Share on PinterestMeasuring blood lipids could enable examine condition chance prior to signs or symptoms show up. Jasmin Merdan/Getty Pictures
A straightforward blood take a look at may possibly forecast lengthy-time period possibility of kind 2 diabetes and cardiovascular condition.
In a study of 4,000 balanced adults, scientists discovered that ranges of lipids in blood plasma were connected to afterwards enhancement of both of those disorders.
All those with larger concentrations of selected blood lipids calculated experienced a increased hazard of both form 2 diabetic issues or cardiovascular ailment.
Lipid profiling could be a low-cost, quick way to forecast hazard, making it possible for adjustments to eating plan and life-style in advance of problems develop.
In the United States, 1 in 10 individuals has sort 2 diabetes. Someone dies every single 36 seconds from cardiovascular disorder (CVD) in the U.S., and CVD leads to just one-3rd of all deaths around the world.
The two problems may well acquire slowly and gradually, and the signs and symptoms are not generally evident. Health professionals assess a person’s possibility of developing them by getting a client heritage and observing current life style elements.
Now, a review led by Prof. Dr. Chris Lauber, of Twincore in Germany, has shown that lipids in blood plasma can forecast potential threat of sort 2 diabetes and CVD.
The approach — regarded as lipidomic profiling — can deliver a quantitative measurement of possibility extensive prior to indications establish.
“The authors of this study have additional to the increasing proof that lipidomics profiling could very effectively usher in the future technology of detection of cardiovascular diseases as effectively as diabetes.”
Members ranged from 46–68 yrs at the start out of the study. Around 10{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} had a overall body mass index (BMI) of far more than 30.
The scientists took a single baseline blood sample from just about every participant. They then centrifuged these blood samples to individual out the plasma for examination.
Researchers measured concentrations of 184 different lipids in the blood plasma applying mass spectrometry. They used these lipidomic profiles to compute chance scores and assign members into a person of 6 danger groups.
Dr. Singh advised Clinical Information These days the examine could add to previous strategies of assessing possibility:
“This new solution allows for a novel framework of threat stratification which also lets for improvement when employed in conjunction with the measurement of regular clinical variables.”
He did, nonetheless, note that there was very little variety in the research populace: “It is advisable to proceed to extend on this analysis by expanding the individual population to involve a number of additional variables. This consists of unique affected person ages, racial teams, ethnicities, and bodily exercise degrees.”
The researchers adopted up participants for a lot more than 20 yrs from baseline assessments made concerning 1991 and 1994. In that time, 13.8{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of the cohort designed sort 2 diabetic issues, and 22{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} designed CVD.
For people in the optimum hazard groups, these values increase to 37{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} for creating kind 2 diabetes and 40.5{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} for creating CVD as compared to the team averages earlier mentioned.
Men and women in the most affordable chance teams had a reduced hazard of creating each ailments.
The researchers also observed that men and women with high lipid possibility scores experienced a substantially bigger chance of developing being overweight during the abide by-up time period. Obesity is a hazard factor for the two type 2 diabetic issues and CVD.
The authors suggest that this chance-rating-primarily based technique could reveal the risk of equally variety 2 diabetes and CVD numerous a long time just before disease onset.
“[T]his before condition detection takes place at a time exactly where the ailment has not grow to be clinically apparent. As a final result, researchers and clinicians can now choose on disorders from a more proactive preventive lens and not basically one particular that commences at the therapy phase,” Dr. Singh commented.
Employing mass spectrometry to evaluate blood plasma lipids is quick, comparatively inexpensive, and provides quantitative effects.
The authors of this examine propose that it could detect lipids that add most to the threat of creating subsequent well being ailments and, possibly, lead to new drug therapies.
Dr. Singh told MNT: “Research […] shown in this paper assists to progress the field of scientific mass spectrometry as a entire by continuing to display the potential for previously disease detection in progress of standard suggests.”
The authors tension that even more analysis is desired to validate their hypothesis and show how instructive the plasma lipidome is for health and sickness.
“The lipidome might offer insights considerably past diabetes and cardiovascular sickness danger.”
– Prof. Chris Lauber, guide creator of the study.
So, this straightforward examination could explain to individuals their risk of establishing both equally form 2 diabetes and CVD. By generating eating plan and way of life improvements, they may then be able to minimize that possibility.
Two large studies have found a small increase in the absolute risk of rare types of blood clot in the head following a first dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
An increased risk of a type called intracranial venous thrombosis only applied to individuals under 70 years of age.
