Morning Health Team

FDA Approves 1st Direct-to-Customer Genetic Risk Tests

April 25, 2017 By Morning Health Team 2 Comments

Unlocking the marvelous world of genetics has made a huge difference in our lives. Over a decade ago, DNA evidence began to find its way into hundreds of court cases. Eye witness accounts have been proven to be inaccurate and has led to the wrongful conviction of innocent people.

In today’s courts, jurors want to know about DNA evidence, as it doesn’t lie, except in the case of identical twins, triplets, quads and quintuplets. People are often amazed at where forensic experts find DNA left behind by a criminal. It can be found on the back of a licked stamp or envelope flap, the brim of a cup and even from outside of a cigarette butt.

As scientists learned more about the human genome and began detailed sequencing, they learned to identify some mutations that either cause a health condition or leaves someone more susceptible to developing other medical and health-related conditions.

A prime example that’s been in the news lately was the discovery of the BRCA1 & BRCA2 genes that can greatly increase a women’s chance of developing breast cancer. Actress Angelina Jolie who after testing for the mutations, decided to have both of her then healthy breasts removed to reduce her chance of getting breast cancer. Afterwards, Jolie and other women go through a series of breast reconstruction surgeries.

Up until now, the tests have been performed by specialists and can be quite costly, but that is about to change.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first direct-to-customer genetic health risk tests. The new tests are known as 23andMe Personal Genome Service Genetic Health Risk tests and the company behind them is 23andMe Inc. They will test for 10 diseases and conditions:

Parkinson’s disease;
Alzheimer’s disease (late onset);
Celiac disease;
Antitrypsin deficiency (Alpha-1), a disorder that raises the risk of lung and liver disease;
Primary dystonia (early onset), a movement disorder involving involuntary muscle contractions and other uncontrolled movements;
Factor XI deficiency, a blood clotting disorder;
Gaucher disease (type 1), an organ and tissue disorder;
Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase deficiency; a red blood cell condition;
Hemochromatosis (hereditary), an iron overload disorder;
Thrombophilia (hereditary); a blood clot disorder.

The company and FDA have worked together to ensure that the tests will be as reliable and accurate as possible. However, with their approval, the FDA warned that it’s still possible to get a false positive test result.

Dr. Jeffrey Sihuren, Director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health commented about the tests, saying:

“Consumers can now have direct access to certain genetic risk information, but it is important that people understand that genetic risk is just one piece of the bigger puzzle, it does not mean they will or won’t ultimately develop a disease.”

In other words, don’t do anything radical as a result of test results without getting a second opinion to either verify the test result or indicate the result may have been a false positive. It’s also important to remember that testing positive for a genetic trait does not mean you have the condition or disease. They may only mean that your chances of developing may be greater than normal, but they may not saying that you do have the condition. That’s why it’s important use them only as a stepping stone to further medical testing or evaluation.

Does Ethnicity Play a Role in Heart, Stroke & Diabetes Risks?

April 19, 2017 By Morning Health Team Leave a Comment

Image result for Race Ethnicity

We hear a lot about ‘race’ these days, generally in cases of biased, activism, discrimination and so on. Personally, I do not like using the term race as it is inaccurate, misleading and often racist in its connotation. We are all ONE race – the human race!

In 1995, Robert Lee Hotz, reported in the Feb. 20 issue of the Cincinnati Enquirer:

“Researchers adept at analyzing the genetic threads of human diversity said Sunday that the concept of race – the source of abiding cultural and political divisions in American society – simply has no basis in fundamental human biology. Scientists should abandon it, they said.”

“‘Biologically, we are saying in essence that race is no longer a valid scientific distinction,’ said Solomon H. Katz, a University of Pennsylvania anthropologist.”

“‘Race is a social construct derived mainly from perceptions conditioned by events of recorded history, and it has no basic biological reality,’ said C. Loring Brace, a biological anthropologist at the University of Michigan. (Spoken before the American Association for the Advancement of Science Convention in Atlanta, 1995)”

“The researchers were acting, in part, to correct a legacy of misconceptions about the biology of race, in which earlier generations of researchers provided the raw material for spurious claims of racial superiority. ‘They liked to concoct a biological basis for mistreating people,’ said Brown University anthropologist John Ladd.”

“One survey by Central Michigan University says more than half of all cultural and physical anthropologists no longer embrace race as a useful scientific definition.”

