Fariha Munir, Author at Spark Health MD

A Healthy Diet Prevents from Cognitive Decline

Cognitive impairment is a common public health problem that results from the number of contributing factors including age, socio-economic, demographic, genetic, and some environmental parameters such as nutrition. A study shows that many people with dementia and cognitive impairment will increase in the following decades in corresponding with the aging of the world populace.

A new study published in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia finds that a Mediterranean diet high in vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, and fish is related to higher cognitive functions. Dietary factors can also cause a decline in cognitive function.

This study is done by the researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health who analyzed the data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) and AREDS2. The cognition of the participants was tested at various intervals.

In AREDS there were four thousand participants without AMD while four thousand participants in the AREDS2 with AMD. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control reports that there are sixteen million Americans who are living with cognitive impairment.

A study published in 2001, found that the age-related macular degeneration is highly less in the people whose diets are high in fish and vegetables. This happens due to two naturally produced antioxidants that are lutein and zeaxanthin. These antioxidants are found in all vegetables but mainly in green and leafy vegetables like kale, spinach, broccoli, peas, and parsley.

Mediterranean diet reduces the risk of cognitive impairment from 45 to 50 percent. Dr. Richard Isaacson finds that brain health and impaired cognitive functions can be controlled through simple dietary choices.

The M.D, director of the NEI Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications and lead author of the study, Emily Chew tells that people generally do not focus on their diets. They have to explore the effects of nutrition on the brain and eye.

In this study, the effects of nine components of the Mediterranean diet are examined on cognition. The research emphasizes the consumption of seven components of Mediterranean diet including whole grains, fish, olive oil, vegetables, fruits, legumes, and nuts while the consumption of alcohol and red meat should be reduced in the diet.

The AREDS and AREDS2 participants were assessed only at the start of the study. In the AREDS study, cognitive functions of participants were tested at five years while in AREDS2, the participants’ cognitive functions were tested at baseline and then two, four and ten years later.

Participants with the best adherence to the Mediterranean diet were at the least danger of cognitive impairment. High fish and vegetables seemed to have the best protective impact. At ten years, AREDS2 participants with more fish consumption had the slowest rate of cognitive decline.

Researchers also suggest that consumption of tea or coffee may have a beneficial effect on cognition. Some studies provide evidence that caffeine present in coffee and tea reduce the rate of cognitive decline.

Also, the participants with the ApoE gene had a lower cognitive function and the decline rate was more than those who had not the gene. ApoE gene also increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The advantages of close adherence to a Mediterranean diet were comparative for individuals with and without the ApoE gene, implying that the impacts of diet on cognition are independent of genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

A trustee of the McKnight Brain Research Foundation, Dr. Richard Isaacson tells that Future examinations will assist with explaining to what extent an individual needs to make a dietary change before observing an effect on cognitive outcomes.

Can You Donate Blood During COVID-19 Pandemic?

As coronavirus has spread to the whole world, most of the countries are following a complete lockdown. In addition to many work, education and social life, this lockdown is also affecting blood donation campaigns and drives that are completely canceled. In the United States, 36000 units of red blood cells are required every day, even when no pandemic is there. Many patients need blood regularly as part of life-saving treatment but the reduction in blood donations may lead to many deaths a day.

During this COVID-19 pandemic, people are uncertain whether they should donate blood or not. Well, yes they should donate blood to save the lives that are dependent upon it. Besides, as there is no risk while donating blood during a pandemic. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) describes that there is no case of transfusion-transmitted COVID-19 is suspected.

The president and chief executive officer of the American Red Cross, Gail McGovern, says that,

“One of the most important things people can do right now during this public health emergency is to give blood. If you are healthy and feeling well, please make an appointment to donate as soon as possible.”

Keeping up a satisfactory blood supply is crucial to public health. Blood donors help the patients of many diseases and all ages including heart surgery burn victims, organ transplant patients, cancer patients, and many other life-threatening conditions. It is estimated by The American Red Cross that in the U.S every two seconds, someone needs blood.

The director of biomedical communications for the humanitarian organization, Jessa Merrill says

“There is no known end date in this fight against coronavirus and the Red Cross needs the help of blood and platelet donors and blood drive hosts to maintain a sufficient blood supply for weeks to come.”

