a new study suggests they can undo much of that potential harm with a healthy lifestyle. Researchers found that among men at increased genetic risk of prostate cancer, those who maintained a healthy lifestyle were much less likely to die of the disease over nearly three decades.
- Exercised regularly
- Kept their weight down
- Refrained from smoking
- Favored fish over processed meat
Men who met those goals had a 1.6% lifetime risk of dying from prostate cancer. That compared with a 5.3% chance among their counterparts with unhealthy habits, the investigators found. That’s more than a three times greater chance of dying from prostate cancer when a man has an unhealthy lifestyle.
However, healthy habits did not appear to protect men from developing prostate cancer in the first place—just dying from the disease. It’s possible that a healthy lifestyle instead lowers the risk of aggressive prostate cancer, according to the chief of urology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, in Boston.
Prostate cancer is very common: About one in eight men will be diagnosed with the disease in their lifetime, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). But the cancer is often slow-growing, and may never progress to the point of threatening a man’s life: Only one in every 41 men actually die of prostate cancer. Although men may not be able to exercise their risk of the disease away, lifestyle may matter in the aggressiveness of the cancer.
“One way to look at it is, an unhealthy lifestyle might throw fuel onto the fire,” Kibel said.
The study, published online recently in the journal European Urology, involved over 12,000 men from two long-running research projects. All were health professionals who, starting in the 1980s, completed periodic questionnaires on their health and lifestyle habits. They also gave blood samples, so their genetic data could be analyzed.
Each man was also given a healthy lifestyle score, earning one point for each of six factors: keeping their weight below the obesity cutoff; regularly getting vigorous exercise, like jogging; not smoking; and regularly eating fatty fish (like salmon); eating tomato products; and limiting processed meats. In particular, studies have tied those three diet habits to a lower risk of prostate cancer or death from the disease.
Over 27 years, just over 3,000 men developed prostate cancer, and 435 died from it. Genes made a big difference: Men with genetic risk scores in the top 25% were over four times more likely to die of the disease, versus those in the bottom 25%, the investigators found.
But for those same men, lifestyle also had a big impact. Those who stuck with at least four of the six healthy lifestyle factors cut their odds of dying from prostate cancer by 45%, versus men who adhered to few or none.
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Source: HealthDay • Think You’re at High Risk of Prostate Cancer? • July 11, 2022
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Medication Believed to Help People with Post-COVID Nasal Issues
COVID infection has been shown to effect a person’s sense of smell—often on a long-term basis. Theophylline is a drug used in therapy for respiratory diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. When added to a saline nasal irrigation, Theophylline showed a hint of promise in treating post-viral olfactory dysfunction related to COVID-19.
In a study of 51 people with persistent olfactory dysfunction after COVID, 13 participants (59%) in the Theophylline group reported at least slight improvement compared with 10 people (43%) in the placebo group (absolute difference 15.6%) reported the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Eleven (50%) participants in the Theophylline group and 6 (26%) in the placebo group had a clinically meaningful change in objective smell identification test score, the researchers reported in JAMA.
“Unfortunately, due to the small sample size, our estimates of the effect of Theophylline are not precise and therefore we cannot definitely conclude that theophylline is beneficial,” said one of the researchers.”
Olfactory dysfunction has been reported by more than half of people with COVID-19. Acute olfactory dysfunction is more prevalent in mild forms of COVID-19 than moderate-to-critical disease. Most people recover their sense of smell within 6 months, but about 5% do not.
Theophylline, an inhibitor of enzymes that play a key role in cell function, has been shown to improve smell function in earlier studies of people with a decreased sense of smell.
“Ultimately, patient quality of life is the most important outcome,” the researchers wrote. “While objective measures are beneficial for research purposes and documentation, subjective measures are most useful for characterizing the patient experience.”
Adverse effects were similar at week 6 for both the test and the control group. At week 3, two people in the Theophylline group reported insomnia and three people in the placebo group reported a heart rate over 100 beats a minute. There were no severe adverse effects.
Vaccination status of participants was unknown. In addition, the 6-week intervention may not have been long enough to observe neural recovery.
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Source: MedPage Today • Judy George • July 7, 2022
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Keto Diet vs. Mediterranean Diet?
Which one is better at fighting Diabetes?
Both the Keto and the Mediterranean diets successfully cut blood sugar levels in patients with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, according to a recent small randomized trial.
Among 33 adults, the well-formulated keto resulted in a 9% drop in average blood sugar values after 12 weeks, while the Mediterranean diet resulted in a 7% drop, reported researchers in Stanford University. Both diet types also led to decreases in weight (8% vs 7%, respectively), without any significant differences between the groups.
Both diets are considered “low carb” and are based on the foundation of limiting added sugars and refined grains, and consuming more non-starchy vegetables. However, Keto avoids legumes, fruits, and whole intact grains that are otherwise included in the Med diet.
“The one thing everybody did pretty well was limiting added sugar and refined grains. That was the main message for both diets,” a researcher explained.
The Keto diet was more polarizing,” she added. “What we were hearing is that some people just couldn’t do the Keto because it was too restrictive.”
The Keto dieters saw a greater reduction in triglycerides — a 16% drop from baseline versus only a 5% drop for Med dieters. LDL cholesterol increased by 10% with the Keto diet and decreased by 5% with Med, while HDL cholesterol increased by 11% with Keto and 7% with Med.
However, the Keto diet fell flat for nutrients, as those who stuck to this diet had lower intake of fiber; thiamine; vitamins B6, C, D, and E; and phosphorus compared with the Med dieters.
“The lower in carbs you go, the more you’re wiping out entire food groups that are considered very nutrient dense and healthy,” one of the researchers said.
“Restricting added sugars and refined grains and emphasizing the inclusion of vegetables should be the focus,” he added. “There’s no reason to restrict heart-healthy, quality carbohydrate foods.”
The researchers didn’t necessarily discourage weight loss, but there wasn’t a particular calorie restriction put on the participants. On average, participants consumed about 250 to 300 fewer calories than they normally had per day.
A total of four adverse events were reported, with just one — an elevated ALT (liver enzyme) level on Keto — considered to be likely related to the study.
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Source: MedPage Today • Kristen Monaco • July 8, 2022
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A Dose of Humor
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A Mediterranean Diet Entrée
DIJON BAKED SALMON
Dijon baked salmon is an all-time favorite easy salmon recipes. It’s incredibly flavorful, moist, flaky, and a healthy dinner recipe that’s made in under 30 minutes! There’s just a handful of easy-to-find ingredients in this recipe. But when they work together, the result is one fabulous dish!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs salmon, King, Sockeye or Coho salmon
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp avocado oil
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- salt and pepper
Preparation
- Stir together the chopped parsley, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, avocado oil, garlic cloves, salt and pepper in a small mixing bowl.
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix together the mustard, parsley, lemon juice, oil, and garlic in a small bowl.
- Place the salmon on a parchment lined baking tray and generously coat the top of the salmon with the herbed mustard mix. Slather that Dijon mixture on top of the salmon.
- Bake the salmon for 18-20 minutes (depending on size and thickness), then slice it into individual portions and serve immediately.
Cooking Tips
- Many people cover their salmon with parchment paper or aluminum foil to keep it moist when baking. But I promise, if you add this layer of Dijon to the top of your baked salmon, not only will it stay incredibly moist, it will be abundantly flavorful. No need to cover.
- I slightly undercook my salmon just to ensure it stays moist, especially as it will continue to cook for several minutes after you’ve removed it from the oven.
Watch a video about preparing this delicious and healthy dish:
For details and more photos, go to: https://downshiftology.com/recipes/dijon-baked-salmon/