On Sept. 10, 1998, ABC News – Science Page stated:

“More and more scientists find that the differences that set us apart are cultural, not racial. Some even say that the word race should be abandoned because it’s meaningless.”

Again, in 1009, Darlene Applegate, Ph.D. Muskingum College New Concord, Ohio stated:

“If it is determined that races do not biologically exist, or even if they do that one is not biologically superior to others, communication of these findings to the populous may help to solve the problems associated with racism.”

This is why I prefer the term ‘ethnicity’ over race as it is more accurate in referring to geographic people groups. In this context, it has been found that some ethnic groups seem to be genetically more at risk for things like heart disease, strokes and diabetes.

Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta and the University of California, San Francisco discovered that Americans of Hispanic and South Asian descent had higher risks of developing heart disease, diabetes and strokes, even if they were normal weight. By South Asia, they mean Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The report stated:

“Among normal-weight people, those of South Asian descent were two times more likely to have heart disease or diabetes abnormalities.”

“Normal-weight people of Hispanic descent were 80 percent more likely to have these potential problems than whites, the study found.”

“And blacks and Chinese-Americans were 50 percent more likely to have these metabolic abnormalities at a normal weight, researchers said.”

While this does not decree that everyone from these ethnic groups will have heart disease, diabetes or strokes, it should serve that these people do need to take extra care of their health and see their doctor on a regular basis.

Obesity in Early Pregnancy Increases Risk of Epilepsy in Offspring

April 17, 2017 By Morning Health Team Leave a Comment

Image result for weight during pregnancy

For many young families getting started, pregnancy is or should be a very joyous time. Despite the annoyance and unpleasantness of morning sickness, the very thought of a new human life developing and growing inside a woman’s body is a very special time for the mom and dad. It should be a time of joy, bonding, togetherness and anticipation.

Unfortunately, it can also be a time of worry and uncertainty, mainly about the health of the unborn child. It’s important for pregnant moms to have checkups with their family physician or a good obstetrician – gynecologist (OB-GYN). They can prescribe the right vitamins and supplements and monitor the health of the baby and the mom. They can also issue warnings of things to avoid such as smoking, alcohol, drugs, etc.

One thing that so many expectant moms have in common is gaining weight during pregnancy. A common excuse given is that she is eating for two, which in some ways is true, but can also have dangerous consequences if not controlled.

One of those consequences is that many overweight and obese moms give birth to big babies that are easily prone to growing up overweight and obese. These can lead to many complications in life such as diabetes, heart disease, liver disease, kidney disease and stroke, even at an early age.

But did you know that the more overweight or obese a pregnant mom is, the greater the risk is of her baby having epilepsy. The more obese the mom, especially in the early stages of pregnancy, the greater the risk is of her child developing epilepsy, according to a new study:

“Kids are more likely to develop childhood epilepsy — a seizure disorder — if their mothers were overweight or obese early in pregnancy, a new study suggests.”

“The risk of epilepsy in children goes up as a mother’s weight goes up — reaching as high as 82 percent among kids of severely obese women, the researchers said.”

“‘This means more severe grades of obesity correspond to increasingly higher risk,’ said study co-author Dr. Eduardo Villamor. He’s a professor of epidemiology with the University of Michigan School of Public Health.”

The study took place in Sweden where researchers studied the medical histories of 1.4 million babies born between 1997 and 2011. Of those, over 7,500 developed some form of epilepsy by the age of 16.

From there, they linked the odds of a child developing epilepsy to the body mass index (BMI) of the mothers at around the 14^th week of pregnancy. Body mass is a ratio of a person’s height and weight and often used to determine the amount of fat someone has. A normal BMI is generally thought to be between 18.5 to 24.5. People with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 are considered to be overweight and anything 30 and above is obese.

Based on their study, the risk if childhood epilepsy compared to BMI were as follows:

11 percent increased risk with overweight.
20 percent increased risk with grade I obesity.
30 percent increased risk with grade II obesity.
82 percent increased risk with grade III obesity.

The effects of a pregnant mother’s weight on her developing child were listed as:

“There are several potential ways a mother’s excess weight could increase risk of childhood epilepsy, Razaz and Villamor said.”

“Excess weight increases the risk of preterm birth and birth defects, which in turn increase risk of epilepsy, the researchers said. The baby also is more likely to suffer from trauma or low oxygen levels during birth with an overweight or obese mother. These factors might raise epilepsy risk.”

