Unmasking the Differences between Face Masks

Surgical masks and N95 respirators are examples of personal protective equipment (PPE) which are used to protect the wearer from liquid contamination and airborne particles from contaminating the face. It is important to know the optimal way to prevent airborne transmission. Each type of mask and also cloth face masks serve different functions.

N95 respirators are tested and approved by the NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health). Their intended use and purpose is to protect the wearer from exposure to particles including small particle aerosols and large droplets. They are designed to have a close fit to the face and very effective filtration of particles that are airborne.

The N95 classification means that when exposed to careful testing, the respirator prohibits a minimum of 95% of quite small (0.3 micron) particles that were tested. If fitted properly, the filtration properties of these type respirators exceed those of face masks. However, they do not completely eliminate the risk of illness. Leakage can occur around the edge of the mask when user inhales. N95 respirators are disposable and ideally should be discarded after each patient encounter and/or when the unit no longer forms an effective seal to the face, becomes wet or visibly dirty, breathing becomes difficult, or it becomes contaminated with blood, respiratory or nasal secretions or other bodily fluids from patients.

N95 masks are typically used in healthcare settings. The CDC doesn’t recommend to the public to wear N95 respirators to safeguard themselves against respiratory diseases such as COVID-19. These masks are critical supplies that are primarily reserved for health care workers and first responders as recommended by the CDC.

Surgical masks are disposable, loose fitting accessory that devise a physical barrier between the nose and mouth of the wearer and potential contaminants in the immediate environment. They are typically used for the protection of the wearer from splashed sprays and large particle droplets. They also prevent the spread of possibly infectious respiratory secretions from the wearers to others. They are tested and approved by the FDA.

Surgical masks are loose fitting and can vary in design. However, masks are often flat, rectangular and have folds and/or pleats. The top of the mask can contain a metal piece which can be bent to a person’s nose. Long straight ties or elastic bands help a surgical mask stay in place while being worn – either looped behind the ears or tied behind the head.

While a surgical mask is meant to block large particle splashes, droplets, splatter or sprays that might contain germs (bacteria and viruses), they cannot block or filter particles that are very small in the air that could be carried by sneezes, coughs or certain medical procedures. They do not achieve complete protection from other contaminants and germs because they have a loose fit between the layer of the face mask and face. They are intended for one use only and should be discarded after each patient encounter.

Cloth face coverings many of which can be homemade, only offer a small degree of protection, but the may also help the slow spread of the COVID-19 virus. These type masks are what the CDC is recommending for use by the general public when in public settings.

Face cloths should not be placed on children under the age of 2, people who have breathing difficulties, people who are unconscious, or people who are unable to remove the mask on their own. They should be washed after each use. When removing a person should be careful not to touch their nose, eyes or mouth and hands should be washed immediately after removal.

They can be made from common materials. It should be kept in mind by wearers of these type masks that they can provide a false sense of security. While they do offer some degree of protection, they offer a lot less protection than respirators or surgical masks. One study indicated that homemade face masks may be half as effective as surgical masks and up to 50 times less effective than N95 respirators. However, they are better than not wearing any mask and create some protection especially where a person cannot social distance.

Removing Virus After Hand Washing – Paper Towels vs. Air Dryers

A recent study by a team at the University of Leeds, UK was set up to determine if the use of paper towels or air dryers is more effective for getting rid of microbes when the hands are still drying and contanminated.

Hand drying is especially critical in helping decrease the spread of critical microbes which includes COVID-19. Failure to remove these microbes increases their transmission to environmental surfaces which increases the opportunity for them to be transmitted and spread. The study set out to investigate if there could be differences in the extent of transmission of the virus according to each hand drying method outside of the bathroom to a hospital environment.

Four participants simulated contamination of either their hands or gloved hands with a bacteriophage, a virus that can infect bacteria and is not harmful to humans. They did not wash their hands after contamination as the method used to simulate poorly and inadequately hand washing. They dried their hands using either a jet air dryer or paper towels. Each participant did wear an apron to ensure measurement of contamination of body/clothing while their hands dried. They dried their hands in a hospital bathroom and after the participants exited, samples were retrieved from both ward and public areas.

Environmental surface areas were sampled after the participant’s contact with hands or apron. These site samples included doors, stair handrails, chairs in ward and public areas, lift buttons, phones, buttons on intercoms to wards, stethoscope tubing and chest and head piece, the aprons, and armchairs that might have been indirectly exposed to the aprons. For the latter sample site, the participants were told to lay their arms across their chest while using the apron and before resting their arms on the chair.