Some measures are taken by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect the people’s blood supply. Only those people can donate blood, who haven’t any health issues and feel well on the day of donation. And the blood donors should contact the donor center if any health issue is felt by them after donating blood.

The agency advises people to donate blood to help others during this public health emergency. If you are healthy and want to donate blood then contact the local donation center and donate blood there.

The chief medical officer for the American Red Cross, Dr. Pampee Young says,

“We are very concerned with keeping up the levels we need on a day-to-day basis. Those needs are not likely to change.”

You can also help others during this pandemic by donating convalescent plasma because scientists have investigated that it can be used in the treatment of COVID-19.

Convalescent plasma is a liquid portion of blood and it is taken from those who recover from COVID-19 because antibodies against coronavirus are present in their blood.

The FDA points out that convalescent plasma can be taken from COVID-19 recovered patients only if they meet the requirements issued by the FDA.

Many people also wonder if they should wear a face mask when they’re out in public. Numerous individuals also wonder whether they should wear a face mask when they move out in public.

The U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing a face mask that is important in public places where it is hard to keep up social distancing measures like medical stores and grocery shops. The object is to slow the spread of the coronavirus and to assist the people who may have the infection and they are not aware of it from infecting others.

How coronavirus affects people with type 1 diabetes?

Researchers believe that people with certain underlying medical conditions such as diabetes and heart diseases are at a higher risk of being infected with the coronavirus. Considering coronavirus only affects people with a weak immune system, COVID-19 could be deadly for diabetic patients.

The risk for diabetic people is higher because their bodies are unable to control their blood sugar levels. Hence the chances of getting sick from COVID-19 are more as the ability of the body to fight against infections is already compromised.

The CEO of JDFR (formerly the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), Aaron Kowalski conveys a piece of good news and says that; “Healthy type 1 folks aren’t more at risk if they have a reasonable A1C.”

An A1C is a blood test that estimates blood sugar control but, for the individuals who are experiencing difficulty keeping their A1C down, high glucose can make individuals progressively susceptible to disease.

The director of the pediatric diabetes center at NYU Langone Health in New York City, Dr. Mary Pat Gallagher says,

“If you have an A1C that is less than 9.5%, you are not considered immunocompromised. Higher blood sugar levels for more than two weeks can impair immune function. None of us has any immunity to this virus. We’re all extremely susceptible, whether or not we have type 1 diabetes.”

Experts say that regardless of your age if your glucose is very much controlled, you almost certainly don’t have a higher risk of COVID-19 specified issues. With type 1 diabetes, if someone gets ill then it’s a challenge for him to get out of that disease.

If a diabetic patient becomes ill then it is mandatory to follow the guidelines given by CDC and should pay attention to the COVID-19 symptoms including dry cough, shortness of breath and fever. If he thinks, he is developing symptoms he should call his doctor. If he is on an insulin pump and the sugar level exceeds 250 milligrams per deciliter and hasn’t taken the correct dose of insulin then he should check his ketones and should consult the doctor.

Gallagher says that type 1 diabetic patients always need long-acting insulin that is called “basal” insulin in a pump. The quantity of basal insulin can be reduced, but its taking cant is stopped. If you have symptoms like nausea, vomiting, excess fatigue, abdominal pain, or fruity-smelling breath then consult your doctor because these are the signs of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). DKA is mostly experienced by type 1 diabetic patients.

DKA can make it challenging to deal with electrolyte levels and fluid intake which is significant in dealing with sepsis that is a severe complication experienced by some people with COVID-19.

If an individual from your family gets infected then keep him in a separate room and always keep the door closed. Only a single family member should care for him and should provide additional protection to him.

Kowalski suggests that everybody should follow the rules on washing hands, keeping a distance from others, and getting up and moving. Nowadays, exercise can be the best way to take out yourself from stress. Type 1 diabetic patients and their families should do exercise for one hour daily while following the rules of social distancing.

Gallagher says, “There’s a lot of worry about consistent access to food, making it harder to meal plan. It’s also easy to eat poorly when you’re under stress, so try to make good food choices when you can.”

