Author: Areeba Hussain

The delta variant of coronavirus reportedly being more contagious than the original strain is spreading rapidly across the world. Amid this variant dominating most Covid-19 cases, the health experts mention its impact on pregnant women. Also, they stress the importance of vaccinating these women as soon as possible.

According to several health officials in England, pregnant women should hurry to get the coronavirus vaccine. They recently gave a joint statement and mentioned the data indicating the large number of unvaccinated pregnant women hospitalized due to Covid-19. This data shows that 98% of such women in the UK hospitalized since May did not receive their dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Also read- Multivitamins and Probiotics Supplements Can Protect from Covid-19

Previously, the World Health Organization (WHO) also mentioned the increased risk of these women developing severe symptoms. The officials of the organization said that expecting mothers can develop more severe symptoms of the coronavirus infection as compared to non-pregnant females.

Health experts suggest that pregnant women can be at an even higher risk of severe infection from the delta variant of coronavirus. This variant is more contagious than the original strain and causes more severe symptoms in the patient.

The recent data from the UK Obstetric Surveillance System (UKOSS) indicates the rapid spread of the delta variant among pregnant women. According to Andrew Shennan from King’s College London, the new alpha and delta variants are more dangerous for pregnant women. These variants showed more severe infection in these women as compared to the original coronavirus strain. He also mentioned that these women are at 50% higher risk of ventilation, pneumonia, and admission to intensive care in a hospital.

The data from UKOSS also shows that nearly 33% of these women admitted to the hospitals due to coronavirus require respiratory support. Also, 15% of the women required intensive care in the hospital.

Previously, studies conducted regarding pregnant women showed that the virus can impact both the mother and the child. This means that the unborn baby is also at a high risk of contracting the coronavirus infection.

Even though many people speculate that the coronavirus vaccine may have negative effects on pregnant women, the studies say otherwise. The health experts also suggest that there are no adverse effects of the vaccine on the mother or the baby. Hence, they urge the expecting mothers to get the coronavirus vaccine to save themselves from the deadly variant.

Also read- An Eye Exam May Help Detect Long Covid-19 

The WHO recommended breastfeeding women to get the coronavirus vaccine as well. According to the organization, the vaccine does not hinder breastfeeding or cause any complications. Therefore, the women can get their shot and continue to breastfeed the child.

Ever since the vaccine against the coronavirus came forward, many people speculated about its impact on fertility and the placenta. The scientists and health experts repeatedly denied these claims and assured that the vaccine does not harm the placenta. Also, it does not have any impact on the fertility of a person.

Overall, the health experts have a clear stance on the need for a coronavirus vaccine for pregnant women. Also, there is no evidence regarding the adverse effects of the vaccine for expecting women and the child.

The coronavirus pandemic took the lives of 4.1 million individuals all across the globe. This respiratory disease can cause mild symptoms in some people while others suffer from severe infection which leads to hospitalization or even death. Even though the symptoms subside after weeks in most patients, others live with its effects for months. The condition in which the symptoms persist even after the acute phase of infection has passed is known as long Covid-19.

Recently, researchers conducted a study that shows that a special eye exam can help in the diagnosis of long Covid-19. According to the researchers, an increase in the number of immune cells and a decrease in nerve fibers in the cornea may indicate the possibility of this condition.

This study appeared recently in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Even though Covid-19 is an infection of the lungs, it can damage other organs as well. Most people with long Covid report symptoms such as muscular pain, palpitations, fatigue, and tiredness. They also find it difficult to focus at times and often experience breathlessness.

Also read- Multivitamins and Probiotics Supplements Can Protect from Covid-19

According to the researchers, the coronavirus infection can also affect the nervous system and cause symptoms such as headache and dizziness. The patients of Covid also report loss of taste and smell, numbness, and dizziness. Even though researchers are not sure about the cause of these symptoms, some of them speculate that the coronavirus also transmits to the nervous system.

The researchers also guessed that the coronavirus infection may damage the nerve fiber. Previously, the researchers behind this study found the link between fibromyalgia and neuropathy with nerve fiber damage in the cornea. They analyzed the cornea of the participants with the help of corneal confocal microscopy. This process showed the damage to the nerve fibers and the presence of immune cells in the cornea.

