Month: January 2023

Categories : AgeingTags :

Adults Get the Least Sleep From Their 30s to 50s

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels

People sleep less in mid-adulthood than they do in early and late adulthood, according to a large study published in Nature Communications. The study investigators found that sleep duration declines in early adulthood until age 33, and then picks up again at age 53.

The study, involving 730 187 participants spread over 63 countries, revealed how sleep patterns change across the lifespan, and how they were largely the same across countries.

Study participants were playing the Sea Hero Quest mobile game, a citizen science venture designed for neuroscience research, which was designed to aid Alzheimer’s research by shedding light on differences in spatial navigational abilities. Thus far, over four million people have played Sea Hero Quest, contributing to numerous studies across the project as a whole.

In addition to completing tasks testing navigational ability, anyone playing the game is asked to answer questions about demographic characteristics as well as other questions that can be useful to neuroscience research, such as on sleep patterns.

The researchers, led by Professor Hugo Spiers (UCL Psychology & Language Sciences) and Dr Antoine Coutrot (CNRS, University of Lyon) found that across the study sample, people sleep an average of 7.01 hours per night, with women sleeping 7.5 minutes longer than men on average. They found that the youngest participants in the sample (age 19) slept the most, and sleep duration declined throughout people’s 20s and early 30s before plateauing until their early 50s and increasing again. The pattern, including the newly-identified key time points of age 33 when declining sleep plateaus and 53 for sleep to increase again, was the same for men and women, and across countries and education levels.

The researchers suggest the decline in sleep during mid-life may be from the demands of childcare and working life.

Professor Spiers said: “Previous studies have found associations between age and sleep duration, but ours is the first large study to identify these three distinct phases across the life course. We found that across the globe, people sleep less during mid-adulthood, but average sleep duration varies between regions and between countries.”

People who report sleeping the most are in Eastern European countries such as Albania, Slovakia, Romania and the Czech Republic, reporting 20–40 minutes extra sleep per night and the least in South East Asian countries including the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia. People in the United Kingdom reported sleeping slightly less than the average. People tended to sleep a bit less in countries closer to the equator.

The researchers found that navigational ability was unaffected by sleep duration for most of the sample, except for among older adults (aged 54–70) whose optimal sleep duration was seven hours, although they caution that the findings among older adults might be impacted by underlying health conditions.

Source: University College London

Categories : Ethics and LawTags :

Tembisa Hospital CEO and Senior Officials must Face Disciplinary Action, Tribunal Rules

On By ModernMedia

By Tania Broughton for GroundUp

Senior officials at the Tembisa Tertiary Hospital, including its former CEO Dr Lokopane Mogaladi, must be disciplined for their roles in the death of a patient, an independent ad hoc tribunal has ruled.

Shonisani Lethole was admitted to Tembisa Hospital on 23 June 2020 with COVID. He had chest pains, was weak and battling to breathe. He was intubated on 27 June. He died two days later.

But before he died, Lethole took to Twitter on 25 June to describe the unbearable and uncaring conditions he was experiencing. He said he had not eaten for two days.

An Ombud investigation was prompted by a complaint by the Minister of Health.

Health Ombud Prof Malegapuru Makgoba in January last year found that Lethole had been denied food for “100 hours and 54 minutes” and that medical staff had been grossly negligent. He recommended that 18 staff members, including doctors and nurses, should face disciplinary action.

Mogaladi was suspended almost immediately afterwards.

An appeal tribunal, set up in terms of the National Health Act, consisting of three members – two doctors, Prof Rudo Mathivha and Prof Ebrahim Variava, and retired Constitutional Court Judge Bess Nkabinde – considered appeals by Mogaladi and Dr Makhosazane Ngobese, head of the COVID unit at the time, against the Ombud’s findings and recommendations.

Mogaladi and Ngobese raised several grounds of appeal, including that there was no valid complaint, that the Ombud had acted beyond his mandate and that his findings were not supported by the evidence.

The tribunal returned two decisions. Judge Nkabinde said she would have upheld the appeal in its entirety. But the majority, Professors Mathivha and Variava, while setting aside some of the Ombud’s recommendations, said Mogaladi and Ngobese should still be disciplined.

Regarding Mogaladi, they said he should be disciplined for presiding over a hospital “that on two separate occasions could not provide Lethole food for prolonged periods”, and a “health establishment that showed poor record-keeping”. He should also face charges relating to substandard care at the hospital.