Chinese Newborns Showing Mild Symptoms, Is COVID-19 Back?

The COVID-19 first emerged in China and eventually declined. The country is no more reporting new cases and it has even lifted the lockdown from Wuhan, the epicenter of coronavirus. Currently, the virus is spreading like anything, outside China and countries like Italy, UK and the USA are going through the worst phase of this outbreak.

Health safety concern regarding coronavirus (COVID-19) is high, however, the risk for severe symptoms is still low in children. Up until now, most revealed cases of coronavirus have been reported in adults. Children who do get it appear to have milder infections than older people or adults. Surprisingly, some Chinese researchers have observed newborn babies showing mild symptoms of coronavirus suggesting the pandemic is not completely over.

In addition to that, the experts are still finding out how COVID-19 transmits and who is at risk so it is hard to assume how could a newborn baby get coronavirus.

New research published in the European Respiratory Journal finds four cases of COVID-19 infected newborn babies in China. None of them showed severe symptoms. None of these infant patients required mechanical ventilation or intensive care suggesting the infection is minor.

This research is done by Dr. Zhi-Jiang Zhang and colleagues at Wuhan University in China. The team reports that all of them were COVID-19 infected when born to mothers. These four newborn babies were delivered by cesarean section and three of them were separated from their mothers.

The analysts state the fast spread of viral infection shows that there may also some other cases of newborn babies with COVID-19 in the country but the researchers were unable to find.

Dr. Zhang finds that coronavirus is highly contagious and this study suggests that intrauterine transmission can’t be precluded, however, the prognosis is useful for both pregnant ladies and infants.

Study in detail here.

The chief physician of Wuhan Children Hospital’s neonatal medicine department, Zeng Lingkong, tells that it is important to focus on mother to child as it could be a possible route of coronavirus transmission. But it may also possible that the child gets infected after birth from having close contact with the mother.

Researchers suggest that that the individuals with no symptoms or mild, almost unnoticeable symptoms may be driving the infection. That will make the spread of the virus more complicated.

WHO finds that a single infected person will go on to infect, on average, between 1.4 and 2.5 additional people.

Most passings right now in older people and the individuals who have health problems like heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes.

An infection expert from the European Respiratory Society and a coordinator for the national German COVID-19 task force, Professor Tobias Welte tells that It’s imperative to secure pregnant ladies and infants against COVID-19. It’s also mandatory to monitor the newborn babies carefully to provide them quick treatment and to protect them from any severity of COVID-19. At this stage researchers despite everything don’t know whether there are any longer-term consequences of this infection.

Research groups and pharmaceutical companies are attempting to build up an antibody that can protect individuals from the disease. But vaccine development takes a lot of time. Even if everything goes smoothly, it will be around a year to 18 months before one is available.

Perhaps the most ideal approaches to slow the spread of infection is by avoiding others, which is called “social distancing.” That gives an infection less chance to bounce from one person to another person. It’s the reason everybody is being asked to remain at home. These measures are proved useful in slowing the spread of the virus. If fewer individuals become ill at once, it’s simpler for medicinal services suppliers to give everybody great consideration.

The Youngest Patient of Coronavirus Diagnosed in the UK

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared this coronavirus outbreak a global health emergency. Coronavirus cases have reached 1.3 million and the death toll is increased to seventy-nine thousand around the globe. The youngest patient of coronavirus is diagnosed in the U.K., who is a seven-month-old little boy.

The mother of that little child, Courtney Barker, who was raced to the emergency clinic with a coronavirus fever has asked individuals to pay attention to the seclusion measures.

Courtney Barker exposed her child Arthur was currently on day three of battling the fatal bug after going oblivious and floppy. She imparted a photo of herself with her little son, Arthur, on Facebook as he battled with a high fever from coronavirus

Her family lives in Plympton and she told them that she had followed all the social separating rules yet her son had still gotten the virus.

Furthermore, Courtney criticized individuals who were regarding the confinement rules as one major occasion while the UK loss of life kept on increasing 5,000 today.

She wrote on Facebook that little Arthur’s temperature had spiked to 39.3C and his pulse arrived at 206bpm three days back.

