MAN’S ingenuity and cleverness are once again making a quantum leap for the betterment of mankind. And progress promotes even greater and more wonderful progress. The United States National Institute of Health and the Department of Health and Human Services announced the development of a “next-generation, universal vaccine platform,” intended to create a universal COVID-19 and influenza one-shot-for-both vaccine that would not require updates or boosters, one lasting vaccine that will cover future variants. Vaccine haters would love this vaccine. This universal vaccine might even prevent a future pandemic, provided people are disciplined and compassionate to their fellowmen to prevent transmission, get vaccinated, and religiously follow CDC guidelines.
Cannabis and dementia
While cigarette smoking is going down in the United States, especially among middle- aged individuals, the use of cannabis is increasing. Cannabis is the scientific name of the marijuana, the slang term for the dried flowers and leaves of cannabis sativa. Cannabis users, numbering six million ages 45 and older who needed acute hospital care, have a 72 percent risk of dementia within five years compared to the non-users, shown by a new large-scale study. Cannabis smoke, like tobacco smoke, is also associated with elevated risk for cancer and damage to the mouth, throat and lungs, besides cognitive problems and psychosis. In 2022, about 28 percent of Americans reported using cannabis, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
For brain health
Studies have shown that simple things we do every day, even without taking brain health supplements, can actually benefit brain health. The strategy could be any, or a combination of all of the following: Doing something new each day, different from our old daily routines, benefits our brain. Examples are getting out of the house once or twice a day, even doing brisk walking, taking a new route each day, trying a new recipe, listening to new songs, reading a new variety of book, playing with children, doing puzzles, playing new games with family and friends, connecting with old friends, doing something unique each day…they all boost brain health, and improve cognition and memory. (Side-tracking: To help my memory, to remember to bring certain items with me when I go out, I put them by my shoes. I link taking my medications with my meals.)
Food coloring
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., warned food companies to “get rid of artificial colors in their foods or the government would take action.” It’s about time! We have written about this in this column in the past. Food coloring, like Red 3, has been shown to cause cancer in animals, and other dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6) may contain contaminants that are carcinogenic (cancer-causing).
I only hope Secretary Kennedy would also ban other contaminants in all foods, meat, seafood, vegetables, and fruits, like chemical enhancers and antibiotics, pesticides, etc. On top of this, I hope he will push for the evaluation of all so-called “food supplements,” a trillion-dollar industry, where companies produce and sell these pills and potion, without government oversight as far as indication for their use, dose, efficacy, potential side-effects, possible counteraction with prescribed medications, and complications.
Dietary supplements send more than 23,000 people to the emergency room each year, and more than half resulted in hospitalization attributed to adverse side-effects of supplements. The public is at the mercy of these pharmaceutical companies. It’s about time our government protected the people.
Cheese and health
In 2024, Americans consumed 42 pounds of cheese per person. Most varieties of cheese have saturated fats and salt, ingredients people try to avoid. Studies in 2023, posted on Advances in Nutrition, reviewed dozens of observational studies about eating cheese and health. The surprising finding showed that consumption of “some varieties of cheese – averaging 1.5 ounces a day – was linked to a lower risk for heart disease, stroke, and death from cardiovascular disease.”
Emily Gelsomin, a senior clinical nutritionist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital explained that “cheese production involves fermentation, which uses beneficial microbes to break down milk sugar (lactose) and proteins to create distinct flavor compounds. Some fermentation byproducts also have health effects that may counteract the sodium and saturated fat found in cheese.”
Bacteria in many cheese varieties (such as Asiago, cheddar, and Parmesan) “break down milk proteins to create compounds similar to those found in a widely used class of blood pressure drugs known as ACE inhibitors. The fermentation of dairy products also produces vitamin K, which has been shown to help slow the buildup of harmful calcium deposits in the heart’s arteries and valves. Muenster, Camembert, and Edam cheeses contain the highest amounts of vitamin K.”
Whiter than white
Scientists from Purdue University developed a new shade of white paint in April 2021. The new paint may look like any other plain white hue found at paint stores. Compared to those other pigments, “Purdue’s white paint reflects 98.1% of the sun’s rays. (Most white paints, by contrast, reflect only about 80% to 90%.)” The Guinness World Records stated that reflective ability makes the paint the whitest white that’s ever been created.
The New York Times stated that “if between 1% and 2% of the world’s surface (about half the size of the Sahara) could be coated with this ultra-white paint, the planet would no longer absorb more heat than it was emitting.” Painting rooftops could help fight our current planetary fever while also cutting air-conditioning costs. The new paint can make surfaces 8 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the surrounding ambient air temperature at mid- day. A wonderful discovery for the world!
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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.
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Philip S. Chua, MD, FACS, FPCS, a Cardiac Surgeon Emeritus based in Northwest Indiana and Las Vegas, Nevada, is an international medical lecturer/author, health advocate, medical missionary, newspaper columnist, and chairman of the Filipino United Network-USA, a 501(c)3 humanitarian foundation in the United States. He is a recipient of the Indiana Sagamore of the Wabash Award in 1995, whose other awardees include President Harry S. Truman, President George HW Bush, Astronaut Gus Grissom, pugilist Muhammad Ali, David Letterman, distinguished educators, scientists, etc. (Wikipedia). Websites: FUN8888.com, Today.SPSAtoday.com, and philipSchua.com; Email: [email protected].
