Enjoy coffee this winter: Caffeine offsets some health risks of diets high in fat, sugar

Enjoy coffee this winter: Caffeine offsets some health risks of diets high in fat, sugar

Dr KK Aggarwal

President CMAAO 

A new study published in Science Daily, in rats suggests that caffeine offsets negative effects of an obesogenic diet by reducing the storage of lipids in fat cells and limiting weight gain and the production of triglycerides. In the study, rats that consumed the caffeine extracted from mate tea gained 16% less weight and accumulated 22% less body fat than rats that consumed decaffeinated mate tea. The study by scientists at the University of Illinois also found that the effects were similar with synthetic caffeine and that extracted from coffee.

The amount of caffeine per serving in mate tea ranges from 65-130 milligrams, compared with 30-300 milligrams of caffeine in a cup of brewed coffee. For four weeks, the rats in the study ate a diet that contained 40% fat, 45% carbohydrate and 15% protein. They also ingested one of the forms of caffeine in an amount equivalent to that of a human who drinks four cups of coffee daily.

Considering the findings, mate tea and caffeine can be considered anti-obesity agents.

Efficacy and Safety of Low-Dose Colchicine after Myocardial Infarction

Reproduced

Efficacy and Safety of Low-Dose Colchicine after Myocardial Infarction

N Engl J Med 2019; 381:2497-2505

Jean-Claude Tardif, M.D., Simon Kouz, M.D., David D. Waters, M.D., Olivier F. Bertrand, M.D., Ph.D., Rafael Diaz, M.D., Aldo P. Maggioni, M.D., Fausto J. Pinto, M.D., Ph.D., Reda Ibrahim, M.D., Habib Gamra, M.D., Ghassan S. Kiwan, M.D., Colin Berry, M.D., Ph.D., José López-Sendón, M.D., et al.

Abstract: Experimental and clinical evidence supports the role of inflammation in atherosclerosis and its complications. Colchicine is an orally administered, potent antiinflammatory medication that is indicated for the treatment of gout and pericarditis.

METHODS: We performed a randomized, double-blind trial involving patients recruited within 30 days after a myocardial infarction. The patients were randomly assigned to receive either low-dose colchicine (0.5 mg once daily) or placebo. The primary efficacy end point was a composite of death from cardiovascular causes, resuscitated cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction, stroke, or urgent hospitalization for angina leading to coronary revascularization. The components of the primary end point and safety were also assessed.

RESULTS: A total of 4745 patients were enrolled; 2366 patients were assigned to the colchicine group, and 2379 to the placebo group. Patients were followed for a median of 22.6 months. The primary end point occurred in 5.5% of the patients in the colchicine group, as compared with 7.1% of those in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.61 to 0.96; P=0.02). The hazard ratios were 0.84 (95% CI, 0.46 to 1.52) for death from cardiovascular causes, 0.83 (95% CI, 0.25 to 2.73) for resuscitated cardiac arrest, 0.91 (95% CI, 0.68 to 1.21) for myocardial infarction, 0.26 (95% CI, 0.10 to 0.70) for stroke, and 0.50 (95% CI, 0.31 to 0.81) for urgent hospitalization for angina leading to coronary revascularization. Diarrhea was reported in 9.7% of the patients in the colchicine group and in 8.9% of those in the placebo group (P=0.35). Pneumonia was reported as a serious adverse event in 0.9% of the patients in the colchicine group and in 0.4% of those in the placebo group (P=0.03).

CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with a recent myocardial infarction, colchicine at a dose of 0.5 mg daily led to a significantly lower risk of ischemic cardiovascular events than placebo. (Funded by the Government of Quebec and others; COLCOT ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02551094. opens in new tab.)

Fight breathing problems due to cold and dry air in winter!

A deep breath of cold winter air can be risky for people with asthma, bronchitis, or COPD. It can trigger wheezing, coughing, and shortness of breath. It can irritate the airways, causing the upper airways to narrow and making it a little harder to breathe even in healthy individuals.

1.    Get your drugs titrated: Work with your doctor in advance to optimize medications for the winter months. Patients with asthma who are sensitive to cold air may be asked to use an inhaler; short-acting bronchodilator

2.    Moist your nose: A dry nose generally feels like a congested nose, which results in mouth breathing. Regular use of a nasal saline spray help decrease the sense of nasal congestion, which will decrease mouth breathing.

3.     Cover your nose and mouth: with a scarf when you're outside. It reduces symptoms by warming the face, warming the air you breathe, and increasing the moisture in the air you breathe

4.     Stay indoors: People with respiratory conditions should avoid spending time in the cold whenever possible

5.    Avoid exercising in cold as it will further increase the dryness of the airways and potentially increase symptoms or the risk of an asthma attack. The need to move your exercise routine indoors during the winter months is a good opportunity to take an exercise class at a gym, start a home workout program, or join a walking club at a local mall.

6.     Adjust the indoor air: Keep the air warm and moist. Don't let the indoor air temperature fall below 64 degree F and use a humidifier to keep the air from becoming too dry.

7.     Avoid lung irritants like wood-burning fireplaces

8.     Take annual flu shot

9.    Complete your pneumonia vaccine protocol

10.  Make sure you do not miss heart symptoms as lung symptoms, as both are common in winter.

Dr KK Aggarwal

Padma Shri Awardee

President Confederation of Medical Associations in Asia and Oceania (CMAAO)

Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications

President Heart Care Foundation of India

Past National President IMA