The study team discovered that both paper towel and air dryer methods statistically significantly decreased virus contamination of hands. For 10 out of 11 areas tested, quite a high amount of environmental contamination was found after air dryers versus paper towel use. All surfaces sampled following the use of air dryers showed phage contamination compared to 6 surfaces after paper towel use. Average surface contamination following hand contact was more than 10 times higher after air dryer use versus paper towel use.

Viral dispersal to apron/clothing was 5 times higher with air dryers versus the paper towels. Phage transfer from aprons to armchairs via the crossed arms was detected only following air dryer use. This suggests that the transfer of microbes to environmental surfaces can occur directly from hands that remain contaminated after air drying, but also indirectly from a person’s body that has been contaminated during air drying.

The research team concluded that there are very distinct differences in regards to air drying versus paper towel drying in the residual microbial contamination of the participant’s body and hands. These differences in contamination translate into quite a bit greater microbe levels of contamination after air drying versus the use of paper towels from body and hands beyond the bathroom. Since public bathrooms are used by staff, visitors and patients, the hand drying method used can promote the increase (using air dryers) or decrease (using paper towels) pathogen transmission in hospitals.

The team also notes that their findings have significant importance since there has been a general migration from use of paper towels to more air drying in many settings and areas in the world. The World Health Organization’s hand washing guidelines recommend the use of paper towels to dry hands. And they also recommend using a paper towel to turn off the tap. The preferred method should be paper towels to dry hands following proper washing to help reduce the risk of virus contamination and spread.

To view the original scientific study click below

Dispersal of microbes to hospital surfaces following two hand drying methods: paper towels or a jet air dryer

Protect Against Deadly Covid-19 Complications with Exercise

A top exercise researcher has reported that regular exercise may reduce the risk of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) which is a major cause of death in people with the COVID-19 virus. He is now urging people to exercise regularly as a way of possibly preventing or at least reducing the severity of ARDS.

Zhen Yan, PhD at the University of Virginia School of Medicine has shown that findings from medical research strongly supports the possibility of exercise as a form of treatment for those suffering from ARDS. Between 3% and 17% of all patients with the COVID-19 virus suffer from ARDS. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that 20% to 42% of patients who become hospitalized with COVID-19 will develop ARDS. For patients admitted to an ICU the range is estimated at 67% to 85%.

Research that was conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic has suggested that about 45% of patients who develop severe ARDS will die. Right now what we hear is that social distancing or ventilators is all we have to avoid exposure or relying on a ventilator to survive the virus. However, 80% of confirmed COVID 19 patients have only mild symptoms with no need for respiratory support and the question is why.

Research findings in regards to an endogenous antioxidant enzyme may provide important clues. Extracellular Superoxide Dismutase (EcSOD) is a potent antioxidant that hunts down harmful free radicals which helps protect our tissues and prevent disease. Our muscles naturally produce this antioxidant secreting it into circulation to allow binding to other vital organs. Its production is enhanced by cardiovascular exercise.

A decrease in EcSOD is seen in a variety of diseases including ischemic heart disease, kidney failure and acute lung disease. Research conducted on mice suggests that blocking this antioxidant production worsens heart problems, while increasing its production has beneficial effects. A decrease in EcSOD is also associated with chronic conditions like osteoarthritis.

Research has suggested that even a single session of exercise increases the production of EcSOD. With the current COVID-19 pandemic Dr. Yan is urging people to find ways to exercise while still maintaining social distancing. Regular exercise has far more health benefits that we currently know. The protection exercise may provide against ARDS which is a serious condition that can develop in COVID 19 patients, is just one of the many examples.

Dr. Yan’s review has strongly suggested EcSOD has a potential and promising treatment for ARDS and a variety of other health conditions. Gene therapy is another example which may one day be used to increase the production of EcSOD so that its protection presence in lungs is enhanced in patients who are battling the COVID-19 virus.

Research has also shown that rats with chronic kidney disease had less damage to their kidneys when treated with human EcSOD. This antioxidant is being proposed as a potential therapy for diabetic retinopathy which is a complication of diabetes that can lead to blindness.

EcSOD may also prove beneficial for multi-organ dysfunction syndrome where multiple organs begin to fail. Treating the condition with general antioxidants has not been successful, however Dr. Yan suggests that understanding EcSOD’s workings may lead to doctors using it in a more targeted and more effective fashion.

It is often said that exercise is medicine. EcSOD has set a perfect example of the biological process of exercise to potentially advance medicine.

To view the original scientific study click below

Extracellular superoxide dismutase, a molecular transducer of health benefits of exercise.

