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Folks who get regular exercise are less likely to become infected with COVID or develop a severe case requiring a hospital stay, a new study finds. Compared to couch potatoes, adults who adhere to U.S. physical activity guidelines have 10% lower odds of COVID infection and 27% lower odds of hospitalization from it, results in JAMA Network Open show. “This large, unique study in older adults as they navigated the onset of the pandemic provides important support for physical activity in preventing COVID-19 infection and hospitalization that may extend more broadly to enhanced immune function and lessening vulnerability to infections,” senior author Howard Sesso, an associate epidemiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s Division of Preventive Medicine in Boston, said in a news release. For the study, researchers tracked the health of more than 61,500 older adults involved in three ongoing clinical trials prior to the beginning of the COVID pandemic in 2020. The participants all reported on their lifestyles and exercise, including the time they spent on activities like biking, walking, running and climbing stairs. Using those self-reports, researchers categorized the participants as inactive, insufficiently active or sufficiently active, based on U.S. physical activity guidelines. The guidelines say that adults should get at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise each week. Examples of moderate-intensity exercise… read on > read on >

A mental workout can speed teens’ recovery from a concussion, especially if it takes place in the classroom. New research shows that returning to school early after a concussion and limiting screen time help symptoms resolve sooner. “Children and teens should be encouraged to get back to their routines and take part in activities like clubs, jobs and homework after experiencing concussion,” said study co-author Dr. Thomas Pommering, director of concussion clinics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Division of Sports Medicine. “But keep in mind that for some patients, prolonged screen time in non-school activities such as gaming or internet scrolling can affect recovery if it is worsening their symptoms,” he added in a hospital news release. While other studies have touted the benefits of an early return to physical activity, little has been known about how mental activity affects post-concussion outcomes. For this study, researchers at Nationwide Children’s Center for Injury Research and Policy in Ohio looked at the intensity and duration of daily mental activities in 11- to 17-year-olds and their effect on concussion recovery. The young people reported increases in activities such as reading, listening to music, watching TV and using the phone, as well as how much time they devoted to mental activities overall as their symptoms eased. Clinical guidelines have recommended young people with concussions get complete physical and mental rest… read on > read on >

TUESDAY, Feb. 13Two of the most common pregnancy complications for women, high blood pressure and gestational diabetes, could jeopardize the future heart health of their children, a new study suggests. Researchers found that the children of women who developed either or both of those conditions during pregnancy showed signs of less-than-ideal heart health before the age of 12. “Through our research, we’ve found an association between diabetes and high blood pressure during pregnancy and indicators of compromised heart health in children on the cusp of adolescence,” said study lead author Dr. Kartik Venkatesh, director of the Diabetes in Pregnancy Program at Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center. “This underscores the potential for interventions aimed at averting or managing these health issues before they escalate in adulthood.” In the study, his team looked at 3,317 mothers and their children. Among the mothers, 8% developed high blood pressure during pregnancy, 12% developed diabetes and 3% developed both high blood pressure and diabetes. Researchers then looked at the heart health of their children between the ages of 10 and 14. They measured factors like body-mass index, blood pressure, total cholesterol and blood sugar levels. They found that before the age of 12, more than half of the children (55.5%) had at least one factor that put them at greater risk for heart disease and stroke. The findings were… read on > read on >

Replacing regular salt with a salt substitute can reduce high blood pressure in older adults, a new study has found. Older adults who use a salt substitute are 40% less likely to develop high blood pressure compared to those who use regular salt, according to findings published Feb. 12 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. “Adults frequently fall into the trap of consuming excess salt through easily accessible and budget-friendly processed foods,” said lead researcher Dr. Yangfeng Wu, executive director of the Peking University Clinical Research Institute in Beijing. “It’s crucial to recognize the impact of our dietary choices on heart health and increase the public’s awareness of lower-sodium options,” he added in a journal news release. High blood pressure is the leading risk factor for heart disease and heart-related death, according to the World Health Organization. It affects more than 1.4 billion adults worldwide and results in 10.8 million deaths each year. For this study, researchers evaluated how sodium reduction might help the blood pressure of seniors residing in care facilities in China. The study involved more than 600 participants, age 55 and older, from 48 care facilities. All patients had blood pressure under 104/90 mmHG, and were not on any blood pressure medications. Half of the care facilities replaced salt with a salt substitute in residents’ meals, while the other… read on > read on >

