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A new review of 137 studies from around the world has found that, despite dramatic stories about COVID-19’s impact on mental health, the psychological fallout from the pandemic has been less intense than thought. “Mental health in COVID-19 is much more nuanced than people have made it out to be,” said senior study author Brett Thombs, a Canada Research Chair and professor in the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University in Montreal. “Claims that the mental health of most people has deteriorated significantly during the pandemic have been based primarily on individual studies that are ‘snapshots’ of a particular situation, in a particular place, at a particular time,” Thombs said in a university news release. “They typically don’t involve any long-term comparison with what had existed before or came after.” About 75% of study participants in the studies reviewed were adults and 25% were children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19. The mental health changes were minimal, researchers found, whether the studies covered the mental health of the population as a whole or that of specific groups. “This is by far the most comprehensive study on COVID-19 mental health in the world, and it shows that, in general, people have been much more resilient than many have assumed,” said study first author Ying Sun, a research coordinator from the Lady Davis Institute… read on > read on >

A new poll on sleep and mental health has found that more than 90% of adults who reported they get good sleep were also free of depressive symptoms. In its annual poll, the nonprofit National Sleep Foundation (NSF) focused this year on the impact of sleep on mental health because of the current mental health crisis in the United States. “In the day-to-day execution of our sleep health mission, we give lots of simple, evidence-based and consensus-driven tips and tools to help people get enough of the quality sleep they need. For this year’s poll, we were compelled to look again at the connection between sleep health and mental health conditions like depression,” NSF CEO John Lopos said in a foundation news release. The Sleep in America poll also found that about 65% of adults who were dissatisfied with their sleep experience had mild or greater levels of depressive symptoms. Those who reported difficulties falling or staying asleep just two nights a week had higher levels of depressive symptoms than those without sleep difficulties. About 50% of all adults who sleep less than the recommended seven to nine hours nightly experienced mild or greater levels of depressive symptoms. “One unique aspect of this year’s research was how we combined NSF’s multiple validated measures of the population’s sleep health with an established measure of depressive symptoms,… read on > read on >

Pregnant women will no longer have any drug to prevent preterm birth after the maker of the only available treatment announced Tuesday that it will withdraw its product, Makena, from the market. Covis Pharma Group’s decision follows a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel vote last October that concluded the drug does not actually benefit newborns. “While we stand by Makena’s favorable benefit-risk profile, including its efficacy in women at highest risk of preterm birth, we are seeking to voluntarily withdraw the product and work with the FDA to effectuate an orderly wind-down,” Covis chief innovation officer Raghav Chari said in a statement. Makena was approved 12 years ago as part of the FDA’s accelerated drug approval program after promising results from a 2011 study, The New York Times reported. A larger study in 2019 showed no benefit to pregnant women or their infants. The FDA has been proposing to remove Makena from the market since October 2020, a decision appealed by the drug maker, the Times reported. In October 2022, 15 FDA advisors voted that the study had not shown benefit. With one exception, they each voted for it to be withdrawn from the market. “I think that when we leave something on the market that hasn’t been shown to be effective, we lose out on other investigations that might be pursued,” Dr.… read on > read on >

When people struggle to fall asleep, it’s no surprise they seek solutions. Options can range from prescription medications to sleep therapy, good habits and an abundance of supplements. Taking magnesium for sleep is something some say has real benefits, but does it really? It’s not entirely certain, but the mineral serves a variety of other important functions, so it just might actually work. “The science on whether taking magnesium helps improve the length or quality of sleep has been mixed,” said Dr. Indira Gurubhagavatula, an associate professor of medicine in the Veteran’s Administration Medical Center at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia. Past research has had various design limitations and has not been of high enough quality to support a general recommendation for magnesium supplementation in insomnia sufferers, Gurubhagavatula said. “We don’t have definitive, large, randomized trials across healthy populations, or those with specific diseases, over long periods of time,” she said. What is magnesium? Magnesium is a mineral found in a range of foods and in dietary supplements, according to the Sleep Foundation. It produces protein, bone and DNA; maintains blood sugar and pressure; and regulates the muscles, nerves and the cardiovascular system, according to the foundation. This nutrient is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body, according to the National Library of Medicine. “It is used by hundreds of enzymes… read on > read on >

A water heater set to 120 degrees Fahrenheit can release water from the tap hot enough to cause a second-degree burn in about nine minutes. Turned up to 130 degrees, that injury happens in just 25 seconds. At 140 degrees, it only takes three seconds, according to a new study that tallied the personal and financial costs of scalding injuries in the United States. Researchers led by Wendy Shields, a senior scientist from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, recommend a potential solution to help prevent these serious accidents. Mandating thermostatic mixing valves that add cold water to tap water before it comes out of the faucet could make a difference, they said. “Scald burns are actually something that’s fairly common that we will see in the emergency department and it is often smaller children that are injured,” said Dr. Torree McGowan, a spokesperson for the American College of Emergency Physicians and an ER doctor for St. Charles Health System in Redmond, Ore. “When we do see scald burns from the tap, it is usually because our water heaters are turned up too high and we underestimate how much of a difference 10 degrees in the heat of our hot water heater can make,” said McGowan, who was not involved in the research. To study the issue, scientists used data from two… read on > read on >

