Health/Fitness « Weekly Gravy

Both the World Health Organization and Eli Lilly Co. warned Thursday that consumers should avoid fake versions of weight-loss drugs that are circulating in numerous countries. The WHO warning said that the international health agency has fielded several reports of fake semaglutide — the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic — in all geographic regions of the world since 2022. “WHO advises healthcare professionals, regulatory authorities and the public be aware of these falsified batches of medicines,” Dr. Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Health Products, said in the warning. “We call on stakeholders to stop any usage of suspicious medicines and report to relevant authorities.” Meanwhile, Lilly said in an open letter that it was “deeply concerned” about phony or compounded versions of tirzepatide, the active ingredient in the Lilly weight-loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound. “These [fake] products are often advertised and sold online, through social media or at certain med-spas,” Lilly said in its letter. “They may contain no medicine, the wrong medicine, incorrect dosages or multiple medicines mixed together, which could result in serious harm. They are never safe to use.” Novo Nordisk has issued similar warnings in the past about its medications. The WHO said patients can protect themselves by using prescriptions from licensed physicians to buy the medications. Consumers should also avoid buying the drugs from unfamiliar sources, the… read on > read on >

Can you trust your gut? UCLA researchers have shown that people who rank high in resilience — meaning they accept change positively and follow their instincts — have the bacteria living in their bellies in part to thank for it. Their new study looked at the brains and gut microbiomes of people who cope effectively with different types of stress, including social isolation and discrimination. Finding ways to prevent stress can help prevent heart disease, stroke, obesity and diabetes, researchers explained. “If we can identify what a healthy resilient brain and microbiome look like, then we can develop targeted interventions to those areas to reduce stress,” said senior study author Arpana Gupta, co-director of the UCLA Goodman-Luskin Microbiome Center. For the study, Gupta’s team surveyed 116 people about their resiliency and divided them into two groups — one ranked high in resilience, the other ranked low. Participants gave stool samples and underwent MRI brain scans. The study found that folks who were highly resilient had brain activity in regions associated with emotional regulation and better thinking skills than the group with low resilience. “When a stressor happens, often we go to this aroused fight-or-flight response, and this impairs the breaks in your brain,” Gupta said in a UCLA news release. “The highly resilient individuals in the study were found to be better at regulating their… read on > read on >

They aren’t exactly ready to open a jungle clinic, but new research suggests wild chimpanzees are practicing a kind of medicine. Fifty-one chimps living in two communities in Uganda appear to select edible plants specifically for their medicinal qualities, reports a team led by Elodie Freymann of the University of Oxford in the UK. The chimpanzees appeared to add certain plants to their diet when battling a sickness that they didn’t normally consume when healthy. Freymann’s team suspected this might be a kind of self-medication, so they tested the pharmacologic properties of these plants in the lab. Reporting June 20 in the journal PLOS One, they found that 88% of the 13 trees and herbs the chimps sought out when ill contained anti-bacterial properties, while 33% were anti-inflammatory. For example, “dead wood from a tree in the Dogbane family (Alstonia boonei) showed the strongest antibacterial activity and also had anti-inflammatory properties, suggesting that it could be used to treat wounds,” according to an Oxford news release on the study. The bark and resin of the mahogany tree and leaves from a species of fern (Christella parasitica) also had strong anti-inflammatory properties, Freymann’s group found. In fact, one male chimpanzee with an injured hand gathered the fern leaves, perhaps to ease pain, the team noted. In another incident, a chimp who was battling a parasitic infection… read on > read on >

A Colombian family’s genetics are shining a spotlight on a gene that might help protect people from the ravages of Alzheimer’s disease. About 1,200 out of 6,000 family members carry a genetic variant called the “Paisa mutation,” which dooms them to early Alzheimer’s, researchers said. But 28 family members with the Paisa mutation dodged early Alzheimer’s, apparently because they carry another gene that protects against the degenerative brain disease, researchers reported June 20 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study represents the first evidence that having this other gene — known as the “Christchurch variant” — might confer some protection against inherited Alzheimer’s, researchers said. Drugs and therapies focusing on this genetic pathway might be capable of preventing or treating dementia and Alzheimer’s in others, said co-lead author Yakeel Quiroz, director of the Familial Dementia Neuroimaging Lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. “As a clinician, I am highly encouraged by our findings, as they suggest the potential for delaying cognitive decline and dementia in older individuals,” Quiroz said in a hospital news release. “Now we must leverage this new knowledge to develop effective treatments for dementia prevention.” The study focused on variants of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene. The APOE4 variant is known to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s, and is linked to developing a more severe form of dementia, according to the Mayo… read on > read on >

Folks dieting to drop pounds should consider eating a fistful of nuts here and there, a new review suggests. People who ate 1.5 to 3 ounces of almonds, peanuts, pistachios or walnuts daily as part of a calorie-cutting diet wound up losing more weight than those on the same diet without nuts, researchers said. In fact, people on “nut-enriched” diets lost an extra 3 to 16 pounds compared to folks on nut-free diets, results show. “People often avoid nuts when trying to lose weight because they think that the energy and fat content in nuts can contribute to weight gain,” said senior researcher Alison Coates, dean of research in allied health and human performance with the University of South Australia. Instead, it looks like nuts might help curb hunger more effectively. “Nuts are rich in healthy unsaturated fats, plant protein and dietary fiber, all of which play a role in promoting satiety and reducing excess calorie consumption,” Coates said in a university news release. “Nuts are associated with improved cardiovascular and metabolic health, better gut health and enhanced cognitive performance.” For the review, researchers analyzed the findings of seven randomized controlled trials involving diets that cut food intake between 240 and 1,000 calories a day. The studies lasted from a month to a year, and involved 676 people who were overweight or obese. None of… read on > read on >

