Category Archives: Health

Seniors Health Care: AMA Launches New Medicare Insurer “Zing Health” To Focus On Patient-Physician Relationship

From a Fast Company online article:

Zing Health news releaseZing’s plan will give seniors access to a network of clinics in Cook County, Illinois, starting in January. The company hopes to expand to three states by 2022. It’s a managed care plan, which means the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will pay a single monthly fee per member in exchange for a more holistic approach to nurturing patient health. Zing is working with a network of community health centers, including Oak Street Health, which recently raised $65 million for its senior-focused facilities. Continue reading Seniors Health Care: AMA Launches New Medicare Insurer “Zing Health” To Focus On Patient-Physician Relationship →

Health Studies: Scientists At Rutgers Discover How Brown Fat Protects Against Obesity & Diabetes

From a Rutgers Today online article:

The study found that brown fat could also help the body filter and remove branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) from the blood. BCAAs (leucine, isoleucine and valine) are found in foods like eggs, meat, fish, chicken and milk, but also in supplements used by some athletes and people who want to build muscle mass.

Rutgers Brown Fat Study

In normal concentrations in the blood, these amino acids are essential for good health. In excessive amounts, they’re linked to diabetes and obesity. The researchers found that people with little or no brown fat have reduced ability to clear BCAAs from their blood, and that may lead to the development of obesity and diabetes.

Rutgers and other scientists have discovered how brown fat, also known as brown adipose tissue, may help protect against obesity and diabetes. Their study in the journal Nature adds to our knowledge about the role of brown fat in human health and could lead to new medications for treating obesity and type 2 diabetes.

To read more click on the following link: https://news.rutgers.edu/scientists-discover-why-brown-fat-good-people%E2%80%99s-health/20190819#.XV6imuhKhPZ

Diet Studies: 2-Year Calorie Restriction Diets Lower LDL/Total Cholesterol, C-Reactive Protein & Blood Pressure

From The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology:

Calorie Restriction The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology Sept 20192 years of moderate calorie restriction significantly reduced multiple cardiometabolic risk factors in young, non-obese adults. These findings suggest the potential for a substantial advantage for cardiovascular health of practicing moderate calorie restriction in young and middle-aged healthy individuals, and they offer promise for pronounced long-term population health benefits.

Calorie restriction caused a persistent and significant reduction from baseline to 2 years of all measured conventional cardiometabolic risk factors, including change scores for LDL-cholesterol (p<0·0001), total cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol ratio (p<0·0001), and systolic (p<0·0011) and diastolic (p<0·0001) blood pressure. In addition, calorie restriction resulted in a significant improvement at 2 years in C-reactive protein (p=0·012), insulin sensitivity index (p<0·0001), and metabolic syndrome score (p<0·0001) relative to control. A sensitivity analysis revealed the responses to be robust after controlling for relative weight loss changes.

To read more click on following link: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS2213-8587(19)30151-2/fulltext?dgcid=raven_jbs_etoc_email

Obesity Studies: Visceral (Abdominal) Fat Is Major Risk Factor For Type 2 Diabetes, Atherosclerosis & Cardiovascular Disease

From The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology:

The Lancet Diabetes &amp; Endocrinology Sept 2019This joint position statement from the International Atherosclerosis Society and the International Chair on Cardiometabolic Risk Working Group on Visceral Obesity summarises the evidence for visceral adiposity and ectopic fat as emerging risk factors for type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular disease, with a focus on practical recommendations for health professionals and future directions for research and clinical practice.

Findings from epidemiological studies over the past 30 years have shown that visceral adipose tissue, accurately measured by CT or MRI, is an independent risk marker of cardiovascular and metabolic morbidity and mortality. Emerging evidence also suggests that ectopic fat deposition, including hepatic and epicardial fat, might contribute to increased atherosclerosis and cardiometabolic risk.  We discuss the measurement of visceral and ectopic fat, pathophysiology and contribution to adverse health outcomes, response to treatment, and lessons from a public health programme targeting visceral and ectopic fat. We identify knowledge gaps and note the need to develop simple, clinically applicable tools to be able to monitor changes in visceral and ectopic fat over time. Finally, we recognise the need for public health messaging to focus on visceral and ectopic fat in addition to excess bodyweight to better combat the growing epidemic of obesity worldwide.

To read more click on the following link: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS2213-8587(19)30084-1/fulltext?dgcid=raven_jbs_etoc_email

Health Studies: Short Sleep Duration And Sleep Disorders Have Adverse Effects On Heart Health

From a Circulation online release:

Average hours of nightly sleep…these results indicate that sleep may play an important role in health disparities and may represent a modifiable risk factor (along with diet and physical activity) for cardiometabolic risk in general and cardiometabolic health disparities specifically.

Statement Summary

Our review of the epidemiological data on the impact of sleep duration and disorders on cardiovascular health suggests the following:

  1. Both short- and long-duration sleep and sleep disorders such as SDB and insomnia are associated with adverse cardiometabolic risk profiles and outcomes.

  2. Sleep restriction has a negative impact on energy balance, but it is less clear whether treating sleep disorders has a positive impact on obesity risk.