“Overweight or obesity also spurs on general inflammation in the mother’s body. This could possibly have an effect on their baby’s developing brain, Villamor added.”

“Dr. William Bell is a neurologist with Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center. He agreed that inflammation could be the culprit behind this increased risk.”

“‘Pregnancy is already an inflammatory state, and so is obesity. When you add those two together, a lot of bad things can happen,’ Bell said.”

Before every overweight or obese woman begins panicking and taking extreme measures to reduce their weight, Dr. Stephen Wolf, director of pediatric epilepsy at Mount Sinai Health System in New York City, says that the overall risk of childhood epilepsy is still relatively low.

If possible, it is better on the mom and the baby if excess weight can be lost, but don’t panic and do something drastic out of fear that may end up harming you and your baby. Consult with your doctor and follow his or her advice.

Key to Post-Stroke Recovery

April 17, 2017 By Morning Health Team 8 Comments

If you think strokes only happen to elderly people, think again. Strokes can hit anyone at any age, but the older one gets, the more susceptible one becomes for having a stroke.

About 15-years ago, my daughter worked as a certified-nursing-assistant at a senior daycare center. Although most of the patients or clients were elderly, 60 and over, she also had several that were younger. She had one male patient who had a debilitating stroke around the age of 30. When I was in college, I worked as a night orderly in a nursing home and we had several patients, mostly female who were between 40 and 50 years of age.

Not the long ago on our local news, they featured a woman who, at the age of about 40, was recovering from a stroke. She was married and had a handful of kids. I remember thinking how tragic at this stage of her and her family’s life.

According to Stroke.org:

Each year nearly 800,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke.
A stroke happens every 40 seconds.
Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S.
Every 4 minutes someone dies from stroke.
Up to 80 percent of strokes can be prevented.
Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the U.S.

First of all, what is a stroke?

A heart attack is generally caused by the blockage of blood flow to an area of the heart, resulting in the heart muscle tissue dying for lack of oxygen. Likewise, a stroke is a ‘brain attack’ caused when the blood supply to an area of the brain is blocked and brain cells begin to die.

There are two main types of stroke – hemorrhagic and ischemic.

A hemorrhagic stroke is caused by the hemorrhaging of blood vessels in the brain. In most cases, it’s associated with a ruptured aneurysm – a swelling of a blood vessel that weakens the vessel wall and then bursts open.

An ischemic stroke is caused by a blood clot the cuts off the blood flow to part of the brain.

There is a third, generally less severe form of stroke known as a TIA or transient ischemic attack. They are defined as a temporary, generally less than 24 hours, where there is a blockage of blood flow due to a clot that in a short time releases and allows blood flow to resume.

The severity of a stroke depends a lot on the location and how soon treatment can be started. Knowing how to recognize a stroke is important for you and your family or those around you. Here are ten general symptoms of a stroke:

Trouble seeing – sudden blurred or dimming vision.
Loss of balance – having trouble walking or sitting without falling. Generally caused by one side of the body being affected by the stroke.
Difficulty speaking – speech becomes slurred, words hard to recall.
Weakness – A very common symptom when the arm and/or leg on one side of the body become weak and possible unable to move.
Facial paralysis – not always, but one side of the face can become paralyzed, often accompanied by slight pain in the face, dizziness, difficulty speaking, drooling out of one side of the mouth, tearing of eye and inability to smile or frown.
Pain – while most people don’t associate pain with a stroke, it can range from a dull ache to a constant or sudden sharp pain.
Loss of understanding – a stroke victim sometimes is mentally confused and bewildered, unable to put a thought together.
Severe headache – many illnesses can be accompanied by severe headaches, but coupled with many of the other symptoms, a severe headache can be a sign of a stroke.
Loss of senses – could include vision, smell, hearing, tough and taste.
Fatigue – by itself, fatigue may be a sign of many other things, including fevers or just staying up too late the night before. However, when fatigue is accompanied with many of the other symptoms, it’s nothing to just sleep on.

We hear all the time that high blood pressure and stress are some of the leading causes of strokes. That’s why so many doctors are concerned about their patients’ health as they want to take measures to help reduce the possibility of having a stroke.

