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For nearly two decades, a stroke had left a woman unable to speak — until now. Thanks to a new brain implant, her thoughts are being turned into real-time speech, giving her a voice again for the first time in 18 years. The device was tested on a 47-year-old woman with quadriplegia who lost her ability to speak after a stroke. Doctors placed the brain-computer implant during surgery as part of a clinical trial, The Associated Press reported. It “converts her intent to speak into fluent sentences,” said Gopala Anumanchipalli, an assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences at UC Berkeley and a co-author of the study published Monday in the journal Nature Neuroscience. Unlike other brain-computer systems that have a delay, this new technology works in real time. Scientists say that the delay in existing systems makes conversations hard and, sometimes, frustrating. Jonathan Brumberg of the Speech and Applied Neuroscience Lab at the University of Kansas, who reviewed the findings, welcomed the advances. This is “a pretty big advance in our field,” he told The Associated Press. Here’s how it works: The team recorded the woman’s brain activity using electrodes as she silently imagined saying sentences. They also used a synthesizer using her voice before her stroke to re-create the sound she would have made. An AI model was trained to translate her… read on > read on >

Microplastics appear to be contributing to chronic diseases in shoreline areas of the United States, a new study suggests. High blood pressure, diabetes and stroke rates are higher in coastal or lakefront areas with greater concentrations of microplastics in the environment, researchers reported at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology (ACC). The results also suggested a dose relationship, where higher concentrations of microplastics pollution are associated with more chronic disease, researchers said. “This study provides initial evidence that microplastics exposure has an impact on cardiovascular health, especially chronic, noncommunicable conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke,” lead investigator Sai Rahul Ponnana, a research data scientist at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine in Cleveland, said in a news release. Microplastics are tiny plastic particles as small as 1 nanometer; by comparison, a strand of human hair is about 80,000 nanometers wide. These particles are released as larger pieces of plastic break down, and can come from food and beverage packaging, consumer products and building materials, researchers said in background notes. People can be exposed to microplastics in the water they drink, the food they eat and the air they breathe. For this study, researchers linked U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data on chronic illness rates with federal data on microplastics concentrations in the sediment along coastal and lakeshore areas… read on > read on >

Fasting every other day can prompt more weight loss than simply cutting calories, a new clinical trial shows. People who undertook 4:3 intermittent fasting lost just under 8% of their body weight within a year, compared to a 5% loss among people who cut their daily calories by about a third, researchers reported March 31 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. In 4:3 intermittent fasting, people restrict their calorie intake by 80% three days a week, alternating between days with no dietary restrictions at all. “Long-term adherence to daily calorie restriction is challenging for many people,” wrote the research team co-led by Danielle Ostendorf, an assistant professor of kinesiology, recreation and sport studies at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. “Our results suggest that 4:3 [intermittent] is an alternative dietary weight loss strategy that may produce modestly superior weight loss compared with [daily calorie restriction] at 12 months, when provided in the context of a high-intensity, comprehensive behavioral weight loss program,” the team concluded. For this trial, researchers assigned 84 overweight and obese people to this type of fasting, and another 81 folks to cut their calories by 34%. Both groups were asked to get in 300 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week, double the amount recommended by U.S. physical activity guidelines. They also received support from a weight-loss program led by a registered dietitian. After… read on > read on >

A marathon can be a daunting challenge, particularly for folks worried their hearts can’t stand the strain of running 26.2 miles. But these events are safer than ever for those with heart concerns, according to a new study published March 30 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The risk of dying from cardiac arrest during a long-distance event decreased by half during the past decade, a new study says. It’s not that fewer runners are suffering heart problems. The rate of cardiac arrests that occur during full and half-marathons has remained unchanged, researchers found. “We continue to see media reports about unfortunate cases of cardiac arrest during long distance running events,” lead researcher Dr. Jonathan Kim, an associate professor of sports cardiology with the Emory School of Medicine, noted in a news release. However, a runner’s odds of surviving cardiac arrest are double what they were in the past, researchers said The sport has become more aware of the heart risks of running and is doing a better job preparing emergency response for stricken athletes, Kim said, based on interviews he’s had with survivors. “What we found was that every one of those people got hands-on cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but the vast majority also had immediate access to an automated external defibrillator,” Kim said. “That’s the difference.” The cardiac arrest survival rate at a… read on > read on >

A top vaccine official at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is stepping down, warning that vaccine misinformation is coloring the country’s top health decisions. Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said he will resign and retire by April 5. In a letter to the acting FDA commissioner obtained by The Associated Press, Marks said the new leadership under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. does not value science or transparency. “It has become clear that truth and transparency are not desired by the Secretary, but rather he wishes subservient confirmation of his misinformation and lies,” Marks wrote. Kennedy, who has a history of spreading vaccine misinformation, promised during his Senate confirmation that he would not change vaccine policies. But since taking office, he has said he plans to closely review the safety of childhood vaccines — despite decades of research showing vaccines are safe and save lives. A former FDA official told reporters that Marks was told to either resign or be fired, The Associated Press reported. Marks played a major role in the country’s COVID response. He helped lead the fast-tracked development and approval of COVID vaccines and created the name and idea behind “Operation Warp Speed” — which helped get vaccines to people in record time. “RFK Jr.’s firing of Peter Marks because he… read on > read on >

