“One exciting finding of this study is that as people’s fitness improved, their risk of Alzheimer’s disease decreased—it was not an all-or-nothing proposition,” said study author Edward Zamrini, MD, of the Washington VA Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and a member of the American Academy of Neurology. “So people can work toward making incremental changes and improvements in their physical fitness and hopefully that will be associated with a related decrease in their risk of Alzheimer’s years later.”
The study involved 649,605 military veterans in the Veterans Health Administration database with an average age of 61 who were followed for an average of nine years. They did not have Alzheimer’s disease at the start of the study.
Researchers determined participants’ cardiorespiratory fitness. Cardiorespiratory fitness is a measure of how well your body transports oxygen to your muscles, and how well your muscles are able to absorb oxygen during exercise.
The participants were divided into five groups, from least fit to most fit. Fitness levels were determined by how well participants did on a treadmill test. This test measures exercise capacity, the highest amount of physical exertion a person can sustain. For people who are middle-aged and older, the highest level of fitness can be achieved by walking briskly most days of the week, for two and a half hours or more per week.
The group with the lowest level of fitness developed Alzheimer’s at a rate of 9.5 cases per 1,000 person-years, compared to 6.4 cases per 1,000 person-years for the most fit group. Person-years take into account the number of people in a study as well as the amount of time spent in the study. The case rate decreased as the level of fitness increased, with a rate of 8.5 for the second least fit group, 7.4 for the middle group and 7.2 for the second most fit group.
When researchers adjusted for other factors that could affect risk of Alzheimer’s disease, they found that the people in the most fit group were 33% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those in the least fit group. The second most fit group was 26% less likely to develop the disease, while the middle group was 20% less likely and those in the second least fit group were 13% less likely to develop the disease than those in the least fit group.
Release date: 27 February 2022
Source: American Academy of Neurology
Milk may exacerbate MS symptoms
Study by the University of Bonn: Cow’s milk protein triggers autoimmune response in mice that damages neurons
Multiple sclerosis sufferers often complain of more severe disease symptoms after consuming dairy products. Researchers at the Universities of Bonn and Erlangen-Nuremberg have now found a possible cause for this. According to the study, a protein in cow’s milk can trigger inflammation that targets the “insulating layer” around nerve cells. The study was able to demonstrate this link in mice, but also found evidence of a similar mechanism in humans. The researchers therefore recommend that certain groups of sufferers avoid dairy products. The study has now been published in the journal PNAS(Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences).
Release date: 01 March 2022
Source: University of Bonn
Bark of Neem Tree May Protect Against Coronavirus Variants
Extract from the bark of the Neem tree may help treat and reduce the spread of coronavirus, according to a new study led by scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata.
The study, reported recently in the journal Virology, shows that components of Neem bark may target a wide range of viral proteins, suggesting its potential as an antiviral agent against emerging variants of coronaviruses (including SARS-CoV-2).
The Neem tree, indigenous to India, has been used for thousands of years for its anti-parasitic, anti-bacterial and antiviral properties. The bark extract has helped treat malaria, stomach and intestinal ulcers, skin diseases and many other diseases.
Release date: 28 February 2022
Source: University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
PHYSICAL FITNESS LINKED TO LOWER RISK OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE
“One exciting finding of this study is that as people’s fitness improved, their risk of Alzheimer’s disease decreased—it was not an all-or-nothing proposition,” said study author Edward Zamrini, MD, of the Washington VA Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and a member of the American Academy of Neurology. “So people can work toward making incremental changes and improvements in their physical fitness and hopefully that will be associated with a related decrease in their risk of Alzheimer’s years later.”
The study involved 649,605 military veterans in the Veterans Health Administration database with an average age of 61 who were followed for an average of nine years. They did not have Alzheimer’s disease at the start of the study.
Researchers determined participants’ cardiorespiratory fitness. Cardiorespiratory fitness is a measure of how well your body transports oxygen to your muscles, and how well your muscles are able to absorb oxygen during exercise.
The participants were divided into five groups, from least fit to most fit. Fitness levels were determined by how well participants did on a treadmill test. This test measures exercise capacity, the highest amount of physical exertion a person can sustain. For people who are middle-aged and older, the highest level of fitness can be achieved by walking briskly most days of the week, for two and a half hours or more per week.
The group with the lowest level of fitness developed Alzheimer’s at a rate of 9.5 cases per 1,000 person-years, compared to 6.4 cases per 1,000 person-years for the most fit group. Person-years take into account the number of people in a study as well as the amount of time spent in the study. The case rate decreased as the level of fitness increased, with a rate of 8.5 for the second least fit group, 7.4 for the middle group and 7.2 for the second most fit group.
When researchers adjusted for other factors that could affect risk of Alzheimer’s disease, they found that the people in the most fit group were 33% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those in the least fit group. The second most fit group was 26% less likely to develop the disease, while the middle group was 20% less likely and those in the second least fit group were 13% less likely to develop the disease than those in the least fit group.