Another key to reducing the risk of having a stroke or increasing the chance or recovery is you have a stroke, is watching your weight and regular exercise. Pamela Rist, of Harvard University just authored a study and reported:

“The new study involved more than 18,000 people with no history of stroke who were followed for an average of 12 years. During that time, nearly 1,400 of the participants suffered a stroke but survived.”

‘Three years after their stroke, those who had exercised regularly before their stroke were 18 percent more likely to be able to perform basic tasks — such as bathing on their own, the researchers found.”

“The fitter individuals were also 16 percent more likely to be able to perform more complex tasks, such as managing money on their own, compared to those who did not exercise before their stroke, the findings showed.”

“‘We also found that a person’s body mass index was not a factor in predicting their level of disability after stroke,’ Rist said in a journal news release. Body mass index is an estimate of body fat based on weight and height.”

“Two experts in stroke care who reviewed the findings said the study highlights the importance of exercise.”

That’s one of the reasons my wife and I are buying a treadmill. We have found that our life has become more sedentary than it used to be. With the crazy weather where we live, it’s not always possible to get out and walk or jog, so we decided to invest in a good quality treadmill that has adjustable speed, incline and a shock absorbing system to take some of the impact off of our knees.

With the treadmill, we can take turns getting our cardio exercise while watching some of our favorite television programs – sewing and quilting for her, sports for me and many shows we both like. We have also invested in some exercise strength bands and inexpensive equipment that will help make it easier for us to do strength building exercises which is vital for bones and the prevention of osteoporosis.

It’s important to do something to reduce the weight and fat and get some exercise, depending on your abilities or limitations.

Whooping Cough and Vaccinations – Baby or Pregnant Mom

April 14, 2017 By Morning Health Team Leave a Comment

Whooping cough, also known as pertussis, is caused by a bacterial infection that usually starts in the nose and throat. Regardless of how old a person is, whooping cough may be life threatening and require hospitalization. It can also be mild and mistaken for a common cold or bronchitis. Likewise, severe cases of bronchitis can be mistaken for whopping cough and require a test to determine the difference.

Early symptoms of whooping cough, according to the CDC, generally begin to show 5-10 days after being exposed to the bacteria – usually from someone else infected with the disease. Those early symptoms may be just a runny nose, low-grade fever, mild cough and in many babies – apnea – which is a pause in breathing. It’s during the early stages of pertussis that it is often thought to be just a cold or mild case of bronchitis.

After about 1-2 weeks of the early symptoms, whooping cough, the later and more severe symptoms begin to appear. These include severe or prolonged coughing fits, also known as paroxysms. In true whooping cough, the coughing fits are frequently followed by a high pitched ‘whoop’ sound, hence its name. This is caused by the coughing fit emptying all of the air from the lungs which causes the person to ‘whoop’ or gasp for air. Vomiting may accompany coughing fits, either during or afterwards. Fatigue and exhaustion also follows the coughing fits.

The coughing caused by whooping cough can persist for 10 weeks or longer. In parts of China, it’s often referred to as the 100-day cough.

As stated before, bronchitis is sometimes thought to be whooping cough and vice versa. In my younger days, I used to get severe bronchitis twice a year and my cough was quite severe and lasted for at least a month. One doctor, who saw me for the first time swore I had whooping cough was ready to put me in the hospital and quarantine the family. After my mom shared my bronchitis history, the doctor ran some tests and determined that I had a severe case of whopping cough. He then told us that it’s easy to confuse the two.

Treatment for whooping cough consists of antibiotics. Over-the-counter cough medicines generally have little to no affect or relief for whooping cough and many medical professionals advise using them, especially on younger children. However, it is best to talk to your doctor or pediatrician and ask questions.

For decades now, many newborns receive a myriad of vaccines to prevent illnesses like whooping cough as the disease can be extremely dangerous for babies under the age of 1-year. Some believe that vaccines can lead to other health conditions including autism, so a growing number of parents opt not to vaccinate their infants.

A study was conducted on nearly 150,000 babies born in California between 2006 and 2015. According to a source reporting on the study:

“The study included nearly 149,000 infants born in California between 2006 and 2015. The percentage whose mothers received the Tdap booster vaccine for tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (‘whooping cough’) while pregnant rose from less than 1 percent in 2006-2008 to more than 87 percent by 2015.”

