Health/Fitness « Weekly Gravy

After living with disabling low back pain for nearly 30 years, Dennis Bassett, 64, finally has a new lease on life. The Hempstead, N.Y., native injured his back in the 1980s when helping a friend. He tried everything to relieve his back pain, from self-medication, acupuncture, and chiropractor work to steroid injections, physical therapy and exercise. “My back only got worse,” recalled the retired real estate professional. “Some days, I could barely make it into the house and up my stairs.” But that was then. Everything changed a few months ago after his doctor suggested a new procedure that involves implanting a muscle-stimulating device called the ReActiv8 into his lower back to activate a dormant and withering core muscle. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave its nod to the device in June 2020. The father of six underwent the procedure at Lenox Health Greenwich Village in New York City several months ago. Now, he is considering moving down South and starting a trucking business. “I feel good enough that I can take a chance,” he said. “I can walk upstairs, sit down and stand up with no problem. I thought, ‘this is too good to be true.’” But when this procedure is paired with the right patient, it’s not too good to be true, said Bassett’s surgeon, Dr. Kiran Vishal Patel, director of pain… read on > read on >

Researchers have uncovered groundbreaking evidence that pharmacies in tourist areas of Northern Mexico are selling counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamines. The pills, mainly sold to U.S. tourists without a prescription, were passed off as controlled substances, including oxycodone, percocet and Adderall, the study found. This could add to the already high number of overdose deaths from these drugs in the United States and Mexico, U.S.-based researchers said. “These counterfeit pills represent a serious overdose risk to buyers who think they are getting a known quantity of a weaker drug,” said senior study author Chelsea Shover. She is an assistant professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). About 68% of 40 pharmacies studied in four cities in Northern Mexico had at least one controlled substance for sale without a prescription, the researchers found. These were sold in either bottles or as individual pills. The investigators found counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, heroin and/or methamphetamine from 11 pharmacies. Nine pill samples sold as Adderall contained methamphetamine. Eight sold as oxycodone contained fentanyl. Three sold as oxycodone had heroin in them. “It is not possible to distinguish counterfeit medications based on appearance, because identically appearing authentic and counterfeit versions are often sold in close geographic proximity,” the researchers reported. “Nevertheless, U.S. tourist drug consumers may be more trusting… read on > read on >

Winter’s icy beauty can also be dangerous. An orthopedic expert offers some tips for avoiding serious injuries on slippery ground or hazards hidden by snow. “When people have injuries during the winter, it commonly involves tripping over an object or slipping on ice,” said Dr. Richard Samade, an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery who specializes in hand and upper extremity surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “To protect themselves from greater injuries, people will instinctively stretch their hand and arm out to break their fall,” Samade said in a center news release. “Unfortunately, this leads to a decelerating force concentrated through the wrist, forearm and elbow that often leads to injury in the small bones of those areas.” Staying alert and aware of surroundings can help. People should take note of dark patches on pavement that may be iced over, Samade advised. Wear appropriate footwear with good traction, he said. If you use a walker or cane, consider having someone walk with you in case you lose your balance. Of course, it’s important to stay safe year-round. Pay attention to what’s ahead of you while walking rather than texting or looking down at a phone screen, Samade suggested. Use corrective lenses or walking aids if poor vision, chronic conditions and medication have increased your fall risk. In warmer months, outdoor work and recreational… read on > read on >

Androstenedione is one of those supplements that was peddled to athletes for years as a quick path to bulging muscles and high testosterone levels, but it carries some grave dangers. Also known as “andro,” the dietary supplement was once touted to enhance athletic performance by stimulating muscle growth and boosting testosterone levels. But once it enters the body, it acts like a steroid and can pose similar health risks. In October 2004, President George Bush signed the Anabolic Steroid Control Act, which reclassified androstenedione from a supplement to an anabolic steroid, making it and other steroid-based drugs a controlled substance. They are currently banned in sports. This was because a small number of studies of androstenedione led the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to believe that its use may increase the risk of serious health problems because of its conversion in the body to the hormones testosterone and a particular form of estrogen. While over-the-counter androstenedione supplements are now banned, doctors can still prescribe it for medical purposes. According to a study published online recently in the journal Molecules, doctors can offer androstenedione shots for preventing or treating certain chronic diseases. Androstenedione’s dangers But the supplement is linked to numerous side effects. According to the Mayo Clinic, long-term use of androstenedione supplements by men can result in testicular atrophy, impotence and the development of female… read on > read on >

THURSDAY, Feb. 2, 2023 (HealthDay News) – The wildly popular weight-loss drug Wegovy has become hard to find, but that could soon change. Novo Nordisk, which makes the medication, said Wednesday that it has increased production to meet demand. “We know for a fact that patients have been lined up,” CEO Lars Jorgensen said on a call with investors, NBC News reported. Wegovy, also known as semaglutide, is a GLP-1 agonist, mimicking a hormone that cuts appetite and helps reduce food intake, NBC News reported. It costs about $1,300 a month and often isn’t covered by insurance. An off-label alternative is the type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic, which is the same medication but given in a smaller dose and approved to help regulate blood sugar levels. Novo Nordisk also makes Ozempic. Novo Nordisk expects “pent-up demand” for Wegovy to subside over the next few months, Jorgensen said. “We are obviously encouraged by the trend line we see, but we also do believe there will be a normalization of that,” he said. During the shortage, some Americans have gained some or all of their weight back as they’ve given up the medication, NBC News reported. The company “looks forward” to the medication’s wider availability, said Doug Langa, head of North American operations for the Danish company. More information The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has more… read on > read on >