Recently, these researchers conducted another study to see if those people with long Covid have the same nerve fiber damage and increase in immune cells in the cornea. The senior author of this study, Dr. Rayaz A. Malik said that the neurological symptoms during long Covid are not as much appreciated. He also mentioned that nearly 10% of the patients live with long Covid-19 after recovering from the acute phase of the infection.

This latest study included 40 participants who contracted the coronavirus over the past 1-6 months. The researchers also recruited 30 participants as the control group. Those participants who contracted the virus filled a questionnaire. In this questionnaire, the participants reported the symptoms they experienced after 4 and 12 weeks of the diagnosis of coronavirus infection.

The researchers designed the questionnaire and included questions including respiratory and neurological symptoms. They also included questions about the symptoms related to muscular issues, nose, skin, and gastrointestinal problems.

Later, they conducted corneal confocal microscopy on every participant and compared their scans. The researchers looked at the differences among the scans of those who recovered from coronavirus infection and the participants of the control group.

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The findings of this study show that the participants who reported neurological symptoms after 4 weeks had increased immune cells and nerve fiber damage in the cornea. These observations came after the comparison to the participants of the control group. Moreover, those who did not experience any neurological symptoms had the same corneal condition as those of the control group.

This recent research can pave the path for more awareness about the symptoms and diagnosis of late Covid-19. Also, it can help researchers find out more about the transmission of coronavirus infection to different parts of the body.

Breast common is extremely common worldwide and many of its symptoms show up with age. Even though early diagnosis and some precautionary measures can save one’s life, many people end up losing the battle to this deadly cancer. As scientists try to explore this disease further, they unfold more aspects that can act as a risk factor for breast cancer.

Recently, some researchers gathered to investigate the health effects of some commonly used chemicals. They specifically targeted breast cancer causes to find out the environmental chemicals that may lead to the disease. The scientists, Ruthann Rudel and Bethsaida Cardona investigated the data of 2,000 different chemicals that may prove hazardous to health. During this study, they gathered this data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), an agency that tests the chemicals before they reach consumers.

Also read- Multivitamins and Probiotics Supplements Can Protect from Covid-19

This study appeared recently in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

According to the researchers, they found 296 different chemicals that can lead to hormonal imbalance. They conducted this study using cell cultures and found that these chemicals increase the levels of estrogen or progesterone. Moreover, 71 of these chemicals increased the levels of both hormones at the same time. These chemicals include flame retardants, pesticides, fungicides, and dyes.

Some chemicals from this list include:

Oxyfluorfen

A widely-used herbicide to control weeds in agriculture.

Malathion

An insecticide used to control mosquitoes.

1,2-Diphenylhydrazine

A commonly-used chemical to manufacture pharmaceuticals, dyes, and hydrogen peroxide.

Phosmet

An insecticide used to protect trees.

An increase in the levels of progesterone and estrogen is one of the major breast cancer causes. The researchers suggest that these chemicals may increase the risk of breast cancer by increasing these hormone levels. In this study, the researchers highlight the role of environmental chemicals that can lead to fatal diseases. These chemicals are also present in everyday-use products and accumulate in our environment over time.

Dr. Lauren Teras from the American Cancer Society said that the role of these chemicals in causing cancer is not very well understood. However, the concerns related to the exposure of these chemicals are legit and may cause detrimental effects over time.

Even though Dr. Teras does not deny the effects of chemicals, she also mentioned the considerably short half-life of these chemicals. According to Dr. Teras, these chemicals have a short life and cancer develops over a long period of time. Apart from the limited exposure to these chemicals, other factors such as physiologic characteristics also play a role in determining their impact.

Also read- Coffee Has Hidden Benefits For Heart, Says New Study

Dr. Janie Grumly from the Margie Petersen Breast Center in Santa Monica, CA has a similar perspective to Dr. Teras. She mentioned that even though these chemicals show an impact on human cells, people should interpret this data with some caution. According to Dr. Grumly, this study takes place in a laboratory setting using cell cultures. These cell cultures are not equivalent to testing the chemicals on a human being. Therefore, it is a huge limitation when it comes to the results of this study.

Even though some experts believe that the low exposure to these chemicals may not lead to such drastic effects, this recent study opened new doors of research into the causes of breast cancer.

Coffee has been long associated with causing a disruption to heart rhythm which is why people with high heart risk are suggested to avoid it. When the heart is already in a risky state, a caffeine boost from the coffee may disrupt the heartbeat and make it difficult to function well. But a new study reveals that coffee is not as risky as it was initially seen. People can still start their morning with a hot cup of coffee or consume a diet coke, without worrying about caffeine intake leading them to arrhythmias.