“In early 2013, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended the Tdap shot for pregnant women regardless of prior Tdap vaccination. The vaccine can be given at any time during pregnancy, preferably between 27 and 36 weeks’ gestation.”

“Babies whose moms got the Tdap shot during pregnancy had a 91 percent lower risk of whooping cough during the first two months of life. That’s the critical period before babies get their first whooping cough shot, the Kaiser Permanente researchers said.”

“Babies whose moms got the vaccine during pregnancy also had a 69 percent lower risk of whooping cough in their first year of life, the findings showed.”

Whooping cough is can be quite serious, especially for babies. If you are hesitant about having your newborns vaccinated, then seriously consider getting vaccinated while you’re pregnant. It just may save your child’s life and protect them from spending a month in the hospital racking up huge medical bills.

Ageing & Sleep: The Good, Bad and Ugly

April 12, 2017 By Morning Health Team 2 Comments

Human, Woman, Old, Person, Individually

Have you noticed any changes in your sleep habits as you move past 40-years of age and older? Some of the those changes are perfectly normal and non-harmful, but other changes in sleep habits with age, can be detrimental to physical and mental health.

How many times have you heard older people say ‘early to bed and early to rise’? For many of us past the age of 40, that has become so true. We tend to go to bed earlier and get up earlier and there is nothing wrong with that as long as you get a good restorative sleep.

What about finding out that the older you get, the less sleep you seem to need? There may be a perfectly natural explanation of that and again, this is normal and not necessarily harmful.

As we go about our waking activities, the brain builds up amyloid-beta proteins. If these proteins are not cleaned up or eliminated, they can create conditions like dementia. Over years of research, it has been found that a good sound (restorative) sleep helps to clear the amyloid-beta proteins, keeping the brain healthier. In this way, you can think of a deep sleep as acting like the night janitor for your brain, cleaning up and getting rid of the day’s waste.

However, when a person does not get a good restorative sleep for whatever reason, the amyloid-beta proteins tend to build up. A person who wakes frequently or a number of times throughout the night generally never gets into a long enough deep sleep to allow the cleaning of the amyloid-beta proteins, thus making them more susceptible to conditions like dementia. Reading this caused me some concern as I wake frequently at night due to being in constant pain. I hate think how much amyloid-beta sludge has been building up in my brain.

A recent study revealed that as some of us get older, we lose the ability to get a good sound or restorative sleep. Sometimes that failure to get a good sleep is due to a vicious and harmful cycle. According to the report:

“Sleep ‘fragmentation’ has been linked to a number of medical conditions, including depression and dementia, Mander said. People with fragmented sleep wake up multiple times during the night, and miss out on the deep stages of sleep.”

“It is true that medical conditions, or the treatments for them, can cause sleep problems, according to Mander. But poor sleep can also contribute to disease, he added.”

‘Take dementia, for example. Research suggests there is a ‘bi-directional’ link between sleep disruptions and the dementia process, said Joe Winer, another Berkeley researcher who worked on the review.”

“That is, dementia often causes sleep problems; poor sleep, in turn, may speed declines in memory and other mental skills. According to Winer, animal research suggests that deep sleep helps ‘clear’ the brain of the amyloid-beta proteins that build up in people with dementia.”

“So, there may be a ‘vicious cycle,’ Winer said, where dementia and poor sleep feed each other.”

“Similar vicious cycles may be at work with other diseases, too, Mander said.”

If you find that you are having more trouble getting a good sound (restorative) night’s sleep, see your doctor. Perhaps there is a simple solution to help, like sleep medication and possible, it could be a sign of something more sinister, that can be addressed or at least more controlled or the affects lessened. Don’t hit the snooze button and put off seeking help, as the longer you put it off, the worse or uglier it can get. No one wants to become senile or suffer from dementia and now that they have linked it to lack of good sleep, by taking action, you may put off the ugly and stay good longer.

Are You Cursed with a Night Owl Gene Mutation?

April 11, 2017 By Morning Health Team 23 Comments

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Are you one of those people that seem to just naturally stay up late and consequently get up late? Have you ever wondered why you may be that way?

For years, we were told that it was the way you were raised. I know with me it was. I grew up having to do chores before school, so I had to get up early in order to do chores, have breakfast, fix my lunch and get to school on time. My chores usually consisted of taking care of animals – feeding and watering them and making sure they have everything they need. As I made it to college, I preferred early classes over later classes, so again, I was up early. I spent 12 years working for a utility. During the winter, we started work at 7am and in the summer, since Arizona does not observe Daylight Savings Time, we started work at 5am and were able to head home at the peak heat of the day.

