Risk Of Covid 19

People who regularly fast are less likely to experience severe complications from Covid-19, suggests a study. Intermittent fasting has previously shown to have a host of health benefits, including lowering the risk of diabetes and heart disease. The findings, published week in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health, showed that Covid patients who practised regular water-only intermittent fasting had lower risk of hospitalisation or dying due to the virus than patients who did not. "Intermittent fasting has already shown to lower inflammation and improve cardiovascular health. In this study, we're finding additional benefits when it comes to battling an infection of Covid-19 in patients who have been fasting for decades," said Benjamin Horne, director of cardiovascular and genetic epidemiology at Intermountain Healthcare in the US. In the study, researchers identified 205 patients who had tested positive for the virus between March 2020 and February 2021 -- before vaccines were widely available. Of these, 73 said they regularly fasted at least once a month. Researchers found that those who practised regular fasting had a lower rate of hospitalisation or death due to coronavirus. "Intermittent fasting was not associated with whether or not someone tested positive Covid-19, but it was associated with lower severity once patients had tested positive for it," Horne said. While Horne said that more research is needed to understand why intermittent fasting is associated with better Covid outcomes, he said it's most likely due to a host of ways that it affects the body. For example, fasting reduces inflammation, especially since hyperinflammation is associated with poor Covid-19 outcomes. In addition, after 12 to 14 hours of fasting, the body switches from using glucose in the blood to ketones, including linoleic acid. "There's a pocket on the surface of SARS-CoV-2 that linoleic acid fits into -- and can make the virus less able to attach to other cells," he said. Another potential benefit is that intermittent fasting promotes autophagy, which is "the body's recycling system that helps your body destroy and recycle damaged and infected cells", Horne added. Horne stressed that these results are from people who have been practising intermittent fasting for decades -- not weeks -- and that anyone who wants to consider the practice should consult their doctors first, especially if they are elderly, pregnant, or have conditions like diabetes, heart, or kidney disease. Researchers also stressed intermittent fasting shouldn't be seen as a substitute for Covid vaccination. (Agency) Read More► Reducing Air Pollution May Improve Brain Development in Children

अमेरिकन हार्ट एसोसिएशन (एएचए) के अनुसार, उचित नींद को अब आदर्श हृदय और मस्तिष्क स्वास्थ्य के लिए एक आवश्यक घटक माना जाता है। एसोसिएशन ने इस सप्ताह अपने कार्डियोवैस्कुलर स्वास्थ्य स्कोर में नींद की अवधि को जोड़ा - जिसे लाइफ एसेंशियल 8 के रूप में जाना जाता है जिसमें आहार, शारीरिक गतिविधि, निकोटीन एक्सपोजर, वजन, कोलेस्ट्रॉल, रक्त शर्करा और रक्तचाप शामिल हैं। हृदय रोग (सीवीडी) विश्व स्तर पर मृत्यु का प्रमुख कारण हैं। 2019 में सीवीडी से अनुमानित 17.9 मिलियन लोगों की मृत्यु हुई, जो सभी वैश्विक मौतों का 32 प्रतिशत है। विश्व स्वास्थ्य संगठन के अनुसार, इन मौतों में से 85 प्रतिशत दिल का दौरा और स्ट्रोक के कारण हुईं। सीवीडी से होने वाली मौतों के तीन चौथाई से अधिक निम्न और मध्यम आय वाले देशों में होते हैं। पिछले दो दशकों में विभिन्न शोध अध्ययनों से संकेत मिलता है कि सभी कार्डियोवैस्कुलर घटनाओं में से 80 प्रतिशत से अधिक स्वस्थ जीवनशैली और ज्ञात कार्डियोवैस्कुलर जोखिम कारकों के प्रबंधन से रोका जा सकता है। डोनाल्ड एम लॉयड जोन्स, अहा के अध्यक्ष ने कहा- "नींद की अवधि की नई मीट्रिक नवीनतम शोध निष्कर्षो को दर्शाती है, नींद समग्र स्वास्थ्य को प्रभावित करती है, और स्वस्थ नींद पैटर्न वाले लोग वजन, रक्तचाप या टाइप 2 मधुमेह के जोखिम जैसे स्वास्थ्य कारकों को अधिक प्रभावी ढंग से प्रबंधित करते हैं।" लॉयड-जोन्स, जो नॉर्थवेस्टर्न यूनिवर्सिटी के फीनबर्ग स्कूल ऑफ मेडिसिन में हार्ट रिसर्च के प्रोफेसर भी हैं ने कहा, "इसके अलावा, नींद को मापने के तरीकों में प्रगति, जैसे पहनने योग्य उपकरणों के साथ, अब लोगों को घर पर उनकी नींद की आदतों पर मजबूती से और नियमित रूप से निगरानी करने की क्षमता प्रदान करती है।" लॉयड-जोन्स ने कहा, "इष्टतम हृदय स्वास्थ्य का विचार महत्वपूर्ण है, क्योंकि यह लोगों को जीवन के किसी भी चरण में काम करने के लिए सकारात्मक लक्ष्य देता है।" लाइ़फ्स एसेंशियल 8 के प्रत्येक घटक, जिसका मूल्यांकन माई लाइफ चैक टूल द्वारा किया जाता है, में 0 से 100 अंकों तक की एक अद्यतन स्कोरिंग प्रणाली है। 0 से 100 अंक तक का समग्र हृदय स्वास्थ्य स्कोर 8 स्वास्थ्य उपायों में से प्रत्येक के स्कोर का औसत है। 50 से नीचे के समग्र स्कोर 'खराब' हृदय स्वास्थ्य को इंगित करते हैं, और 50-79 को 'मध्यम' हृदय स्वास्थ्य माना जाता है। सकुर्लेशन जर्नल में प्रकाशित एडवाइजरी के अनुसार, 80 और उससे अधिक अंक 'उच्च' हृदय स्वास्थ्य का संकेत देते हैं। लॉयड-जोन्स ने कहा, "लाइफ्स एसेंशियल 8 यह पहचानने की हमारी क्षमता में एक बड़ा कदम है कि कब कार्डियोवैस्कुलर स्वास्थ्य को संरक्षित किया जा सकता है और कब यह उप-इष्टतम है। इसे सभी लोगों के लिए और हर जीवन स्तर पर कार्डियोवैस्कुलर स्वास्थ्य में सुधार के प्रयासों को सक्रिय करना चाहिए।" (एजेंसी) यह भी पढ़े► काम की थकान से बचने के लिए इन उपायों की लें मदद