U.S. Federal health officials have issued recall notices for two more brands of eyedrops. In the latest round of recalls, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration posted notices after the companies voluntarily pulled several lots of their eyedrops from the market. These recalls do not appear to be connected to other recent recalls or an outbreak in drug-resistant infections, the Associated Press reported. The companies involved in the recalls are Phoenix-based Pharmedica and Florida-based Apotex. Pharmedica is recalling its Purely Soothing 15% MSM Drops meant to treat eye irritation. The two lots were pulled because of problems “that could result in blindness,” the company said. People who have the eyedrops should immediately stop using them and return them to the store where they bought them, the company added. Meanwhile, Apotex is recalling six lots of prescription eyedrops distributed as Brimonidine Tartrate Ophthalmic Solution, 0.15%. They were sold between April 2022 and February 2023. These eyedrops are meant to treat glaucoma. Unfortunately, some of the eyedrop bottles have cracks in the caps, the company said. More information The U.S. National Eye Institute has more on eyedrops and the earlier recalls involving bacteria. SOURCES: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, recall notices, March 2, 2023 and March 3, 2023; Associated Press read on >

New research offers up some good news for diehard marathon runners: You don’t necessarily have to give up running if you are experiencing hip or knee pain. Contrary to widespread opinion, running marathons does not increase your risk for developing hip or knee osteoarthritis, the wear and tear form of the disease, a new study of seasoned Chicago marathoners showed. “You don’t develop knee or hip osteoarthritis simply because of how fast you run or how many miles you put on your body,” said study author Dr. Matthew James Hartwell, an orthopedic surgery sports medicine fellow at the University of the University of California, San Francisco. So, what does increase a runner’s risk for hip or knee arthritis? Basically, the same things that up these risks in non-marathoners, Hartwell said. This includes advancing age, family history of hip or knee arthritis, and previous injuries or knee surgery, as well as higher body mass index (BMI), a measure of body fat based on height and weight. For the study, more than 3,800 Chicago marathoners (mean age: nearly 44) answered questions about their running history, including number of marathons, number of years spent running, and average weekly mileage. They also answered questions about known risk factors for knee and hip arthritis. Participants completed an average of 9.5 marathons, ran 27.9 miles per week, and had been running… read on > read on >

Returning to golf, tennis or pickleball after shoulder replacement surgery shouldn’t be too hard. Healing does take time, but within a few months most people can get back to play at their pre-surgery level without the pain that they experienced before, a pair of new studies show. “Recovery after both an anatomic and reverse shoulder replacement or from any shoulder replacement is identical,” said Dr. Jonathan Levy, director of the Levy Shoulder Center at the Paley Orthopedic and Spine Institute in Boca Raton, Fla., who led both studies. “Patients are protected for the first six weeks and allowed to stretch for the next six weeks, but not allowed to return to the sport for at least three months,” he said. On average, it took patients about six months to play at their former level, Levy said. “But they were given the green light beginning at around three months,” he added. Recovery after shoulder replacements is relatively straightforward, Levy said. “It’s not an extraordinarily painful recovery,” he said. “If people are taking pain medication, it’s for a very short time. It’s just going through the stages of recovery where you go through healing, stretching, and then strength recovery and return to activity.” The first study included 69 golfers who had shoulder replacement surgery. Of this group, 36 returned to the golf course six months after surgery… read on > read on >

Fewer high school athletes are getting hurt playing sports, but those who do are more likely to suffer severe injuries that require surgery or a timeout from their chosen sport, new research shows. Which teens are most at risk? Those who participate in football, girls’ soccer and boys’ wrestling, the study authors found. Knee and ankle sprains and strains, along with head injuries such as concussions, were the most common injuries seen. Exactly why injuries are becoming more severe isn’t fully understood, but having kids specialize in sports too early may play a role. That can lead to an increase in overuse injuries, overtraining and burnout, said study co-author Jordan Pizzarro, a medical student at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, in Washington, D.C. Still, the new data isn’t a reason for kids to stop playing sports. “Sports build endurance and stamina and help with growth and maturity,” Pizzarro said. Instead, parents should talk to the school or coach about pre-season training programs that may help stave off injuries among young athletes. For the study, the researchers tapped into 2015 to 2019 injury data from 100 high schools. These schools have athletic trainers who report injuries for five boys’ and four girls’ sports. Overall, there were 15,531 injuries that occurred during 6.8 million athletic exposures. (An athletic exposure is defined as one… read on > read on >

Can vitamin D lower dementia risk? Quite possibly, a team of British and Canadian researchers report. In their study, investigators spent roughly a decade tracking more than 12,000 older people. None had dementia at the start of the study period. In the end, the team determined that those who had been taking vitamin D supplements during that time appeared to face a 40% lower risk for dementia, compared with those who had never taken the supplements. Even so, Claire Sexton, senior director of scientific programs and outreach at the Alzheimer’s Association, cautioned that much more research is needed to better understand a possible link between vitamin D and dementia risk. For one thing, she noted that the study team did not track how much vitamin D supplementation any of the participants took, nor how long they had been taking them. Similarly, overall patient vitamin D levels were never assessed — either at the study launch or conclusion. In addition, the study was observational, Sexton added, meaning at no point were patients told to take, or not to take, vitamin D. That means the study cannot prove that vitamin D actually causes dementia risk to fall. Still, study author Dr. Zahinoor Ismail said that fresh evidence of vitamin D’s power against dementia has “great biological plausibility.” For example, prior research indicates that people with genetic mutations… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

COVID’s Toll on Mental Health May Have Been Exaggerated: Study

Poll Finds Strong Links Between Depression and Lack of Sleep

Preterm Birth Drug Pulled From Market Over Lack of Effectiveness

What an Expert Says About Taking Magnesium for Sleep

Is Your Tap Water Too Hot? Scalding Burns Send Thousands to ER Each Year

Two More Brands of Eyedrops Recalled Over Infection Risks

Does Running Bring on Arthritic Knees?

How Soon Can You Resume Tennis, Golf After Shoulder Surgery?

Which High School Sports Cause Kids the Most Injuries?

Vitamin D Might Help You Avoid Dementia