The benefits of vaccination to protect against severe COVID-19 far outweigh the risks that the researchers identified.
They found no evidence of increased risks following a first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
In late February 2021, several reports emerged of rare types of “thromboses” — blood clots that block veins or arteries — after the AstraZeneca (ChAdOx1-S) COVID-19 vaccine.
The clots were in unusual locations, such as the veins in the head, and often accompanied by low platelet levels in the blood.
However, because the number of reported cases was so small, it has been difficult to estimate the increased risk for populations as a whole.
Scientists were also unsure whether the risk of common types of thrombosis also increases.
Part of the problem was that when COVID-19 vaccines became widely available, governments prioritized clinically vulnerable and older people, who are already more prone to thromboses.
In addition, publicity about the risk of blood clots after vaccination may have made doctors more likely to diagnose thromboses. This would give a false impression that they had become more common.
Two studies that pooled data for millions of patients in the United Kingdom have now found a small increase in the absolute risk of rare types of blood clot in the head. There was no evidence of any increased risk of more common types of blood clot.
“We were worried that there might be more thromboses diagnosed in people after the complications of the AstraZeneca vaccine had been reported,” explained Dr. William Whiteley, Ph.D., of the Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh in the U.K., and the lead author of one of the studies.
“This was the reason we did the study using data from before the date the thrombotic complications of the AstraZeneca vaccine were widely reported,” he told Medical News Today.
“But our estimates [of the frequency of blood clots], and those done afterward are similar, so this may not be such a concern,” he added.
In the U.K., a vaccination program that employed the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine began on December 8, 2020, with the AstraZeneca vaccine added on January 4, 2021.
The program prioritized extremely clinically vulnerable individuals and those over 70 years, followed by people with chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, and those over 65 years.
In the first study, researchers led by Dr. Whiteley analyzed the electronic health records of 46 million adults in England, 21 million of whom had their first vaccine dose between December 2020 and March 2021.
Overall, 79{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of the participants were white, 51{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} female, and 84{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} under 70 years.
The researchers compared the incidence of thromboses before and after the first dose of vaccine. They then adjusted the figures to account for other factors that might affect the incidence of blood clots, including age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, existing medical conditions, and medications.
After adjustments, the overall risk of thromboses was lower in the 28 days after the first dose of either the AstraZeneca or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, compared with before vaccination.
For AstraZeneca, the risk of thromboses in veins was 3{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} and 42{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} lower in those under 70 and those 70 years or older, respectively. The risk of thromboses in arteries was 10{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} and 24{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} lower, respectively, in these age groups.
The corresponding figures for the Pfizer vaccine were 19{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} and 43{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} lower for thromboses in veins, and 6{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} and 28{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} lower for thromboses in arteries.
The researchers believe that the most likely explanation for these improvements is that vaccination substantially reduced the likelihood of COVID-19, which can itself cause thromboses, especially in the lungs.
In people under 70 years of age, the rates of intracranial venous thromboses — blood clots in a vein in the head — or hospitalization with low platelet levels were roughly twice as high in the 28 days after a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
However, because these events are extremely rare, the absolute increase in the number of events was very small.
The scientists estimate that after adjustments for other risk factors, the AstraZeneca vaccine may cause between 0.9 and 3 extra cases, depending on age and sex, for every million people vaccinated.
This small increase in risk is easily offset by the reduced risk of becoming sick or dying from COVID-19 that the vaccine provides.
“Most people want accurate information about the pros and cons of the treatments that they take, and we are providing information for them,” said Dr. Whiteley.
“The overwhelming majority of people in the U.K. decide to be vaccinated against COVID-19 when offered a vaccine, and because of this COVID-19 is less of a threat to us all,” he added.
After a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, the study found no increase in the risk of intracranial thromboses among people 70 years or older.
Following a first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, there was no increased risk either for people older or younger than 70.
“For older populations, who are most vulnerable to COVID-19, we found no evidence of increased risk of any event with ChAdOx1-S. In younger populations, who have a lower morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19, other available vaccines might be prioritized, especially when the risk of COVID-19 is otherwise low.”
The scientists plan to publish results of their analyses of blood clots after second vaccine doses, and after COVID-19 infections, in future papers.
In the second study, scientists led by the University of Edinburgh in the U.K. investigated the incidence of a rare type of blood clot in the brain called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST).
In 2021, several countries withdrew the AstraZeneca vaccine or restricted its use to older people following initial reports of a possible link between the vaccine and CVST.
