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Air quality alert for Oregon

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Monday, September 9, 2024

On Monday at 12:19 p.m. an air quality alert was issued for Douglas, Klamath and Lake counties.According to the National Weather Service, "Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has issued an Air Pollution Advisory in effect until 2 p.m. Wednesday.The advisory is in effect for Eastern Douglas, Northern Klamath and Northern Lake counties.Wildfires burning in the region combined with forecast conditions will cause air quality levels to fluctuate and could be at unhealthy levels.Smoke levels can change rapidly depending on the weather. People at risk include infants and young children, people with heart or lung disease, older adults and pregnant people.People can take the following precautions to protect their health:- Follow local burn restrictions to prevent deteriorating air quality.- Avoid strenuous outdoor activity during periods of poor air quality.- People with heart or lung problems and young children are especially vulnerable. These people should stay indoors while smoke levels are high.- Use certified High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters in indoor heating, ventilation, cooling and air purification systems.- Avoid using wood-burning stoves and other sources of indoor smoke if possible."

On Monday at 12:19 p.m. an air quality alert was issued for Douglas, Klamath and Lake counties.

On Monday at 12:19 p.m. an air quality alert was issued for Douglas, Klamath and Lake counties.

According to the National Weather Service, "Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has issued an Air Pollution Advisory in effect until 2 p.m. Wednesday.The advisory is in effect for Eastern Douglas, Northern Klamath and Northern Lake counties.Wildfires burning in the region combined with forecast conditions will cause air quality levels to fluctuate and could be at unhealthy levels.Smoke levels can change rapidly depending on the weather. People at risk include infants and young children, people with heart or lung disease, older adults and pregnant people.People can take the following precautions to protect their health:- Follow local burn restrictions to prevent deteriorating air quality.- Avoid strenuous outdoor activity during periods of poor air quality.- People with heart or lung problems and young children are especially vulnerable. These people should stay indoors while smoke levels are high.- Use certified High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters in indoor heating, ventilation, cooling and air purification systems.- Avoid using wood-burning stoves and other sources of indoor smoke if possible."

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The Misplaced Nostalgia for a Pre-Vaccine Past

RFK Jr.’s health policies stem from the idea that the past holds the secret to health and happiness.

The way we respond to the disappointments, dangers, and defects of the present helps determine our political affiliations. If you think the answers lie somewhere in a future condition we’ve yet to achieve, then you may be persuaded by progressive politics; if you think the resources for rescuing society lie somewhere in the past, you may be attracted to conservative politics.This general pattern helps explain the recent alignment of conservative politics and the anti-vaccine movement, despite its long-standing association with crunchy, left-ish causes. Today, the two tendencies have joined in mutual agreement about the wholesomeness of natural health versus modern medicine, indulging in nostalgia for a world before the widespread use of vaccines.The past does contain its share of treasures, and it can be hard to accept that a world so rife with pain and despair is in certain ways the best it has ever been. But the idea that the past held a secret to health and happiness that we’ve lost somehow—especially with respect to infectious disease—is a fantasy with potentially lethal ramifications.[Read: The neo-anti-vaxxers are in power now]Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the vaccine-skeptical current secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, originally shared politics with the older anti-vaccine advocates, back-to-the-Earth types who themselves demonstrated a conservative impulse in their search for a primeval Eden. (Plenty of left-leaning people persist in that tradition, though it seems better fit for today’s right, which has a certain appreciation for the pastoral.) A Democrat until 2023, Kennedy entered public life as a champion of environmental protection, battling against corporate interests in court to keep harmful waste out of the air and water. Over time, this overall concern with modern impurity destroying pristine nature evidently extended to other areas of his thinking. As his career progressed, Kennedy adopted several controversial opinions regarding healthy eating, condemning, among other things, meat issued from factory farms, seed oils, and processed food. In a 2024 campaign video from his presidential-primary run, Kennedy promised to “reverse 80 years of farm policy in this country,” harkening to a time before synthetic pesticides and chemical additives to animal feed.If a conservative is, as William F. Buckley Jr. famously wrote, someone who “stands athwart history, yelling ‘Stop!’” then Kennedy certainly fits the bill. A proper conservative fights to preserve the status quo. But the most reactionary members of the right won’t settle for protecting the ground their party has already staked out; their project is to return to the status quo ante, the way things were in the (sometimes distant) past. The slogan “Make America Great Again” manages to disparage the present while promising a return to an era in which Christianity was nationally dominant, manufacturing jobs were the bedrock of the economy, and the country was ever expanding. Kennedy’s positions on processed food and pharmaceuticals fit perfectly into that picture.“Today’s children have to get between 69 and 92 vaccines in order to be fully compliant, between maternity and 18 years,” Kennedy said during a recent Senate hearing about Trump’s 2026 health-care agenda, by way of comparison with children of the past, who were required to receive fewer vaccines (if any at all). Likewise, Kennedy has rejected the introduction of fluoride into drinking water, a practice initiated in the mid-1940s to help prevent tooth decay, as well as the pasteurization of milk, which began in the late 19th century. “When I was a kid” in the ’50s and ’60s, Kennedy said earlier this year, “we were the healthiest, most robust people in the world. And today we’re the sickest.”[Read: How RFK Jr. could eliminate vaccines without banning them]This is in some respects true, but in other ways dangerously wrong. Kennedy is quick to point out the relative rarity of chronic conditions such as childhood diabetes and autoimmune disorders in the past. But he is apparently hesitant to acknowledge that mid-century America came with its own share of serious health problems, including a high rate of cigarette smoking and horrifying infant mortality rates compared with the present. When Kennedy was young, vaccine-preventable childhood illnesses such as measles routinely killed hundreds annually. So far this year, only three people in the United States have died of measles—largely the result of an outbreak of the disease caused in part by declining vaccination rates. And if modern innovations in food and medicine have come with their share of hazards, it would be wrong to conclude that their predecessors were superior. Raw milk allegedly caused the hospitalization of a toddler and the miscarriage of an unborn child as recently as this summer. At the center of the “Make America Healthy Again” crusade is a high degree of trust in the wisdom of nature. But the contemporary appeal of unadulterated nature springs from human successes in controlling the elements; it’s hard to romanticize a relatively recent vaccine-free past while considering photographs of children’s bodies ravaged by smallpox, a disease that persisted well into the 20th century. Likewise, long before COVID-19, America experienced cholera and flu pandemics with hundreds of thousands of associated deaths, as well as lesser outbreaks of illnesses such as diphtheria, polio, and pertussis, all three of which were notorious child-killers. Today, the rarity of those conditions has fostered a false sense of security, and a naive assessment of the natural world. Relinquishing the successes of general vaccine coverage, however, is guaranteed to belie the idea that untainted nature contains all the keys to health and wellness. Our historical moment has enough strife without revisiting past battles fought and won.*Illustration sources: The New York Historical / Getty; GHI / Universal History Archive / Getty; Bettmann / Getty.