The red meat diet associated with masculinity could be the worst thing for men dealing with prostate cancer, a new study says. Prostate cancer patients who limit meat and dairy but eat lots of plant-based foods tend to suffer less erectile dysfunction, urinary incontinence and other embarrassing side effects associated with their treatment, researchers say. Men who ate the most plant-based foods scored 8% to 11% better in measures of sexual function compared to those who ate the least, according to results from more than 3,500 prostate cancer patients. The men also scored up to 14% better in urinary health, with fewer instances of incontinence, obstruction and irritation, results show. A plant-based diet also produced 13% better scores in hormonal health, which involves symptoms like low energy, depression and hot flashes. “Our findings offer hope for those looking for ways to improve their quality of life after undergoing surgery, radiation, and other common therapies for prostate cancer, which can cause significant side effects,” lead researcher Dr. Stacy Loeb, a professor of urology and population health at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City, said in a news release. “Adding more fruits and vegetables to their diet, while reducing meat and dairy, is a simple step that patients can take,” she said. Previous research by the same team found that eating a plant-based… read on > read on >

Preventing noise-related hearing loss from a loud concert, a banging jackhammer or a rifle blast could be as simple as managing levels of zinc within the inner ear, a new study reports. Such hearing loss stems from cellular damage associated with an excess of free-floating zinc in the inner ear, researchers say. Lab mouse experiments showed drugs that soak up the excess zinc can help restore lost hearing or even protect the ear against loud noises. “Noise-induced hearing loss impairs millions of lives but, because the biology of hearing loss is not fully understood, preventing hearing loss has been an ongoing challenge,” said senior researcher Thanos Tzounopoulos, director of the Pittsburgh Hearing Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Zinc is a mineral essential to proper cellular function and hearing, researchers said in background notes. But they found that inner ear levels of zinc spike hours after mice are exposed to loud noise. This excess zinc causes cell damage and disrupts normal cell-to-cell communication, resulting in temporary and sometimes permanent hearing loss. Mice treated with a slow-releasing compound that trapped excess free zinc were less prone to hearing loss, and were protected from noise-induced damage, researchers said in a university news release. Researchers are developing a simple, over-the-counter medication that a person could take to protect their ears from loud noise prior… read on > read on >

Researchers say they have developed a blood test for schizophrenia. More than 3 million people in the United States have schizophrenia, a disorder marked by hallucinations and delusions, or a related psychotic illness. The new test, which is expected to be available later this year from MindX Sciences, identifies markers in the blood that objectively measure a person’s risk for schizophrenia, allowing doctors to tailor treatments to their individual biology. “Schizophrenia is hard to diagnose, especially early on, and matching people to the right treatment from the beginning is very important,” said senior study author Dr. Alexander Niculescu, a professor of psychiatry and medical neuroscience at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis. “Psychosis usually manifests in young adulthood — a prime period of life,” he explained in a university news release. “Stress and drugs, including marijuana, are precipitating factors on a background of genetic vulnerability. If left unchecked, psychosis leads to accumulating biological damage, social damage and psychological damage.” His team published its research Feb. 8 in the journal Molecular Psychiatry. For their study, they followed psychiatric patients for more than a decade, identifying biomarkers that predicted high rates of hallucination and delusions, as well as future related hospitalizations. They also examined which biomarkers were targets of existing drugs. The work builds on previous studies by Niculescu, who is also a staff psychiatrist at… read on > read on >

