Start Up Cleerly Aims To Shake Up Heart Disease Treatment In The U.S. : By Derek Baine

A stethoscope and heart on the table.


650K Americans will die from heart disease this year, and more than half of them—roughly 490K—won’t have seen it coming.  That’s because about 60% of people who have a heart attack have no prior symptoms.  Dr. James Min, a cardiologist, is hoping to change these statistics at his start-up Cleerly, which will use machine learning to help doctors personalize heart disease treatment plans before patients end up in the ER.  He calls his company’s approach â€precision prevention.â€Â  Dr Min says that the market opportunity is massive, with more than 100 million Americans at risk of having a heart attack.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/katiejennings/2021/06/21/this-ai-startup-raised-43-million-to-save-lives-and-money-by-treating-heart-disease-earlier/?cdlcid=607e1442fe2c195e916f3bb4&utm_campaign=dailydozen&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&sh=2f1977e859bd

 

Healthy Heart Tips For Seniors From AARP : By Derek Baine

A doctor and patient looking at a book


AARP.org has some great tips for keeping your heart healthy, starting with the simple advice to brush and floss regularly.  Swollen or bleeding gums can lead to microorganisms traveling into the bloodstream, which can cause inflammation and heart damage.  Older adults who skimped on oral hygiene were 20 to 35 percent more likely to die during a 17-year study done by  University of Southern California researchers.  Also, doing 10 minutes of resistance training each morning can go a long way.  In a study which was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, women (average age of 62) who did just 20 to 59 minutes of muscle-strengthening exercises each week were 29% less likely to die during a 12-year study than those who did none.  There are also simple alterations that you can do to your diet which will help a lot.  For instance, try replacing half the butter in your baking recipes with mashed avocado.  Replacing saturated fats with MUFAs can help lower LDL (bad cholesterol).  Try eating more bananas!  A diet rich in potassium can help offset some of sodium’s harmful effects on blood pressure.  (AARP Bulletin Volume 62, Number 4, Page 13).

DASH Diet Cuts Heart Damage, According To New Study : By Derek Baine

A stethoscope and heart on the table.


A study which was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that the popular “DASH†diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) reduces heart stress and damage which often results in heart disease.  The diet emphasizes consuming fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, as well as shole grains, poultry, fish and nuts.  This sounds similar to

the Mediterranean diet, with a focus on avoiding red meat.  The Mayo Clinic says that the diet encourages the reduction of sodium and is a “lifelong approach to healthy eating that’s designed to help treat or prevent high blood pressure.â€Â  Another study which was done by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at Harvard Medical School found that it reduced cholesterol and blood pressure and lowers damage to cardiac heart muscles.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-/2021/06/01/dash-diet-reduces-heart-damage-stress-study-shows/7468363002/

Carmel, CA Alzheimer’s Caregivers Need To Come Up With A Safety Plan

A woman looking out of the window at her home.


The Alzheimer’s Association, always a good organization to get tips from when dealing with a loved one who has dementia, recently released a report about how important having a comprehensives safety plan becomes as the disease progresses.  Please click on the link below to get advice on the following topics:

Wandering;

Home Safety;

Dementia & Driving;

Medication Safety;

24/7 Wandering Support for a Safe Return;

Technology 101;

Traveling;

Preparing For Emergencies; and

Abuse

 

Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and grandmother had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There are great people at our local chapter of Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan’s Ranch.  They also have a 24-hour hotline if you need support at 800-272-3900.

 

https://www.alz.org/help-support/caregiving/safety?WT.mc_id=enews2021_04_26&utm_source=enews-aff-20&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=enews-2021-04-26&utm_content=homeoffice&utm_term=Story3

 

Monterey, CA Causes And Risk Factors For Alzheimer’s Disease

A woman with grey hair sitting in a chair.


I volunteered for years for our local chapter of Alzheimer’s Association.  They are great people and they always have plenty of information and advice.  They recently published an article regarding Causes And Risk Factors For Alzheimer’s Disease which was eye opening.  Some risk factors like age, family history and genetics we just have to live with.  However, there are a number of lifestyle and wellness decisions that you make which can alter your risk for getting this disease.  Click on the link below to learn more.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and grandmother had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There are wonderful people at our local chapter of Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan’s Ranch.  They also have a 24-hour hotline if you need support at 800-272-3900.

https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers/causes-and-risk-factors?WT.mc_id=enews2021_04_29&utm_source=enews-aff-20&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=enews-2021-04-29&utm_content=homeoffice&utm_term=Story2

Link Between Gum Disease And Alzheimer’s

A purple background with the alzheimer 's association logo.