These days, I’m 65 years old and I still habitually get up early, even if I don’t have to. I always thought that since I got up early most of my life that it’s a habit that I still have.

Our two daughters, born 16 months apart are as different as night and day. As a child, our oldest daughter would disappear between 8pm and 9pm. When we went looking for her, we always found her in bed, sound asleep. Rarely did we ever have to tell her to go to bed.

On the flip side, our youngest daughter always fought going to bed and when we put her to bed, she would be awake for hours. During her school days, we often found her with a light on at midnight reading a book and we would have to tell her to turn the light off and go to bed. In the morning, she never wanted to get up. She is 39-years-old now and still cannot go to sleep early or at normal times but stays up late and doesn’t like to get up early.

As parents, we could never figure out why such a difference between the two girls. A new study may finally give us the answer we’ve sought all these years.

Researchers at the Laboratory of Genetics at The Rockefeller University just authored a study on a sleep disorder called ‘delayed sleep phase disorder’ (DSPD). People with this sleep disorder tend to do some of the best work late at night and struggle to wake up and get going in the morning.

Researchers studied 70 people from six families and found that those individuals with DSPD had a mutation on a gene known as CRY1. Members of the same families that did not exhibit the DSPD sleep disorder did not have the mutation on the CRY1 gene.

The researchers reported that this is the first time a gene mutation has been identified as a cause of DSPD. The mutation disrupts the body’s natural circadian rhythm, also known by some people as their internal clock. Our natural circadian rhythm is hardwired into our genetics and it is programmed to operate in 24-hour cycles. However at least 10% of people with DSPD operate on an internal clock that operates in a longer than a 24-hour loop.

Alina Patke, lead author of the study, commented, saying:

“Carriers of the mutation have longer days than the planet gives them, so they are essentially playing catch-up for their entire lives.”

“A person like a bartender, for example, might not experience any problem with the delayed sleep cycle. but someone like a surgeon who has to be in the OR in the early morning – that’s not compatible.”

Their discovery was first made when a 46-year-old woman came to a sleep clinic for help after years of struggling with her late sleep cycle. They placed her in an apartment for two-weeks. The apartment had no windows or connections to the outside world. No television, internet; nothing that might hint as to the time of day.

Under the study conditions, they discovered the woman’s sleep cycle operated on about a 25-hour clock instead of 24-hour. Consequently, her sleep was often fragmented, leaving her constantly feeling tired. It was after this two-week testing that the researcher sequenced her genes and discovered the CRY1 genetic mutation.

To test their theory, they then contacted the 70 family members in the 6 families in Turkey and were able to conduct genetic sequencing on them and interviewed all of them concerning their sleep habits. Of the 70 test subjects, 39 contained the CRY1 mutation and 31 did not. Those that had the mutation had a later sleep cycle than those without the mutation.

If you are one of those night owl people who seem to naturally be wide awake late at night and struggle to get up in the morning for work or school, it may be that you are cursed with the CRY1 mutation. I wonder how many employers or teachers will buy that excuse for being late when you drop it on them?

Time Zones & Sleeping in on Weekends Can Increase Risk of Cancer and More

April 7, 2017 By Morning Health Team 1 Comment

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For the past decade, we’ve been hearing a lot about getting enough sleep and what lack of sleep can do physically and mentally to a person. Most experts say that we should be getting 7-8 hours of quality sleep a night. Not getting enough sleep can make a person more susceptible to obesity, diabetes and increase the risk of some cancers and heart conditions. It also leaves a person mentally fatigued, interfering with their ability to function at the level they should be functioning at.

Allow me to say just how true this is…

About 15 years ago, I was sent to a sleep clinic by my doctor because my wife said I stopped breathing a lot when I slept. After the tests, the sleep clinic doctor shared the good and bad news with me. I had three separate and distinct sleep disorders, the worst of which was sleep apnea (this is the one where you stop breathing many times while sleeping). However, he then said that he could treat the sleep apnea or the other two, but it’s not possible to treat all three at the same time. So, I sleep with a CPAP machine that forces air into my nose and keeps me from stopping to breathe. The doctor also told me that to treat the sleep apnea, it can aggravate the other two disorders which he described as minor. The CPAP machine did help, but I also live in constant severe pain which also prevents me from sleeping well. On a good night, I am fortunate if I get a total of 4 hours of sleep during 8 hours of trying to sleep. Consequently, I am constantly fatigued and often fall asleep quite easily. Basically, I’m so tired that I can’t stay awake and but hurt so much I can’t stay asleep. Yes, I am obese, have Type-2 diabetes and my immune system is very compromised making me very susceptible to every bug that goes around.