High Dose Intravenous Vitamin C for Covid-19

The largest hospital system in New York is now giving high doses of Vitamin C intravenously for patients with COVID 19. The treatment is based on Chinese reports of this approach helping patients with the virus.

Critical care specialist and pulmonologist Dr. Andrew G. Weber has reported that his COVID 19 patients in intensive care are receiving 1,500 mgs of Vitamin C intravenously and are being re-administered the dose 3 to 4 times per day. These doses are 16 times more than the national recommended allowances of 75 mg for adult women and 90 mg for adult men. The approach is based on experimental treatments and small studies with COVID 19 patients in Shanghai, China.

The information from China describes patients with new coronaviral pneumonia who recovered and were discharged from the hospital after high dose Vitamin C. The information also states that early application of large doses of Vitamin C can have a strong antioxidant effect and improve endothelial function. High dose Vitamin C has been shown to not only improve antiviral levels but also can prevent and treat acute respiratory distress and acute lung injury.

Vitamin C is being widely used to treat patients with COVID 19 throughout the system. The treatment protocols do vary from patient to patient. Currently more COVID 19 patients are being treated in the hospital network in New York than anywhere else in the United States.

The Vitamin C treatments are being given along with other medicines including hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and other biologicals and blood thinners. These “cocktails” are being administered to severely ill patients on a compassionate care basis. The patients who received the additional Vitamin C showed significant improvement over those who did not.

Vitamin C levels drop dramatically in people with COVID 19 when they experience sepsis. Sepsis is an inflammatory response that occurs when the body overreacts to an infection. It therefore makes sense to try and maintain levels of Vitamin C.

A hospital in Wuhan, China is currently conducting clinical trials in regards to the effectiveness of high dose intravenous Vitamin C on COVID 19 patients.

A Key Ingredient in Mediterranean Diet May Extend Life

The team at the University of Minnesota Medical School researched olive oil and may have found what it is that activates the pathway to increased lifespan and health!

Previous studies into the Mediterranean Diet identified red wine as a key factor to the health benefits of this diet. Red wine contains a compound known as resveratrol which activates certain pathways in cells to assist in healthier aging. What the recent research has shown is that it is the fat in olive oil that is activating the same pathway.

According to the team, just consuming olive oil may not enough to get all of its health benefits. They suggest that when combined with limiting caloric intake, fasting, and exercising, the benefits of using olive oil are more pronounced.

They found that the way the fat in olive oil works at first is that it has to be stored in microscopic things known as lipid droplets which is how the cells in our body store fat. After the fat is then broken down during fasting or exercising, this is when signaling and the beneficial effects are realized.

The team will further their research by translating it to humans with the goal of finding alternative ways to further tailor dietary regimens that will improve health both in the short term and long term. They want to understand the biology and hopefully change the paradigm of health care from a person seeing a variety of different doctors to treat a variety of disorders. The goal is to treat aging!

To view the original scientific study click below

Lipid Droplet-Derived Monounsaturated Fatty Acids Traffic via PLIN5 to Allosterically Activate SIRT1.

When to Eat to Manage Weight

How we balance weight gain and weight loss is predominantly due to what we eat, how much we eat and by how much we exercise. However, another important factor is often looked over. It isn’t just about the amount of calories we consume, but when they are consumed that will determine how well we will burn those calories.

In a study by Researchers at the Vanderbilt University, the metabolism of middle-aged and older participants was monitored in a whole room respiratory chamber over two 56 hour sessions using a random crossover experimental design.

DUring both sessions, lunch and dinner were served at the same times (always at 12:30 and 5:45), but the third meal timing differed between each of the two halves of the study. In one of the 56 hour time frames the additional meal was served as breakfast at 8:00 a.m. In the other session the meal was nutritionally equivalent to a snack in the late evening at 7:00 p.m. The length of the fast overnight was the same for the two sessions.

Although the two sessions were not different in the type or amount of food eaten or in their activity levels, each day the timing of nutrient availability along with clock/sleep control of metabolism, turned on a switch in the participant’s fat/carbohydrate preference such that the snack in the late evening resulted in a smaller amount of fat burned than the morning session.

The results indicate the time of the meals during the day and night cycle affect the extent to which consumed food is used versus being stored. The study has significant implications in regards to eating habits assuming that daily fast between an evening meal and then eating breakfast will maximize weight management.

To view the original scientific study click below

Eating breakfast and avoiding late-evening snacking sustains lipid oxidation.