A study which was published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring found a correlation between gum disease and Alzheimer’s disease.  The study’s author explained that the mouth is home to both harmful bacteria that promote inflammation and healthy proactive bacterial.  Researchers found that people who have more harmful than healthy gum bacteria were more likely to also have a protein market for Alzheimer’s disease, known as amyloid beta, in their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).  About 70% of seniors aged 65 and older have gum disease.

https://consumer.healthday.com/b-4-12-research-shows-links-between-gum-disease-and-alzheimers-2651849762.html?WT.mc_id=enews2021_04_25&utm_source=enews-aff-20&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=enews-2021-04-25&utm_content=homeoffice&utm_term=Story1

Pebble Beach, CA In Home Dialysis Expands Under Medicare

A woman and a nurse smiling for the camera.


Senior citizens with kidney problems will have an option of in-home dialysis care covered by Medicare.  About 1 in 3 Medicare patients that are struggling with end-stage renal disease will be enrolled in the new program.  In addition to being more convenient, it will reduce the risk of being exposed to people with COVID-19.  Medicare also announced that it will increase the amount it pays provider of home kidney treatments to help gain traction with the program.  About 92,000 Americans are currently on the kidney transplant list.  For more information, talk to one of our local dialysis centers in Monterey County which are listed here:

https://www.dialysisfinder.com/dialysis-centers/monterey/ca/100#.X9Kn79hKjcs

Pebble Beach, CA Hope For Those With ALS, AKA Lou Gehrig’s Disease

A doctor and patient looking at a book


Lou Gehrig’s disease, or ALS, seems similar to Alzheimer’s disease but attacking the body rather than the brain.  There is no cure for either disease, and the ailment just continues to progress and leave you more and more debilitated.  However, USA Today recently ran an article about three promising themes:

  1. A new drug—developed in part with money from the 2014 Ice Bucket Challenge—increased the average survival of patients in clinical trials by 7.5 months.
  2. A first-ever clinical trial is testing multiple ALS treatments at once; and
  3. Record levels of federal research funding are planned for this year.

Many are hopeful that Amylyx’s AMX0035 which got a $2.2 million grant from the $111 million Ice Bucket Challenge, will be approved by the FDA.  Findings for AMX0035’s Phase 2 trial were so promising that the ALS community is pushing the FDA to fast track approval.  They have gone so far as to ask the FDA to skip a Phase 3 trial, the only time in history that the ALS Association has asked the FDA to do so.  However, it’s a long-shot.  If you or a loved one are struggling with ALS, contact the Monterey Chapter of ALS here:

http://web.alsa.org/site/TR?pg=entry&fr_id=14647&NONCE_TOKEN=D30086CF168CADF46857EB53C986C9EA

The Number Of Cases Of Parkinson’s Disease Are Exploding : The Reason Is Frightening

A person holding a stethoscope in their hand.


Researchers believe that a common chemical used in dry cleaning and household products such as shoe polish and carpet cleaning are causing the number of diagnoses of Parkinson’s disease to soar dramatically.  The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, estimates that about 250 million pounds of the chemical Trichloroethylene, or TCE, are used every year in the U.S.  Dr. Ray Dorsey, a neurologist at the University of Rochester Medical Center and the author of “Ending Parkinson’s Disease†says, “We’re on the tip of a very, very large iceberg.â€Â  He predicts an epidemic of Parkinson’s disease is on the horizon.  The number of cases has risen by 35% over the last ten years.  TCE has been banned in the EU and other places and hopefully they will do the same thing in the U.S.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/apr/07/rates-of-parkinsons-disease-are-exploding-a-common-chemical-may-be-to-blame

 

Monterey, CA Tips For Warding Off Dementia And Alzheimer’s Disease

A nurse is smiling next to an older woman.


Everyone wants to keep their brains working in full order as long as possible, and the key can be healthy living, getting the proper amount of exercise and social interaction.  The latter is easier said than done given the massive spreading of coronavirus.  Although board games can be fun, with COVID-19 many seniors are turning to video games.  According to an AARP survey, 44% of adults over the age of 50 played video games in 2019 versus 38% in 2016.  That’s 10 million more older gamers!  About a quarter of gamers play multiuser games, which can increase social interaction which will hopefully ward off early onset of Alzheimer’s Disease.  Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and grandmother had this terrible disease when they passed away.  There are great people at our local chapter of Alzheimer’s Association in Ryan’s Ranch.  They also have a 24-hour hotline if you need support at 800-272-3900.