The background incidence of CVST is only 3 to 4 per million person-years in adults, but the chances of dying for someone with a CVST is around 4{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809}.
Dr. Steven Kerr, Ph.D., a senior data scientist at the University of Edinburgh, and his colleagues linked electronic medical information from primary care and secondary care, plus mortality and virological test data.
The study encompassed data from more than 11 million people in England, Scotland, and Wales who received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine from December 2020 through June 2021.
The researchers compared the rate of CVST events for individuals during a 90-day period before their vaccination with the 4 weeks afterward.
This is known as a self-controlled case series, where individuals act as their own control to account for other possible risk factors that they might have that are unchanging over time.
There were 201 CVSTs in total. Out of these, 81 CVSTs occurred in the follow-up period after the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, or 16.34 events per million doses.
This represents a doubling of the very low initial incidence of CVST, which equates to one extra event for every 4 million people vaccinated.
There were 40 CVSTs among those who received a first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, or 12.6 events per million doses.
This suggests that there is no link between the Pfizer vaccine and CVST.
“It is important to understand that CVST is an extremely rare event, which typically only occurs a handful of times per million people per year,” Dr. Kerr told MNT.
“This should be weighed up against the risk associated with contracting COVID and the level and duration of protection that vaccines offer,” he said.
He added that the relative increase in the risk of CVST following a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine may be higher in young people than in older people.
“This is something we may be able to study in the future as we amass data that covers a longer time period,” he added.
The authors say they will use the same methodology to investigate any possible risks of CVST with the Moderna vaccine, which is now also in use in the U.K., and the second and booster doses of all three vaccines.
Share on PinterestNew research finds a link between prolonged TV watching and a higher risk of potentially fatal blood clots. Thomas Winz/Getty Images
Researchers examined the link between hours spent watching TV and the risk of potentially fatal blood clots.
They found that prolonged TV watching is linked to a 35{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} higher risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE) than watching TV for shorter periods.
The researchers say that their findings do not prove causation and that more research is necessary before making any conclusions.
The hardening or narrowing of arteries — through atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) — and potentially fatal blood clots in the veins called VTE are related and share common risk factors, including obesity and smoking.
Studies have shown that prolonged sedentary behavior, or physical inactivity, is linked to an increased risk of vascular conditions such as CVD and VTE.
Watching TV is a significant part of sedentary leisure time. Research indicates a link between TV watching time and CVD. However, studies on the link between TV watching time and VTE have varied — some support the association, while others negate it.
An analysis of different studies looking at the link between TV watching and VTE could help researchers and the public better understand the risk factors for the condition.
In a recent study, researchers from Finland, Ghana, and the United Kingdom conducted a meta-analysis of three studies examining the link between TV watching time and VTE.
They found that watching TV for longer was associated with a higher risk of developing VTE.
“General findings highlight the need for everybody to be physically active,“ Dr. Setor Kunutsor, lead author of the study, told Medical News Today. “If you want to binge on TV viewing, take breaks in-between. Stand and stretch every 30 mins.”
“For people whose jobs involve sitting for long hours, take regular breaks in-between; they will need to also increase their physical activity levels, as there is evidence showing that higher volumes of moderate and vigorous activity can reduce, or even eliminate, the risks associated with sedentary behavior.”
Of 28 potential studies examining the relationship between watching TV and the risk of first VTE events, the researchers selected three published between 2016 and 2021.
Altogether, these studies included 131,421 participants from the United States and Japan. At the beginning of the studies, the participants were aged 54–65 years.
Average follow-up times ranged from 5.1 to 19.8 years. Across the studies, there were 964 VTE events.
All of the studies assessed for TV viewing times via self-reported questionnaires and also included information on established VTE risk factors, such as:
After analyzing the data, the researchers found that those who watched TV for more than 4 hours per day had a 35{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} higher risk of developing VTE than those who watched TV for less than 2.5 hours per day.
They also report that their results are independent of age, sex, BMI, and physical activity.
To explain their findings, the researchers write that as TV viewing involves immobilization, extended periods of this activity may increase VTE risk factors such as:
body weight, hypertension, and lipids
systemic inflammation
plasma viscosity and platelet aggregation
venous stasis, which occurs when prolonged sitting prevents blood from returning to the heart from the lower extremities
They also note that snacking on non-nutritious foods while watching TV may also have contributed to an increased VTE risk, although they did not assess diet in their study.
