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(HealthDay News) – The maker of three popular drugs that treat weight loss and diabetes said Tuesday that it has begun legal proceedings against businesses that are selling compounded versions of its products that are not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In a statement, the company said it is telling these med spas, weight loss clinics and compounding pharmacies “to cease and desist from false advertising, trademark infringement and/or unlawful sales of non-FDA approved compounded products claiming to contain semaglutide.” Novo Nordisk makes the weight loss drug Wegovy and the diabetes drugs Ozempic and Rybelsus, and semaglutide is the key ingredient in those medications. “These unlawful marketing and sales practices … have created a high risk of consumer confusion and deception as well as potential safety concerns,” Novo Nordisk said. “Compounded products do not have the same safety, quality and effectiveness assurances as our FDA-approved drugs and may expose patients to health risks,” the company said. “Novo Nordisk cannot validate the safety or effectiveness of products claiming to contain semaglutide that are not one of our own branded products. Novo Nordisk is the only company in the U.S. with FDA-approved products containing semaglutide, and no FDA-approved generic versions of semaglutide currently exist.” In May, the FDA also warned customers about these alternate products and the compounding of these medications, noting that people… read on > read on >

New research on horses and dogs found elevated levels of PFAS “forever chemicals,” establishing horses as sentinel species. Sentinel species provide advance warning of a danger to people. The work also advanced knowledge about PFAS exposure and liver and kidney function in these animals. PFAS stands for per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a group of chemicals used in plastics and grease- and water-resistant materials. They’re a health concern because they don’t break down in the environment and are found in soil and water sources. “Horses have not previously been used to monitor PFAS exposure,” said first author Kylie Rock, a postdoctoral researcher at North Carolina State University. “But they may provide critical information about routes of exposure from the outdoor environment when they reside in close proximity to known contamination sources.” In the new study, researchers detected elevated PFAS levels in the blood of 31 pet dogs and 32 horses from Grays Creek, N.C., including dogs that drank only bottled water. The study was conducted at the request of residents concerned about their pets’ well-being. Their homes used wells that state inspectors had determined to contain PFAS. Animals each had a general veterinary health check, as well as blood tests to screen for 33 PFAS chemicals. The chemicals were chosen based on compounds present in the Cape Fear River basin and the availability of standards to analyze… read on > read on >

The phrase “pain in the neck” is a tongue-in-cheek way to describe annoying situations or people that test our patience, but for those who experience genuine neck pain, it’s no laughing matter. Neck pain can be a debilitating condition that affects daily life and leaves sufferers longing for relief. This article will explore some practical strategies to alleviate neck pain and provide self-care tips, neck pain exercises and other helpful treatments to try. Neck pain causes Neck pain, also called cervicalgia, is the discomfort experienced in or around the spinal area beneath the head. The Cleveland Clinic says neck pain is common, affecting 10% to 20% of adults. And it should come as no surprise that your neck, medically known as the cervical spine, plays a crucial role in supporting the weight of your head and facilitating its movements. But various injuries and medical conditions can give rise to neck pain. Left untreated, neck pain can become a persistent hindrance, interfering with your daily activities and diminishing your overall quality of life. In an article, Dr. Zacharia Isaac, medical director of the Comprehensive Spine Care Center at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and director of interventional physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School, writes that neck pain usually builds over time. “Neck pain rarely starts overnight,” he writes in a school web page.… read on > read on >

Imagine a life where even the simplest movement becomes a painful endeavor. Back pain, a pervasive ailment affecting millions, can turn daily routines into exhausting and painful challenges. Back surgery emerges as a potential solution when conventional treatments fall short, offering hope for those trapped in chronic pain. What are the most common back surgery types, and how do they bring relief? This article will explore the purpose of these surgeries, their benefits, the conditions they can help address and recovery times. Most common back surgery types According to StatPearls, 23% of adults worldwide endure chronic low back pain. While the majority of back pain resolves naturally within three months, there are instances where back surgery can provide relief for specific types of back pain. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, back surgery is rarely necessary and should be considered only when other treatment options have been exhausted and the pain becomes debilitating. However, a handful of different approaches can be taken for back surgery, depending on your level of pain and the severity of symptoms. Here are the four types of back surgeries: Diskectomy According to the Mayo Clinic, a diskectomy is a surgical procedure that removes the damaged portion of a herniated spinal disk. It offers relief by alleviating pressure on irritated or compressed nerves. Typically, it is most effective in treating pain… read on > read on >

Taking daily low-dose aspirin increases the risk of anemia in the elderly, a new clinical trial suggests. Not only does it raise anemia risk by more than 20% in people 70 or older, it is also associated with a decline in blood iron levels, researchers report. “This finding about anemia and aspirin is noteworthy because, in many older people, anemia has other consequences such as fatigue and general decline in function,” said lead researcher Dr. Zoe McQuilten, an associate professor of hematology with Monash University in Australia. About half of seniors in the United States take aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes, the researchers noted. However, major groups that once strongly recommended low-dose aspirin — such as the American Heart Association and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force — have tightened their guidelines after newer studies found the therapy increases the risk of dangerous bleeding. “We knew from large clinical trials that daily low-dose aspirin increased the risk of clinically significant bleeding [bleeding that requires a blood transfusion or other treatment for the bleeding],” McQuilten said. But it wasn’t clear whether aspirin also contributed to full-fledged anemia, or a lack of healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen to the body’s organs, the researchers added. Symptoms of anemia include fatigue, shortness of breath, dizziness, irregular heartbeat, headache, chest pain and pale or yellow skin,… read on > read on >

