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There’s no doubt about it: Staying at home, worrying about jobs and finances, is a recipe for depression during the coronavirus pandemic. But one expert offers some tips on how to maintain good mental health during this difficult time. “The current situation has many of us feeling helpless, fearful and adrift,” said Dr. Donna Anthony, chief medical officer at Gracie Square Hospital in New York City. “In order to get through this crisis, it is important to acknowledge these feelings and proactively manage stress, maintain your health, and find ways to cope when things seem darkest. We don’t know when our lives will return to a semblance of normality, but in the meantime, there are steps we can take to make ourselves feel better,” Anthony said in a hospital news release. People who already struggled with depression and anxiety may find it even more difficult now, and even those who haven’t faced those mental health challenges may feel anxious, afraid and lonely. Take a step back and examine your feelings, Anthony suggested. Be non-judgmental and compassionate toward yourself. Distract yourself from negative thoughts. If you’re bored, do something. If you’re lonely or frightened, call a friend. Your body is better able to fight stress if you take care of it. Eat healthy, well-balanced meals and get enough rest and sleep. Don’t try to relieve stress… read on >

You’re in lockdown, yet you still have to go grocery shopping, but how do you stay safe and avoid catching the coronavirus? The American Medical Association has some timely tips. When you go to the store: Stay at least six-feet away from other shoppers. Don’t shake hands, hug or have any physical contact. Wipe down grocery carts or basket handles with disinfectant wipes if you have them. Don’t touch your face. Wear a cloth face mask. While waiting and after leaving the store, use hand sanitizer if you have it. If you’re sick, don’t go shopping. But if you must, wear a mask, wash your hands often and keep a safe distance between you and others. When you get your groceries home: Although it’s unlikely you’ll be exposed to the virus from the items in your shopping bag, wash your hands after unpacking your groceries. Wipe surfaces with a household disinfectant. Take precautions when preparing food: Wash your hands before eating. Do not share plates or silverware with others. Rinse fruits and vegetables before eating them. If you’re 65 or older: Ask a neighbor or friend to pick up groceries and leave them outside your house or bring them in while keeping at least six-feet apart. Check with your local market and go during store hours reserved for older shoppers. See if your grocer delivers… read on >

It’s clear that age and chronic disease make bouts of the pandemic coronavirus more severe — and even deadly — but obesity might also put even younger people at higher risk, a pair of new studies suggest. The researchers suspect that inflammation throughout the body linked to obesity could be a powerful factor in the severity of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. And, they added, it could even be more significant than heart or lung disease. “This has relevance in the U.S., where 40% of Americans are obese, and will no doubt contribute to increased morbidity and likely mortality, compared to other countries,” said Dr. Jennifer Lighter, co-author of one of the studies. Lighter is an assistant professor of pediatric infectious diseases at NYU School of Medicine in New York City. Though people under age 60 are generally considered at low risk for COVID-19, her team found that those who are obese are twice as likely to be hospitalized for the disease. And, compared to patients whose weight is normal, those who are morbidly obese are twice as likely to need acute care and three times more likely to be confined to the intensive care unit, the study found. Though patients studied were obese, none had diabetes or heart disease, Lighter said, but they might be on the verge of them. “They have… read on >

Many health care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic are struggling with sleep, a new study finds. The researchers also found that those with insomnia were more likely to have depression, anxiety and stress-based trauma. The study included nearly 1,600 health care workers who completed an online questionnaire between January 29 and February 3 at the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Two-thirds (36%) reported insomnia symptoms. Overall rates of depression were much higher among those with insomnia (87%) than among those without insomnia (31%), and especially for moderate (23% versus 3%) and severe (17% versus 2%) depression. The percentages and differences between those with and without insomnia were similar for anxiety and stress-based trauma, according to the study published April 14 in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry. The most important factor associated with insomnia among health care workers was strong uncertainty about effective disease control among medical staff. Strong uncertainty was 3.3 times higher among those with insomnia than those without it, the findings showed. Lower levels of education were also associated with insomnia. Health care workers with a high school education or less were 2.7 times more likely to have insomnia than those with a doctoral degree, according to the report. Workers with less education may be more likely to be fearful, study co-author Bin Zhang, a professor at… read on >

Eating a Mediterranean diet that’s high in vegetables, whole grains and fish could reduce your risk of mental decline, two studies from the U.S. National Eye Institute (NEI) suggest. “We do not always pay attention to our diets. We need to explore how nutrition affects the brain and the eye,” lead author Dr. Emily Chew said in an NEI news release. She is director of the institute’s division of epidemiology and clinical applications. The researchers analyzed data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) and the follow-up study, AREDS2. The studies, which included 8,000 people in all, were set up to explore the eye disease age-related macular degeneration. At the start of both studies, participants’ diets were assessed, including their average consumption of specific Mediterranean diet components over the previous year. Besides veggies, whole grains and fish, this type of meal plan is rich in whole fruits, nuts, legumes and olive oil. A Mediterranean diet also features lower consumption of red meat and alcohol. AREDS tested participants’ mental (cognitive) function at five years, and AREDS2 tested mental function at the start and again two, four and 10 years later. Those who most closely followed the Mediterranean diet had the lowest risk of mental impairment. Although the study can’t prove a direct cause-and-effect relationship, high levels of fish and vegetable consumption appeared to provide the greatest… read on >