“There is probably a constellation of factors related to cardiometabolic factors and inflammation,“ Wendy J Brown, Ph.D., who is a professor at the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences at the University of Queensland, Australia, and was not involved in the study, told MNT.
“But I guess that venous pooling, i.e., stasis, might be important — except that decreased venous return is more likely if people are sitting with feet on the ground and not lying down with feet up (but you can get venous pooling when standing still as well). Note too that a single episode of ‘prolonged’ sitting — such as we see in long haul flights — is also reported to be associated with VTE,” she added.
“The study by Kunutsor and colleagues suggests that the link between TV viewing and blood clots might be […] due to being immobilized, i.e., sitting for long periods of time,” said Dr. Aviroop Biswas, Ph.D., who is assistant professor in social and behavioral health sciences at the University of Toronto and was also not involved in this study.
“This might be possible as TV viewing habits might reflect most of a person’s daily sitting time, and sitting for long periods of time has been linked with inflamed blood vessels, reduced blood flow, and vascular dysfunction — all of which are linked to a higher risk of stroke. These links are likely to be stronger among people with low levels of physical activity (PA), as PA can reduce risks of inflammation and other stroke risk factors — though, the study did not examine this relationship.”
When MNT asked whether these findings might apply to being stationary in a more general sense, Dr. Kunutsor said: “[These results also apply] to people whose jobs involve being stationary for a long time — jobs that involve sitting for a long time. This is the reason why some employers encourage employees to stand and move about more regularly. The use of standing desks is very useful for such jobs. Even standing, which is the least active behavior, has been reported to be associated with health benefits compared with sitting.”
“I guess the issue of being sedentary for long periods is a hazard — there need not be a screen necessarily,” added Prof. Brown. “Some people sit for very long hours at work without interruption, [such as in factories], but we tend to think more about office and call center workers who sit in front of screens. Drivers of trains, buses, etc., also sit for long periods without interruption.”
“But I think prolonged and uninterrupted TV time might be a proxy for a different kind of lifestyle with many unmeasured confounders [such as diet]. In any case, it need not be TV. I think that, especially in COVID times, people may have been watching a lot of movies through channels other than TV,” she explained.
The authors conclude that prolonged TV watching might be linked to an increased risk of VTE.
The authors note that the study had limitations. Due to its observational nature, they say that their results do not prove cause and effect. Furthermore, as their analysis was only based on three studies, they recognize the need for further research in this area. They also say that the data on TV watching times may not be fully accurate, as they were self-reported.
“The study has a lot of limitations, and frankly, is not convincing evidence for a link between prolonged TV time and blood clots,” said Dr. Biswas. “All three studies also sampled older participants — age range 40+. As age is a risk factor for stroke, and participants were followed for 5 up to 20 years, it’s possible that there would have been a higher number of stroke cases than studies examining younger participants — and so the risks for blood clots might have been lower.”
“The three studies explored in the review did not consider important risk factors for stroke. For example, diet or blood sugar levels are not measured in the three studies. Diet, especially a diet that increases blood sugars, can negatively influence how our body breaks down blood sugars, which increases inflammation and risk of blood clots,” he explained.
“This is particularly important to examine, as one study is from Japan, and two are from the U.S. People from these countries have different diets, and we have no idea about how these differences contribute to their risks. There is also evidence of different risk of blood clots/stroke for men and women, though these were not factored into any of the studies or the review,“ he pointed out.
Prof. Brown agreed that there are limitations to the research. She said, “The most important concern [for me] is that although the three studies ‘adjusted for’ physical activity, this does not mean the effects are ‘independent’ of physical activity — so we don’t know if these effects were attenuated or eliminated in those who were highly active in leisure time.”
“And none of the studies considered what the participants were doing when they not engaged in ‘prolonged’ TV time. There are 24 hours in a day. If prolonged TV was 4 hours, then what the people were doing in the other 12 hours of ‘wake time’ is very important. Prolonged TV time may be a proxy for a generally sedentary lifestyle.”
– Prof. Brown
“I would guess that people who do at least 1 hour of at least moderate intensity physical activity each day might not be at increased risk of VTE! This was not adequately examined in the studies included here,” she concluded.
Dr. Janette Nesheiwat on Johnson & Johnson vaccine
The CDC now recommends that Americans take the mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna instead of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to rare but serious blood clots.
The agency’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices unanimously voted on Thursday to give a preferential recommendation to Moderna and Pfizer’s shots.