Red Meat and Processed Meats Linked to Severe Health Risks

A new large study has linked consuming processed meats and red meats to a higher risk of death and heart disease. The study from Northwestern Medicine and Cornell University refutes a previous controversial study concluded that it was not needed for people to alter their diet in regards to processed and red meats.

Last fall the controversial report encouraged people to not worry about health risks by consuming processed and red meat which contradicts decades of nutrition advice. The report was widely criticized by public health experts including groups like the American Cancer Society and the American Heart Association. The recent study highlights the potential harm of a meat heavy diet.

The current research included a diverse group of 29,682 people with a mean age of 53.7 years at baseline and included 44.4% men and 30.7% non-white. All diet data was self reported by the participants who were asked to complete a long list of what they consumed for the previous month or year.

The study pooled together a large diverse sample from six cohorts and also included long follow-up data for up to three decades, harmonized diet data to reduce heterogeneity, adjusted a comprehensive set of con founders, and conducted multiple sensitivity analysis.

The research has shown that consuming 2 servings of processed meat, red meat or poultry, but no fish per week was attributed to a 3 to 7% increased risk of cardiovascular disease. And consuming 2 servings of processed or red meat and not poultry/fish per week was found to be linked to a 3% increased risk of all causes of death.

While it is a small difference, reducing processed and red meat such as deli meats, bologna, and pepperoni is worth trying to help reduce the higher risk of a variety of health problems. Modifying the consumption of these particular protein foods could be an important way for reducing the risk of premature death and cardiovascular disease at a population levels says the research team.

The study showed that the correlation to cardiovascular disease and mortality was high. The previous meta analysis last November recommended people not decrease consuming the amount of processed and red meats. People interpreted it to mean it is was okay to consume these foods, however the team states that the science does not support that.

The findings reinforce recommendations for people to prioritize healthier food choices such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, fish, seeds, and nuts and limit the consumption of processed and red meats, fried foods, sugar laden beverages, and refined grains. Seafood, fish and plant based sources of protein such as legumes and nuts and including peas and beans, are excellent alternatives to meat. These foods are under consumed in the United States.

The study did find a positive association between consuming poultry and cardiovascular disease, but the evidence isn’t yet sufficient to make a clear recommendation in regards to poultry consumption.

Limitations of the study included only one dietary intake assessment and dietary behaviors could have changed over time. Also, how a food was cooked was not considered. Deep fat fried foods that contribute to trans fatty acids such as fried chicken and fried fish have been identified as a link to a variety of chronic diseases.

To view the original scientific study click below

Associations of Processed Meat, Unprocessed Red Meat, Poultry, or Fish Intake With Incident Cardiovascular Disease and All-Cause Mortality

Mediterranean Diet can Promote Gut Bacteria

New research has indicated that eating a Mediterranean diet for a year can help boost gut bacteria which are linked to healthy aging. The five country study also indicates this diet can help reduce bacteria that is associated with dangerous inflammation people that are older.

Aging is linked with the deterioration of bodily functions and an increase in inflammation. Both are also associated with the onset of frailty. The Mediterranean Diet may act on gut bacteria in a way that helps curb the advance of cognitive decline and physical frailty in advancing years.

Previous studies have suggested that a restrictive/poor diet which is typical among older people and primarily those people in long term residential care, decreaces the types and range of bacteria or microbiome that is discovered in the gut and promotes the acceleration of fraility.

The researchers in the current study wanted to see if the Mediterranean Diet could help sustain the microbiome in the gut of older people and help promote the retention and possibly proliferation of bacteria that are linked with healthy aging.

The team analyzed the gut microbiome of 612 participants ranging in age from 65 to 79 before and following 12 months of either consuming their usual diet or a Mediterranean diet. The Mediterranean diet was rich in vegetables, fruits, olive oil, fish and legumes and low in saturated fats and red meat.

The participants who could be on the verge of frailty or were already considered frail or not frail at the start of the study resided in 5 different countries – Italy, France, Netherlands, the UK and Poland. Those who stuck with the Mediterranean diet for the period of 12 months were associated with beneficial changes to the gut microbiome.

The results were linked with reducing the loss of bacterial diversity; increasing in bacteria types previously linked with several indicators of diminished frailty such as hand grip strength and walking speed, and improved brain function; and with decreased production of potentially dangerous inflammatory chemicals.

Additional detailed analysis indicated that the microbiome changes were linked with a rise in bacteria types known to promote beneficial short chain fatty acids and a reduction in bacteria involved in the production of particular bile acids. An over production of these bile acids is linked to increased risk of bowel cancer, fatty liver, insulin resistance, and cell damage.