Once you’ve had COVID-19 and recovered, are you now immune from the virus? That’s the critical question that will help shape how the United States re-opens for business in the coming months. Unfortunately, there’s still no clear answer. It’s still too soon to tell if the first wave of COVID-19 survivors will remain immune to the virus for any appreciable length of time. But the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, thinks there’s a good chance that people might gain lasting immunity following COVID-19 infection. “We’re making an assumption, which I think is a reasonable assumption, that this virus is not changing very much,” said Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “If we get infected in February and March, and recover, next September or October the person who was infected I believe is going to be protected. We don’t know 100% for sure, but I think that is a reasonable assumption.” But there’s also reason to question the potential for lasting immunity against COVID-19, said Dr. Greg Poland, director of the Vaccine Research Group at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn. Immunity may vary The novel coronavirus behind COVID-19 belongs to a family of viruses that has a very uneven track record with the human immune system, Poland noted. “With the four seasonal beta coronaviruses that circulate… read on >

Can zinc help shorten a COVID-19 infection? Will vitamin C or other supplements prevent it? These claims and plenty more can be found on social media and internet sites, but be advised: There is no pill or treatment that can prevent or cure COVID right now. “We want to think that there is a quick way to get rid of this. But there is not a product out there that will keep you from getting the coronavirus,” said Rebecca Dutch, a virologist with the University of Kentucky in Lexington. The pandemic has spawned a wave of products claiming to protect you by boosting your immune system — a simple claim people think they understand, said retired psychiatrist Dr. Stephen Barrett, who runs Quackwatch, a website that debunks pseudoscientific claims. “They think, ‘If I can boost my immune system, I’ll be more resistant to the virus,’” but it’s just not that simple, he said. “The immune system is quite complex,” Barrett explained. “There’s not even a scientific process called strengthening or boosting the immune system.” He agreed with Dutch: “There is no product you can take that will prevent or cure COVID,” he said. Even a group representing supplement makers agreed. Two major industry groups –the Council for Responsible Nutrition and the American Herbal Products Association — recently asked stores selling dietary supplements to refuse to… read on >

It is safe to donate blood during the coronavirus pandemic? Do cloth face masks offer meaningful protection against COVID-19? These are among the questions Americans are asking, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the agency is offering some answers. A number of measures are being taken to protect the nation’s blood supply, according to the FDA. Blood donors must be healthy and feel well on the day of donation. Routine donor screening should prevent people with respiratory infections from donating blood. However, donors are told to contact the donor center if they become ill after giving blood, so that their blood or plasma won’t be used. No cases of COVID-19 have been linked to blood or products made from blood collected from donors who developed COVID-19 after donating, the FDA said in a news release. And giving blood is one way for you to help during this public health emergency. If you’re healthy and want to donate blood, contact a local donation center to make an appointment, the agency advised. There’s another way you might be able to help — by donating convalescent plasma, the FDA said. Scientists are investigating its use to treat COVID-19. Convalescent plasma is the liquid part of blood that’s collected from patients who have recovered from COVID-19 and have antibodies in their blood against the virus. The… read on >

As you shelter at home during the coronavirus pandemic, eliminate hazards inside that could lead to falls, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) suggests. Preventing injuries will help avoid putting added strain on a health care system struggling to treat COVID-19 patients, academy spokesman Dr. Todd Swenning said. One out of five falls causes a serious injury, such as a broken bone or even head trauma, he added. “While common perception is that falls only happen to older populations, the truth is that anyone is susceptible, especially with increased family members in the home or changes to your daily routine,” Swenning said in an academy news release. “The good news is that most falls can be prevented with a few simple precautions.” Start with your footwear. Wear sturdy and proper footwear, make sure your shoes are properly tied, don’t wear socks without grips, and replace stretched out or loose slippers, Swenning advised. In the bedroom: Place a lamp, telephone or flashlight near your bed; have a bed that’s easy to get into and out of; put a nightlight between your bedroom and the bathroom; and arrange clothes in your closet so that they’re easy to reach. In other areas of your home: Arrange furniture so there are clear paths between rooms; install easy-access light switches at room entrances so you don’t have to walk… read on >

If you’re one of the many people making your own cleaning products at home because you can’t find them in stores, you need to be sure what you make is safe and effective, an environmental medicine expert says. Do-it-yourself (DIY) cleaning products made from ingredients such as vinegar, essential oils and baking soda are safe, but they haven’t been shown to kill viruses or bacteria, said Robert Laumbach. He’s an associate professor at the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute at Rutgers University, in New Jersey. “It is essential to make a distinction between cleaning and disinfecting products. Cleaners remove dirt and some, but not all, germs. Disinfectants kill germs, including bacteria and viruses,” he said in a university news release. “The effectiveness of cleaners is usually readily apparent to the user. In contrast, verification of the ability of disinfectants to kill particular viruses and bacteria depends on laboratory tests such as those conducted by commercial product manufacturers,” said Laumbach. The only DIY disinfectant that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends for killing the new coronavirus on frequently contacted surfaces is “a dilute solution of 1/3 cup [about 5 tablespoons] of bleach per gallon of water,” he noted. The coronavirus is more easily killed by disinfectants, so common U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-registered household disinfectants should be effective against the virus, according to… read on >

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All Sauce from Weekly Gravy:

Dodge Depression During Coronavirus Pandemic

Tips for Safe Grocery Shopping

Obesity Ups Odds for Severe COVID-19 in Younger Patients

Sleep Troubles Hit Health Care Workers During Pandemic

Which Foods Might Reduce Your Odds for Dementia?

When U.S. Re-Opens, Will Those Exposed to Coronavirus Have Lasting Immunity?

Don’t Believe the Hype: Bogus Products, Coronavirus Scams Abound

FDA Tackles Questions About Blood Donation, Face Masks During Pandemic

Sheltering at Home? Take Steps to Prevent Injuries From Falls

Handle DIY Cleaning Products With Care During Coronavirus Pandemic