“More than 200 million Americans have completed their primary vaccine series, providing protection against COVID-19, preventing millions of cases and hospitalizations, and saving over a million lives,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement. “Today’s updated recommendation emphasizes CDC’s commitment to provide real-time scientific information to the American public.”
The CDC temporarily halted Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine in April while scientists investigated the blood clots, which are known as “thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome.”
Syringes filled with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are shown, Thursday, May 13, 2021, at a mobile vaccination site at the Greater Bethel Church in Miami. ((AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee))
Regulators eventually decided that the benefits of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine outweighed the risks, but the FDA released new data this week showing that more cases have occurred in the summer and fall.
Women between the ages of 30 and 49 are most affected by the blood clotting issue at a rate of about 1 in 100,000 shots.
Health officials have confirmed 54 cases of the blood clots, nine of which have been fatal, CDC official Dr. Isaac See said Thursday. Two more deaths are suspected to be related to the blood clotting issue.
SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES IMPACTING PHARMACIES: WHAT TO KNOW
A CDC official told FOX Business that individuals who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should still receive a booster dose two months after their initial vaccine.
If an individual received a Johnson & Johnson shot for their primary dose and then a booster of any vaccine, then they do not need to be re-vaccinated with an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, according to the official.
Michelle Falgout, a registered nurse, administers a dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to Kerri Houston at a Florida Department of Health in a Pinellas County vaccination event held at the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Flori
Symptoms of blood clots – including severe headaches, abdominal pain, back pain, and nausea – usually occur 6 to 14 days after receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, according to the American Society of Hematology.
Only about 16 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been administered in the United States, compared to about 470 million doses of the vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna.
COVID-19 VACCINE EFFECTIVENESS WILL LIKELY DROP AGAINST OMICRON VARIANT, MODERNA CEO SAYS
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is a viral vector vaccine, meaning that it replaces a small piece of the genetic instructions in a harmless adenovirus with genetic instructions for the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. When the vaccine is injected, our cells recognize that the spike protein isn’t supposed to be there and produce antibodies to fight it.
Liesl Eibschutz, a medical student from Dartmouth University, loads a syringe with Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine before giving it to people on the first day that people ages 16 and up can receive the vaccine at Kedren Health on Thursday, April 15, 2021 in
AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, which was produced in the United Kingdom, is also a viral vector vaccine and has led to similar blood clotting issues.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS
Several other countries have already recommended mRNA vaccines over the viral vector vaccines, or set age limits for the Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca vaccines.
COVID-19 itself can also cause blood clots. The risk of developing cerebral venous thrombosis or portal vein thrombosis is “significantly increased after COVID-19,” according to a University of Oxford study in April.
Share on PinterestNew research examines trends in blood pressure during the pandemic. Aleks_G/Getty Images
Governments enacted emergency measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
These measures significantly altered people’s behavior.
In a new study, researchers wanted to see if there was a link between these changes in behavior and effects on people’s blood pressure.
The researchers found blood pressure increased during the pandemic compared with previous, non-pandemic years.
In a new study, researchers have found that blood pressure increased in adults in the United States during the pandemic compared with previous, non-pandemic years.
The research, published in the journal Circulation, makes clear that the health effects of the pandemic include not just the COVID-19 disease but also other, indirect health issues.
Doctors measure blood pressure at two points: when a person’s heart is pumping, known as systolic blood pressure, and when a person’s heart is resting between beats, known as diastolic blood pressure.
If a person has high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, they are at a greater risk of stroke or heart disease. Hypertension can also damage a person’s liver, eyes, and brain.
The CDC state that 47{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of U.S. adults have hypertension, and in 2019 hypertension was the primary or contributing cause of more than 500,000 deaths.
A person can help maintain healthy blood pressure levels by eating a diet low in salt and high in fruit and vegetables, exercising regularly, avoiding smoking, and limiting alcohol intake.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted people’s behavior and access to regular medical care.
Researchers are interested to see if this disruption had an effect on people’s blood pressure levels.
To look at blood pressure levels during the pandemic relative to previous years, a group of scientists studied data from an employee wellness program in the U.S covering 2018–2020.
This involved 464,585 participants, 53.5{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} of whom were women, with an average age of 45.7 years in 2018. The paper offered no information regarding the racial or ethnic makeup of the participants.
The scientists compared blood pressure levels before the pandemic in 2018, 2019, and until March of 2020, when most U.S. states gave stay-at-home orders. They then compared these levels with those recorded from April–December 2020 during the pandemic.
The researchers found that before the pandemic, there was no significant change in blood pressure between years.
