ReportWire

Tag: adult health

  • Dry January isn’t just a month away from alcohol. It leads to long-term reductions in drinking

    [ad_1]

    Abstaining from alcohol for short periods of time — like Dry January — leads to reduced drinking in the long run and various physical and psychological improvements, new research shows.

    Researchers at Brown University analyzed 16 studies that evaluated Dry January, the month-long sobriety challenge, and found that participants reported improved sleep, better moods, weight loss, improved concentration and more energy. They continued to drink less alcohol afterward and showed an improved ability to refuse drinks.

    MORE: Not happy with how you look in photos? There’s a psychological explanation

    Avoiding alcohol for a month also reduces liver fat, improves insulin levels and lowers cancer-related growth factors, Suzanne Colby, one of the study’s authors and a professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences, told the Boston Globe.

    Even cutting back on alcohol led to similar benefits, Colby said.

    “They still had some reduction in drinking that was sustained and part of that was they still gained confidence for reducing or refusing drinks in social situations, which I think is a big part of the effect: Learning how to navigate socializing without drinking, which can be really challenging to do because they are really intertwined.” 

    Dry January began in the United Kingdom in 2013. Each year, millions of people participate by vowing to not drink alcohol, or reduce their consumption habits, during January. Participants tend to be younger, female, have higher incomes and a college degree, the Brown University researchers found. Participants also tend to be heavy drinkers. 

    The analysis, published in the journal Alcohol and Alcoholism in September, analyzed data from more than 150,000 Dry January participants, mostly from the U.K.

    The Dry January participants that found the greatest success in abstaining from alcohol formally registered on the Dry January campaign website, used guides like the Try Dry app or received daily coaching emails, the study found. The campaign’s success at targeting heavy drinkers — a group difficult to reach through intervention programs — led the researchers to recommend expanding outreach on the benefits of the Dry January and investing in tools that keep participants on track.

    “The effort leads to sustained moderation: most participants continue to drink less alcohol rather than increasing consumption afterwards,” Megan Strowger, who led the study as a postdoctoral fellow and now works at the University of Buffalo, said in a press release. “Overall, participating in Dry January allows people to pause, reflect and rethink their relationship with alcohol, including how it affects their social life, mental health and physical health.”

    Americans have shown a growing wariness to drink alcohol as its health implications have become more publicized. A Gallup poll released in August found that 54% of adults say they drink alcohol. That’s the lowest reported percentage since 1939. 

    In January, the U.S. surgeon general published an advisory report that linked alcohol use to seven types of cancer. A study published in March suggested alcohol consumption at any level increases the risk of dementia. 

    For people interested in eliminating alcohol consumption, experts recommend tracking one’s progress, participating in a social environment that supports the goal of staying sober or trying “Damp January,” which consists of cutting back on drinking rather than giving it up entirely. 

    “There is so much more support for living an alcohol-free lifestyle now,” Colby said in the press release. “It is more socially acceptable than ever to be ‘sober curious’ or alcohol free. Social norms have shifted, in part with the help of influencers on social media sharing the benefits of sobriety and reducing the stigma of not drinking.” 

    [ad_2]

    Molly McVety

    Source link

  • Toxic metals including lead and arsenic found in multiple tampon brands

    Toxic metals including lead and arsenic found in multiple tampon brands

    [ad_1]

    Tampons from many different brands may contain potentially harmful metals, a new study found.

    Researchers assessed tampons from 14 different brands and found “measurable concentrations” of all 16 metals that they tested for, according to the study, published last week in the Environment International journal. Metals that are considered toxic, including lead, arsenic and cadmium, were found in some of the tampons.

    Exposure to metals has been found to increase the risk of dementia, infertility, diabetes and cancer, according to a news release from the University of California, Berkeley. Metals can also damage the liver, kidneys, brain, fetal development and maternal health. They can also harm the cardiovascular, nervous and endocrine systems. 

    Tampons can contain metals from agricultural or manufacturing processes. For example, the cotton material could absorb the metals from water, air, soil or a nearby contaminant. Or companies may intentionally add metals during the manufacturing process as part of a pigment or antibacterial agent, according to researchers.

    Tampons serve as a “particular concern” when it comes to potential sources of exposure to chemicals and metals, according to UC Berkeley, because the skin of the vagina has a higher potential for chemical absorption. Furthermore, a large portion of the population uses tampons — between 52% and 86% of people in the United States who menstruate use them, usually for hours at a time, according to researchers. 

    “Despite this large potential for public health concern, very little research has been done to measure chemicals in tampons,” Jenni A. Shearston, the lead author of the study and a postdoctoral scholar at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, said in the release. “To our knowledge, this is the first paper to measure metals in tampons. Concerningly, we found concentrations of all metals we tested for, including toxic metals like arsenic and lead.”

