SUBJ: 45% of cases of dementia cases are preventable!
SUBtitle: Ketamine may help the 280 million depressed people in the world
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SHORT NOTES
45% of cases of dementia cases are preventable! get education, get a hearing aid when you need one, keep LDL low, stay cheerful, avoid traumatic brain injury, stay physically active, avoid diabetes, don’t smoke, and keep blood pressure low. When old, keep friends, avoid air pollution, and keep good vision (AREDsII).
JAMA reports women are 35% less likely to die with a female surgeon, men 15%.
Helicobacter pylori, which causes ulcers, also causes stomach cancer.
The antidepressant ketamine is likely to help the 280 million people in the world suffering from depression, the leading cause of suicide.
Exercise interventions for Sarcopenia Obesity – aerobic exercise can reduce fat mass, resistance exercise can increase skeletal muscle mass and strength.
Two phenotypes of brain health -. One exhibited slower-than-expected aging with higher concentrations of specific fatty acids, antioxidants, and vitamins.
54% of caregivers are over the age of 50.
Costs of preventive cancer screening programs for lung, colorectal, breast, cervical, and prostate cancers in the US- $43B, 2.53% of USA national expenditures for health.
The incidence of syphilis in the USA has gone from less than 32,000 cases back in 2000 to more than 207,000 in 2022.
In November 2023, the number of USA overdose deaths approached 110,000. Among teens, opioid deaths were the third leading cause of death behind firearm deaths and vehicle collisions.
US Surgeon General declared that the nation was suffering from a loneliness health epidemic.
The first suicide by a robot was reported in Gumi City, South Korea.
LONG NOTES:
Economist 8/10 pg 63-There are ways to prevent half of dementia cases! 3 things raise your risk: getting old, being female, and ancestors. But 45% of cases are preventable, according to a new Lancet study. When young, get education. Middle age, get a hearing aid when you need one, keep LDL low, stay cheerful, avoid traumatic brain injury, stay physically active, avoid diabetes, don’t smoke, and keep blood pressure low. When old, keep friends, avoid air pollution, and keep good vision (AREDsII).
Pg 64-Women doctors are better for patient! JAMA reports women are 35% less likely to die with a female surgeon, men 15%. Complications from surgery are 15% lower for women with a female surgeon. (Although this may be because female doctors are younger on average, therefore more recently trained.)
Science 9 Aug pg 585-Helicobacter pylori, which causes ulcers, also causes stomach cancer. Gastric cancer causes 7.7% of all cancer deaths. Being treated to remove H. pylori reduces risk 19%. The bismuth part of the peptobismol actually kills the bacteria. However, do not go to the drugstore and purchase a bottle of Pepto-Bismol, expecting this alone to cure the infection. H. pylori is buried deep in the stomach mucous, so it is difficult to get rid of this infection.
Pg 608 – The antidepressant ketamine blocks neuroreceptors in hyperactive brain regions and is likely to help the 280 million people in the world suffering from depression, the leading cause of suicide. Although traditional antidepressants (which act on monoamine neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine) can offer relief, they often take several weeks to become effective and many patients do not achieve sustained remission. Ketamine emerged as a revolutionary antidepressant owing to its rapid onset and sustained efficacy. Although ketamine is a noncompetitive blocker (antagonist) of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR), the mechanisms by which it exerts its antidepressant effects remain unclear. On page 621 of this issue, Chen et al. (2) report that ketamine locks NMDARs in an inactive state, particularly in hyperactive neurons of the lateral habenula (LHb), blocking neuronal bursting activity and alleviating depressive symptoms in mice.
Research Progress on the Effect and Mechanism of Exercise Intervention on Sarcopenia Obesity. With the increasingly severe situation of obesity and population aging, there is growing concern about sarcopenia obesity (SO). SO refers to the coexistence of obesity and sarcopenia, which imposes a heavier burden on individuals and society compared to obesity or sarcopenia alone. Regarding exercise interventions for SO, aerobic exercise can reduce fat mass, resistance exercise can increase skeletal muscle mass and strength, and combined exercise can achieve both, making it the optimal intervention for SO.
Investigating nutrient biomarkers of healthy brain aging: a multimodal brain imaging study. The findings of this study revealed distinct patterns of aging, categorized into two phenotypes of brain health based on hierarchical clustering. One phenotype demonstrated an accelerated rate of aging, while the other exhibited slower-than-expected aging. A t-test analysis of dietary biomarkers that distinguished these phenotypes revealed a nutrient profile with higher concentrations of specific fatty acids, antioxidants, and vitamins. Study participants with this nutrient profile demonstrated better cognitive scores and delayed brain aging Notably, participant characteristics such as demographics, fitness levels, and anthropometrics did not account for the observed differences in brain aging. Therefore, the nutrient pattern identified by the present study motivates the design of neuroscience-guided dietary interventions to promote healthy brain aging.
54% of caregivers are over the age of 50.
From Kevin: A recent article in the Annals of Internal Medicine reported on an analysis of healthcare expenditures in 2021 on the costs of preventive cancer screening programs for five different cancers in the USA. The five cancers of focus were lung, colorectal, breast, cervical, and prostate cancers. While $43B seems like a lot – and, it is – in the scope of investments it represents only about 2.53% of USA national expenditures for health care (based on an estimated $1.7T overall investment).
The incidence of syphilis in the USA has gone from less than 32,000 cases back in 2000 to more than 207,000 in 2022 according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It translates to 62 cases per 100,000 people and has particularly become a problem among pregnant women and babies. The problem is that in many cases syphilis is asymptomatic.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced that for the 12 months ending in November 2023, the number of USA overdose deaths approached 110,000 or – to put it in context – a 54.2% increase over the 12 months ending in November 2019. Furthermore, almost 70% of the deaths were related to fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. In addition, the overdose death rate was highest among the 35 – 64 year-old age group with Black and Native American men holding the highest level of deaths with 60 per 100,000. Among teens (years 14 – 18), opioid deaths were the third leading cause of death behind firearm deaths and vehicle collisions.
Last year, the US Surgeon General declared that the nation was suffering from a loneliness health epidemic. According to a recent poll by Cigna, the number of US adults who described call themselves as lonely increased from 46% (2017) to 58% (2018). So, why is this happening? It appears to be related to the recent changes we’ve had in work environments since the global pandemic started in 2020. For example, more than 40% of fully remote workers polled by Bright Horizons indicated that they often go days without leaving the house.
The first suicide by a robot was reported in Gumi City, South Korea recently when an “administrative officer robot” – which was evidently overworked – threw itself down a flight of stairs to a fatal demise after “circling in one spot as if something was there.”