Opioid overdoses in pregnant women are at an all-time high in the United States, and researchers think they’ve figured out one way to counter this phenomenon. Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is strongly tied to substance use disorders, which means some women who become pregnant are taking ADHD medications while receiving treatment for opioid addiction. Researchers found that women who keep taking their ADHD medications during pregnancy are more likely to adhere to addiction treatment and less likely to overdose. “Treatment of ADHD is a huge knowledge gap in obstetrics and even more so in patients with substance use disorder,” said researcher Dr. Jeannie Kelly, an associate professor of obstetrics & gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. “In obstetrics, a knowledge gap frequently leads to reluctance to treat because of unknown risks to the fetus,” Kelly said. “However, it’s also really important to discuss the risks of not treating, because untreated disease also can have huge implications for mom’s and baby’s health.” Overdose death rates doubled among pregnant and postpartum women in recent years, rising to about 6 deaths per 100,000 in 2021 from 3 deaths per 100,000 in 2018, researchers said in background notes. In fact, opioid OD now accounts for about 1 in 10 of all pregnancy-related deaths, researchers said. Nearly 1 in 4 people diagnosed with ADHD also has… read on > read on >

Exploring Europe, taking an African safari, going on a trip to the tropics: In many cases, vaccines are needed for travel, and that’s doubly true for children. According to pediatrician Dr. Lauren Nguyen, researching what vaccines are needed and preparing well before your family’s departure is crucial. “I tell my families that it’s best to come in about six weeks prior to international travel,” said Nguyen, who’s based in Torrance, Calif. and is affiliated with the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Care Network. Meet with your child’s pediatrician to review travel plans, figure out what vaccines are required or recommended based on your travel destination and arrange to get any shots needed. That consultation is probably best done with an in-person visit, not a phone call, Nguyen noted. Not sure what shots the country you’re visiting requires? Head to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Travelers’ Health website for up to date info for countries worldwide. “The CDC website tells you about any current outbreaks, as well as the recommended vaccines for that country,” Nguyen said in a hospital news release. Besides any special vaccines required by the country you’re visiting, make sure your child is up to date on routine shots for seasonal infections like COVID, flu and RSV. Planning ahead is crucial because many vaccines require multiple doses given weeks apart, Nguyen noted.… read on > read on >

Summertime is primetime for the great outdoors, but that can mean new hazards for your eyes, one expert warned. Simple steps can help cut the risk, said ophthalmologist Dr. Masih Ahmed, an assistant professor of ophthalmology at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Out in the sun This one has an easy fix: Sunglasses. According to Ahmed, strong sunlight can lead to what’s known as pterygium, growths within the eye and UV (ultraviolet) light has been linked to upped risks for early cataracts, worsened macular degeneration and even cancer of the eyelid. In a Baylor news release, he said that “when choosing the right sunglasses, make sure the lenses are 100% UV blocking, ideally wrapping around the face to avoid light protruding from the sides. UV-blocking sunglasses with full coverage over the eyes is key.” Polarized lenses can also help, since they help cut down on glare — especially useful when you’re out on the water. Sunscreen and your eyes The American Cancer Society currently recommends a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher, reapplied at least every 2 hours. Wearing hats and long-sleeved shirts can also help, and seek out shade if possible. “In warm temperatures where sweating is inevitable, find a sunscreen that does not run when you sweat to avoid getting it into the eyes,” according to Ahmed. “If sunscreen gets… read on > read on >

In half of American homes containing a loaded gun, that gun is kept unsecured and ready for potential use, often with children in the home, new research shows. The finding is especially troubling given the link between gun accessibility and accidental child deaths, as well as rising rates of gun-related suicides in the United States, researchers said. “The presence of a firearm in the home has been associated with an increased risk for firearm homicide and suicide among household members,” wrote a team of researchers led by Norah Friar. She’s an investigator with the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Violence Prevention. In the research, Friar’s team used federal survey data to track rates of gun ownership and storage practices in households in eight states: Alaska, California, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Oklahoma. They found widely varying rates of guns being kept in the home — from 18.4% of households surveyed in California to about 39% in Oklahoma and more than half (50.6%) of homes in Alaska. In most of the eight states surveyed, more than a third of homes that contained a gun also had children living in the home. In Alaska, that number rose to more than half. Guns that are unloaded and securely locked away pose little threat to children. But that wasn’t the case in… read on > read on >

The two top officers of a telehealth company that began to distribute ADHD drugs widely during the pandemic have been charged with health care fraud, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday. The arrests will likely worsen ongoing shortages of Adderall and another ADHD medications, Vyvanse, experts said. “There are a lot of people who are going to be struggling without consistent medication,” Margaret Sibley, an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, told the New York Times. In announcing the charges, the Justice Department said the chief executive and the clinical president of the California-based telehealth company Done Global Inc. are accused of participating in a scheme to distribute Adderall and other stimulants for ADHD to patients who did not need the medications, and to bill insurers for these drugs. “These defendants exploited the COVID-19 pandemic to develop and carry out a $100 million scheme to defraud taxpayers and provide easy access to Adderall and other stimulants for no legitimate medical purpose,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a news release. Done was one of several telehealth companies that became popular during pandemic lockdowns in 2020, when the government relaxed restrictions for online prescriptions for controlled substances such as Adderall, the Times reported. In its indictment, the Justice Department claimed that Ruthia He, Done’s chief executive, and David Brody,… read on > read on >