SUBJ: Covid Can Raise the Risk of Heart Problems for Years

SUBtitle: A mechanism for why durable weight loss is so difficult

“For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.”― Thich Nhat Hanh

I am thankful for how much and rapid progress is being made to keep us healthy.  But we must keep up, as most doctors do not have the time.

Links for new readers:  1) One Day in Roc’s Life: 46 resolutions to prolong health span   2) Recent important nutrition news.  3) A contribution to this newsletter is healthier and less expensive than your multivitamin. Donation link:Nutrition Newsletter

SHORT NOTES:

1..Covid Can Raise the Risk of Heart Problems for Years.

2..A mechanism for why durable weight loss is so difficult.

3..Linus Pauling Inst. meeting – Dec 12, 1 pm central- bone, brain, and immune health .

4..Immune cell treatment that fights cancer is now taking aim at autoimmune disease.

5..New methods of testing that do not require testing in animals.

6..A new method for capturing CO2 from smoke stacks.

7..Brush and floss.  Oral bacteria increase risk of head and neck cancer.

8..Vaccine for all Covid-19 administered as a nasal spray.

9..Treating prostate cancer with two doses of high-dose external beam radiation.

10..Frontiers of Medical Research: Women’s Health!

11..Only a third of clinical trial participants are women.

12..Women are diagnosed with health conditions much later than men.

13..Doctors ignore the discomfort of inserting an intrauterine device.

14..50% of women are projected to be obese by 2030.

15..GLP-1 RAs (like Ozempic and Munjaro) are effective at weight loss.

16..Coronary microvascular dysfunction is the most prevalent. 60-70% are women.

17..Preeclampsia is a leading cause of maternal mordibity and mortality.

18..Vitamin D and folic acid supplements may reduce preeclampsia.

19..Vitamin C intake is associated with lower blood pressure and less stroke damage.

20..1 in 5 women in the US experience a mental health condition annually.

21..The healthy vaginal microbiome is dominated by Lactobacillus species (drink kefir or eat yogurt daily.

22..Keys to patients whose skin appeared more youthful.

23..300,000 cases of breast cancer annually in US- survival exceeds 90%.

24..The first FDA approved pill for Crohn’s disease.

25..In a hospital or nursing home, wash with soap and water at least 15 seconds-hand sanitizers don’t kill spores of C. diff!

26..Beware dangerous claims of politicians.  Vaccines you need: covid every autumn, RSV one dose one time, Singles two dose series one time Pneumococcal one time, Tdap/booster every ten years

27..Future employees will work 3.5 days a week and live to 100 years old.

28..A pain reliever for arthritis: Celebrex.

29..A law requiring all stores to allow access to bathrooms when urgently needed.

30..It is important not to eat much red meat, as it contributes to inflammation.

31..Selenium in water reduces danger of mercury in fish.

32..Methylation state of blood cells predicts age and disease.

33..Procyanidin C1 (PCC1) – a senolytic/senomorphic compound with great benefits.

34..Whether blue zones exist where people have greater longevity is controversial.

35..The dangers of too much iron from supplements and red meat.

36..Good reason to filter your tap water- Chemical disinfection of public water.

37..Serviceberry does not assign a monetary value to nature’s gifts which contrasts with capitalism that values profit over communal well-being.

38..How sleep improves cognition, why we need enough sleep to think clearly.

39..How the antiobesity drug semaglutide works effectively in the brain.

LONG NOTES:

Covid Can Raise the Risk of Heart Problems for Years. This article reviews a large US study that  found the more times someone gets infected by COVID variants, and the more severe their symptoms, the higher their risk of developing chronic heart disease.

 

A mechanism for why durable weight loss is so difficult: epigenetic memory of fat cells.  Adipose tissue retains an epigenetic memory

of obesity after weight loss – Nature.

 

Linus Pauling Institute meeting – December 12th at 11 AM Pacific, we’ll unveil our latest resources on bone, brain, and immune health and discuss how this information can support your well-being. Please register here to reserve your spot.

