MONDAY, Nov. 13, 2023 — In an unexpected finding, new research suggests that antibodies arising from common food allergies may also raise risks for heart trouble. These IgE antibodies didn’t even have to be present in quantities high enough to produce an actual food allergy to have this unhealthy effect on the heart, noted a team from the University of Virginia Health (UVA) System, in Charlottesville. “What we looked at here was the presence of IgE antibodies to food that were detected in blood samples,” researcher Dr. Jeffrey Wilson said in a UVA news release. “We don’t think most of these subjects actually had overt food allergy, thus our story is more about an otherwise silent immune response to food.” “While these responses may not be strong enough to cause acute allergic reactions to food, they might nonetheless cause inflammation and over time lead to problems like heart disease,” said Wilson, an allergy and immunology expert at the UVA School of Medicine. All of this could mean trouble for a large swath of the population: According to the researchers, about 15% of adults produce IgE antibodies in response to cow’s milk, peanuts and other foods. Not everyone who produces the antibodies will have a symptomatic food allergy, however. In their research, Wilson’s team collected data on almost 5,400 participants involved in either a national U.S.…  read on >  read on >

MONDAY, Nov. 13, 2023 (Healthday News) — Two new gene-editing treatments that target dangerously high levels of cholesterol in people with a genetic predisposition to the condition were found safe and effective in new, groundbreaking research. While powerful drugs like statins can help manage cholesterol in most people, they can’t treat those who have genes that predispose them to heart troubles. But the duo of studies, presented Sunday at the American Heart Association (AHA) annual meeting in Philadelphia, may one day change that. Both treatments will need years of additional research before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration would even consider approving them, but that didn’t dampen the excitement among heart experts. “There is no way to categorize this other than revolutionary,” Dr. Hugh Cassiere, director for critical care services at South Shore University Hospital, Northwell Cardiovascular Institute, in New York, told NBC News. He was not involved with either study. One of the treatments, from Boston-based Verve Therapeutics, uses a gene-editing approach that targets the PCSK9 gene, making a tiny change to the gene. The effect is akin to a permanent eraser, deleting the gene’s ability to fuel a rise in cholesterol levels, Verve co-founder and CEO Dr. Sekar Kathiresan told NBC News. In theory, the one-time treatment should last a lifetime. “Instead of daily pills or intermittent injections over decades to lower bad cholesterol, this…  read on >  read on >

Cutting out just one teaspoon of salt every day lowers blood pressure almost as much as medication does, new research shows. Investigators said theirs is one of the largest studies ever to include people taking high blood pressure meds in a look at the effect of reducing dietary intake of sodium. “We found that 70-75% of all people, regardless of whether they are already on blood pressure medications or not, are likely to see a reduction in their blood pressure if they lower the sodium in their diet,” said study co-author Norrina Allen, a professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.   She said researchers previously didn’t know if people already on blood pressure meds could lower their blood pressure even more by reducing their sodium intake. In the study, middle-aged to elderly participants reduced their salt intake by about 1 teaspoon a day.  “The result was a decline in systolic blood pressure by about 6 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), which is comparable to the effect produced by a commonly utilized first-line medication for high blood pressure,” said co-principal investigator Dr. Deepak Gupta, an associate professor of medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, in Nashville, Tenn.  Systolic blood pressure is the pressure in your arteries as your heart beats. It’s the first number in a blood pressure reading.…  read on >  read on >

The Thanksgiving table is typically loaded down with turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes and all kinds of pie, but nutritionists say kids should also be encouraged to eat fresh fruit and vegetables during the holiday meal. Precious few children eat enough fruits and vegetables the rest of the year, so the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics encourages families to prepare Thanksgiving meals that incorporate cranberries, apples, pumpkins and green beans. “Simplicity is key when it comes to feeding children, especially during holidays when meals are more formal and the dishes are more dramatic,” said registered dietitian and nutritionist Amy Reed, an academy spokesperson from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. “Instead of serving children a vegetable casserole, set out a tray of raw vegetables and fruits because many kids like things to be plain,” she suggested in an academy news release. “Offering different dips on the side allows them to customize their food and may encourage them to try something new.” But don’t be surprised if they still balk a bit. “My family loves our Thanksgiving staples of turkey and gravy, green beans, cranberry sauce and sweet potato, but we can be flexible for our young guests who might not feel the same way about our traditional feast,” said registered dietitian nutritionist Jessica Sylvester, an academy spokesperson from Boca Raton, Fla. Sylvester offered these tips for children who…  read on >  read on >