With all that said, have you ever heard of ‘social jet lag’? It has nothing to do with flying in a plane from one time zone to another. Social jet lag is defined as getting up at a certain time during the week and then sleeping in on the weekends. While many people do this to catch up on their sleep, it is actually proving to interrupt our body’s circadian rhythm. Many functions in your body are controlled by your circadian rhythm.

According to one source:

Circadian rhythm:

A circadian rhythm is a roughly 24-hour cycle in the physiological processes of living beings, including plants, animals, fungi and cyanobacteria.

In a strict sense, circadian rhythms are endogenously generated, although they can be modulated by external cues such as sunlight and temperature.

Circadian rhythms are important in determining the sleeping and feeding patterns of all animals, including human beings.

There are clear patterns of brain wave activity, hormone production, cell regeneration and other biological activities linked to this daily cycle.

Breaking up the circadian rhythm disrupts the natural cycle of how and when things work in our bodies. This is why rotating shifts are very bad on one’s health, as is social jet lag.

But did you know that where you live in a time zone can also affect your circadian rhythm which in turn may increase your chances of developing a number of health conditions including cancer?

For example, take the Eastern Time Zone. It reaches from the east coast westward. A person living in the eastern part of the time, say Boston, gets up at 8am and it is daylight. The daylight helps trigger the circadian rhythm processes. Yet a person living in Ohio or northern Kentucky also in the Eastern Time Zone, who gets up at 8am may find that it’s still dark outside. Hence the activity of getting up and the darkness work oppositely on the circadian rhythm. One researcher said that for every 5 degrees of longitude westward within a time zone is equal to a 20-minute delay in sunrise.

While you may be saying big deal, you may find what else the research found to be insightful:

Social jet lag has been linked to various conditions including obesity and diabetes, Caporaso said. In the new study, the researchers focused on cancer.

Cancer and the biological clock

In the study, the researchers looked at data on 4 million white adults who had been diagnosed with cancer between 2000 and 2012. The people in the study lived in more than 600 counties in 11 states, all within the continental U.S.

Results showed that for every 5 degrees of longitude toward the west that a person lived from the eastern edge of their time zone, his or her risk of developing any type of cancer increased by 3 percent in men and 4 percent in women.

The researchers also looked at people’s risk of developing specific cancers.

For example, men who lived in the western-most region of a time zone had a 4 percent greater risk of prostate cancer, and 13 percent greater risk of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a cancer that affects white blood cells, compared with men who lived in the eastern-most regions of a time zone, the researchers found.

Women living in the western-most regions had a 4 percent greater risk of breast cancer, a 12 percent greater risk of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and a 10 percent greater of a type of uterine cancer compared with women living in the eastern-most region of a time zone, the researchers found.

Keeping to a set schedule of getting up at the same time every day is much healthier than sleeping in on the weekends, but then again so is living towards the eastern edge of your time-zone.

Thyroid Cancer Rate Triples in US

April 7, 2017 By Morning Health Team

The thyroid gland is a very important gland that controls a number of vital bodily functions. It is often described as butterfly-shaped and located around the windpipe just below the Adam’s apple in the neck.

The pituitary gland, located between the eyes in the front of the brain, sends chemical signals to the thyroid, instructing it what to do or what and how much of the various hormones are needed for the rest of the body. The thyroid’s hormones control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, the rate food is converted into energy, weight, absorption of calcium and is vital in the growth and development of children.

The thyroid utilizes iodine as one of the main ingredients in some of the important hormones it produces, which is why most table salt sold in stores is iodized.

Many people suffer from low thyroid production which in most cases makes the person tired and overweight. However, there are exceptions. My wife has had a low thyroid for many years and at first doctors ran blood tests twice to verify as at the time she stood about 5’10” and weighed 109 pounds.