Further writes that,

“He was unconscious and floppy! It was petrifying. We are currently on day 3 of fighting his COVID-19 Fever. He also has a sore throat, cough, sickness, and diarrhea, red and itchy ears, fatigue, a decrease in appetite, runny nose, and watery eyes. And this is classed as mild symptoms from the hospital.”

She said that her son’s coronavirus test result was positive, in spite of their earnest attempts to isolate. The mother further says that three members of her family are at high risk, so they had been self-secluding for about a month trying to maintain a strategic distance from the bug.

Her husband was the one in particular who went out for nourishment essentials. Yet it has still figured out how to advance into their home. They followed each ruleset.

The Sun, a news U.K. company has propelled an intrigue to raise one million dollars for NHS workers. They have collaborated with NHS Charities Together in their critical COVID-19 Appeal to guarantee the cash gets to precisely who needs it. The Who Cares Wins Appeal plans to get crucial help to staff in their hour of need.

Courtney warned, “Is it really worth your life or anyone else’s life for the sake of a walk or a run? Or even a trip out in the car?”

She tells that she is doing all that they have been advised to do for him. Her son is a little warrior. It’s dreadful to see her kid so poorly.

In the U.K. more than forty-five thousand cases of coronavirus are recorded. And the UK coronavirus loss of life today broke the 5,000-mark after 403 deaths in England alone. NHS England affirmed the most recent casualties were matured somewhere in the range of 35 and 106 with 15 having no basic wellbeing conditions.

It comes after a five-year-old with basic wellbeing conditions turned into the youngest coronavirus casualty in the UK at the weekend. The child is currently accepted to be the youngest COVID-19 demise in Europe following a 12-year-old young girl died in Belgium prior this week.

Previously, Britain’s youngest coronavirus casualty was 13-year-old Ismail Mohammed Abdulwahab, who passed on in medical clinic in London on Monday.

The mother said her son had battled with a high temperature from the viral infection.

What to do if you have COVID-19 symptoms but not tested yet?

Individuals with COVID-19 generally exhibit mild to severe respiratory illness with distinctive symptoms that include fever, shortness of breath, and cough. A few people have different additional symptoms, such as muscle aches, sore throat, headache or diarrhea. These symptoms may last 2-14 days after exposure.

If you don’t have the symptoms of COVID-19, you shouldn’t be tested for COVID-19. Since testing isn’t generally accessible, VDH is organizing testing for individuals with manifestations who are hospitalized, first responders, healthcare workers, and individuals living in or working in like nursing homes and others. Only one out of every odd individual who has manifestations should be tested.

But if you have symptoms of COVID-19, however, you have not been tested, expect that you have COVID-19. Remain at home and self-disconnect. If you have side effects of COVID-19 and are being tested, you should remain at home and self-disconnect.

Similarly, if you are at a higher risk of becoming exceptionally ill with COVID-19, call your doctor if you have indications of fever or hack. By remaining at home, the opportunity of spreading COVID-19 is reduced to other people, including medicinal services laborers who are expected to think about the more genuinely sick.

The common symptoms are muscle or body aches, decreased appetite, fatigue, cough, shortness of breath, and fever. Get rest and drink a lot of water or clear fluids. Keep away from liquor or beverages with caffeine, like soft drinks, tea, and espresso.

Self-separate for 3 entire days at any rate after you no longer have a fever and different indications are incredibly improved and seven days have gone since manifestations initially began.

As much as could be expected under the circumstances, remain in a particular room away from others in your home. Utilize a separate bathroom, if accessible.

Restrict contact with pets and different creatures while wiped out. Stay in contact with others by calls, texting, or email while you are wiped out. You might need to request help and backing from companions, family, or neighbors.

If you are wiped out, you should wear a facemask or spread your nose and mouth with a scarf or handkerchief when you are around others or pets and before you enter a specialist’s office.

To learn more, visit here.

If the individual who is wiped out can’t wear a facemask at that point other family unit individuals should wear a facemask or spread their nose and mouth with a scarf or handkerchief in if they go into a stay with the individual who is wiped out.