A new study hints that treating low vitamin D levels with supplements might have a critical benefit for certain people: a decreased risk of attempting suicide. In a study of more than 1 million U.S. veterans, researchers found that those prescribed vitamin D were nearly 50% less likely to attempt suicide over eight years, versus those who were not prescribed the supplements. The benefit was seen specifically among veterans who had low vitamin D levels to begin with, as well as Black veterans — who may be at greater risk of insufficient vitamin D stores. Experts stressed that the study was not a clinical trial that directly tested vitamin D for reducing suicidal behavior. So it does not prove that supplements, per se, actually cause suicide risk to fall. At the same time, it’s known that vitamin D deficiency can cause depression-like symptoms, including mood changes and chronic fatigue, said Dr. Christine Crawford, a psychiatrist and associate medical director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Crawford, who was not involved in the study, said that in her practice, she often has patients with depression symptoms tested for blood levels of vitamin D, as well as vitamin B12, folic acid and thyroid hormones. (Deficiencies in those vitamins, or thyroid hormone disturbances, can also cause depressive symptoms.) “I think that medical evaluation is so important,” Crawford… read on > read on >

U.S. health officials are investigating whether a specific brand of over-the-counter eyedrops are behind one death and dozens of bacterial infections in several states. The infections have not been traced to preservative-free EzriCare Artificial Tears, but a majority of people who became ill reported using the drops, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement. The agency found the bacteria in bottles of the eyedrops, and it’s now testing to see if the strain found in the eyedrop bottles matches that found in patients. CDC officials recommended that “patients immediately discontinue the use of EzriCare Artificial Tears until the epidemiological investigation and laboratory analyses are complete.” At least 50 people in 11 states have been infected with the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which is resistant to most antibiotics. One of those infected died after the bacterium entered the patient’s bloodstream. “That’s what’s so concerning,” Dr. Jill Weatherhead, an assistant professor of tropical medicine and infectious diseases at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, told NBC News. “Our standard treatments are no longer available” to treat this infection. In 11 cases, people developed eye infections. Three were blinded in one eye. Some of those infected had respiratory or urinary tract infections. P. aeruginosa infections typically happen in hospital settings in people with weakened immune systems, though the bacteria can be found in… read on > read on >

Mila Clarke started taking Ozempic in 2020 to help manage her diabetes, but was pleasantly surprised to find herself soon shedding pounds. “I was like, this is really weird because I’m not having to try very hard to do this,” said Clarke, who has been diagnosed with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes and chronicles her diabetes journey on her Hangry Woman blog. “And as I kept going on, I kept noticing that the weight was falling off.” Then the side effects started — most worryingly, a racing and palpitating heartbeat. “I could be laying down in bed and my heart rate, like resting heart rate, would be 120 beats per minute,” the sort of rate associated with exercise, Clarke said in an interview with HealthDay Now. “It was really having an effect on my heart rate, and that was really terrifying.” First approved to treat diabetes under the brand name Ozempic, the drug semaglutide received federal approval in June 2021 to also be prescribed as a weight-loss medication — with the brand name Wegovy. People interested in dropping pounds — either for their health or for vanity’s sake — flooded the market for semaglutide, making it difficult to impossible for people with diabetes to fill prescriptions needed to manage their condition. But semaglutide comes with some troubling side effects that people might not… read on > read on >

People who have sleep apnea may have another issue to worry about — weaker bones and teeth. Known as low bone-mineral density, the condition is an indicator of osteoporosis and can increase the risk of fractures and cause teeth to become loose and dental implants to fail, according to new research from the University at Buffalo (UB) in New York. To study this, researchers used cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) — a type of X-ray — to measure bone density in the heads and necks of 38 adults. Half of the study participants had sleep apnea. These scans found that participants with sleep apnea had significantly lower bone-mineral density than the participants without the condition. Sleep apnea can cause difficulty breathing while asleep, which can lead to low levels of oxygen in the body, inflammation, oxidative stress and shortened breathing patterns. These symptoms may each have a chronic negative effect on bone metabolism and eventually bone density, said senior author Dr. Thikriat Al-Jewair. She is an associate professor of orthodontics in the UB School of Dental Medicine and director of the school’s Advanced Education Program in Orthodontics. “While the link between obstructive sleep apnea and low bone-mineral density has yet to be fully explored, this study offers new evidence on their connection that could have several implications for orthodontic treatment,” Al-Jewair said in a university… read on > read on >

People with celiac disease may be more likely to develop heart disease despite having fewer traditional heart risks than other folks. Celiac disease is an immune reaction that occurs when some people eat gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. The only treatment is following a strict gluten-free diet. People with celiac disease may be 27% more likely to develop heart disease compared with those without this autoimmune condition, and the longer a person has celiac disease, the higher the risk, a new study suggests. “People with celiac disease have an increased risk of heart disease that is independent of traditional risk factors, such as high blood pressure and cholesterol levels,” said study author Megan Conroy, an epidemiologist at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. The new study wasn’t designed to say how, or even if, celiac disease raises the risk for heart attack and stroke, but researchers do have some theories. “The increased risk could be due to inflammation in those with celiac disease as is seen in people with other autoimmune diseases, or it is linked in some way to consuming a gluten-free diet; however, without further research, we cannot say,” Conroy said. Until more is known about this link, people with celiac disease should follow recommendations for a healthy heart and see their doctor if they have any… read on > read on >