Science 15 Nov pg 719-Immune cell treatment that fights cancer is now taking aim at autoimmune disease.  First patient cured of Lupus USING CAR-T cells.  Pg 724 – New methods of testing that do not require testing in animals. Pg 727 – A new method for capturing CO2 from smoke stackspg 742. Another reason to brush and floss.  Oral bacteria increase risk of head and neck cancer.

 

Tel Aviv University scientists have developed a low-cost vaccine for all Covid-19 variants that is administered as a nasal spray and can be stored at room temperature.

 

Doctors at Israel’s Beilinson Hospital have demonstrated the effectiveness of treating prostate cancer with two doses of high-dose external beam radiation instead of the current five doses. Benefits include less physical and emotional toll, less side effects, and shorter wait times.

 

Frontiers of Medical Research: Women’s Health! Pg 2-Only a third of clinical trial participants are women.  Women are diagnosed with health conditions much later than men.  Doctors ignore the discomfort of inserting an intrauterine device. Pg 4 Obesity and cardiovascular risk-50% of women are projected to be obese by 2030. GLP-1 RAs (like Ozempic and Munjaro) are effective at weight loss with anti-inflammatory properties and marked reduction in heart disease.  Pg. 6-Coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) is different than coronary artery disease (CAD).  However,  CMD is the most prevalent. 60-70% are women.  Delayed diagnosis has high risks.  Inform your doctor to be aware of CMD.  Symptoms are similar to CAD, including angina at rest or with physical or emotional stress, exertional intolerance, and dyspnea (difficulty breathing). Pg 8 – Preeclampsia is a leading cause of maternal mordibity and mortality. vitamin supplementation may be beneficial in the prevention of preeclampsia:

  • Vitamin D supplementation in early pregnancy may lower the risk of preeclampsia.
  • Multivitamin supplementation containing folic acid in the second trimester may be associated with reduced risk of preeclampsia.

Vitamin C and vitamin E are both antioxidants that may help stabilize reactive free radicals. Observational studies have shown that increased vitamin C intake is associated with lower blood pressure.  Pg 10- 1 in 5 women in the US experience a mental health condition annually: eating, anxiety and depression, substance use, and menopause. Pg 15 – Microbiome – The healthy vaginal microbiome is dominated by Lactobacillus species (drink kefir or eat yogurt daily). Their absence is associated with multiple adverse outcomes. Pg. 17-Patients whose skin appeared more youthful showed enrichment in genes for DNA repair, oxidative stress response, cell growth/survival, mitochondrial function, epidermal barrier function, and dermal matrix production pathways (note role of twice daily vitamin C for relieving many of these). Pg. 19 – 300,000 cases of breast cancer annually in US. Current survival exceeds 90%, because of early detection and better treatment.

 

AARP magazine Oct/Nov – The first FDA approved pill for Crohn’s disease, Ronvoq, reduces inflammation. 39 to 50% of patients who had not responded to other therapies went into remission in 12 weeks. Pg 52-Use antibiotics only when necessary. When in a hospital or nursing home, wash with soap and water at least 15 seconds-hand sanitizers don’t kill spores of C. diff!  pg. 54-Vaccines: Beware dangerous claims of politicians.  Vaccines you need: covid every autumn, RSV one dose one time, Singles two dose series one time Pneumococcal one time, Tdap/booster every ten years

 

Jamie Dimon says the next generation of employees will work 3.5 days a week and live to 100 years old.

 

A pain reliever for arthritis: https://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-16849/celebrex-oral/details

 

A law in many states requiring all stores to allow access to bathrooms when urgently needed: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323078

It is important not to eat much red meat, as it contributes to inflammation. But many worry about the mercury (Hg) in fish.  A colleague just sent me an article which explains that as long as there is enough selenium (Se) in the water where the fish live, that counteracts the Hg and the fish is safe to eat.  That is true in 90% or more to the locations of fish, so we can relax and eat lots of anti-inflammatory fish full of omega-3 fatty acids.