However, each month during the pandemic, blood pressure increased by an average of 1.1 to 2.5 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) for systolic blood pressure and 0.14 to 0.53 mmHg for diastolic blood pressure. This was the case for both women and men of different ages.
Women, on average, had greater increases for both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Older participants had greater systolic blood pressure increases, whereas younger participants had greater diastolic blood pressure increases.
Speaking to Medical News Today, Dr. Luke Laffin, co-director of the Center for Blood Pressure Disorders at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio and the study’s lead author, said that “[d]ietary indiscretion, lack of exercise, central obesity, excessive alcohol consumption, and not taking prescribed blood pressure medications can all drive high blood pressure.”
“Other research demonstrates that lifestyle habits like excessive alcohol intake worsened during the pandemic, so it is not surprising that a blood pressure elevation followed.”
“We also know that patients hesitated to see their doctor, particularly in the early part of the pandemic, and that may have contributed to increased blood pressures,” said Dr. Laffin.
Prof. Matthew Bailey, who leads hypertension and renal research at the Centre for Cardiovascular Science at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and was not involved in the study, told MNT that the findings were significant and had global implications.
“This paper has examined almost half a million people and clearly shows that the societal changes [and] restrictions imposed in response to the pandemic have increased blood pressure. The effect is particularly large in women, and there is also an unanticipated increase in young people.”
“A rise in blood pressure of this size increases the risk of debilitating heart attack or stroke. For individuals and their families, cardiovascular disease can be devastating. [F]or governments, these conditions are costly to treat and manage. Health budgets are already overstretched.”
“This study is based in the U.S. but is relevant globally. It provides an early warning signal that poor cardiovascular health might be a big problem a few years down the line,” said Prof. Bailey.
Dr. Tarek Antonios, a senior lecturer in physiological medicine at St George’s, University of London in the United Kingdom, and not involved in the study, told MNT the findings were not unexpected.
“I was not surprised when I saw this article. I am concerned about hypertension and the epidemic. If you put the two together — the COVID-19 epidemic and hypertension — there are certain different avenues [that connect] them.”
“The first one is the increased anxiety levels among the population. Lots of people lost their jobs, they became redundant, lost their businesses, and they lost income — all of this created a lot of stress and anxiety, and that can increase blood pressure. So this is one possible explanation.”
“The second is during the lockdown, there were no open gyms, no one was going out for running or sports, and many people — including some of my patients — put on a significant amount of weight. And once you put on weight, your blood pressure goes up as well.”
“The third point is that people are sitting at home most of the time, they order takeaways, and takeaways are full of salt, and therefore people have increased their salt intake. So there is a lot of stuff that may not be directly related to COVID-19, but [was] indirectly affected by this epidemic.”
“Some patients also found it very difficult to get in touch with their GPs and get a refill of their prescriptions. Some stopped taking their medications, and that also increased their blood pressure levels. [T]his is something we need to give information about to patients — that it is very important that they don’t stop the tablets.”
“Many of my patients have bought blood pressure machines so that they can monitor their own blood pressure and make sure that their blood pressure is well-controlled. This is my advice to most patients: get their own blood pressure machines and start measuring their blood pressure at home.”
Prof. Bailey said that he thought low-level stress and low quality sleep might be key factors in the increase in blood pressure.
“High blood pressure is caused by […] lifestyle [and] environmental factors that were difficult to avoid during pandemic restrictions. Many of us ate too much comfort food — high in salt, fat, and sugar — had limited capacity to exercise, and may have indulged in other […] habits such as drinking too much alcohol or smoking. Of these, the study was only able to discount weight gain itself.”
“I think a major factor is chronic low-level stress and poor sleep patterns. I think this will emerge as a big factor once more studies are done,” said Prof. Bailey.
Speaking to MNT, Dr. Helen Flaherty, head of health promotion and education at Heart Research UK and not involved in the study, also agreed that a range of factors may be at play when accounting for the increase in blood pressure.
“As a result of the pandemic, many people have seen a change to their usual lifestyle habits which, in many cases, can impact negatively on their blood pressure and cardiovascular health.”
“People working from home may be less physically active as they miss out on their usual walk to work or a trip to the gym. Physical activity may also be restricted where people are isolated at home due to the pandemic. In addition, changes to dietary habits, such as buying more takeaway foods, which may be higher in salt, can also contribute to raised blood pressure.”
“Many people have found the pandemic to be stressful and long-term stress is also associated with an increase in blood pressure, as well as behaviors that can increase blood pressure, such as smoking and alcohol consumption,” explained Dr. Flaherty.