Use over-the-counter medications based on your symptoms. Follow all usage and warning information on the label. There is no specific treatment for COVID-19. There is no specific antiviral treatment recommended for COVID-19. People with COVID-19 should receive supportive care to help relieve symptoms.

Seek medical attention immediately if your illness is getting worse (e.g., difficulty breathing or persistent fever after using fever-reducing medication). Call the doctor’s office and tell them you have or may have COVID-19.

Use over-the-counter prescriptions dependent on your side effects. Follow all use and cautioning data on the label. There is no particular treatment for COVID-19. There is no particular antiviral treatment prescribed for COVID-19. Individuals with COVID-19 should get strong consideration to help ease symptoms. Call the specialist’s office and disclose to them you have or may have COVID-19.

Get quick clinical consideration if you have COVID-19 symptoms. If you need clinical consideration in an emergency, call 911 and tell the dispatch staff that you have or may have COVID-19. Always follow the counsel from your healthcare supplier and the directions from the maker about the medication you take.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you hack or sniffle and toss utilized tissues in a lined trashcan. Wash hands directly after.

Wash hands frequently with cleanser and water for twenty seconds, particularly in the wake of cleaning out your nose, coughing, sniffling, heading off to the washroom, and before eating or getting ready nourishment.

If cleanser and water are not promptly accessible, a liquor based hand sanitizer with sixty percent alcohol might be utilized. Spread all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry. Avoid contacting your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

Avoid sharing individual family unit things like dishes, drinking glasses, cups, utensils, towels, or bedding with others or pets in your home. In the wake of utilizing these things, they ought to be washed completely with cleanser and water.

Clean and sterilize all surfaces that get contacted frequently, like counters, tabletops, door handles, restroom apparatuses, toilets, telephones, consoles, tablets, and bedside tables. Utilize a family unit cleaning splash or wipe, as per the name directions. CDC has more data on family cleaning and sterilization.

Being sick can be distressing or cause nervousness. Recollect that everybody responds distinctively to distressing circumstances. Being sick with COVID-19 may be particularly distressing because it is another ailment and there is a great deal of news inclusion. Take parts from watching, perusing, or tuning in to reports, including internet-based life.

Individuals with previous states of mind should proceed with their treatment and know about new or compounding symptoms. If you, or somebody you care about, are feeling overpowered with feelings like bitterness, discouragement, or tension call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA’s) Disaster Distress Helpline: 1-800-985-5990 or content TalkWithUs to 66746. (TTY 1-800-846-8517).

Should you Ditch Wearing a Bra during Quarantine? Research Says NO

Around one of every five individuals around the world are under lockdown, requested to remain at home as the world enters a basic week in reacting to the quickening coronavirus pandemic. It seems like the world’s biggest humanitarian disaster since World War II unfold.

As of this day, there are more than 0.3 million affirmed instances of individuals with the virus over the world. More than sixteen thousand individuals have died of this virus while just about 101,000 have recovered.

A specialist has cautioned that not wearing a bra for extensive periods during the COVID-19 lockdown could make harm the Cooper’s ligaments, which assists with keeping up basic integrity in the bosoms.

It’s been about a week since Boris Johnson put the UK into coronavirus lockdown, nightgown has gotten the national uniform and no one understands what day it is. We have started work at our kitchen table, supplicating nobody recommends a video call which would constrain us to glance in a mirror.

The specialists have cautioned ladies that getting a charge out of the opportunity of dumping your bra for the span within recent memory inside could have long haul influences on your bosoms.

Going braless has been one of the little triumphs that have been commended since we were advised to remain at home, with one composition that is: “I’ve been braless for weeks now I cannot contain my joy. That’s probably the only liberating thing about this lockdown.”

A garment technologist at Figleaves Victoria Shelton has told the Daily Mail that leaving bosoms unsupported could harm the connective tissue which assists with keeping up basic integrity, known as the Cooper’s ligament.

She says that our closet needs have changed as we end up at home. Yet, we as a whole despite everything need to wear a bra as our bosoms should be bolstered because of their weight you may harm your stance or have back agony if your bosoms aren’t completely upheld. If bosoms are left unsupported harm can happen to the Cooper’s ligament in the bosom, making them droop.