Regarding Ngobese, they set aside the findings against her except one, that she should face a disciplinary inquiry for her failure to ensure that critical care equipment in the COVID ward was available and functioning properly.

The tribunal said Lethole had been described by his family as a very responsible young man, a “son of the soil” who was deeply loved and cherished.

The two professors said they differed with Judge Nkabinde on the question of accountability.

“While we recognise the immense challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic, the norms and standards regulations remained applicable.

“Where we find, on a fair consideration of the facts, that these norms and standards have not been fulfilled, and where there is a prima facie indication that the appellants had some responsibility in relation to their non-fulfillment, we consider it appropriate and important to recommend that an accountability process follows,” they said.

Judge Nkabinde, in her ruling, placed emphasis on the impact of the pandemic on hospitals and said based on the rationality and procedural fairness grounds of appeal, the appeals should succeed.

“This conclusion should not, however, be understood to suggest that no-one should be held accountable when a proper case is made. It is difficult to accept a loss of life … but adverse factual findings and remedial action should be rational and should be right, just and fair.”

She said her judgment did not stop the Department of Health from taking steps to fix the systematic issues at the hospital or disciplining those “properly found” wanting in upholding a high standard of professionalism.

Read the ad hoc tribunal’s ruling.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp

Categories : Mental HealthTags :

Celebrations can Benefit Well-being and Health

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Myriam Zilles on Unsplash

Making an intentional effort to mark positive life events and achievements while gathering for food and drink will leave people feeling more socially supported, according to new research published in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing.

The researchers found that celebrations with three conditions – social gathering, eating or drinking, and intentionally marking a positive life event – will increase perceived social support. Perceived social support, according to prior studies, is the belief that having a social network will provide support in case of future, negative life events. That belief is associated with health and well-being outcomes, including increased life-span and decreased anxiety and depression.

“Many celebrations this time of year include two of the three conditions — eating and drinking while gathering together,” said study co-author Kelley Gullo Wight, assistant professor at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. “Adding the third condition, making an intentional effort to recognise other’s positive achievements, is key. For example, take the time to congratulate someone for getting accepted to their first-choice university, or a work project that went well, or a new job offer. This will maximise the benefits to your well-being and the well-being of all the attendees at that holiday party.”

Wight and her co-authors used behavioural experiments to survey thousands of participants over several years.

The findings showed that even if gatherings are virtual, if everyone has food and drink (no matter if it’s healthy or indulgent) and they’re celebrating positive events, this also increases a person’s perceived social support, and they can receive the same well-being benefits from it.

It also has implications for marketing managers or anyone looking to raise funds for a good cause.

“We found that when people feel supported socially after a celebration, they’re more ‘pro-social,’ and more willing to volunteer their time or donate to a cause,” said co-author Danielle Brick, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Connecticut. “This would be a good time for non-profits to market donation campaigns, around the time many people are celebrating positive life events, like holidays or graduations.”

The researchers note that hosting celebrations that increase perceived social support can be especially beneficial at places serving populations at greater risk of loneliness and isolation, like nursing homes or community centres.

They also note the importance of understanding the well-being benefits of celebrations for policymakers looking to implement regulations or measures that could impact social gatherings, like COVID lockdowns, to avoid negative consequences to mental health. They recommend that if organisers need to have virtual celebrations, they should involve some type of consumption and the marking of a separate, positive life event, so people leave the celebration feeling socially supported.

Source: Indiana University

Categories : AgeingTags :

Good Hydration may be Key to Healthy Ageing

On By ModernMedia
Older woman smiling
Photo by Ravi Patel on Unsplasj

Adults who stay well-hydrated appear to be healthier, develop fewer chronic conditions, such as heart and lung disease, and live longer than those who may not get sufficient fluids, according to a study published in eBioMedicine.

Using health data gathered from 11 255 adults over a 30-year period, researchers analysed links between serum sodium levels (which increase with reduced fluid intake) and various indicators of health. They found that adults with serum sodium levels at the higher end of a normal range were more likely to develop chronic conditions and show signs of advanced biological aging than those with serum sodium levels in the medium ranges. Adults with higher levels were also more likely to die at a younger age.

“The results suggest that proper hydration may slow down aging and prolong a disease-free life,” said Natalia Dmitrieva, PhD, a study author and researcher at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

The study expands on previous research from the scientists, which found links between high-normal serum sodium levels and increased risks for heart failure. Both findings came from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study, which started in 1987.

