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No Clear Link Between Acetaminophen And Autism Or ADHD, Major Reviews Find

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There’s no clear evidence linking acetaminophen use during pregnancy with developmental issues like autism or ADHD, two major evidence reviews have concluded. Any increased risk observed in dozens of studies tended to cancel out when researchers adjusted for other potential factors, or when they compared between siblings to validate their findings, both evidence reviews found. “Existing evidence does not show a clear link between in utero exposure to (acetaminophen) and autism and ADHD in offspring,” concluded researchers in The BMJ. These reviews follow an exhortation by President Donald Trump in September that women avoid using acetaminophen, sold over the counter as Tylenol, during pregnancy due to increased risk of autism. “Tylenol during pregnancy can be associated with a very increased risk of autism,” Trump claimed, according to The Associated Press. “I want to say it like it is, don’t take Tylenol,” Trump also said, encouraging women to “just fight like hell not to take it.” His comments run counter to guidelines from medical societies like the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists (ACOG). It says, “Acetaminophen is well studied and proven to be safe for use in pregnancy, and is one of the only medicines available to pregnant women for pain relief and treatment of headaches and fevers.” For an extensive review published Monday in The BMJ, researchers analyzed data from 40 studies included in…  read on >  read on >

Tailored Doses of Vitamin D Halve Heart Attack Risk

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Vitamin D might help people with heart disease avoid a heart attack, if it’s provided in a dose tailored to you by a doctor, a new study says. Folks provided vitamin D reduced their risk by more than half, researchers reported Sunday at the American Heart Association’s annual meeting in New Orleans. But there’s a catch — people weren’t downing supplements on their own, but taking custom doses designed to optimize the vitamin D levels in their blood, researchers said. “We encourage people with heart disease to discuss vitamin D blood testing and targeted dosing with their health care professionals to meet their individual needs,” lead researcher Heidi May, an epidemiologist at Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City, said in a news release. For the study, researchers recruited 630 adults with heart disease who were treated at Intermountain Medical Center between April 2017 and May 2023. More than 85% of participants began the study with vitamin D levels below 40ng/mL, a level many experts consider too low for best health, researchers said. Participants were around 63 years old on average and 48% had a previous heart attack. One group was assigned to take tailored doses of vitamin D to bring their blood levels up, and the rest received care as normal. “Previous clinical trial research on vitamin D tested the potential impact of the same…  read on >  read on >

Tailored Doses of Vitamin D Halve Heart Attack Risk

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Vitamin D might help people with heart disease avoid a heart attack, if it’s provided in a dose tailored to you by a doctor, a new study says. Folks provided vitamin D reduced their risk by more than half, researchers reported Sunday at the American Heart Association’s annual meeting in New Orleans. But there’s a catch — people weren’t downing supplements on their own, but taking custom doses designed to optimize the vitamin D levels in their blood, researchers said. “We encourage people with heart disease to discuss vitamin D blood testing and targeted dosing with their health care professionals to meet their individual needs,” lead researcher Heidi May, an epidemiologist at Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City, said in a news release. For the study, researchers recruited 630 adults with heart disease who were treated at Intermountain Medical Center between April 2017 and May 2023. More than 85% of participants began the study with vitamin D levels below 40ng/mL, a level many experts consider too low for best health, researchers said. Participants were around 63 years old on average and 48% had a previous heart attack. One group was assigned to take tailored doses of vitamin D to bring their blood levels up, and the rest received care as normal. “Previous clinical trial research on vitamin D tested the potential impact of the same…  read on >  read on >

Coffee Might Reduce Heart Rhythm Risk

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A cup of coffee might actually benefit some people with a common heart rhythm disorder, a new study says. Adults with atrial fibrillation who drank a daily cup of coffee were 39% less likely to have an episode of irregular heart rhythm, compared to those who avoided caffeine, researchers reported Nov. 9 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “Our study results suggest that caffeinated coffee may not be responsible for raising the risk of A-Fib and may even reduce it,” senior researcher Dr. Gregory Marcus, a professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco, said in a news release. Caffeine has traditionally been thought to contribute to heart rhythm problems, and doctors often advise A-Fib patients to cut back on coffee, researchers said in background notes. A-Fib occurs when the heart’s upper chambers — the atria — start to quiver and beat irregularly. The condition increases a patient’s risk of stroke and heart failure, if left untreated. More than 6 million people in the U.S. have A-Fib, according to the American Heart Association (AHA) news release. For the new study, researchers enrolled 200 people with A-Fib whose heart rhythm was so off-kilter that they needed drugs or an electrical shock to set it right. All of the participants were coffee drinkers, sipping an average one cup of caffeinated coffee per day, researchers…  read on >  read on >

Coffee Might Reduce Heart Rhythm Risk

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A cup of coffee might actually benefit some people with a common heart rhythm disorder, a new study says. Adults with atrial fibrillation who drank a daily cup of coffee were 39% less likely to have an episode of irregular heart rhythm, compared to those who avoided caffeine, researchers reported Nov. 9 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “Our study results suggest that caffeinated coffee may not be responsible for raising the risk of A-Fib and may even reduce it,” senior researcher Dr. Gregory Marcus, a professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco, said in a news release. Caffeine has traditionally been thought to contribute to heart rhythm problems, and doctors often advise A-Fib patients to cut back on coffee, researchers said in background notes. A-Fib occurs when the heart’s upper chambers — the atria — start to quiver and beat irregularly. The condition increases a patient’s risk of stroke and heart failure, if left untreated. More than 6 million people in the U.S. have A-Fib, according to the American Heart Association (AHA) news release. For the new study, researchers enrolled 200 people with A-Fib whose heart rhythm was so off-kilter that they needed drugs or an electrical shock to set it right. All of the participants were coffee drinkers, sipping an average one cup of caffeinated coffee per day, researchers…  read on >  read on >

Cash Bribes Don’t Help Lower High Blood Pressure, Study Finds

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Bribing folks with tickets to a cash lottery got them to take their blood pressure medicines more reliably, but did nothing to improve their health, a new study says. Study participants were twice as likely to take their blood pressure medication when they could win a daily cash reward through a lottery, researchers reported Nov. 9 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. However, they didn’t achieve better blood pressure measurements compared to folks not offered these cash rewards, researchers found. What’s more, they quit taking their blood pressure medication as prescribed when the rewards program ended after six months, results showed. “Financial incentives clearly worked to change behavior during the study period because people in the rewards group took their medication much more consistently. However, we were surprised that the behavior change didn’t translate to significantly better blood pressure control,” said lead researcher Dr. John Dodson, an associate professor of medicine and population health at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City. “We were also surprised that people did not keep taking their medication as prescribed after the rewards program ended,” Dodson added in a news release.  For the study, researchers recruited 400 people who had been prescribed at least one drug to help lower their high blood pressure. Two-thirds of the participants were selected to take part in…  read on >  read on >

Cash Bribes Don’t Help Lower High Blood Pressure, Study Finds

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Bribing folks with tickets to a cash lottery got them to take their blood pressure medicines more reliably, but did nothing to improve their health, a new study says. Study participants were twice as likely to take their blood pressure medication when they could win a daily cash reward through a lottery, researchers reported Nov. 9 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. However, they didn’t achieve better blood pressure measurements compared to folks not offered these cash rewards, researchers found. What’s more, they quit taking their blood pressure medication as prescribed when the rewards program ended after six months, results showed. “Financial incentives clearly worked to change behavior during the study period because people in the rewards group took their medication much more consistently. However, we were surprised that the behavior change didn’t translate to significantly better blood pressure control,” said lead researcher Dr. John Dodson, an associate professor of medicine and population health at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City. “We were also surprised that people did not keep taking their medication as prescribed after the rewards program ended,” Dodson added in a news release.  For the study, researchers recruited 400 people who had been prescribed at least one drug to help lower their high blood pressure. Two-thirds of the participants were selected to take part in…  read on >  read on >