It was resounded by Dr. Riccardo Frati, of Frati Cosmetic surgery, who contended bras were imperative to offer help to bosoms because of potential harm to Cooper’s ligaments, and because ‘bosoms will in general sag after some time because of age and gravity.

As we get older, our skin turns out to be less flexible and diminishes, so gravity has a simpler time pulling us down. That stretching process will in general quicken as we get more seasoned.

Wearing a bra can assist with halting ‘untimely drooping of the skin and tissue around the bosom zone. Because they will be more supported and in this manner less likely to be moving around and stretching the fragile connective tissue.

The expert also says that wearing a bra or not is only one of the elements in question. We additionally need to consider maturing, hereditary qualities, weight changes, pregnancy and regular hormonal periods of a woman.

Victoria disclosed how to stay at home by changing to something ‘overly comfortable so we can appreciate that no bra feeling’ without the hazard. Her recommendation was to pay special mind to Flexi wires, regularly found in maternity ranges.

She further adds that if you have a bigger bust, search for non-wired styles that have crease cups as these have regularly been planned and fitted to help a bigger bust. Embellished hook and delicate brushed ties are likewise key for comfort.

The New Study Finds a Connection between Marijuana use and Insomnia

A new study published in the journal Sleep finds that smoke a great deal of weed as a youngster leads to having trouble falling or staying unconscious in adulthood.

The lead author and a graduate student in the Institute for Behavioral Genetics, Evan Winiger tells that Individuals tend to imagine that cannabis assists with sleep, but a close look at the study clear that proceeded or excessive use is additionally connected with a lot of sleep deficiencies. This study shows that intake of weed too earlier is associated with a higher risk of insomnia in later life.

Study in detail here.

Researchers found that around 33% of subjects who began utilizing marijuana routinely before age 18 had a sleeping disorder in adulthood, contrasted with under 20% among the individuals who didn’t utilize cannabis consistently as teenagers.

A similar example remained constant for an especially perilous type of a sleeping disorder known as short sleep (dozing less than six hours out of each night all the time). Around one of every 10 subjects who utilized cannabis routinely as adolescents grew up to be short-sleepers, while just about 5% of non-users did.

Individuals who began utilizing marijuana after turning 18 additionally had somewhat higher paces of insomnia in youthful adulthood. What’s more, these examples continued while controlling for anxiety, depression and shift work.

Winiger explains that the human body has its own endocannabinoid framework that creates chemicals much similar to the cannabinoids (CBD and THC) present in marijuana that bind to cannabinoid receptors in the brain and have been appeared to impact our cognition, feelings and circadian rhythm or body clock.

One hypothesis is that these receptors are being desensitized or upset from all the cannabis use during a period that the brain is as yet developing, and that prompts waking issues. Marijuana use can also lead to memory loss, reduced brain function, gum disease risk, testicular cancer and psychosis.

It could likewise be that cannabis use in adolescence prompts basic changes in the cerebrum. Or then again chronic use may set teenagers up for poor sleep propensities when they are young, which wait into adulthood.

By taking a gander at more than four hundred twin pairs who share 100% of their hereditary makeup and more than three hundred fraternal pairs who share just half. The scientists had the option to construe to what degree the attributes were inherited

The researchers reasoned that most of the similar genes that add to the danger of early cannabis use are additionally associated with insomnia, a sleeping disorder, and insomnia with short sleep.

This is the first examination to locate a direct hereditary connection between’s insomnia and cannabis use.

The study points out that genetics also play a vita role in the sleeping habits, and that individuals with dozing issue could be going to cannabis for help.It is conceivable that sleep issues could impact cannabis use, cannabis use could impact sleep issues, or normal hereditary qualities could be responsible.

The director of the Sleep and Chronobiology Lab and co-author, Ken Wright tells that the investigation doesn’t really mean all strains of marijuana are awful for sleep constantly. Some past examinations show cannabis can assist individuals to fall asleep whenever utilized occasionally.

The evidence in grown-ups is very blended, and researchers can’t do randomized controlled preliminaries with various strains and various dosages. Wright states that highlighting government laws that disallow specialists from handling cannabis, giving it to subjects or being available while subjects use it. Researchers would not prescribe that adolescents use weed to promote their sleep