For this latest analysis, researchers assessed information study participants shared during five medical visits – the first two when they were in their 50s, and the last between ages 70–90. Adults who had high levels of serum sodium at baseline check-ins or with underlying conditions, like obesity, that could affect serum sodium levels, were excluded.

The researchers then evaluated how serum sodium levels correlated with biological ageing, which was assessed through 15 health markers such as systolic blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar. These provided insight about how well each person’s cardiovascular, respiratory, metabolic, renal, and immune system was functioning. They also adjusted for factors, like age, race, biological sex, smoking status, and hypertension.

They found that adults with higher levels of normal serum sodium, normallu between 135–146 milliequivalents per litre (mEq/L), were more likely to show signs of faster biological ageing. This was based on indictors like metabolic and cardiovascular health, lung function, and inflammation. For example, adults with serum sodium levels above 142mEq/L had a 10-15% associated increased odds of being biologically older than their chronological age compared to ranges between 137–142mEq/L, while levels above 144mEq/L correlated with a 50% increase. Likewise, levels of 144.5–146 mEq/L were associated with a 21% increased risk of premature death compared to ranges between 137–142mEq/L.

Similarly, adults with serum sodium levels above 142mEq/L had up to a 64% increased associated risk for developing chronic diseases like heart failure, stroke, atrial fibrillation and peripheral artery disease, as well as chronic lung disease, diabetes, and dementia. Conversely, adults with serum sodium levels between 138–140 mEq/L had the lowest risk of developing chronic disease.

The researchers caution that randomised, controlled trials are needed to prove an association between fluid intake and signs of ageing.

“People whose serum sodium is 142mEq/L or higher would benefit from evaluation of their fluid intake,” Dmitrieva said. She noted that most people can safely increase their fluid intake to meet recommended levels, which can be done with water as well as other fluids, like juices, or vegetables and fruits with a high water content. The National Academies of Medicine, for example, suggest that most women consume around 6-9 cups (1.5–2.2 litres) of fluids daily and for men, 8-12 cups (2–3 litres).

Others may need medical guidance due to underlying health conditions. “The goal is to ensure patients are taking in enough fluids, while assessing factors, like medications, that may lead to fluid loss,” said study author Manfred Boehm, MD, director of the Laboratory of Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine at NHLBI. “Doctors may also need to defer to a patient’s current treatment plan, such as limiting fluid intake for heart failure.”

The authors also cited research that finds about half of people worldwide don’t meet recommendations for daily total water intake, which often starts at 6 cups (1.5 litres).

“On the global level, this can have a big impact,” Dmitrieva said. “Decreased body water content is the most common factor that increases serum sodium, which is why the results suggest that staying well hydrated may slow down the aging process and prevent or delay chronic disease.”

Source: NIH/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute

Categories : COVIDTags :

Scientists Retract Controversial Omicron Origins Article

On By ModernMedia

On December 1, Charité — Universitätsmedizin Berlin reported new findings on the origins of the SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron, one of which was a “stepwise” emergence of the variant across Africa rather than the accepted scenario of it emerging in a single area around South Africa.

In light of new findings of contaminated samples used in the research, the team led by Prof Jan Felix Drexler has now retracted the article, which was published in the journal Science.

The new findings mean that some of the article’s statements are no longer provable beyond reasonable doubt, and the authors retracted their article in line with sound scientific procedure.

In the article entitled “Gradual emergence followed by exponential spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in Africa”, researchers came to the conclusion that the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 emerged in western Africa a few months prior its eventual discovery in South Africa in early November. Shortly after the article was published, other scientists, such as SA’s Dr Tulio de Oliveira, called into question the plausibility of the genome sequences analysed in the study. Subsequent analysis of residual samples found evidence of contamination, the source of which can no longer be traced.

One of the article’s messages — that viruses with Omicron sequence signatures existed across the continent before Omicron was officially detected in South Africa — is based on collective data from PCR analysis done independently by laboratories in several African countries. However, the conclusive reconstruction of the virus’s evolution, another of the article’s key messages, is likely to be affected by sequence contamination not detected before analysis.

The contamination also makes it impossible to correct the analyses retrospectively in due time, because this would require additional analyses of thousands of patient samples from Africa that may not be available in sufficient quantity and quality. Therefore, in agreement with all the authors, the entire article is being retracted. The research group that ran the project is currently carrying out an evaluation and review of the analyses.

Prof Drexler and his team expressed regret for the incident and gratitude to their international colleagues for flagging the potential problems following the article’s publication.

Source: Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin