ALL ABOUT HEALTH -

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

Capri Sun Juice Pouches Recalled Over Possible Contamination

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Kraft Heinz is voluntarily recalling thousands of cases of its Capri Sun juice pouches that might be contaminated with cleaning solution.The diluted cleaning solution, which is used on food-processing equipment, was inadvertently introduced into a production line at one factory, the company said in a statement. Approximately 5,760 cases of the drinks were potentially contaminated, or a total of about 230,400 individual drink pouches.Consumer complaints about an unusual taste led to the discovery of the possible contamination, the company said.Only the Wild Cherry flavor Capri Sun drinks were affected, and all the recalled cases of juice drinks had a “best when used by” date of June 25, 2023.Customers who bought recalled drinks shouldn’t consume the product. They can return it to the store where it was purchased. Customers can also…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

First Suspected Case of Human-to-Dog Monkeypox Transmission

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Experts agree that prolonged personal skin-to-skin contact appears to be the primary way monkeypox is spreading in the current outbreak. However, a new case study finds that it may be possible for the virus to be passed from humans to their pets by way of snuggling or sharing a bed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now advises that people who are infected with monkeypox avoid close contact with their pets.“Monkeypox is an animal virus so it is not surprising that it can pass from humans into other animals,” says Amesh A. Adalja MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security in Baltimore, who was not involved in the study. Dr. Adalja agrees with the updated CDC guidance: People should isolate from their pets when…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

FDA Clears Way for Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Sales

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the sale of over-the-counter hearing aids, a move that may make the devices cheaper and easier to access for millions of Americans.Consumers with mild to moderate hearing loss will be able to purchase hearing aids at retail stores and online without a medical exam, prescription, or fitting adjustment from an audiologist, the FDA said in an August 16 statement. Hearing aids could be in stores as early as mid-October, the FDA said.“Hearing loss is a critical public health issue that affects the ability of millions of Americans to effectively communicate in their daily social interactions,” said the FDA's commissioner, Robert M. Califf, MD, in the statement.“Establishing this new regulatory category will allow people with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss to…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

A New Vaccine to Protect Against Lyme Disease Begins Final Trial

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A vaccine that would protect people as young as 5 years old from Lyme disease is recruiting participants for its third and final clinical trial, according to an announcement by Pfizer and the French pharmaceutical company Valneva, developers of the vaccine.The trial, Vaccine Against Lyme for Outdoor Recreationists (VALOR) will investigate the efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of the investigational Lyme disease vaccine candidate, VLA15.“We are extremely pleased to reach this important milestone in the development of VLA15. Lyme disease continues to spread, representing a high unmet medical need that impacts the lives of many in the Northern Hemisphere,” said Juan Carlos Jaramillo, MD, chief medical officer of Valneva, in a release. “We look forward to further investigating the VLA15 candidate in phase 3, which will take us a step closer…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

Fentanyl Pills Are Driving a Drug Overdose Spike Among U.S. High Schoolers

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Teen drug overdose deaths are increasing exponentially despite a significant decline in drug use among high schoolers in recent years.Drug overdoses among teenagers are still rare, but research published in JAMA found that the rate of U.S. overdose deaths among people ages 14 to 18 nearly doubled in 2020, and rose another 20 percent in the first half of 2021 compared with the previous decade.According to researchers, the rise in the past two years has not been driven by increased drug use during the COVID-19 pandemic or by addiction, but by an increasingly dangerous supply of opioid pills laced with fentanyl.Fentanyl — which is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine — has been packaged in powder form and fraudulently sold as heroin for years. Teenagers are less likely to…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

First FDA-Approved Birth Control Wearable Tech Hits the Market

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If your method of birth control involves abstaining from sex on the days when you’re most fertile, you might be monitoring changes in your body — such as subtle temperature fluctuations — to help determine exactly where you are in your menstrual cycle.One of the tricky things about this approach is that you need to remember to take your temperature first thing every morning.Now there’s a contraception app that can make this easier by syncing with a device on your finger that records your temperature while you sleep.What Is This Technology?Natural Cycles was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2018 as the first direct-to-consumer contraception app. It helps prevent pregnancy by calculating the days each month when people are most likely to be fertile according to slight…

25Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

White Mulberry Leaf Blamed in Death of CA Congressman’s Wife — What Are the Risks?

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Autopsy results for Lori McClintock, who died last year, are raising questions about herbal supplements after findings implicated white mulberry leaf in her death. Lori McClintock was the wife of U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock.According to the March 10 report from the Sacramento County coroner, which was recently obtained by Kaiser Health News (KNH) and released this week, the cause of death was gastroenteritis caused by “adverse effects of white mulberry leaf ingestion.”The report noted that a “partially intact” white mulberry leaf was found in McClintock’s stomach, but it wasn’t clear from the autopsy report whether she drank a tea with white mulberry leaves, ate fresh or dried leaves, or took a dietary supplement containing white mulberry leaf, KHN reported. The death was ruled accidental in the autopsy, according to KHN.Several toxicologists and doctors…

24Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

People Who Earn Low Wages May Be at Risk for Faster Memory Decline in Later Life

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A lack of access to healthcare, nutritious food, and safe places to exercise all contribute to healthcare inequities. In the United States, people living in lower-income households have an increased risk for developing many chronic health conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. But can earning less money, year after year, take a different kind of toll, and negatively affect our brains and memory? Unfortunately, that answer may be yes, according to new research presented at the Alzheimer’s Association 2022 Addressing Health Disparities conference.Researchers from Columbia University found a link between a below-average paycheck and cognitive function down the road. “Our research provides new evidence that sustained exposure to low wages during peak earning years is associated with accelerated memory decline later in life,” said first author Katrina Kezios, PhD,…

24Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

Most People Infected With the Omicron COVID-19 Variant Don’t Know It, Study Suggests

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More than half of people infected with the omicron variant had no idea they had contracted the virus, according to a new study from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The research, published August 17 in JAMA Network Open, highlights a major hurdle in the effort to stop the spread of COVID-19.These findings add to a growing body of evidence that undiagnosed infections are increasing virus transmission. “A low level of infection awareness has likely contributed to the fast spread of omicron,” said Sandy Y. Joung, an investigator at Cedars-Sinai and the first author of the study, in a news release.Antibody Tests Found Evidence of Omicron InfectionThe study included more than 2,000 Cedars-Sinai healthcare workers and patients. All took two or more blood tests to look for evidence of COVID-fighting antibodies. The first…

24Feb 2023 by Janice Holland

The Link Between Red Meat and Your Heart May Be in Your Gut

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Experts have warned for years that a diet high in red meat raises the risk of heart disease, but exactly why has remained a topic of debate.Research has pinpointed a potential culprit that could make some people more susceptible to the cardiovascular effects of red meat — and it’s located in the gut.A study published August 1 in the American Heart Association (AHA) journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology zeroed in on a metabolite called trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), and the discovery may one day debunk what researchers have believed for decades about how red meat increases the risk of heart disease.According to the study’s lead coauthor, Meng Wang, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Somerville, Massachusetts, TMAO has been…