Cutting back social media to a spare 30 minutes per day could be the key to reducing anxiety, depression, loneliness and feelings of fear of missing out, researchers say. That was true for college students in a new study who self-limited social media — often successfully and sometimes squeezing in just a bit more time — for two weeks. “I think on the one hand, the results are kind of counterintuitive, right? If you talk to many people, they would tell you that social media is how they manage their stress, how they keep themselves entertained, how they stay connected with other people. So, I think the typical perception is that people use social media to cope,” said lead author Ella Faulhaber, a doctoral student in human-computer interaction at Iowa State University. Faulhaber said researchers gained interesting insights when they asked participants about their experience. “Lots of them said, ‘I had trouble at first but then I realized how much I better slept, how I actually connected more with people in real life, how I found myself keeping busy with other things,’” Faulhaber said. The study dovetailed with recent health advisories from the U.S. Surgeon General and the American Psychological Association, which warned that young people’s mental health has suffered as their use of social media has surged. Faulhaber’s team worked with 230 college students,… read on > read on >

For the first time ever, the nation’s top panel of preventive health experts has recommended that doctors routinely screen all adult patients under 65 for anxiety disorder. Evidence now shows that anxiety screening can help those patients find peace of mind, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) said in recommendations that were published online June 20 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. “The task force found that for the patients who are 19 to 64, what we call the general adult population, the evidence was robust on reducing their symptoms of anxiety. There was also benefit around general quality of life as well,” USPSTF vice chair Dr. Michael Silverstein said. The task force also reiterated its longstanding recommendation that adults receive regular depression screening. “We were able to identify effective practices to screen the adult population for common and serious mental health disorders,” Silverstein said. “The good news is that screening for depression and anxiety can identify these conditions early. When this screening is linked to quality mental health care, patients benefit.” However, the task force did not recommend anxiety screening for seniors. “In the population 65 and older, we didn’t see the same quality of evidence that spoke to those outcomes,” said Silverstein, a professor of health services, policy and practice at the Brown University School of Public Health in Rhode… read on > read on >

In the face of an ongoing and widespread legal assault on transgender rights — one that threatens to cut off access to critical aspects of trans health care — a pair of new studies suggest that gender-affirming medical care is a lifesaving treatment for those who need it. One study finds that when trans men get immediate access to hormone/testosterone therapy as part of a gender-affirming treatment plan, their mental health improves markedly. Another finds that when trans teens embark on hormone therapy they rarely, if ever, regret their decision. “Gender-affirming hormone therapy is hormone treatment to align physical characteristics — such as facial hair, changes to muscle mass or body fat — with an individual’s gender identity,” explained study author Brendan Nolan, an endocrinologist with Austin Health in Melbourne, Australia. “For people desiring ‘masculinization,’ this involves the same doses and types of testosterone used to treat cisgender men [when someone’s sex at birth matches their own gender identity] with low testosterone,” added Nolan, who is pursuing his doctorate at the University of Melbourne. For the study, Nolan’s team tracked how 64 adult trans men fared over a three-month period. All wanted to begin testosterone treatment immediately. But only half were allowed to do so. The other half was told to ride out a standard three-month waiting list. “We found that the people who received… read on > read on >

You could have high blood pressure and not realize it. The only way to know for sure is to have your blood pressure tested. It’s an important step, according to the American Heart Association (AHA), and so is understanding your results so you can keep your blood pressure under control. A diagnosis of high blood pressure — and any unusually low blood pressure readings – must be made by a health care professional. Blood pressure readings have two numbers. Systolic blood pressure is the upper number and tells you how much pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls when the heart contracts. The diastolic blood pressure is the lower number and it reveals the pressure your blood is exerting against your artery walls while the heart muscle rests between its contractions, the AHA said. Although either number can be used to diagnose high blood pressure, the systolic blood pressure is more notable and can be a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease for people over 50. That number typically rises steadily with age because large arteries stiffen and there is long-term buildup of plaque and an increased incidence of cardiac and vascular disease, the AHA said. Here are the five blood pressure ranges: American Heart Association The five blood pressure ranges are normal, elevated, hypertension stage 1, hypertension stage 2 and hypertensive crisis.… read on > read on >

(HealthDay news) — Fatty liver disease is increasing rapidly among Americans, outpacing obesity rates across many racial groups and affecting the liver health of millions, a new study reports. Overall, metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) in Americans increased 131% during the past three decades, rising from 16% in 1988 to 37% in 2018, the researchers said. By comparison, obesity only increased by 74% during the same period, affecting 40% of Americans by 2018, according to findings presented Friday at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting, in Chicago. “This is an important condition that seems to be getting worse over time,” said Dr. Theodore Friedman, chair of internal medicine at the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science, in Los Angeles. “The rate has increased more than the rate of obesity in the United States.” Fatty liver disease occurs when excess fat begins to be stored in the liver, causing inflammation and eventually scarring, Friedman said. It’s akin to foie gras or pate, which is created by overfeeding ducks or geese. “Most people can live with fatty liver disease, but some people progress to the liver not working, cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer,” Friedman said. Some with fatty liver disease need an organ transplant, Friedman said. “I think it’s less than 1%. It’s not that often,” Friedman said of liver transplants. “But because… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Novo Nordisk Moves to Stop Businesses From Selling Compounded Versions of Wegovy, Ozempic

PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ Found in Blood of Pet Dogs, Horses

Getting Rid of Neck Pain: 6 Ways to Feel Better

The Most Common Back Surgeries, Explained

Low-Dose Aspirin Could Raise Anemia Risks in Older Adults

When College Students Cut Back on Social Media, They Got Happier: Study

Screen All Adults Under Age 65 for Anxiety Disorders, Expert Panel Says

Hormonal Therapies Boost Mental Health of Transgender People, and Few Stop Treatment

Know Your Blood Pressure Numbers and What They Mean

Cases of Obesity-Linked Liver Disease Rising Steeply Among Americans