Coffee Empty Stomach

Love to buy takeaway coffee in disposable cups or use nylon cooking bags such as those used in baking liners? Beware, these may be loaded with microplastics harmful for health, warns a study. Food-grade plastics come into contact with a variety of foods and drinks that people consume every day. For instance, nylon cooking bags help keep food moist in the oven and make clean-up easier for slow cookers. Likewise, plastic-lined paper cups are designed to keep liquids hot and prevent them from leaking out. However, according to the study published in ACS' Environmental Science & Technology these are an underappreciated source of nanoparticles. Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, US, report that the plastic in these products release trillions of nanometre-sized particles into each litre of water that they come in contact with. While that sounds like a lot, the team noted that these levels are under the regulatory limits for consumption. Previous studies have shown that some plastic materials, including polypropylene baby bottles and polyethylene terephthalate tea bags, can shed microscopic and nanoscale particles into heated liquids, though the human health implications of ingesting these particles are unclear. To explore whether food-grade plastic films can also be a source of small plastic particles, the team led by Christopher Zangmeister from the Institute poured room temperature or hot water into nylon slow cooker bags and low density polyethylene-lined cardboard cups from different retailers. After keeping the slow cooker hot for an hour, the researchers found that 35 trillion plastic nanoparticles leached into the litre of water in each bag. When the team put hot liquid in 12-fluid-ounce cups for 20 minutes, 5.1 trillion plastic nanoparticles per litre leached out. Both materials released considerably fewer nanosized particles into room temperature water. "A person would have to drink 13 cups of hot water from a plastic-lined cup or half a litre of water from the cooking bag to consume the equivalent of one nanoplastic particle for every seven cells in a person's body," Zangmeister said. However, the number of particles that migrated from the food-grade plastics into both the room temperature and hot water are still well below the levels for safe human consumption, according to US Food and Drug Administration limits. Read More► Genes Can Affect Our Nutrient Tolerance: Study

New York: Contrary to worries among some doctors and the public, drinking coffee may protect your heart instead of causing or worsening heart problems, find a new study. According to three research abstracts, drinking two to three cups of coffee daily has been associated with a 10 per cent to 15 per cent lower risk of getting heart disease, heart failure or a heart rhythm problem, or dying early for any reason, CNN reported. "We found coffee drinking had either a neutral effect meaning that it did no harm or was associated with benefits to heart health," said researcher Peter M. Kistler from the University of Melbourne. For all the studies, the researchers used data from UK Biobank, which follows the health outcomes of more than 500,000 people for at least 10 years. When joining the registry, participants reported that their coffee consumption fell on a range from up to a cup to six cups or more daily. The authors of the current research wanted to examine the relationship between coffee drinking and heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias), cardiovascular disease, including coronary heart disease, heart failure and stroke, and total and heart-related deaths among people with and without heart disease. The first study focused on more than 382,500 adults who did not have heart disease and was age 57 on average. Participants who drank two to three cups of coffee daily had the lowest risk for later developing the heart problems the study focused on, the researchers found. People who drank roughly one cup of coffee per day had the lowest risk of having a stroke or dying from cardiovascular disease. Another study looked into the relationships between different types of coffee caffeinated ground, caffeinated instant and decaffeinated and the same health outcomes. Whether the decaf coffee was ground or instant wasn't specified. Drinking one to five cups of ground or instant coffee a day was linked with lower risks of having arrhythmia, heart disease or failure, or stroke. Drinking two to three cups of any type of coffee every day was associated with a lower risk of dying early or from heart disease. Participants analysed in a third study were those who already had arrhythmia or a type of cardiovascular disease. For people with cardiovascular disease, no level of coffee intake was found to be linked with developing arrhythmia. Of the adults with arrhythmia, coffee intake especially one cup per day was associated with a lesser risk of premature death. (agency) Read More► Shortness of Breath Could Signal Heart Attack With Worst Survival Rate

Lucknow, July 22 (IANS) A woman was admitted to the trauma centre of King George's Medical University (KGMU) in a critical condition after doctors in Shahjahanpur district left a cloth in her stomach during an operation. Doctors at the Government Medical College in Shahjahanpur had allegedly left a cloth in the stomach of the pregnant woman during a caesarean operation in January this year. The principal of the medical college has formed a three-member inquiry team, which has been asked to give its report at the earliest. College principal Rajesh Kumar said on Wednesday that one Manoj had lodged a complaint that his wife Neelam, who is in her 30s, had given birth to a baby girl on January 6 during which a cloth was left in her stomach. He said as soon as he received the complaint, he formed an inquiry committee and ordered a probe. He said legal action will be taken against the culprits on the basis of the report. The woman's husband told reporters that after the birth of their daughter, his wife used to often complain of stomach pain. "I got her admitted to a private medical college in Shahjahanpur where a CT scan revealed that a cloth had been left behind in her stomach and it was removed through an operation. Since her condition kept deteriorating, we brought her to KGMU in Lucknow. She was admitted to KGMU earlier this week and has been kept on ventilator support. हिंदी में पढ़े ► डॉक्टरों द्वारा सर्जरी के दौरान लापरवाही से यूपी की महिला की हालत नाजुक  

New York, July 11 (IANS) Drinking one or more cups of coffee per day was associated with about a 10 per cent decrease in risk of Covid-19, compared to less than one cup daily, claimed a study. The study, led by researchers from the Northwestern University in the US, also found that the consumption of more vegetables, and less processed meats, could cut the risk of Covid infection. Coffee is known to contain antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. "Coffee consumption favourably correlates with inflammatory biomarkers such as CRP, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumour necrosis factor I (TNF-I), which are also associated with Covid-19 severity and mortality," said the study published in the journal Nutrients. "Coffee consumption has also been associated with lower risk of pneumonia in elderly. Taken together, an immunoprotective effect of coffee against Covid-19 is plausible and merits further investigation," it added. For the study, the team analysed the records of 40,000 British adults in the UK Biobank. They looked at the link between diet factors including daily intake of coffee, tea, oily fish, processed meat, red meat, fruit, and vegetables, and Covid. They found that consumption of at least 0.67 servings/d of vegetables (cooked or raw, excluding potatoes) was associated with a lower risk of Covid-19 infection. Processed meat consumption of as little as 0.43 servings/d was associated with a higher risk of Covid-19. However red meat consumption presented no risk, suggesting meat per se does not underlie the association observed with processed meats. "Our results support the hypothesis that nutritional factors may influence distinct aspects of the immune system, hence susceptibility to Covid-19. Encouraging adherence to certain nutritional behaviours (eg, increasing vegetable intake and reducing processed meat intake) may be an additional tool to existing Covid-19 protection guidelines to limit the spread of this virus," said the researchers. "Although these findings warrant independent confirmation, adherence to certain dietary behaviors may be an additional tool to existing Covid-19 protection guidelines to limit the spread of this virus," they added.