  3. Treating those with sleep disorders may provide clinical benefits, particularly for blood pressure.

Sleep is increasingly recognized as an important lifestyle contributor to health. However, this has not always been the case, and an increasing number of Americans choose to curtail sleep in favor of other social, leisure, or work-related activities. This has resulted in a decline in average sleep duration over time. Sleep duration, mostly short sleep, and sleep disorders have emerged as being related to adverse cardiometabolic risk, including obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular disease.

To read more click on the following link: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000444

Health Studies: Silent Or “Covert” Strokes Are Post-Surgery Risks, Increasing Risk Of Cognitive Decline

From a The Telegraph online article:

A new study (in The Lancet, Aug 16, 2019) reveals that pensioners who have an operation have a one in 14 chance of suffering a silent or “covert” stroke – an event that shows no obvious symptoms but can damage the brain.

The Lancet Covert Strokes Aug 16 2019

More than 1,100 patients across the world were given MRI scans nine days after some form of major non-cardiac surgery.

They were then followed up a year later to assess their cognitive abilities.

The researchers found that not only did having a silent stroke double the chances of cognitive decline a year on, it also increased the chances of a full life-threatening stroke.

Suffering a mini-stroke increased the risk of experiencing postoperative delirium as well.

The Lancet Study: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(19)31795-7/fulltext?utm_campaign=clinical19&utm_content=98869259&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&hss_channel=tw-27013292

To read more click on the following link: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2019/08/15/silent-stroke-risk-major-surgery-revealed-new-study/

New Cancer Studies: “Oldest Old” (85+ Years) Are 2% Of Population, 8% Of New Cancer Diagnoses

CA - A Cancer Journal for Clinicians American Cancer Society

Adults aged 85 years and older, the “oldest old,” are the fastest-growing age group in the United States, yet relatively little is known about their cancer burden. Combining data from the National Cancer Institute, the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, and the National Center for Health Statistics, the authors provide comprehensive information on cancer occurrence in adults aged 85 years and older. In 2019, there will be approximately 140,690 cancer cases diag-nosed and 103,250 cancer deaths among the oldest old in the United States. The most common cancers in these individuals (lung, breast, prostate, and colorectum) are the same as those in the general population. Overall cancer incidence rates peaked in the oldest men and women around 1990 and have subsequently declined, with the pace accelerating during the past decade. These trends largely reflect declines in cancers of the prostate and colorectum and, more recently, cancers of the lung among men and the breast among women.

Leading Sites of New Cancer Cases and Deaths Age 85 years and older

To read entire study click on following link: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.3322/caac.21577

Boomers Health: Fasting Before Blood Tests For Cholesterol Is Not Necessary Study Finds

From a Harvard Heart Health online article:

Non Fasting Blood Testing for ChloresterolFor the study, nearly 8,300 people at risk for heart disease had fasting and nonfasting lipid profile tests done at least four weeks apart. (Fasting means they had nothing to eat or drink except water for at least eight hours before the test.) The differences in their total, LDL, and HDL cholesterol values were negligible. Triglyceride levels were modestly higher in the nonfasting samples.

Don’t want to skip breakfast before your cholesterol test? You probably don’t need to. A study published online May 28 by JAMA Internal Medicine adds to the evidence that fasting isn’t necessary before this common blood test, often referred to as a lipid profile.

To read more click on following link: https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/farewell-to-fasting-before-a-cholesterol-test

Brain Health Research: Controlling Blood Pressure Reduces Age-Related Cognitive Loss

From a National Institute on Aging news release:

Blood Pressure link to white matter lesions“These initial results support a growing body of evidence suggesting that controlling blood pressure may not only reduce the risk of stroke and heart disease but also of age-related cognitive loss,” said Walter J. Koroshetz, M.D., director of the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). “I strongly urge people to know your blood pressure and discuss with your doctors how to optimize control. It may be a key to your future brain health.”

In a nationwide study, researchers used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to scan the brains of hundreds of participants in the National Institutes of Health’s Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) and found that intensively controlling a person’s blood pressure was more effective at slowing the accumulation of white matter lesions than standard treatment of high blood pressure. The results complement a previous study published by the same research group which showed that intensive treatment significantly lowered the chances that participants developed mild cognitive impairment.

To read more click on following link: https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/intensive-blood-pressure-control-may-slow-age-related-brain-damage

Health Care Technology: Human Voice Sound Wave Analysis Detects Disease Onset, Checks Depression

From a Wall Street Journal online article by Sarah Krouse:

In medicine, measuring slight changes in voice is starting to help doctors detect the onset of diseases like Parkinson’s or more quickly measure the efficacy of treatments for illnesses like depression, researchers say.

Human voice technology Photo by Ellen Winstein for the Wall Street JournalSlower speech, for example, could indicate fatigue or sorrow at one point in time, but over longer periods could signal something more severe, co-founder Jim Harper said.

That voice-based data isn’t yet robust enough to base medical decisions on alone, but is being used alongside clinical trials for drugs to treat depression, Mr. Harper said.

The sound of your voice is becoming a new type of fingerprint.

Increasingly sophisticated technology that detects nuances in sound inaudible to humans is capturing clues about people’s likely locations, medical conditions and even physical features.

To read more click on the following link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-your-voice-reveals-about-you-11565716426