The bacteria that accumulated in response to the Mediterranean diet served as keystone species which meant they were critical to a stable gut ecosystem and the pushing out of microbes linked with indicators of frailty.

These changes were mainly driven by an increase in fiber and associated minerals and vitamins. The vitamins and minerals noted were B6, B9, C, potassium, copper, manganese, iron, and magnesium. The findings were independent of the participant’s weight or age both of which influence the make up of microbiome.

There were some differences in the gut microbiome of participants depending on country of origin to start with, however the response to the Mediterranean diet after the 12 month period was consistent and similar irrespective of nationality.

The research team does note that their findings cannot establish a causative role for the microbiome in health and some of the implications are inferred rather than directly measured. The interplay of diet, host health, and microbiome is a complex phenomenon which is influenced by a variety of factors.

The results of the study shed light on some of the rules of this three way interplay. A variety of factors such as body mass index, age, initial dietary patterns, and disease status may play a significant role in determining the extent of the success of these interactions.

The Mediterranean diet may be a challenge for some older adults, particularly those with dental problems and/or difficulty swallowing. However, the beneficial bacteria implicated in health aging found in this study may potentially prove useful therapeutic agents to help ward off frailty.

To view the original scientific study click below

Mediterranean diet intervention alters the gut microbiome in older people reducing frailty and improving health status: the NU-AGE 1-year dietary intervention across five European countries.

Obesity Considered as Premature Aging

According to a new study led by Sylvia Santosa at Concordia University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the mechanisms by which aging and obesity develop are very similar. The team believes that obesity should now be considered premature aging because it predisposes people to acquiring potentially life altering diseases which are normally seen in older people.

Around the world there are an estimated 1.9 billion adults and 380 million children who are either obese or overweight. The World Health Organization says more people are actually dying from overweight than underweight.

With the goal of trying to comprehensively show that obesity parallels aging, the team reviewed more than 200 papers which looked at obesity’s effects and how obesity ages the body from a variety of perspectives. They looked at the immune system to shifts in tissue and body composition, and the processes of cell death and the ongoing maintenance of healthy cells that are typically associated with aging.

Previous studies have shown that obesity is linked to premature death and have shown that obesity induced apoptosis has been observed in mice livers, hearts, neurons, kidneys, retinas and inner ears. Obesity also inhibits autophagy which can lead to a variety of life threatening diseases.

The team notes that at the lowest levels inside the human body, obesity is a factor that directly speeds up aging mechanisms. At the genetic level, the team discovered that obesity influences a number of alterations generally associated with aging. These include the shortening of telomeres which are the protective caps found on the ends of chromosomes. Telomeres in people who are obese can be more than 25% shorter than those seen in control patients.

The study has also suggested that obesity’s effects on mobility, cognitive decline, stress, and hypertension are all similar to those of aging. From the cellular level, the team says obesity plays a significant role in the body’s defenses against age related diseases. Obesity will speed up the aging of the immune system through targeting different immune cells and that later weight loss will not always reverse this process.

Obese people can also be at a higher risk of sarcopenia which is a disease associated with aging and causes a progressive decline in muscle strength and mass. Additionally they have a higher risk of diseases such as the flu which will often affect obese people at a higher rate than people with normal weight.

The hope is that these observations will focus approaches to understanding obesity in a better way and also allow people to think about obesity in a different way.

To view the original scientific study click below

Obesity and ageing: Two sides of the same coin.

New Bone Building Stem Cells Discovered

A group of researchers have found a group of stem cells which have the ability to generate new bone. They live along the vascular channels that reach across bone and connect the inner and outer parts of the bone.

This new discovery is of perivascular cells which reside within the bone itself. They can promote new bone forming cells, and these cells likely regulate the formation of bone or participate in bone mass repair and maintenance.

It has long been thought that stem cells for bone occur within bone marrow and the outer surfaces of bone. Recent research has found the existence of a network of vascular channels that assisted in distributing blood cells out of bone marrow. However, no studies have proven that the cells within these channels have the ability to form new bone.

In the recent study, this team has been the first reporting the existence of these progenitor cells within cortical bone that can generate new osteoblasts or new bone forming cells and can be used to remodel bone. The team looked at the stem cells within an ex vivo bone transplantation model. The cells migrated out of the transplant and began to reconstruct the bone marrow cavity and begin forming new bone.

Although the study shows this population of cells which can help aid formation of bone, more research is needed to determine the cell’s potential to regulate bone resorption and formation.

To view the original scientific study click below

Perivascular osteoprogenitors are associated with transcortical channels of long bones.

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