Despite being a part of the board-based recommendation for limiting caffeine intake, there was no evidence of a relation between coffee and heart health was found. Dr. Gregory Marcus from the University of California is the co-author of this study. According to him, coffee could act as a trigger in some cases but it does not mean it has no heart benefits.

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The results from this study indicate that taking one additional cup of coffee actually benefits the heart, by lowering the risk for arrhythmia. This lowering rate is around 3% on average. The complete study findings are now published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

If these results are true, millions of people, including those who are living with arrhythmias can enjoy coffee or caffeine in form, without risking heart health. As coffee is the most famous beverage in the world, many people rely on its stimulatory health benefits to start their day. Some of them who develop heart conditions are advised not to consume caffeine and are suggested alternatives.

The study targeted to find the effects of caffeine on heart health, especially on the heart racing and beating. The data was collected from nearly 386,000 people who were a part of a study from the UK. Among these people, nearly 17,000 experienced a heart rhythm issue during the follow-up session that was done after 4.5 years.

These participants were asked about their caffeine intake especially coffee consumption and their habits if there was any change during the last few years. Their responses were then compared to the risks of developing the heart rhythmic issues in an average human.

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Based on the responses gathered, the research team saw no link between the heart rhythm disturbance and the coffee intake. After analyzing their progress, they found that coffee intake actually benefits the heart and the genetic factors confirm that people have a different tendency to metabolize caffeine.

At the population level, there was no evidence or link between coffee and an increased chance of developing arrhythmias. Based on these results, it appears that the earlier warning is probably an unsubstantiated fact saying coffee consumption can make a person develop arrhythmias.

Given the coffee benefits the heart is there, its potential is relatively smaller. Now that it is clear that coffee has no risks for arrhythmias, it is also clear that it does not protect against it and cannot be used as a treatment plan. For now, only knowing that it has some benefits is enough and it may require more detailed studies to find how these benefits may affect every person.

Sexual orientation has many names but it is easy to confuse gender with sex. This gender vs sex debate is endless but it is vital to medical research, requiring accurate data on each of them to plan a healthcare system, diagnostics, treatment, and prevention plans.

Often used interchangeably, both sex and gender should be understood first before looking for each one’s impact on medical research and health systems. The word sex is used to explain a binary individual, who is either male or female, determined by the characteristics revealed at birth i.e. biological sex. On the other side, gender means a socially constructed role that does not have to be similar to the biological sex and shows expression, role, behavior, and identities.

So in medical research, when the question of the efficacy of a certain medicine for middle-aged women arises, it is a sex-based question and does not have to do anything for their gender. In addition to this, any research explaining why women prefer joining healthcare or education departments as a profession is a gender-related question with no link with their sex.

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Even in the countries where gender and sex-based roles are acknowledged and respected, the medical system lacks some approaches to truly apply them, making it hard to reform the health research. Research with false or improper information on the gender or sex of a particular class can lead to a wrong diagnosis, treatment, or protection plan for the whole population.

Gender vs sex analysis is based on the understanding of each of them, which is especially true in the case of medical research. For example, based on this information, federal policies, health insurance, and healthcare plans can be introduced, changed, or improved for each target group. But it necessarily requires to be clear about these terms and their functions first.

According to the Office of the Auditor General of Canada, only a small number of federal units and departments follow the measures planned according to gender and most of them do not actually conduct them. It also reports that sex and gender-based studies are still not adopted by the federal despite the fact that Canada is one of the top countries to acknowledge and facilitate non-binary groups and diverse genders.

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This delay and lack can affect the whole gender vs sex analytical approach used to group different people into identifiable categories. Any changes to these groups can affect the whole category as a whole especially after any federal initiative in medical research and public health.

The health sector has witnessed issues in implementing sex and gender-based studies for a long time. An example of this is how cancer screening tests, registries in women almost ignore the lesbians, trans, and bisexual groups and rarely there is a study based on gender-diverse groups. When these studies are available, these groups would get some visibility and better surveillance, diagnostics, and treatment plans just like binary groups. When this whole data is based on binary roles, informing non-binary groups and diverse-gender groups regarding the care, prevention plan, treatment facilities, and support is impossible.