FRIDAY, Nov. 10, 2023 (Healthday News) — Two federal health agencies are investigating a salmonella outbreak linked to dog food that has sickened seven people in seven states, nearly all of them infants. On Thursday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a recall of Victor Hi-Pro Plus dry dog food, a brand tied to the outbreak, while the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention also issued a health alert advising people what to do to avoid infection. Included in the recall are several other brands of dry dog and cat food sold by the maker of Hi-Pro Plus, Mid America Pet Food. The company has voluntarily recalled all the pet food brands it manufactured with a best by date before 10/31/2024, which include Victor, Eagle Mountain, Wayne Feeds and two varieties of Member’s Mark pet foods. These products include both dog and cat foods and were sold in retail stores and online, the FDA said. Six of the seven salmonella cases involved children aged 1 or younger, the FDA noted. Five of the cases reported exposure to dogs and three reported feeding Victor pet food to their pets. One person was hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported. According to the CDC alert, those who have fallen ill were infected by touching contaminated dog food and dog bowls, or by touching the poop or saliva…  read on >  read on >

THURSDAY, Nov. 9, 2023 (HealthDay News) – Researchers are testing a toothpaste that aims to let patients who are sensitive to peanuts and other foods simply brush their allergies away. Doctors already treat some food allergy patients with oral immunotherapy — feeding them tiny, portioned and gradually increasing bits of their allergen under supervision for some time. The new strategy is a twist on that. Called oral mucosal immunotherapy (OMIT), it relies on the lining of the mouth, which has a lot of immune response cells, to desensitize patients. All they have to do is brush with a specially formulated toothpaste containing peanut protein. Called INT301, it’s dispensed in a metered dose and cleans the teeth at the same time. “The immunotherapy is conveniently administered by just brushing your teeth once a day so you don’t have to get an injection,” said researcher Dr. William Berger, a pediatric allergist at CHOC at Mission Hospital, Mission Viejo, Calif. “You don’t have to eat something. You don’t have to prepare something. You just get up in the morning just like you normally would do and brush your teeth.”  Berger is scheduled to present his findings Saturday at a meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in Anaheim, Calif. Research presented at meetings is typically considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal. To test…  read on >  read on >

A second injectable diabetes drug has been approved for weight loss in overweight and obese adults, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday. The weight-loss drug Zepbound contains the same active ingredient, tirzepatide, as the diabetes drug Mounjaro. Both medications are made by Eli Lilly and Co. “Obesity and overweight are serious conditions that can be associated with some of the leading causes of death such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes,” Dr. John Sharretts, director of the Division of Diabetes, Lipid Disorders, and Obesity in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in an agency news release. “In light of increasing rates of both obesity and overweight in the United States, today’s approval addresses an unmet medical need.” The approval mirrors the FDA’s earlier approval of Wegovy to treat obesity. That blockbuster drug contains the same active ingredient as the diabetes drug Ozempic. About 7 in 10 American adults are overweight or obese, the FDA said, and many of those folks have at least one weight-related health risk, such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes or elevated cholesterol levels. Losing 5% to 10% of body weight has been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease in adults carrying excess weight, the FDA added. Zepbound works by activating hormone receptors in the body to reduce appetite and food intake, the…  read on >  read on >

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 8, 2023 (Healthday News) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday that it plans to pull a veterinary drug used commonly in the pork industry because it might pose a cancer risk to humans who eat pig products. The antimicrobial, carbadox (Mecadox), is typically added to pig feed to fight infections and fatten up the animals. But pork contaminated with “carcinogenic residues” from the drug could wind up in foods like hot dogs and cold cuts, though the agency stressed in its notice that it isn’t telling people to change their food choices at the moment. The FDA’s concerns with carbadox date back decades: When it was first approved in 1998, the agency’s worries were abated by a strategy that involved testing edible parts of pigs that had been given carbadox. According to the agency, data now shows that those testing methods do not adequately measure the cancer risk posed by pork produced while using the drug. After issuing its first warning about pulling the drug in 2016, it isn’t clear why the agency didn’t move sooner to actually do so, CBS News reported. “This action itself arrived long overdue. The European Union and Canada prohibited use of carbadox in 1999 and 2006, respectively, due to concerns about residues and the safety of workers handling the drug,” advocacy groups wrote in…  read on >  read on >