Severe illness from COVID-19. What’s your risk?
NFTs, non-fungible tokens, are being used to sell (nonexistent or over-existent) digital art. For example, a digital video by Mike Winkelmann, AKA Beeple, sold for $6.6 million, but you can have precisely the same thing in your living room if you Google “Crossroad #1/1.” The art market is risky business, but it’s nothing compared to the chances most Americans are taking — over 75 percent of U.S. adults are at risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
Researchers combed through data collected by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and found an estimated 176.1 million folks have at least one condition that increases their risk of severe symptoms of COVID-19. Around 80 million have two or more risk-amplifying conditions, and around 45 million have three or more. Surprisingly, folks younger than 65 have a 69.2 percent risk of severe symptoms if they catch the virus.
Obesity is the most prevalent condition that’s upping the risk. Chronic kidney disease and heart disease as well as diabetes, cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease also amplify it.
The bottom line: The best way to prevent severe COVID-19 symptoms is to maximize your wellbeing.
■ Don’t put off seeing your doctors, getting check-ups or investigating emerging health concerns. (What is that sore spot?)
■ Strive to achieve a healthy weight.
■ Amp up your exercise routine.
■ Eat a minimally-processed, plant-based diet.
Even as the vaccine rolls out you can be at risk. You want to protect yourself from this infection and be prepared to fight off any new ones down the road.
Are you bringing home the bacon? Stop it!
There are many types of Bacon: Sir Francis, who helped develop the scientific method of inquiry and experimentation; Kevin, who’s won hearts with his film work in “Mystic River” and “Footloose;” and Max, lead singer for the ‘80s British heavy metal band Moby Dick. However, the type of bacon made from fatty pork is not one that you want to serve up in a list of great bacons.
Researchers looked at data from half a million people ages 40 to 69 and found that eating just under 1 ounce of processed meat a day (equivalent to one slice of bacon) is associated with an alarming 44 percent increase in your risk for dementia over an eight-year stretch. Processed meats include deli meats, bacon and hot dogs that are preserved by smoking or salting, curing or adding chemical preservatives.
If you’re typical, you eat about 6.4 ounces a week of lunch meat, sausage, hot dogs, ham and, of course, bacon — even though these meats have been classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. (It’s even estimated that over 14,000 new cancer cases in 2015 resulted from excessive consumption of processed meat by Americans 20 and older.)
So, if you’re still bringing home the bacon, it’s time to make the switch to lean proteins such as salmon and skinless poultry or whole grains and fruits and veggies for breakfast and lunch. As you dodge cancer and heart woes, your brain will thank you for such smart thinking.
Become a threat to what threatens your health
Bo Jackson is the only athlete named to the NFL Pro Bowl and MLB All-Star game in the same season. Deion Sanders hit a home run in the MLB and scored a touchdown in the NFL in the same week. Multi-threats we’d like to see more of. In contrast, we’d like to see less of the multiple threats of diabetes and lung cancer that menace many Americans.
Well, two new recommendations can let you know if you’re at risk, so you can become a positive threat to anything standing in your way of health and happiness.
No. 1. If you are overweight, it’s smart to get screened for prediabetes or diabetes at age 35, according to a draft of new U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendations. If you’re cleared, get rechecked annually. If you’re diagnosed, you can begin to cure or control the conditions with smart lifestyle changes and, if needed, medication. Check out www.DoctorOz.com: Search for “Quiz: Are Your Prediabetic?” and “Chronic Type 2 Diabetes Management Is About Knowing the Facts.”
No. 2. Current smokers and ex-smokers who quit within the past 15 years, ages 50 to 80, and who have a 20-pack-year history, should get screened for lung cancer with a low-dose CT scan, says USPSTF. Optimally, you should have the scan four consecutive years.
What’s a 20-pack-year history mean? Well, if you smoked a pack a day for 20 years or two a day for 10 years, you’ve accumulated 20 pack-years. Need help quitting? Search for “Quitting Smoking” at www.myclevelandclinic.org.
The sugar-fatty liver connection
Singer-songwriter Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. was known as Fats Domino; silent-screen star Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle went by Fatty Arbuckle; and jazz pianist Thomas Wright Waller was called Fats Waller. These legendary celebs embraced their corpulent nicknames, but most folks don’t want to see their extra padding talked about on a billboard.
Nonetheless, the average American adult gains 1.25 pounds annually from their 20s to their 50s — and it’s not muscle. That contributes to chronic diseases many of you contend with, from depression and sore joints to heart disease and diabetes. And you know poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle are to blame. But did you know that one of the most fat-fueling habits is eating sugar?
A new study found that consuming even moderate amounts of added sucrose and fructose doubles fat production in your liver, leading to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), fatty deposits in your muscles and diabetes. The researchers say 2.8 ounces of sugar a day — what’s in a little more than two cans of Coke — is all it takes to crank up excess fat production.
For up to 30 percent of the 100 million adults in the U.S. with NAFLD, the disease progresses to inflammation, liver damage and potentially fatal cirrhosis. So stopping the intake of added fructose and sucrose is essential.
Think — or know — you’re at risk? Talk to your doc and pick up “Skinny Liver: A Proven Program to Prevent and Reverse the New Silent Epidemic — Fatty Liver Disease” by Kristin Kirkpatrick and Dr. Ibrahim Hanouneh.
Don’t go breaking your heart
In 1976, when Elton John and Kiki Dee sang “Don’t go breaking my heart,” they were more concerned with love gone bad than food that done ‘em wrong. But now, 45 years later, it turns out that the real risk for heartbreak comes from ultraprocessed foods. A new study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology shows that eating ultraprocessed foods, even those touted as healthy, such as protein and energy bars and some breakfast cereals, ups your risk of heart attack and stroke.
During 18 years of follow-up on folks who started out without cardiovascular disease, the researchers found that each daily serving of ultraprocessed food was associated with:
■ A 7 percent increase in the risk of heart attack, coronary death and stroke in folks who developed cardiovascular disease.
■ A 9 percent increase in the risk of heart attack and coronary death in folks who developed coronary heart disease.
■ And a 9 percent percent increased risk in cardiovascular disease mortality.
Salty foods, low-calorie soft drinks, ultraprocessed meats and breads all were major culprits.
Unfortunately, ultraprocessed foods, such as prepared meals, cold cuts, hot dogs, fast food, packaged cookies and cakes, and snacks account for 58 percent of the calories consumed by the average American. They’re loaded with artificial color and flavors, chemical preservatives and stabilizers, and food substances like fat, starches and sugars that are reassembled to imitate a natural food, and they’re stripped of vitamins, minerals and fiber. So don’t go breakin’ your heart — or your family’s. Opt for fresh, whole foods and lean animal proteins, such as salmon or ocean trout.
Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit www.sharecare.com.
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