Further, it may be hard to change or improve the poorly-constructed policies that do not address the addressed group due to the misidentification. The whole point to determine gender and sex-based roles is to ensure that no person has to suffer inequality or be left out during health policy establishment and developing procedures. The research centering sex and gender-based evaluations would help the government to make better decisions including the health sector considerations to make the whole population part of it.

Since the start of this pandemic, health bodies are suggesting people follow precautionary measures to avoid contracting the virus, such as wearing a mask and maintaining social distance. But it took a few months to finally understand the virus and what are the easiest ways to lower the chance of being infected. A new study supports a healthy diet or use of supplements can significantly lower the risk Covid-19. These supplements include multivitamins, vitamin D, probiotics, and omega-3 pills. While other supplements i.e., zinc, and herbal dietary supplements such as garlic supplement showed no effect on the virus.

The complete study findings are now published in the journal BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health.

In the last whole year, there has been so much publicity about supplements and how they may save and treat a person from the deadly Covid-19. But most of that endorsement was made without research backing hence it was declared as pandemic misinformation. But it had such a strong impact on the public that within the UK, the supplement industry experienced a whopping 19.5% increase around the period when the first lockdown was imposed last year. Top of these sales were vitamin C supplements which showed a 110% increased followed by multivitamin pills. The sales of zinc supplements increased up to 415% while the demand for herbal dietary supplements was also considerably high.

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Dietary supplements provide benefits to the gut and immunity but how some particular supplements can save from Covid-19 was not clear. To understand this link many research experts based their studies on the effect of supplements during this pandemic period. One research team used the data from the COVID-19 Symptom Study app to take an idea about how supplement intake has affected the risk of Covid-19.

This app was launched back in March 2020 in Sweden, the US, and the UK and provides self-reported information regarding the pandemic. Initially, the users provided their complete data such as age and medical history to the ap but as the cases increased the app request information regarding tests, healthcare, symptoms, and treatment too. This data also includes asymptomatic cases.

To estimate Covid-19 risk with certain supplements, the data from 372,720 UK-based subscribers were taken and analyzed from May to July 2020, when the country was battling with the first wave of Covid-19.  During this period,175,652 app users reported taking a dietary supplement whereas 197,068 confirmed not using any. It included 67% of women and more than half of them were overweight, with a BMI of 27.

Among all these app users, 23,521 people contracted the virus and were tested positive while 349,199 were reported negative for Covid-19 from May to July.

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The use of probiotics such as multivitamin pills, probiotics, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acid pills appeared to lower the Covid-19 cases from initial data. Whereas the participants showed no results from taking zinc supplements, vitamin C pills, and garlic pills.

Going through the age, BMI, and gender of these participants, it appeared that the protective role of supplements was much more pronounced in women as compared to men. With minor differences, this pattern was the same in the US, and Sweden too.

The study reveals a positive association between these nutritional supplements and the risk of Covid-19 but there is a dire need for more extensive research finding which other nutrients have these protective roles and which one can be withdrawn.

Ever since the pandemic has started, health experts are suggesting people to be more mindful about their health-related decisions. While half of the world has already become a victim of the deadly virus, the remaining are trying their best to take timely preventions and ditch the virus for good. Adding up to the other precautions and suggestions, eating habits have not received the attention that they deserved. A new study has revealed that the covid-19 pandemic has deeply affected six common unhealthy eating habits, which may invite more health problems for these people.

This study was conducted by the research team from the University of Minnesota Medical School and School of Public Health and its findings are now published in the International Journal of Eating Disorders (2021).

The research team identified 6 unhealthy eating habits that are affecting more and more people during this pandemic period. If left unattended, there are chances that they will emerge as an eating disorder, and may kill up to 10,000 people yearly. The data used in this study was obtained from the EAT project by the Neumark-Sztainer in 2020.

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The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has affected the entire healthcare system urging the policymakers to take viable steps, making sure that the virus transmission is controlled. All of these protocols are necessary because of their closeness to everyday life but collectively, the pandemic and these rules, and precautions are causing changed dietary habits. These dietary habits show up as unhealthy eating habits, six of which are most common in people.

Not many people have an idea but eating disorders are among the biggest causes of death related to psychiatric health. Therefore, it is necessary to control how it affects pandemic-ridden people.

