Post Vax Exercise Bumps Up Antibodies

Unfortunately, the widespread coronavirus pandemic has ruled our lives for the past two years. The constant arrival of new variants is posing demanding challenges for organisations and posing difficult scenarios for them to resume full-fledged operations. Expecting the workplace to return to their daily office routine is akin to wishing for a life on the moon. Being adaptable in terms of workplace norms is currently the best option, and thus the hybrid work environment has become the new normal. While there is always a silver lining to every cloud, technology has removed the stress of uncertainty from the heads of the bosses, and everyone has adjusted to working from their desks at home with online meetings and working scenarios. While we've all gotten used to the hybrid work environment, we can't ignore the impact it's having on us, both mentally and physically. Working online does not reduce stress in fact, it increases it in many ways. It is substantial to focus on our health while putting in our best foot forward towards our work. Let us look at some tips to remain healthy while working from home or from the office. Keep Yourself Hydrated: As much as we take this point casually, we should keep drinking water and maintain our fluid intake throughout the day to keep ourselves hydrated through all the exhaustion. The body gets dehydrated even when you're sitting inside the house, so you must develop a habit of keeping a water bottle with you and keep sipping the water. You must also include the intake of other healthy fluids like coconut water, buttermilk, lemon water, infused and detox water in your daily routine. If you are someone who has a habit of forgetting, you also have the option of setting drinking water alarms on your phone to remind you of the same. Eat Nutritious Food: While working we tend to munch on snacks but we must keep in mind that the importance of the three main meals should not be disregarded and one should have a proper balanced breakfast, lunch and dinner while working from both home and office. Skipping meals can be extremely harmful to the body and can cause severe gastric issues. A meal packed with proteins, carbs, fibres and other crucial nutrients keep you energized for the day and saves you from issues like bloating, gastric attacks and fatigue. Mid-Meal Snacking: As significant as it is to have a nutritious meal it is also necessary to snack in between to satisfy your hunger pangs. You must always keep a few healthy snacking options handy like roasted makhana, roasted peanuts, fruits, unsweetened nut butter, protein bars, and other healthy snacks so that it keeps you away from munching on unhealthy food items which have a high content of sugar and salt and are low on nutrition. They can cause bloating, weight gain and other health issues. Breathing Exercises: It is no secret that breathing exercises can calm you down, relax your mind and increase your focus. Breathing exercises enhance the oxygen flow in your blood and boost your energy. Deep breathing can help you fight anxiety and decrease your stress levels. Practising these exercises on a daily basis can keep your brain fresh and ready to take all the workload with a positive mindset. Stretching: When you're sitting on your work table with your laptop for extended hours you must take a break after every 30 minutes to 60 minutes where you get up and stretch your body. Stretching maintains the relaxation of the body and rejuvenates it to promote your strength and flexibility. Sitting in one place gives rise to backaches and pain in the knee joints. Stretching helps maintain the blood flow and keeps you fit. Wear Computer Glasses: You should be mindful of your screen time and wear computer glasses to avoid the blue light affecting your eyesight. With the increased work-from-home hours, you are forced to sit in front of the screen, and then even on your break, you use your mobile phone which takes your screen time to almost 18 hours a day causing red eyes, decreased eyesight, and watering of eyes. This can be hazardous in the long run hence one should take precautions and wear computer glasses to avoid any further complications to the eyesight. We must collectively aim to reduce mental and physical strain on our body and mind to keep ourselves healthy by keeping these significant tips in mind and being mindful of our own well being. (Aayushi Lakhapati, Cofounder & Chief Health Officer of Upnourish) Read More► Prior Heart Defect May Up Risk for Severe Covid: Study