“Transposable element 5mC methylation state of blood cells
predicts age and disease” Transposable elements (TEs) are DNA sequences that expand selfishly in the genome, possibly causing severe cellular damage. While normally
silenced, TEs have been shown to activate during aging. DNA 5-methylcytosine (5mC)
is one of the main epigenetic modifications by which TEs are silenced and has been used to train highly accurate age predictors. Yet, one common criticism of such predictors is that they lack interpretability. In this study, we investigate the changes in TE 5mC methylation that occur during aging in human blood using published methylation array data.

 

Procyanidin C1 (PCC1) – a senolytic/senomorphic compound recently published in Nature Metabolism and PNAS, etc.  Our unpublished data shows it’s more potent than D+Q with excellent safety profile. Works both as senomorphic (reducing SASP) and senolytic, with strong synergy when combined with NAD boosters. Happy to provide PCC1 at production cost for research use. Would love to get your feedback and testing data in return. Our protocol is typically 150mg/day for 3-5 days monthly — and a single month makes a big difference. Early human data showing good reduction in inflammatory markers (IL-8, IL-12, TNFα and more) plus improved energy levels and mood reported by participants, we’re increasing the cohort of 50-75yo and getting more biomarkers.

 

Science 22 Nov – Pg 840 – Whether blue zones exist where people have greater longevity is controversial, and may just be a marketing scheme Dan Buettner is using to make money.  Pg 848-Ferroptosis- The dangers of too much iron from supplements and red meat. Recent discoveries involving cell death and metabolism are beginning to elucidate mechanisms involved in intractable diseases. Ferroptosis is a form of cell death driven by irondependent damage to lipids, the building blocks of cellular membranes. Specifically, lipids that contain polyunsaturated fatty acids readily undergo oxidation, causing damage to membranes. If not eliminated by intracellular repair mechanisms, such as the enzyme glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), high concentrations of oxidized lipids can lead to membrane rupture and ultimately to cell death. Ferroptosis is regulated by multiple cellular processes, including iron regulation, lipid metabolism, and antioxidant defense systems. It has been implicated in a range of pathologies, including neurodegeneration, cancer, and organ injury. These and other conditions bearing signatures of ferroptosis—including iron accumulation, an increase in reactive oxygen species, and lipid oxidation—may be amenable to ferroptosis-modulating treatments. Pg 851-The chloramine dilemma (a good reason to filter your tap water)- Chemical disinfection of public water supplies is one of the 20th century’s greatest public health achievements. In industrialized countries, serious waterborne illness, once a common way to die, is now rare. Inorganic chloramines (primarily NH2Cl and NHCl2) are chlorine-based disinfectants widely used in the US to disinfect water. This group of chemical compounds has weaker disinfection capability than chlorine (1) but produces lower concentrations of harmful halogenated disinfection by-products (2). However, chloramines, unlike chlorine, spontaneously decompose over timescales relevant to water distribution systems. For decades, one of the chloramine decomposition products remained uncharacterized (3), referred to simply as an “unidentified product” that had eluded the best efforts of chemists until now. On page 882 of this issue, Fairey et al. (4) report that the mysterious product of chloramine decomposition is chloronitramide anion, a surprisingly stable and potentially toxic compound. Pg 858-Nature’s gift economies.  An Indigenous botanist finds lessons in gratitude in the serviceberry. The plants’ enduring presence underscores their cultural and historical importance to the community’s gift economy, which does not assign a monetary value to nature’s gifts but instead emphasizes the ability of such gifts to strengthen social bonds and community ties. This contrasts with a market economy, which is the foundation of capitalism and values profit over communal well-being when assigning prices to goods and services. pg 862 – How sleep improves cognition, why we need enough sleep to think clearly.  Pg 863-Kanatani et al. developed a brain tissue–clearing method called TRISCO that enables three-dimensional in situ hybridization on the whole brain, allowing the visualization of specific mRNAs in the complete brain at cellular resolution. Using TRISCO, the authors monitored the expression of immediate early genes after administration of the antiobesity drug semaglutide in mice, finding increased expression in brain regions associated with obesity.