The new study identified how stress, finances, psychological well-being, and eating habits are changed by the pandemic using qualitative as well as quantitative data. Based on the results, the study found six common unhealthy eating habits that are marked in maximum people. These include;

1. Eating/snacking mindlessly, without even realizing the hunger
2. Overall increased food intake
3. Low appetite, or low dietary intake
4. Stress eating to overcome pandemic fear
5. Reductions in the diet caused by pandemic
6. The reemergence of an exiting eating disorder

8% of the participants showed chronic unhealthy eating habits, 53% of participants reported moderate unhealthy eating habits, and nearly 14% reported snacking or binge eating. These eating habits were deeply linked with the inability to manage stress, depressive signs, and financial problems during this pandemic period.

There is already so much discussed between the link between Covid-19 and obesity but eating habits, on the other hand, don’t receive much attention. Despite being a threat these unhealthy eating habits are a risk factor for public health especially when the world is battling with a pandemic.

Also read- Eating Snacks at Late-night Can Affect your Work Performance

Most participants in this study included adults belonging to different ethnic, and economical backgrounds who may or may not receive the facilities and services that they require. The study also suggests that meeting the needs of the entire population including people from diverse classes or races will ensure equality in healthcare which is impossible otherwise.

Even if the pandemic is controlled in the next few weeks, its economic effects will linger for long beyond the availability of the vaccines. These results also indicate that financial issues can worsen dietary habits, increasing the chances of an eating disorder. However, all this is avoidable by making sure that all groups of the population are receiving the services that they deserve, including healthcare, financial help, among others.

A team of researchers from the University of Southampton, led by Philip Calder has published new study findings that following a healthy diet and taking dietary supplements daily can save people from COVID-19.

A diet that has a mixture of natural vegetables and fruits, as well as seeds, pulses, meat, and dairy, contain all necessary vitamins and minerals requires for a healthy body and a functional immune system. However, it might not be possible for a person to eat all these ingredients. They can use dietary supplements alternately. Also, there are some nutrients that can not be obtained from food sources including certain minerals, vitamins, and even omega-three fatty acids. Luckily these nutrients are available in dietary supplement form which can be used along with healthy food.

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The current coronavirus pandemic has caused thousands of people to lose their life which is the second time after the seasonal influenza epidemics that a respiratory infection is killing people.

One thing that medical experts have observed that coronavirus is most dangerous for people with low immunity. So, a healthy immune system naturally protects the body from a viral attack, and this immunity is based on daily nutrition obtained from food sources.

While the new vaccination programs would save people from getting coronavirus, there is something that could reduce the risk of catching it. most of the times people ignore the significance and role of diet in pathogenic attacks and immunity. Considering there is no vaccine developed to this day, the only way to save yourself from coronavirus pandemic is to follow the precautionary measures including the dietary changes. That is why public health authorities are calling out and suggesting people to follow the healthy diet plan.

Philip Calder teaches Nutritional Immunology at the University of Southampton. He said; “The strength of somebody’s immune systems will not influence whether they get coronavirus; handwashing and social distancing are the best ways to avoid that. However, the immune system helps the body deal with the virus if they are infected and what we want is a system that functions properly when it’s challenged with bacteria and viruses.”

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Calder recommends eating a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables and not canned and frozen food items. Natural food has a high amount of nutrients and fiber which supports healthy metabolism and immunity. It re-creates the microbial balance inside the body and prepares the body to protect itself from any pathogenic attack.

The study also recommends eating fish which is a natural source of omega 3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are necessary for the body to function and it also improves the immune response of the body. Lastly, the research team also recommends eating meat which has a high amount of vitamin B12 and iron in it.

In case any person doesn’t consume these essential food groups, he can take dietary supplements loaded with these nutrients. Another popular choice in dietary supplements, in addition to these standard supplements, is “probiotics”. The probiotic supplement ensures a healthy and functional gut with a perfect balance between beneficial and harmful bacteria.

Calder further explains that this current coronavirus pandemic has given us a message that relying on vaccination alone is not sufficient and we might need more than these vaccines. It is essential to improve the natural immunity whether or not coronavirus pandemic ends. By improving what are we fueling to our body, we can reduce the chance of getting infected with a number of pathogenic microbes including the viruses i. e coronavirus. Therefore all public health offices should encourage people to take care of their diet and add essential nutrients either way.

**Note- The study report is published on the Preprints website and waiting for a peer review.