Prevention Is Better Than Cure

Preventative healthcare is the theme this week:

New year, new risks

The start of a new year is a great time to update adult vaccinations, including the flu shot, any COVID-19 boosters, and vaccines for pneumonia, shingles, and tetanus—when was your last booster, after all? Vaccination recommendations vary by age and health conditions, so do check what’s appropriate in your case. Key vaccines include the pneumonia vaccine for those 65 and older, the shingles vaccine for adults over 50, and the Tdap vaccine every 10 years to protect against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough), especially for new parents and grandparents, to protect infants:

Read in full: Why it’s important to update adult vaccinations for a new year

Related: The Truth About Vaccines

The heart-healthiest swap you can do

Based on a large (n=202,863, of which 160,123 women and 42,740 men) dataset, a higher plant-to-animal protein ratio is associated with significantly lower risks of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and coronary artery disease (CAD), with diets lower in meat (especially if lower in red meat) and instead rich in plant-based proteins like legumes, nuts, and whole grains reducing CVD risk by 19% and coronary artery disease risk by 27%. Which is quite considerable.

Substituting even small amounts of animal protein (especially if it’s red meat) with plant protein further enhances heart health:

Read in full: Higher plant-to-animal protein ratio linked to lower risk for CVD, CAD among U.S. adults

Related: Plant vs Animal Protein: Head to Head

Let’s keep pan-resistant superbugs at bay

Researchers want to warn us about the threat of pan-resistant bacteria, which could render all known antibiotics ineffective, leading to a sharp rise in global infection-related deaths.

To be clear, we don’t have anything pan-resistant yet, but antibiotic-resistant superbugs are getting close, and in the long term, are likely to win the evolutionary arms race if we don’t change things to diverge considerably from our current path. Modeling a hypothetical pan-resistant E. coli strain, researchers predicted U.S. sepsis deaths could increase 18- to 46-fold within five years of its emergence.

The study calls for urgent action, including stricter antibiotic stewardship, new drug development, and monitoring technologies, emphasizing that without intervention, the global impact could be catastrophic:

Read in full: A public health emergency is waiting at the bottom of the antibiotic resistance cliff

Related: Stop Sabotaging Your Immune System ← see also (linked therein), 4 ways antibiotics can kill you

Take care!