Daily Walks Potentially Sabotaged By Diabetes Drug, Study Says

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A common diabetes drug could be sabotaging the health benefits that a patient might expect from a daily walk, a new study says. Metformin appears to blunt improvements in blood pressure, fitness and blood sugar control that normally come from regular exercise, researchers report in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. This complicates current guidelines that advise patients with high blood sugar to take metformin while engaging in exercise, researchers said. The reasoning: Two proven therapies should deliver better results when combined. “Most health care providers assume one plus one equals two. The problem is that most evidence shows metformin blunts exercise benefits,” lead researcher Steven Malin said in news release. He’s a professor of kinesiology and health at Rutgers University-New Brunswick in New Jersey.  Metformin works primarily by reducing the liver’s ability to release stored glucose, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. For the new study, researchers recruited 72 people at risk for metabolic syndrome — a dangerous combination of obesity, high blood sugar, abnormal cholesterol and high blood pressure. People with metabolic syndrome have a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease. The participants were randomly divided into four groups. People performed either high-intensity or low-intensity exercises, while taking either metformin or a placebo. Results showed that exercise alone improved blood vessel sensitivity to insulin. The vessels responded better to insulin and allowed…  read on >  read on >

Daily Walks Potentially Sabotaged By Diabetes Drug, Study Says

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A common diabetes drug could be sabotaging the health benefits that a patient might expect from a daily walk, a new study says. Metformin appears to blunt improvements in blood pressure, fitness and blood sugar control that normally come from regular exercise, researchers report in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. This complicates current guidelines that advise patients with high blood sugar to take metformin while engaging in exercise, researchers said. The reasoning: Two proven therapies should deliver better results when combined. “Most health care providers assume one plus one equals two. The problem is that most evidence shows metformin blunts exercise benefits,” lead researcher Steven Malin said in news release. He’s a professor of kinesiology and health at Rutgers University-New Brunswick in New Jersey.  Metformin works primarily by reducing the liver’s ability to release stored glucose, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. For the new study, researchers recruited 72 people at risk for metabolic syndrome — a dangerous combination of obesity, high blood sugar, abnormal cholesterol and high blood pressure. People with metabolic syndrome have a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease. The participants were randomly divided into four groups. People performed either high-intensity or low-intensity exercises, while taking either metformin or a placebo. Results showed that exercise alone improved blood vessel sensitivity to insulin. The vessels responded better to insulin and allowed…  read on >  read on >

Lifting Weights May Beat Running at Preventing Diabetes, Study Finds

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Strength training may actually do more than just help build muscle. It could be even better than running when it comes to protecting against diabetes and unhealthy weight gain. In a recently published study using mice fed a high-fat diet, scientists at Virginia Tech found that both running and weightlifting improved blood sugar control, but resistance training was more effective at reducing body fat, improving glucose tolerance and lowering insulin resistance. Those factors all help prevent and manage type 2 diabetes. “We all want to live a long, healthy life,” said senior study author Zhen Yan, director of the Center for Exercise Medicine Research at Virginia Tech in Roanoke, Virginia. “We all know the benefits of regular exercise. There is plenty of evidence in humans that both endurance exercise, such as running, and resistance exercise, such as weightlifting are effective in promoting insulin sensitivity,” Yan explained in a news release. The findings were published online Oct. 30 in the Journal of Sport and Health Science.  To compare the two exercise types directly, researchers created a first-of-its-kind “weightlifting” model for mice.  The rodents in one group had a small shoulder collar attached to them and had to use it to lift a weighted lid to reach their food, mimicking a squat-like motion.  Another group of mice had free access to a running wheel.  A third group…  read on >  read on >