Tag Archives: Smoking

Kids with COVID-19 often have no symptoms; smoking linked to vaccine response

By Nancy Lapid

(Reuters) – Here is a summary of some recent studies on COVID-19. They include research that warrants further study to corroborate the findings and that have yet to be certified by peer review.

Asymptomatic COVID-19 very common

Roughly one-third of people with COVID-19 have no symptoms, according to a review of data from more than 350 studies published through April 2021. Asymptomatic infections were more common in children than in the elderly or in people without preexisting medical conditions, said Pratha Sah of Yale School of Public Health, who led the analysis published on Tuesday in PNAS. Her team estimates that 46.7% of infected children have no symptoms, she said. “This is especially concerning because settings with close, extensive contact among large groups of younger individuals are particularly susceptible to super spreader events of COVID-19, which may go undetected” if school authorities only watch for symptoms. Senior author Alison Galvani, also of the Yale School of Public Health, noted that asymptomatic individuals can still pass the virus to others, which makes mask wearing important as schools reopen.

Weight-loss surgery tied to better COVID-19 outcomes

Surgery for obesity may have a protective effect against poor outcomes from COVID-19, data from one New York City hospital suggest. Doctors there studied 620 patients with COVID-19, including 130 who had previously undergone so-called bariatric operations to treat their obesity, and a control group of 496 patients with obesity of similar age and gender who were eligible for these surgeries but had not undergone them. Compared to the control group, the patients who had undergone the bariatric procedures – gastric bypass, gastric banding, or sleeve gastrectomy – were less likely to be hospitalized, less likely to need a mechanical ventilator for breathing, and less likely to die in the hospital, even though many of them were still obese. They were also released from hospital faster, and those who were admitted to the ICU spent fewer days there, according to a report published on Sunday in Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases. “Patients with obesity have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 with a higher risk of severe disease and death,” the authors pointed out. They added that while the study cannot prove that bariatric surgery caused better outcomes, the results suggest it might be “a protective factor against severe COVID-19 … in the high-risk population with obesity.”

Smoking may impair mRNA vaccine response

Current smokers may be at risk for lower immune responses to some COVID-19 vaccines, Japanese researchers say, though more research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn. In a preliminary study of 378 healthcare workers, ages 32 to 54, the researchers analyzed levels of protective antibodies induced by the mRNA vaccine from Pfizer and BioNTech, using blood samples obtained roughly three months after the second dose. As has been found in previous studies, older participants had lower antibody levels. After taking age into account, the only risk factors for lower antibody levels were male sex and smoking – and the gender difference might be because smoking rates were twice as high in men as in women, the researchers speculate. In a paper posted on Saturday on medRxiv ahead of peer review, they report that antibody levels were higher in former smokers than in current smokers, which “suggests smoking cessation will reduce the risk of a lower antibody titer.”

Microscopic lung damage may continue in ‘long COVID’

The persistent breathing issues that plague some COVID-19 survivors, known as “long COVID,” may be due to microscopic processes that continue to damage lungs even after the acute infection is over, new research suggests. The researchers studied blood and airway cells from 38 patients who still had breathing problems at least three months after they were discharged from hospital. Compared to healthy volunteers, the airways of these COVID-19 survivors had higher numbers of immune cells that defend against viruses but can also cause damage. They also had higher levels of proteins that are present when cell death and tissue repair are happening. The findings, which still need confirmation in larger studies, suggest some patients have ongoing disturbances in their immune cells and damage to cells that line the airways, even several months after their initial infection and discharge from hospital, said James Harker of Imperial College London, coauthor of a report published on medRxiv ahead of peer review. “In a small group of patients, we were able to show that the abnormalities may in fact resolve with more time,” Harker said.

(Reporting by Nancy Lapid; Editing by Tiffany Wu)

All Fun and Games, Until the Darkness Begins (Pt. 3)

I had promised myself that I was DONE smoking weed forever. And I was done smoking! At least…until the very next weekend…  I’m sure many people in that world can relate to that vicious cycle. So, the next weekend I was at one of my favorite spots down by the lake with some of my buddies.   “Hey, we’re gonna go smoke, do you want to come?”  I told them, “yeah, I’ll go with you but I’m not smoking anymore.”  Walking back into the woods with them I remember this big tree that cut right across the path, it was the perfect place for us to sit. Continue reading →

Sitting Could Be The New Smoking

Doctors say a new disorder related to sitting too long at work could be as fatal as smoking.

Dr. Eric Tepper says that sitting for hours can lead to all kinds of chronic diseases no matter how old the patient.

“There’s a lot of research on what exactly is the pathology but it does increase mortality, it increase the risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes,” Tepper told CBS.

Tepper said that sitting hampers muscle strength, weakens metabolic strength and also cause problems with circulation.  He said those who work in offices and other places where they are sitting need to stand up and walk around on a regular basis.

“You’re getting more circulation going through your legs, you’re actually using muscles to balance yourself, it’s almost impossible to stand perfectly still we’re always moving when you’re standing whereas sitting, you really are perfectly still,” Tepper said.

Tepper said that going to a gym to work out after work for an hour doesn’t help the problems with sitting at work. He says that every person should get up and walk around for at least 10 minutes an hour to offset the damage that can be done by sitting.

Two States Consider Raising Smoking Age

Two western states are looking to fight the health battle by raising the age for legally smoking.

Utah and Colorado has both voted for proposals that essentially treat tobacco the same way they treat alcohol.

The new laws are being proposed because a new study showed that many people develop their addictions to tobacco during their teenage years.  A study from the Annals of Internal Medicine says that 9 out of 10 daily smokers had their first cigarette by 19 years of age and that 90 percent of cigarettes bought for minors are bought by 18 to 20-year-olds.

“By raising the age limit, it puts them in a situation where they’re not going to pick it up until a much later age,” Marla Brannum of Utah told legislators.

New York City rose the age for cigarettes to 21 last year.  Several other states are considering 21-for-tobacco bills including Hawaii and New Jersey.