Release date: 27 February 2022
Source: American Academy of Neurology
Low-meat and meat-free diets associated with lower overall cancer risk
Eating meat five times or less per week is associated with a lower overall cancer risk, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Medicine.
Cody Watling and colleagues from the University of Oxford, UK investigated the relationship between diet and cancer risk by analysing data collected from 472,377 British adults who were recruited to the UK Biobank between 2006 and 2010. Participants, who were aged between 40 and 70 years, reported how frequently they ate meat and fish and the researchers calculated the incidence of new cancers that developed over an average period of 11 years using health records. They accounted for diabetes status and sociodemographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle factors in their analyses. 247,571 (52%) of participants ate meat more than five times per week, 205,382 (44%) of participants ate meat five or less times per week, 10,696 (2%) ate fish but not meat, and 8,685 (2%) were vegetarian or vegan. 54,961 participants (12%) developed cancer during the study period.
The researchers found that the overall cancer risk was 2% lower among those who ate meat five times or less per week, 10% lower among those who ate fish but not meat, and 14% lower among vegetarians and vegans, compared to those who ate meat more than five times per week. When comparing the incidence of specific cancers with participants’ diet, the authors found that those who ate meat five times or less per week had a 9% lower risk of colorectal cancer, compared to those who ate meat more than five times per week. They also found that the risk of prostate cancer was 20% lower among men who ate fish but not meat and 31% lower among men who followed a vegetarian diet, compared to those who ate meat more than five times per week. Post-menopausal women who followed a vegetarian diet had an 18% lower risk of breast cancer than those who ate meat more than five times per week. However, the findings suggest that this was due to vegetarian women tending to have a lower body mass index (BMI) than women who ate meat.
Release date: 24 February 2022
Source: BMC (BioMed Central)
A High-Fiber Diet May Reduce Risk of Dementia
We’re always hearing that we should eat more fiber. It’s known to be vitally important for a healthy digestive system and also has cardiovascular benefits like reduced cholesterol. Now, evidence is emerging that fiber is also important for a healthy brain. In a new study published this month in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience, researchers in Japan have shown that a high-fiber diet is associated with a reduced risk of developing dementia.
“Dementia is a devastating disease that usually requires long-term care,” says lead author of the study Professor Kazumasa Yamagishi. “We were interested in some recent research which suggested that dietary fiber may play a preventative role. We investigated this using data that were collected from thousands of adults in Japan for a large study that started in the 1980s.”
Participants completed surveys that assessed their dietary intake between 1985 and 1999. They were generally healthy and aged between 40 and 64 years. They were then followed up from 1999 until 2020, and it was noted whether they developed dementia that required care.
The researchers split the data, from a total of 3739 adults, into four groups according to the amount of fiber in their diets. They found that the groups who ate higher levels of fiber had a lower risk of developing dementia.
The team also examined whether there were differences for the two main types of fiber: soluble and insoluble fibers. Soluble fibers, found in foods such as oats and legumes, are important for the beneficial bacteria that live in the gut as well as providing other health benefits. Insoluble fibers, found in whole grains, vegetables, and some other foods, are known to be important for bowel health. The researchers found that the link between fiber intake and dementia was more pronounced for soluble fibers.
The team has some ideas as to what might underlie the link between dietary fiber and the risk of dementia.
Release date: 10 February 2022
Source: University of Tsukuba
Analysis offers new insights on the placebo effect and how to harness its therapeutic potential
A network of brain regions activated by the placebo effect overlaps with several regions targeted by brain-stimulation therapy for depression, according to a new analysis by a team that included several researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), who collaborated with colleagues at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre at the University of Toronto. The findings of this study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, will aid in understanding the neurobiology of placebo effects and could influence how the results of clinical trials of brain stimulation are interpreted. This work may also offer insights on how to harness placebo effects for the treatment of a variety of conditions.
The placebo effect occurs when a patient’s symptoms improve because he or she expects a therapy to help (due to a variety of factors), but not from the specific effects of the treatment itself. Recent research indicates that there is a neurological basis for the placebo effect, with imaging studies identifying a pattern of changes that happen in certain brain regions when a person experiences this phenomenon.
The use of brain-stimulation techniques for patients with depression that doesn’t respond adequately to medication or psychotherapy has gained wider use in recent years. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive treatment in which a clinician applies a coil to the patient’s head and delivers electromagnetic pulses to the brain. The effect of TMS on brain activity has been established over the last three decades in animal and human research studies, with several TMS devices approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treating depression. What’s more, there’s growing research on the use of deep brain stimulation (DBS, which requires an implanted device) for hard-to-treat depression, too.