    In the study, researchers evaluated 30 tampons from 14 different brands for the following 16 metals: arsenic, barium, calcium, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, mercury, nickel, lead, selenium, strontium, vanadium and zinc. Study authors did not specify which tampon brands they tested, but said that they selected products listed as “top sellers” on a major online retailer as well as “store-brand” products. The products were purchased between September 2022 and March 2023 in New York City; London, England; and Athens, Greece. 

    Metal concentrations varied based on where the tampons were purchased, whether they were organic, and whether they were store-brand or name-brand products. But metals were present in all types of tampons and no category had consistently lower metal concentrations. Lead was found in all tampons tested, researchers say. Lead concentrations were higher in non-organic tampons, but arsenic was higher in organic tampons, the study found. 

    The study authors point out that the governing bodies in the the United States, United Kingdom and the European Union — where they purchased tampons for the study — have regulations surrounding tampons that are “not extensive” and they do not require regular product testing. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration classifies tampons as medical devices and regulates their safety, but there is no requirement to test them for chemical contaminants. The researchers hope the findings of this study will help contribute to change in the industry.

    “I really hope that manufacturers are required to test their products for metals, especially for toxic metals,” Shearston said. “It would be exciting to see the public call for this, or to ask for better labeling on tampons and other menstrual products.”

    [ad_2]

    Franki Rudnesky

    Source link

  • Why it’s important to pay attention to expiration dates on medications

    Why it’s important to pay attention to expiration dates on medications

    [ad_1]

    Have you ever grabbed a bottle of Tylenol from your medicine cabinet, discovered that it expired two years ago and wondered whether you can still take it?

    You really shouldn’t, cautioned Robert Frankil, a pharmacist and executive director of the Philadelphia Association of Retail Druggists, which represents about 250 independently-owned pharmacies in Pennsylvania.

    MORE: Where is Lyme disease most prevalent in Pennsylvania? A new online tool tracks tick-borne illnesses

    “At that expiration date, it’s expected to be 100% or nearly 100% potent, and after that expiration date, it will begin to lose its potency slowly,” Frankil said.

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration began requiring drug companies to put expiration dates on over-the-counter and prescription medications in 1979. Pharmaceutical companies must conduct comprehensive testing on how a drug breaks down over time and in different environments to establish a medication’s shelf life. Medications can be “less effective or risky due to a change in chemical composition or a decrease in strength” past their expiration dates, according to the FDA.

    Frankil advised people not to take over-the-counter medications after their expiration dates, because the medications do not hold their “stability,” Frankil said. “They don’t become dangerous. They just become less effective after the expiration date.”

    With prescription drugs, such as antidepressants, it is especially important to observe expiration dates, Frankil said. 

    “If you’re talking about something like depression, you want to make sure your medication is potent, so I would never mess around with a drug that’s treating a chronic ailment – if it was past its expiration date,” Frankil said.

    Some research, including a 2019 systematic review of studies, has found that many medications can be used beyond their expiration dates. “It was not uncommon that the actual shelf-life exceeded the manufacturer assigned one by three- or four-fold,” the 2019 literature review concluded.

    But Frankil said he, personally, would not take any medication past its expiration date.

    However, he said that “… if it’s either that or nothing, and you wake up at two in the morning with a bad headache,” taking a common analgesic like Tylenol that is less than a year past its expiration date would be OK.

    Frankil recommended grinding up unused, expired medications and throwing them out with the garbage, rather than flushing them down the toilet, which can pollute water and unintentionally expose people to medications. Burying medications in containers of coffee grounds before dumping them in the trash is another option. Also, some pharmacies have medication disposal packages, which also are available on Amazon.

    The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency has a locator for collection sites where people may dispose of certain drugs, such as opioids.

    [ad_2]

    Courtenay Harris Bond

    Source link

  • How often should you replace your kitchen sponge? Probably more often than you do

    How often should you replace your kitchen sponge? Probably more often than you do

    [ad_1]

    You may cringe each time you wring out your dirty, old kitchen sponge, thinking you should replace it. And often, you then forget. But you really should swap it out for a new one – and probably more often than you might think.

    At least once a week is the minimum that some health experts generally recommend for replacing sponges. Other recommendations call for cleaning your sponge between each use – even for using a new sponge each day.

    MORE: Later bedtimes, irregular sleep habits linked to lower grades for high school students, study finds

    Here’s why: Sponges provide the perfect environment for bacteria growth because the smaller chambers appeal to microbes that prefer secluded spaces, and the larger wells cater to bacteria that need each other to survive, according to a 2022 study published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology. These researchers recommended people regularly replace sponges and find ways of sanitizing them in between.

