Health & Fitness

Roughly 17 million Americans received the Johnson & Johnson Covid vaccine, only to be told later that it was the least protective of the options available in the United States. But new data suggest that the vaccine is now preventing infections, hospitalizations and deaths at least as well as the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. The reasons aren’t clear, and not all experts are convinced that the vaccine has vindicated itself. But the accumulating data nonetheless offer considerable reassurance to recipients of the vaccine and, if confirmed, have broad implications for its deployment in parts of the world. In Africa, for example, distribution of a single-dose vaccine that can be refrigerated for months is by far the most practical option. Johnson & Johnson has at least tempor...

Roughly 17 million Americans received the Johnson & Johnson Covid vaccine, only to be told later that it was the least protective of the options available in the United States. But new data suggest that the vaccine is now preventing infections, hospitalizations and deaths at least as well as the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines. The reasons aren’t clear, and not all experts are convinced that the vaccine has vindicated itself. But the accumulating data nonetheless offer considerable reassurance to recipients of the vaccine and, if confirmed, have broad implications for its deployment in parts of the world. In Africa, for example, distribution of a single-dose vaccine that can be refrigerated for months is by far the most practical option. Johnson & Johnson has at least tempor...

“We seem to have lost perspective as to what the major goal of vaccines is and where they are going to yield the greatest public health benefit,” says Shabir Madhi, a prominent vaccine researcher at South Africa’s University of Witwatersrand. Specifically, Madhi argues that governments in countries that still have low vaccination rates should shift their attention to vaccinating those who are most vulnerable to severe disease from the coronavirus. That means people age 50 and above or those with health conditions that put them at particular risk. The aim, says Madhi, should be to get 90% or more of people in this category vaccinated. Unfortunately, he says, that effort is being hampered by a simultaneous push to meet a different goal – vaccinating 70% of all adults regardless of ag...

Ever since the COVID-19 vaccines were first made available, open and honest discussion about them, their efficacy, and their potential side effects has been subject to big-tech censorship—particularly regarding the mRNA vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna. But maybe now we can finally have open discourse because a new peer-reviewed study from the CDC found significant instances of death and severe side effects from the mRNA vaccines. While data shows that “most reported adverse events were mild and short in duration,” according to the study, which was published in the UK-based medical journal The Lancet, 6.6% of all side effects were categorized as “serious,” and resulted in “inpatient hospitalisation, prolongation of hospitalisation, permanent disability, life-threatening illness...

Close the Blinds During Sleep To Protect Your Health Exposure to artificial light at night during sleep is common Sleeping in a moderately light room increases risk for heart disease and diabetes Your heart rate rises, and body can’t rest properly in light bedroom at night Close the blinds, draw the curtains and turn off all the lights before bed. Exposure to even moderate ambient lighting during nighttime sleep, compared to sleeping in a dimly lit room, harms your cardiovascular function during sleep and increases your insulin resistance the following morning, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study. “The results from this study demonstrate that just a single night of exposure to moderate room lighting during sleep can impair glucose and cardiovascular regulation, which are ...

A new report estimates 6.5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease and more than 1 in 10 older adults have early stage memory or cognitive problems.  The Alzheimer’s Association report released Tuesday said 12-18% of adults 60 and over have “mild cognitive impairment,” a category of memory loss or cognitive problems that may be a precursor to dementia or caused by other medical or behavioral issues.  Distinguishing dementia from other medical causes of memory or cognitive problems remains difficult, experts say, but perhaps more important than ever with one controversial new Alzheimer's drug available and others in late-stage clinical trials.  Many doctors and patients "think that it might be normal aging, and that’s something that needs to be addressed,” said Maria Carrillo, chief sci...

Young “influencers” are coloring their tongues blue as they inform their audiences of the benefits of methylene blue, which is often used to clean fish tanks. In response, some doctors are either issuing warnings that ingesting the substance imperils one’s health or mocking the idea of ingesting the substance. As The New York Post reports, Washington-state based podcaster Ben Greenfield, American endurance runner Jordan Hasay, and makeup artist Luba Cohen have all extolled the virtues of ingesting the substance. Greenfield told his audience that methylene blue was one of his “favorite nootropics due to its wide-ranging benefits that include: enhanced mitochondrial function, provides neuroprotective effects against brain inflammation, increased memory and cognitive function, enhance the ef...

A new study shows sleeping with a dim light raised the blood sugar and heart rate of healthy young people. (l i g h t p o e t, Shutterstock) Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes ATLANTA — Sleeping for only one night with a dim light, such as a TV set with the sound off, raised the blood sugar and heart rate of healthy young people participating in a sleep lab experiment, a new study found. The dim light entered the eyelids and disrupted sleep despite the fact that participants slept with their eyes closed, said study author Dr. Phyllis Zee, director of the Center for Circadian and Sleep Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Heart ...

Visceral fat is a hidden health issue not talked about enough and most people don't even realize they have it. Visceral fat isn't something that you can see or touch because it's located deep in your abdomen. It wraps around your vital organs causing serious health problems like stroke, type 2 diabetes, some cancers and more. Anyone can have visceral fat, even if you're thin, and it's usually caused by several factors like stress, lack of sleep, poor diet and not enough exercise. Eat This, Not That! Health spoke with experts who explain who to get rid of visceral fat and how to tell if you have it. Read on—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss these Sure Signs You've Already Had COVID. ShutterstockElizabeth M. Ward, MS, RD an...

Dietary supplements are causing thousands of people to end up in the ER every year. Because the FDA classes supplements as food rather than medicine, it can be difficult to know what's safe and what isn't. "This has huge consequences for the whole category of dietary supplements—from vitamins, minerals, probiotics and all sorts of new ingredients," says Pieter Cohen, MD, internist at Cambridge Health Alliance and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "What it means is that the manufacturer can introduce anything into the market that they believe is safe. The FDA's job is to identify the products that are causing harm after they've been on the market and remove them from store shelves… Because the FDA isn't vetting these products before the...