As well as possible indirect factors that might account for the rise in blood pressure, Dr. Antonios highlighted that there could be more direct causes.
“The disease itself may cause high blood pressure because of the interaction with certain molecules like the angiotensin-converting enzyme receptors. Moreover, many of my patients called to tell me that once they got the vaccines — especially the first dose — their blood pressure went very high, and they ended up in A&E and casualty with systolic blood pressure exceeding 200 in some of them.”
“What is also interesting is that for many of [my patients], the blood pressure did not settle down and remained high — not as high as 200, but higher than it was before. I am doing some research now to look at the effects of vaccination on blood pressure. And I have at least nine patients who had the same reaction: [their] blood pressure went up, and they ended up in casualty at St George’s [hospital].”
“Since then, there have been two publications — one from Lausanne in Switzerland and the second from Italy — that describe exactly this. Especially with the BioNTech vaccine, the blood pressure goes very high. What we don’t know is why this happens and why it does not settle down,” said Dr. Antonios.
Dr. Antonios also said there could be a connection between long COVID and hypertension. However, this required more research.
“What we don’t know so far is if hypertension is part of the long COVID syndrome. Most papers and reviews have not included hypertension [as part of long COVID]. They have included, for example, chest problems, myocarditis, thromboembolic phenomena, or even diabetes, but hypertension is not yet part of this long COVID syndrome, which we don’t know much about.”
Dr. Laffin said researchers should continue monitoring blood pressure levels:
“It is going to be very important to identify if blood pressure elevations persisted throughout 2021, given that vaccination became more widespread and individuals started returning to see their medical provider. I think it is unlikely that we’ll see a decline to pre-pandemic levels until the current pandemic ends.”
Crucially, there are limitations to the generalizability of the study’s findings. In the U.S., Black adults consistently exhibit significantly higher rates of hypertension, for example, compared with their white counterparts. However, the present study did not characterize blood pressure based on race or ethnicity. This is an important point that researchers should further evaluate during the pandemic.
Fortunately, there are many things a person can do to try and maintain healthy blood pressure levels.
Prof. Bailey said: “I try to make sure I eat well and sleep well and have goals for regular exercise. Using mindfulness or breathing apps can be a really good way to unplug for a few minutes in the day. It’s a great idea to get your blood pressure measured — know your numbers — and to remember to keep taking the medicine if you have high blood pressure.”
“High blood pressure increases your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. However, many people are unaware that they have high blood pressure as there are usually no symptoms. It is important to have your blood pressure checked regularly. Ideal blood pressure is below 120/80 mmHg,” Dr. Flaherty told us.
“To maintain healthy blood pressure, it is important to maintain a healthy weight by eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of physical activity. Eating a diet that is not too high in salt also helps to avoid raised blood pressure. Keep an eye on food labels and avoid foods that have a high salt content, such as salted nuts and potato chips.”
“Limit your alcohol intake to no more than the recommended amounts — in the U.K. this is no more than 14 units of alcohol a week, spread out over 3 or more days.”
“Physical activity can help to reduce your blood pressure, and adults should aim to do 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity — for example, brisk walking — or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity — for example, running — each week.”
Large blood tension, or hypertension, raises the possibility of coronary heart condition and stroke, both of which are main leads to of death in the United States.
Nourishment advice on how to decreased blood stress generally features utilizing herbs and spices alternatively than salt to taste foods. However, authorities know little about the wellbeing added benefits of herbs and spices.
A new randomized managed demo implies that a diet plan rich in herbs and spices may perhaps minimize blood stress in men and women at chance of cardiovascular condition.
Untreated hypertension will increase the hazard of cardiovascular sickness, these as coronary heart assault, stroke, heart failure, kidney disease, eyesight reduction, and hurt to blood vessels.
Nutritional assistance on reducing blood stress consists of lessening salt ingestion. The Dietary Suggestions for Americans suggest working with herbs and spices rather of salt to taste foodstuff.
Specialists know a lot less about the overall health outcomes of herbs and spices than they do about all those of salt. Nonetheless, some experiments have demonstrated that herbs and spices can lessen lipemia — the extra of lipids in the blood — hyperglycemia, and oxidative pressure.
To dig a little further, scientists at Pennsylvania Condition College a short while ago done a randomized managed demo investigating the result of for a longer time-term use of herbs and spices on danger things for cardiovascular condition.