London: Doing less exercise could deactivate a vital protein in the body, causing further inactivity and making exercise more difficult, new research suggests. Scientists at the University of Leeds have discovered that deactivating the Piezo1 protein, a blood flow sensor, reduces the density of capillaries carrying blood to the muscles. This restricted blood flow means activity becomes more difficult and can lead to a reduction in how much exercise is possible, the team found. The results, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, may help to explain the biology of why exercise becomes harder the less you do it. Exercise is known to protect against cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression, and cancer. "Unfortunately, many people fail to exercise enough, for reasons such as injury and computer usage. This puts people at more risk of disease. The less people exercise, the less fit they become, often leading to a downward spiral," said lead author Fiona Bartoli, a Postdoctoral Researcher in the University's School of Medicine. Although many responses to exercise are known, how the benefits of exercise are initially triggered at a molecular level has remained mysterious. "Our study highlights the crucial link between physical activity and physical performance made at this level by Piezo1. Keeping our Piezo1s active by exercising may be crucial in our physical performance and health," Bartoli said. While the experiments were carried out in mice, the Piezo1 protein is found in humans, suggesting the same results could occur. During the experiment, scientists compared two groups of mice - a control group, and a group whose Piezo1 levels had been disrupted for 10 weeks. Walking, climbing, and running wheel activity was observed, with the Piezo1 mice showing a striking reduction in activity levels. This suggests an important role for Piezo1 in sustaining normal physical activity. The researchers considered whether the Piezo1 mice were less interested in exercise, but they found no differences in the amount or duration of activity between the two groups. Instead, there were fewer running wheel revolutions per exercise session, and slower running speed, suggesting a lowered ability to exercise, without a lesser desire. (agency) Read More► 5 Minutes Face Yoga Before Bedtime

Regular physical activity is essential to not only reduce muscle loss and maintain strength as you age, but also to keep your memory intact. Forgetfulness is part of ageing and may worsen into Alzheimer's disease that may affect the quality of life. A new study has shown that practising aerobic exercises like cycling, walking or jogging thrice a week in the 50s and 60s can help stave off memory loss. "Everyone always asks, 'How much should I be exercising? What's the bare minimum to see improvement?'" said lead author Sarah Aghjayan, doctoral student in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. "From our study, it seems like exercising about three times a week for at least four months is how much you need to reap the benefits in episodic memory," she added. Episodic memory is the kind that deals with events that happened to you in the past. It's also one of the first to decline with age. Exercise that gets the heart pumping has shown promise in increasing brain health, and experiments in mice show that it improves memory, but studies looking at the same link in humans have come out mixed. To understand, the team pored over 36 studies with over 3,000 participants. "We found that there were greater improvements in memory among those who are age 55 to 68 years compared to those who are 69 to 85 years old, so intervening earlier is better," Aghjayan said. The team also found the greatest effects of exercise in those who hadn't yet experienced any cognitive decline, and in studies where participants exercised consistently several times a week. The findings are published in the journal Communications Medicine. While the team's analysis couldn't answer how the intensity of exercise affects the memory benefits, and there's plenty to learn about the mechanism behind the link. But the implications for public health are clear: Exercise is an accessible way older adults can stave off memory declines, benefiting themselves, their caretakers and the healthcare system, Aghjayan said. "You just need a good pair of walking shoes, and you can get out there and move your body." (agency) Read More► Ebola Virus Can Hide in Brain, Recur Even After Treatment: Study

Jerusalem: According to a new study, although over time the number of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies fall in both previously infected and vaccinated patients, the performance of antibodies improve only after the previous infection. The researchers, including Carmit Cohen of the Sheba Medical Center, indicated that while protection against re-infection lasts for a long time in SARS-CoV-2 recovered patients, breakthrough infections are increasingly common six months after vaccination. "While the number of antibodies decrease with time in both Covid-19 recovered (but never vaccinated) patients and vaccinated (but never infected) individuals, the quality of antibodies increases the following infection but not after vaccination," the researchers said. The study also found that, contrary to expectations, previously infected patients with obesity had a higher and more sustained immune response than overweight and normal weight range patients. For the study, to be presented at this year's European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, the team analysed the humoral (antibody-induced) immune response in Covid-19 recovered but unvaccinated individuals for up to a year and compared it with those who had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine (but no previous infection) over eight months. The study recruited previously infected-unvaccinated and double vaccinated never infected individuals from March 25 to November 25 2020 and closed in April 2021, just before the Delta variant arrived in Israel. The researchers followed up on 130 patients diagnosed with SARS-COV-2 using PCR testing. These patients had not been vaccinated and remained unvaccinated during the study. None of these patients were reinfected during the study period. (Agency) Read More► Post-Vax Exercise Bumps Up Antibodies: Study