The senior author of the Molecular Psychiatry paper, Emiliano Santarnecchi, PhD, director of the Precision Neuroscience & Neuromodulation Program at the Gordon Center for Medical Imaging at MGH, saw studies of brain stimulation as a unique opportunity to learn more about the neurobiology of the placebo effect. Santarnecchi and his co-investigators conducted a meta-analysis and review of neuroimaging studies involving healthy subjects and patients to create a “map” of brain regions activated by the placebo effect. They also analyzed studies of people treated with TMS and DBS for depression to identify brain regions targeted by the therapies. The team found that several sites in the brain that are activated by the placebo effect overlap with brain regions targeted by TMS and DBS.
Release date: 22 February 2022
Source: Massachusetts General Hospital
One in three young people say they felt happier during lockdown
One in three young people say their mental health and wellbeing improved during COVID-19 lockdown measures, with potential contributing factors including feeling less lonely, avoiding bullying and getting more sleep and exercise, according to researchers at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford.
As the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world, many countries imposed strict lockdown measures, with workplaces and businesses closing and people forced to remain at home. Measures also included school closures, with exceptions for young people whose parents were classified as essential workers and those considered ‘vulnerable’, for example children under the care of social services and those in families or social situations deemed by schools to be of concern.
Several studies have reported that the lockdown had a negative impact on the mental health and wellbeing of young people, but this effect has not been uniformly reported, with a number of studies suggesting that some young people may have benefited from lockdown.
Reseachers explored this issue using the OxWell Student Survey, a large, school-based survey of students aged eight to 18 years living in England. More than 17,000 students took part in the June/July 2020 survey, during the tail end of the first national lockdown, answering questions about their experiences of the pandemic, school, home life, and relationships, among others. The results of their research have been published in European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Release date: 22 February 2022
Source: University of Cambridge
Are pandemic-related stressors impacting uninfected people’s brain health?
Key Takeaways:
New research indicates that for some individuals—even those who have steered clear of becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2—societal and lifestyle disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic may have triggered inflammation in the brain that can affect mental health. The study, which was conducted by a team led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), is published in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.
Beyond causing a staggering number of infections and deaths, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant social and economic disruptions that have impacted the lives of a large swath of the world’s population in multiple ways. Also, since the start of the pandemic, the severity and prevalence of symptoms of psychological distress, fatigue, brain fog, and other conditions have increased considerably in the United States, including among people not infected with SARS-CoV-2.
To obtain a better understanding of the effects of the pandemic on brain and mental health, researchers analyzed brain imaging data, conducted behavioral tests, and collected blood samples from multiple uninfected volunteers—57 before and 15 after lockdown/stay-at-home measures were implemented to limit the pandemic’s spread.
Release date: 22 February 2022
Source: Massachusetts General Hospital
Positive parenting can reduce the risk that children develop obesity
New research from Penn State found that children with positive, early interactions with their care givers — characterized by warmth, responsiveness, and a stimulating home environment — were at reduced risk of childhood obesity.
“A lot of the discussion around childhood obesity and other health risks focuses on identifying and studying the exposure to risk,” said Brandi Rollins, assistant research professor of biobehavioral health. “We took a strength-based approach in our analysis. We found that a supportive family and environment early in a child’s life may outweigh some of the cumulative risk factors that children can face.”
The study, “Family Psychosocial Assets, Child Behavioral Regulation, and Obesity,” recently appeared in the journal Pediatrics. In the article, Rollins and Lori Francis, associate professor of biobehavioral health, analyzed data from over 1,000 mother-child pairs and found that children’s early exposures to family psychosocial assets — including a quality home environment, emotional warmth from the mother, and a child’s ability to self-regulate — reduced the risk of developing childhood obesity.
Encouragingly, these factors were protective even when children faced familial risks for obesity, including poverty, maternal depression, or residence in a single-parent home.
Release date: 21 February 2022
Source: Penn State
Strengthens Case That Vitamins Cannot Treat COVID-19
A new review of COVID-19 hospitalization data by researchers at The University of Toledo has found that taking immune-boosting supplements such as vitamin C , vitamin D and zinc do not lessen your chance of dying from COVID-19.
Early in the pandemic, healthcare providers tried a variety of micronutrients as potential therapies for the new illness. More recently, supplements have been promoted by some as an alternative to the safe and proven vaccines.
Researchers reviewed 26 peer-reviewed studies from around the globe that included more than 5,600 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Their analysis found no reduction in mortality for those being treated with vitamin D, vitamin C or zinc compared to patients who did not receive one of those three supplements.
Their analysis did find that treatment with vitamin D may be associated with lower rates of intubation and shorter hospital stays, but the researchers say more rigorous study is needed to validate that finding.
Vitamin C and zinc were not associated with shorter hospital stays or lowering the chance a patient would be put on a ventilator.
While the study predominately looked at patients who were already sick and hospitalized with COVID-19 when given the supplements, researchers did analyze a smaller subset of individuals who had been taking vitamin D prior to contracting the virus. They found no significant difference in the mortality rate of that population either.
The paper is published in the journal Clinical Nutrition ESPEN.
Release date: 15 February 2022
Source: University of Toledo