They located that a better level of herbs and spices in foodstuff decreased 24-hour blood stress readings.
Prof. Penny Kris-Etherton, 1 of the guide authors of the examine, informed Professional medical Information Today, “Indeed, the blood force-lowering consequences of herbs and spices in an common Western diet plan were being astonishing to me.”
“We [already know] about the results of quite a few way of living variables, specifically dietary components, that can boost blood tension — these as sodium, alcohol, and caffeine — and other people that can minimize blood strain, these kinds of as potassium, magnesium, and calcium, […] excess weight loss, physical exercise, and some nutritional vitamins, which includes folate and vitamin D when consumption is low, but the blood pressure-lowering outcomes of herbs and spices are new!”
“In terms of herbs and spices,” she ongoing, “there has not been a clinical demo showing benefits on blood tension lowering until eventually our study.”
A overall of 71 contributors aged 30–75 yrs joined the analyze. All members experienced one or far more risk aspects for cardiovascular condition and had obese or weight problems.
After the contributors fasted for 12 hours, the researchers designed baseline assessments. These involved height, fat, waistline circumference, a fasting blood sample, and vascular tests.
Vascular screening integrated central and peripheral blood tension and arterial stiffness measurements. The members also wore a blood force watch for 24 several hours.
The researchers then randomly assigned the individuals to 1 of three teams. Every single team would take in one of a few weight loss plans: a low spice diet program, a reasonably spiced diet, or a significant spice eating plan. These eating plans included a day by day consumption of .5 grams (g), 3.3 g, and 6.6 g of herbs and spices, respectively.
The intention was to incorporate herbs and spices into a eating plan that was representative of the common U.S. diet plan. The extra herbs and spices provided cinnamon, turmeric, and oregano.
The participants adopted their respective diet programs for 4 months, with a 2-week break in concerning. At the stop of every diet regime time period, the members returned for follow-up assessments. A complete of 63 people today done the analyze.
The review showed that the high spice diet program tended to make improvements to 24-hour blood strain readings, when compared with the medium and very low spice meal plans.
The scientists did not notice any result of the weight loss plans on reduced-density lipoprotein cholesterol, clinic-calculated blood tension, markers of glycemia, vascular function, or oxidative strain.
Having said that, they say that 24-hour blood tension readings are a stronger predictor of cardiovascular demise than clinic blood stress measurement.
The authors imagine that the examine could possibly have been far too short for vascular reworking to happen, which might demonstrate why they did not see any influence on arterial stiffness.
They also note that the dosages of herbs and spices might not be sufficient to overturn the metabolic results of an unhealthy qualifications diet. For that reason, they are unable to endorse expanding consumption of herbs and spices by itself in the context of a very poor excellent diet program to decrease the possibility of cardiovascular ailment.
Furthermore, because every working day of the menu bundled various quantities of the 24 herbs and spices, exposure was not regular. As herbs and spices do not keep in the procedure for pretty prolonged, the food items eaten during the times closest to screening may possibly have influenced the outcomes a lot more strongly.
Dr. Simon Steenson, a nourishment scientist at the British Nourishment Foundation, explained to MNT, “This research implies there could be probable reward in terms of blood stress reduction for together with extra herbs and spices in just our food plan.”
“However,” he ongoing, “the results witnessed were small and not significant in between all levels of consumption. Whilst the authors recommend there may well be some advantage to including herbs and spices in a suboptimal diet regime, clearly, the purpose from a public wellbeing place of see need to be to enhance dietary styles in line with evidence-based mostly advice on eating plan and overall health.”
Prof. Kris-Etherton mentioned to MNT, “It will be significant to assess the outcomes of personal spices on blood strain and to fully grasp the mechanism[s] by which each and every lowers blood stress.”
“It would also be fascinating to assess the results of herbs and spices on the microbiome and assess whether or not the effects of herbs and spices on [blood pressure] are modulated by any variations in the gut microbiome.”
“Beyond scientific demo study, studies are required to appraise productive education systems that educate use of herbs and spices in a healthful dietary pattern that is decreased in sodium, saturated extra fat, and included sugar on food plan top quality and medical endpoints, these as danger aspects for continual diseases.”
Dr. Steenson concluded:
“It is vital to observe that whilst the goal of this examine was to look at the normal American diet plan, we require major shifts in average dietary patterns to make our taking in behaviors much healthier and far more sustainable. When certain foodstuff or substances may possibly have a tiny advantage by yourself, we require to encourage a shift to much healthier ingesting throughout the board.”
