- Why replacing alcohol with weed is a growing trend in the US
- Mediterranean diet helps women live much longer, large study says
- Kids are starting menstruation earlier, a study shows. Here's what that means for their health
- Her gut was producing alcohol. Doctors didn't believe her
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Why replacing alcohol with weed is a growing trend in the US |
The use of weed to replace alcohol is a growing trend in the United States. In fact, a recent study found that, for the first time, the daily use of cannabis of any kind among Americans has surpassed the daily use of alcohol. In sheer numbers, of course, many more people still drink alcohol on occasion than use marijuana, which is now legal for recreational use in 24 states and Washington and for medical use in 38 states and DC. Still, nearly 18 million people 12 and older reported using marijuana daily or near daily in 2022, compared with about 15 million who said they used alcohol with the same frequency, according to a new study's analysis of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Is replacing alcohol with weed a healthier option? It depends. Just one drink a day can raise blood pressure, trigger a dangerous irregular heartbeat or even shrink your brain, studies have found. Those are just a few of the many pitfalls of alcohol use, including the risk of cancer. At first glance, the harms of marijuana appear equally worrisome. Daily marijuana use raises the risk of stroke by 42% and heart attack by 25%, even if there is no prior history of heart disease and the person has never smoked or vaped tobacco, according to a February study. Weed has also been linked to cardiac arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation; myocarditis, which is inflammation of the heart muscle; spasms of the heart's arteries; and a higher risk of heart failure. However, many participants in those studies are smoking or vaping marijuana instead of ingesting it, said Dr. Peter Grinspoon, a primary care physician and cannabis specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Research on edibles, such as baked goods, candies and beverages, and other methods of using cannabis is in its infancy. |
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Mediterranean diet helps women live much longer, large study says |
Women who closely followed a Mediterranean diet lived much longer than those who did not, according to a new study that followed more than 25,000 women for 25 years. "For women interested in longevity, our study shows that following a Mediterranean dietary pattern could result in about one quarter reduction in risk of death over more than 25 years with benefit for both cancer and cardiovascular mortality, the top causes of death," senior study author Dr. Samia Mora, a cardiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, said in an email. The Mediterranean diet features simple, plant-based cooking, with much of each meal focused on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and seeds, with a few nuts and a heavy emphasis on extra-virgin olive oil. Fats other than olive oil, such as butter, are consumed rarely, if at all, and sugar and refined foods should be avoided. Red meat is used sparingly, usually only to flavor a dish. Eating healthy, oily fish, which are packed with omega-3 fatty acids, is encouraged, while eggs, dairy and poultry are eaten in much smaller portions than in the traditional Western diet. "In this study, adherence to the Mediterranean diet was a proxy for diet quality. Those who adhered most closely were eating more legumes, more vegetables, more fruits, less meat, and less processed meats," said Dr. David Katz, a specialist in preventive and lifestyle medicine who founded the nonprofit True Health Initiative, a global coalition of experts dedicated to evidence-based lifestyle medicine. Although the study was observational and thus could not show a direct cause and effect, "the finding is entirely consistent with many other studies of the now famously healthful Mediterranean diet," said Katz, who was not involved in the research. "We may be comfortable inferring that a high quality diet did, indeed, 'cause' a lower risk of death," he wrote in an email. |
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Kids are starting menstruation earlier, a study shows. Here's what that means for their health |
Younger generations are getting their first periods earlier, and the length of time it takes to become regular is changing — which could point to later health problems, according to a new study. "Among individuals born between 1950 and 2005, we found that younger generations were starting their first period (menarche) earlier, and the time it took for their periods to become regular also increased," said lead study author Dr. Zifan Wang, a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health, in an email. Earlier periods might be associated with high body mass index, or BMI, during childhood, Wang said. "This implies that childhood obesity, which has been increasing in the US, might be contributing to people getting their periods earlier," Wang added. The cause could also be other environmental factors such as nutrition or the prevalence of microplastics, said Dr. Eve Feinberg, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, adding that further investigation is needed. Additional research can help physicians counsel people better about their menstruation and recognize the effects on their patients' health, said one of the study's principal investigators, Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah, assistant professor of environmental, reproductive and women's health at Harvard's T.H Chan School of Public Health. Physicians should evaluate children with early periods or a long duration of irregular cycles to make sure there isn't an underlying problem, Feinberg said. |