    Researchers from a 2017 study found kitchen sponges to be among the most dirty household items, right there with door knobs and toilets. They discovered more than 360 kinds of bacteria – even E. coli and Salmonella – on kitchen sponges, concluding that people should replace them once a week. 

    Another study in 2022 determined that it didn’t really matter how people cleaned their sponges or how often. The researchers concluded that kitchen sponges harbored more bacteria than kitchen brushes because the brushes dried out more quickly.

    Experts at the University of Rochester Medical Center even recommend tossing out sponges altogether. Instead, they suggest using a clean dishcloth every day, wringing it out and drying it after each use, and then running it through the washing machine. 

    If you still can’t part with your sponge, a comparison from 2017 concluded that polyurethane sponges had “several advantages over use of cellulose sponges in reducing exposure to enteric bacteria in the kitchen.” But sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between the two when shopping for sponges online, because not all brands list their contents.

    However, Jennifer Quinlan, a professor with Drexel University’s Nutrition Sciences Department, told NPR after the much-cited 2017 study came out, that perhaps a more measured approach to sponge use was appropriate: keep sponges away from raw meat and poultry and using paper towels instead, frequently clean sponges, and replace them on a regular basis.

    How to sanitize a kitchen sponge

    For those who want to hang onto their sponges, here are some sanitizing tips to keep them as bacteria-free as possible:

    • Good Housekeeping recommends mixing 3/4 cup of bleach in one gallon of water. Soak the sponge in the mixture for five minutes, then rinse. The magazine also suggests zapping your sponge in the microwave. Make sure it’s saturated with water, then heat it on high for one minute. Remember not to put sponges containing metal in the microwave.

    • Marthasterwart.com says to fully submerge and soak your sponge in a bowl of white vinegar for 5 to 7 minutes. Then rinse it in hot water, wring it out and let it air dry.

    • Forbes explains that you can put a sponge in 2 cups of boiling water for five minutes. Let it cool in the water, and then wring it out and let it air dry.

    • Better Housekeeping says to place your sponge in the top rack of the dishwasher, running it on the hottest, most-extended cycle available.

    [ad_2]

    Courtenay Harris Bond

    Source link

  • Drinking apple cider vinegar daily may be linked with weight loss, study finds

    Drinking apple cider vinegar daily may be linked with weight loss, study finds

    [ad_1]

    Apple cider vinegar makes for a tasty salad dressing or marinade, but new research has found that it also could be useful in boosting weight loss efforts.

    Daily consumption of small amounts of apple cider vinegar — which is made from fermented apple juice and contains the active ingredient acetic acid — may aid weight management in people who are overweight or obese, according to a study published earlier this month in BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health. 

    The small study focused on 120 people from Lebanon, ages 12 to 25 years, who had obesity or were overweight. Some participants were randomly assigned to drink either 5, 10 or 15 milliliters of apple cider vinegar diluted in a cup of water once a day, first thing in the morning, for a period of 12 weeks. Other participants were given a placebo liquid to drink each day.

    Compared with the people given the placebo, the participants who drank the apple cider vinegar lost “significant” amounts of weight, losing an average 15 pounds over the course of the study. The apple cider vinegar drinkers also saw reductions in BMI. Those who drank the largest amount of apple cider vinegar, 15 milliliters, experienced the largest decreases in weight and BMI after 12 weeks. 

    The apple cider vinegar drinkers also saw significant reductions in waist and hip measurements and body fat ratio compared with the placebo. These reductions were similar regardless of dose, suggesting the effect didn’t depend on the quantity, the researchers say.

    There were also improvements in metabolic markers — which are used to gauge someone’s overall health — such as levels of blood glucose, triglycerides and total cholesterol.

    “These results suggest that apple cider might have potential benefits in improving metabolic parameters related to obesity and metabolic disorders in obese individuals,” the study authors said. “The results might contribute to evidence-based recommendations for the use of (apple cider vinegar) as a dietary intervention in the management of obesity.”

    The authors note that there are some limitations, including the study’s small sample size and short 12-week period, which is not enough to gauge possible longterm side effects.

    Furthermore, while apple cider vinegar has shown to have several possible health benefits — like killing harmful bacteria, managing diabetes and improving heart health — it is not necessarily a “magic pill,” registered dietitian nutritionist Michelle Routhenstein told Healthline.

    “(Apple cider vinegar) needs to be looked at in conjunction with overall diet and physical activity, as well as stress and sleep management, to have a significant long-lasting impact,” Routhenstein said.

    [ad_2]

    Franki Rudnesky

    Source link