In addition to the many cases of low thyroid, studies indicate that since 1975, the rate of thyroid cancer diagnosed has more than tripled. There are five basic types of thyroid cancer:

Papillary carcinoma is the most common type of thyroid cancer, accounting for approximately 80 percent of cases. Papillary carcinomas are slow growing, differentiated cancers that develop from follicular cells and can develop in one or both lobes of the thyroid gland. This type of cancer may spread to nearby lymph nodes in the neck, but it is generally treatable with a good prognosis (outlook for survival).

Follicular carcinoma is the second most common type of thyroid cancer, and accounts for approximately one out of 10 cases. It is found more frequently in countries with an inadequate dietary intake of iodine. Follicular carcinoma is also a differentiated form of thyroid cancer. In most cases, it is associated with a good prognosis, although it is somewhat more aggressive than papillary cancer. Follicular carcinomas do not usually spread to nearby lymph nodes, but they are more likely than papillary cancers to spread to other organs, like the lungs or the bones.

Hürthle cell carcinoma, also known as oxyphil cell carcinoma, is a subtype of follicular carcinoma, and accounts for approximately 3 percent of all thyroid cancers.

Medullary thyroid carcinoma develops from C cells in the thyroid gland, and is more aggressive and less differentiated than papillary or follicular cancers. Approximately 4 percent of all thyroid cancers will be of the medullary subtype. These cancers are more likely to spread to lymph nodes and other organs, compared with the more differentiated thyroid cancers. They also frequently release high levels calcitonin and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), which can be detected by blood tests.

Anaplastic carcinoma is the most undifferentiated type of thyroid cancer, meaning that it looks the least like normal cells of the thyroid gland. As a result, it is a very aggressive form of cancer that quickly spreads to other parts of the neck and body. It occurs in approximately 2 percent of thyroid cancer cases.

The symptoms of thyroid cancer include neck pain, changes in the voice, difficulty breathing and swallowing and coughing. It is often detected by noticing a lump in the throat. The most common diagnostic tools used to confirm thyroid cancer are a needle biopsy and ultrasound.

In the report on the increase in the number of cases of thyroid cancer, some believe it may be due to better diagnostic methods, but a recent study of more than 77,000 cases of thyroid cancer says that it is a real growing threat:

“‘While overdiagnosis may be an important component to this observed epidemic, it clearly does not explain the whole story,’ said Dr. Julie Sosa, one of the authors of the new study and the chief of endocrine surgery at Duke University in North Carolina.”

“Sosa, along with epidemiologists at the National Cancer Institute, acknowledged in their new study that better tools — from diagnostic ultrasound to fine-needle biopsies — have improved doctors’ ability to detect thyroid cancers. But the study, published today (March 31) in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), said that thyroid cancer is a real, growing threat, as shown by the increasing cases of a type of thyroid cancer called advanced stage papillary thyroid cancer, along with a steady rise in deaths from the disease.”

“In the study, the team analyzed more than 77,000 cases of thyroid cancer documented in a National Cancer Institute (NCI) database between 1974 and 2013. Along with the tripling in cases over that period, the researchers noted that between 1994 and 2013, cases of advanced forms of thyroid cancer rose by about 3 percent each year, and deaths from the disease rose by about 1 percent each year.”

“In the period from 1974 to 1977, there were 4.6 cases of thyroid cancer per 100,000 people diagnosed yearly in the U.S. That number reached 14.4 cases per 100,000 people yearly in the period from 2010 to 2013.”

“Currently, more than 60,000 Americans are diagnosed each year with a form of thyroid cancer, according to the NCI. About 75 percent of these patients are women, and 82 percent are white, the researchers found.”

“That deaths from thyroid cancer are increasing, despite it being among the most treatable and least lethal forms of cancer, is worth noting, Sosa said.”

A 2010 report gives hope to some people with an aggressive form of thyroid cancer. The report stated that only about 5% of thyroid cancers are the very aggressive form and treatment is usually done by chemotherapy as surgery and radiation are not generally effective. Researchers treated 37 people with the very aggressive form of thyroid cancer with a new drug called pazopanib. They said that close to half of those patients saw their thyroid tumors decrease by at least 30%.

Please take note that if you notice a lump in your neck below the Adam’s apple or your voice has changed, you develop difficulty in breathing or swallowing, please see your doctor as soon as possible. Thyroid cancer is on the rise and is treatable, especially when caught early one.