Wearing a smartwatch might do more than track steps (or your texts) — it could be a powerful tool for helping people with type 2 diabetes stay active, a new study says. Participants were more likely to start and maintain an exercise regimen if they had a smartwatch providing them feedback and encouragement, researchers reported March 27 in the journal BMJ Open. Early results also indicate that they were achieving better control over their blood sugar levels and blood pressure, researchers report. “The results of this study can contribute to change the lives of many people around the world,” said researcher Ceu Mateus, a professor of health economics at Lancaster University in the U.K. “There are millions of people suffering from diabetes type 2 without access to non-pharmacological interventions with sustained results in the long term,” she added in a news release. “Our study shows that independently of the place where you live, your age, your ethnicity, your gender, or your income, there is an exercise program that suits you.” For the study, researchers recruited 135 people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and assigned half to wear a smartwatch paired with a health app on their smartphone. The app guided participants through a home-based physical activity program, using the watch to track their metrics. The program gradually increased their exercise to a target of… read on > read on >

As a measles outbreak spreads across the United States, doctors are now seeing a new and unexpected danger: Children getting sick from taking too much vitamin A. At Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, Texas, several unvaccinated children showed signs of liver problems after taking large amounts of vitamin A, according to Dr. Lara Johnson, the hospital’s chief medical officer. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has promoted vitamin A during the outbreak, even suggesting it might help prevent measles. But doctors say this isn’t true. “If people have the mistaken impression that you have an either-or choice of MMR vaccine or vitamin A, you’re going to get a lot of kids unnecessarily infected with measles. That’s a problem, especially during an epidemic,” Dr. Peter Hotez, co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, told CNN. “And second, you have this unregulated medicine in terms of doses being given and potential toxicities.” The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is the only proven way to prevent measles. It is 97% effective after two doses. Kennedy has said he encourages vaccines, but considers vaccination a personal choice. Vitamin A can be helpful for people with measles when given in the right dose by a doctor.… read on > read on >

Splenda doesn’t directly add calories to your diet, but the sweetener still might lead people to pack on pounds, a new study says. The sugar substitute might spur on a person’s appetite and feelings of hunger, potentially leading them to overeat, according to results published March 26 in the journal Nature Metabolism. Splenda’s main ingredient, sucralose, appears to confuse the brain by providing a sweet taste without also delivering the calories one would expect, senior investigator Dr. Kathleen Page, director of the University of Southern California Diabetes and Obesity Research Center, said in a news release. “If your body is expecting a calorie because of the sweetness, but doesn’t get the calorie it’s expecting, that could change the way the brain is primed to crave those substances over time,” she said. About 40% of Americans regularly consume sugar substitutes, usually as a way to reduce their sugar intake, researchers said in background notes. “But are these substances actually helpful for regulating body weight?” Page asked. “What happens in the body and brain when we consume them, and do the effects differ from one person to the next?” To explore this further, researchers tested how 75 people responded after consuming water, a drink sweetened with sucralose or a drink sweetened with regular sugar. The team collected MRI brain scans, blood samples and hunger ratings from participants… read on > read on >

Is there a person in your life who just can’t stop scrolling social media, almost as if they’ve formed an emotional dependence on sites like Instagram and TikTok? Such an attachment might be associated with worse mental health symptoms among young people being treated for depression, anxiety or suicidal thoughts, a new study says. About 40% of troubled 8- to 20-year-olds reported social media use that could be problematic, saying that they feel discontented, disconnected and upset when they can’t log on to their favorite sites, researchers report in the April issue of Journal of Affective Disorders. These young people also had higher levels of depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts, as well as poorer overall well-being, compared to peers in treatment who weren’t overly attached to social media, researchers found. “There has long been speculation that excessive social media use among young people may be a factor in increased rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors, but the relationship is not fully understood,” lead researcher Betsy Kennard, a teaching professor of psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, said in a news release. “Our findings are instructive because they characterize the prevalence of problematic social media use in children and adolescents who are receiving care for depression, suicidal ideation and/or suicidal behaviors, which gives us insight into how they might intersect,” she added. For the… read on > read on >

A mom’s health and lifestyle choices can affect her kids’ risk of obesity as adults, a new study says. Specifically, a child is 3 to 4 times more likely to become an obese adult if their mom was obese, researchers reported March 26 in PLOS One. A mom’s smoking also increased their kid’s risk of adult obesity by 60% to 80%, results show. “In particular, we note that the effect of maternal influences persists through to age 42 and that strikingly, those predictors were just as powerful (and prevalent) in the era before the current obesity pandemic began,” concluded the research team led by Glenna Nightingale, a research fellow with the University of Edinburgh in the U.K. In effect, factors beyond a person’s control can influence whether they become overweight or obese as adults, researchers said. For the new study, researchers analyzed data on nearly 11,500 children who participated in an ongoing British study of kids born on a single week in March 1958 across England, Scotland and Wales. The team observed health trends among these children out to age 42, and compared their health to aspects of their parents’ life that might influence their risk for obesity. Results showed that if a mom was obese or if she smoked, her child was more likely to be obese in adulthood. “The persistent importance of maternal… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Brain Implant Lets Woman Talk After 18 Years of Silence Due to Stroke

Microplastics Linked To High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, Stroke

Fasting Outperforms Calorie Cutting, Clinical Trial Says

Cardiac Arrest Deaths During Marathons Down By Half

Top FDA Vaccine Official Quits, Warns of Vaccine Misinformation

Smartwatches Can Help People Control Diabetes Through Exercise

Measles Outbreak Leads to Dangerous Vitamin A Toxicity

Sugar Substitute Appears To Boost Appetite, Hunger

Social Media Can Drag Down Troubled Young People

Obesity More Likely Among Kids Of Obese Moms, Smokers