People with Type 2 diabetes, heart disease or stroke have double the risk of developing dementia, finds a study. Type 2 diabetes, heart diseases (ischemic heart disease, heart failure or atrial fibrillation) and stroke, so-called cardiometabolic diseases, are some of the main risk factors for dementia. The presence of more than one cardiometabolic disease accelerated the speed of cognitive decline and doubled the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia, expediting their development by two years. The magnitude of the risk was increased with a greater number of diseases, revealed the study published in the journal, Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association. Prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular disease could therefore be a strategy for reducing dementia risk, suggest researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. "In our study, the combinations of diabetes/heart disease and diabetes/heart disease/stroke were the most damaging to cognitive function," said Abigail Dove, doctoral student at the Aging Research Centre, at the Institute. However, individuals who had just one cardiometabolic disease did not display a significantly higher risk of dementia. "This is good news. The study shows that the risk only increases once someone has at least two of the diseases, so it's possible that dementia can be averted by preventing the development of a second disease," he added. Dementia develops slowly over decades. It first manifests as gradual cognitive decline that only shows up in cognitive tests. It then degenerates into cognitive impairment in which the individual notices their failing memory but can still look after themselves, and finally into full-blown dementia. The researchers extracted data on a total of 2,500 healthy, dementia-free individuals over the age of 60 living on Kungsholmen in Stockholm. The participants were then followed for 12 years with medical examinations and cognitive tests in order to monitor changes in cognitive ability and the development of dementia. The correlation between cardiometabolic diseases and the risk for dementia was stronger in the participants who were under 78 years old. "We should therefore focus on cardiometabolic disease prevention already in middle age, since the risk of cognitive failure and dementia appears higher among those who develop a cardiometabolic disease earlier in life," Dove said. (agency) Read More► Poor Sleep May Worsen Lung Disease More Than Smoking: Study

People infected with Covid-19 had a roughly 25 per cent increased risk of developing a psychiatric disorder in the four months following their infection, compared with those who had other types of respiratory tract infections, finds a study. Researchers at Oregon State University in the US found that Covid patients had a 3.8 per cent rate of developing a psychiatric disorder compared with 3.0 per cent for other respiratory tract infections. The 0.8 per cent difference amounts to about a 25 per cent increased relative risk. The team looked specifically at anxiety disorders and mood disorders and found a minor but significant increase in risk for anxiety disorders and no change in risk for mood disorders. The results speak to the need for both patients and health care providers to be more proactive when it comes to addressing mental health concerns following Covid infection, said Lauren Chan, doctoral student in nutrition in OSU's College of Public Health and Human Sciences. "For people that have had Covid, if you're feeling anxiety, if you're seeing some changes in how you're going through life from a psychiatric standpoint, it's totally appropriate for you to seek some help," Chan said. For the study, published in the journal World Psychiatry, researchers included data of 46,610 Covid-19 positive individuals and control patients who were diagnosed with a different respiratory tract infection so they could compare how Covid specifically affected patients' mental health. They looked at the rate of psychiatric diagnoses for two time periods: from 21 to 120 days after patients' Covid diagnosis, and from 120 to 365 days after diagnosis, limited to patients with no previous mental illness. When patients leave a doctor's office, sometimes care stops there, but Chan recommended that providers consider calling in two weeks for a check-in. "I don't want to say that every single person who gets Covid is going to have this type of problem, but if you start to have concern for yourself or a family member, it's not unheard of. You should definitely seek care for yourself or others around you," Chan said. Read More► Dogs Can Detect Covid-19 Faster Than Rapid Antigen Test: Study