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Her gut was producing alcohol. Doctors didn't believe her |
Her breath reeked of alcohol. She was dizzy, disoriented and weak, so much so that one day, she passed out and hit her head on a kitchen counter while making lunch for her children. Yet not a drop of liquor had passed her lips, a fact that the 50-year-old Toronto woman and her husband told doctors for two years before someone actually believed her. "She visited her family doctor again and again and went to the emergency room seven times over two years," said Dr. Rahel Zewude, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Toronto. Doctors found that the woman's alcohol levels could range between 30 and 62 millimoles per liter; below 2 millimoles per liter is normal, Zewude said. Alcohol levels of up to 62 millimoles per liter are extraordinarily high and would be considered life-threatening, even fatal, said Barbara Cordell, president of an advocacy association called Auto-Brewery Syndrome Information and Research, which provides patient education and does research on the unusual condition. All of the emergency room doctors questioned the Toronto woman's drinking habits, and she was examined by three hospital psychiatrists, who concluded that she did not meet criteria for the diagnosis of alcohol use disorder. "She told doctors her religion does not allow drinking, and her husband verified she did not drink," said Zewude, who treated the woman and co-authored a new report on the anonymous case. "But it wasn't until the seventh visit that an emergency room doctor finally said, 'I think this sounds like auto-brewery syndrome,' and sent her to a specialist," Zewude said. Since 1974, 20 diagnosed cases of auto-brewery syndrome have been reported in English medical literature, according to an April 2021 review. Additional reports have occurred in Japan, where the condition is known as meitei-sho, or "alcohol auto-intoxication syndrome." The condition happens when certain species of bacteria and fungi overpopulate a person's gut microbiome, basically turning the gastrointestinal tract into a still apparatus. "It's not as rare as we think, it's (just) rarely diagnosed," Cordell said. "I believe many people may walk around feeling foggy and just think they are tired when they might be fermenting alcohol." |
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| When a child comes out as transgender, parents can be faced with various feelings, decisions and judgment from others. Here's how to navigate all of it, according to experts and families who've shared their experiences. |
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We talk a lot about maintaining our physical health: exercising, eating healthy foods and of course getting plenty of sleep. But psychotherapist Lori Gottlieb says we take a very different approach to our emotional health. "People don't come to therapy until they're having the equivalent of an emotional heart attack," she told me on the latest episode of my "Chasing Life" podcast. She says we could be happier if we didn't wait for crisis to strike before seeking therapy. Rather, we should use it as a tool to maintain our emotional health. But a lot of people are unsure about therapy. Nearly a third of Americans surveyed in a Pew research poll said they'd only be somewhat comfortable talking to a therapist about their own mental health. Lori says therapy can provide us with what she calls wise compassion. "We hold up a mirror to you and we help you to see something about your role in the situation and in the relationship that maybe you haven't been willing or able to see. And that's really helpful. It's almost like getting a second opinion on your life from someone who's not already in your life," she said. This is what can help us navigate the world in a healthier way and ultimately lead to happiness. "I think that people who chase happiness, that's sort of a recipe for disaster. I think that people who are looking for meaning and connection, which of course brings us happiness ... is why people come to therapy." So while taking care of our physical health can be a means to happiness, we can't forget about maintaining our emotional health, as well. I hope you listen to learn more about how therapy can help you invest in your relationship with yourself and even help you form new pathways in your brain! |
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| With the surge in telemedicine, therapy has seen a remarkable rise in popularity. But could therapy hold the key to a happier life? And should everyone go to therapy? Listen here. |
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