Pickleball has become the darling of older folks trying to stay in shape, but new research shows that with that popularity has come a surge in serious injuries. Bone fractures related to pickleball have increased 90-fold over the last 20 years, with most injuries occurring in adults ages 60 to 69, finds a new analysis presented this week at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons in San Francisco. “Despite its reputation as a low-impact sport, pickleball can pose serious risk for players, especially if they have weaker bones from osteoporosis,” researcher Dr. Kurt Spindler, an orthopaedic surgeon at Cleveland Clinic in Florida, said in a meeting news release. “It’s important to understand your risk profile of injury and to speak with your physician to see how you can lower your risk.” Pickleball, which resembles its cousin tennis, is played with a perforated plastic ball and wooden paddles on a badminton-sized court. It is the fastest growing sport in the country, with the number of players rising from 4.8 million in 2021 to 8.9 million in 2023, according to USA Pickleball. Importantly, the new analysis only looked at fractures, not some of the most common injuries like sprained ankles or damage to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Other common pickleball injuries include rotator cuff injuries, worsening of arthritis and Achilles tendon tears/strains,… read on > read on >

Novo Nordisk has settled lawsuits against two Florida businesses that claimed to sell copycat versions of its popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy. The Danish drugmaker announced the settlements Friday, according to NBC News. The move capped a legal battle that began in late November when the company filed 12 lawsuits against clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies in the United States that claimed to offer semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy. Novo Nordisk, which holds the patent on semaglutide, does not supply the ingredient to outside groups, NBC News noted. Semaglutide is used to treat type 2 diabetes and is a popular, injectable weight-loss drug. With the settlements announced last week, Florida-based Cosmetic Laser Professionals Med Spa and Nuvida Rx Weight Loss are permanently barred from claiming that their compounded drugs have approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Novo Nordisk said. They are also forbidden from “misleading” advertising and using any Novo Nordisk trademarks or logos in their products. The settlement gives both companies a year to make the necessary changes. Compounded drugs are custom-made. Ingredients are combined, mixed or altered for an individual patient. While these drugs are not FDA-approved, they are often sought when approved medications are in short supply. As use of semaglutide for weight control has soared, many patients with diabetes who depend on it to… read on > read on >

Don’t expect to sweat away the heart risks posed by sugary sodas and drinks, a new study warns. Canadian researchers found that even if the recommended 150 minutes of weekly physical activity protects against cardiovascular disease, it’s not enough to counter the adverse effects of sugar-sweetened beverages. “Physical activity reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease associated with sugar-sweetened beverages by half, but it does not fully eliminate it,” said researcher Jean-Philippe Drouin-Chartier, an assistant professor with Université Laval’s Faculty of Pharmacy in Quebec, said in a university news release. Researchers noted that sugar-sweetened drinks are the largest source of added sugars in the North American diet. For the study, they analyzed data on about 100,000 adults who were followed for an average of three decades. Those who consumed sugar-sweetened beverages more than twice a week had a higher risk of heart disease, regardless of their physical activity levels. With daily consumption, the risk of heart disease is even higher, researchers noted. Drouin-Chartier noted that the sugary drinks in the study included sodas, lemonade and fruit cocktails. The study didn’t specifically consider energy drinks, but those also tend to contain heavy doses of sugar. Artificially sweetened drinks were not associated with higher risk of heart disease, the researchers found. “Replacing sugar-sweetened beverages by diet drinks is good, because it reduces the amount of sugar. But the… read on > read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Exercise a Lot? You May Lower Your Risk of COVID Infection, Hospitalization

Which Activities Help Kids Recover From Concussion?

Pregnancy Complications May Harm Child’s Heart Health Long-Term

Salt Substitutes Help Prevent High Blood Pressure

Avoiding Meat Can Help Men Cope With Prostate Cancer Treatments

Research With a Bang: Science Reveals How Loud Noise Damages Hearing

Blood Test to Predict Schizophrenia Shows Promise

As Pickleball’s Popularity Has Soared, So Have Injuries

Novo Nordisk Settles Lawsuits Over Copycat Versions of Ozempic, Wegovy

You Probably Can’t ‘Exercise Away’ the Calories in Sodas: Study