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Green Tea Shows Promise in Fighting Obesity and Diabetes

A plant extract altered muscle metabolism in guinea pigs, improving glucose-related processes. Green tea has long been valued for its medicinal and antioxidant qualities. It has been extensively investigated for its role in metabolic health, particularly in conditions such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Recent research supported by FAPESP (19/10616-5, 21/08498-4 and 23/11295-3) has [...]

Studies in obese mice suggest green tea extract can reduce weight gain, improve glucose regulation, and protect muscle health. Credit: ShutterstockA plant extract altered muscle metabolism in guinea pigs, improving glucose-related processes. Green tea has long been valued for its medicinal and antioxidant qualities. It has been extensively investigated for its role in metabolic health, particularly in conditions such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Recent research supported by FAPESP (19/10616-5, 21/08498-4 and 23/11295-3) has provided new insights into how green tea works and showed that treatment with the beverage lowered body weight and markedly improved glucose sensitivity and insulin resistance in obese mice. These findings highlight its potential use as a supportive strategy in managing obesity in humans. The studies were led by Rosemari Otton from the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Health Sciences at Cruzeiro do Sul University in São Paulo, Brazil. Otton, who has spent more than 15 years researching green tea, explained that her initial interest arose from questioning whether the common belief in its weight-loss benefits was scientifically valid. Her recent findings were published in the journal Cell Biochemistry & Function. Dietary experiments with a Western-style diet To investigate the effects of green tea on obesity, the research team placed mice on a high-calorie diet for four weeks. This diet included both excess fat and what they described as a “cafeteria diet,” designed to replicate typical Western eating habits. “We give them chocolate, filled cookies, dulce de leche, condensed milk… In other words, the same type of food that many people consume on a daily basis,” said Otton. Following this phase, the animals entered a 12-week treatment period. They remained on the high-calorie diet, but some were also given a standardized green tea extract at a dose of 500 mg per kilogram of body weight. The extract was delivered intragastrically (via gavage) to ensure precise dosing. Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Molecular Biology of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Health Sciences at Cruzeiro do Sul University. Credit: Laboratory of Cellular Physiology and Molecular Biology of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Health Sciences at Cruzeiro do Sul University“It’s a method that ensures they all receive the exact dose we want to study. If we put it in water, for example, we’d have no way of knowing how much the animal actually ingested,” says the researcher. For humans, this amount would be equivalent to consuming about 3 grams of green tea per day, or three cups. Importance of standardized extracts However, according to the researcher, not all commercial green tea meets the necessary quality standards. “Ready-made tea bags do not always guarantee the quantity or quality of the compounds. The ideal for consumption would be to use standardized green tea extract, like those found in compounding pharmacies. This is a concentrated way of using the plant, with a guarantee of the presence of flavonoids, which are the health-beneficial compounds present in the green tea plant,” Otton points out. A notable feature of the study was its strict control of room temperature. Throughout the experiment, the animals were housed in a thermoneutral setting (28 °C). By contrast, standard animal facilities typically maintain a temperature of about 22 °C, which for mice constitutes a state of chronic cold. “Excessive cold activates compensatory regulatory mechanisms in the animals’ bodies, causing them to expend more energy to stay warm. This can mask the real effects of any substance,” explains the researcher. “If the animals are in a colder environment, the effect of the tea is enhanced by the activation of energy expenditure due to the cold. But by maintaining thermoneutrality, we were able to see the effects of green tea in a ‘clean’ way, without environmental interference,” she explains. A previous study published in August 2022 in the European Journal of Nutrition found that obese mice treated with green tea experienced a reduction of up to 30% in body weight. “If a person loses 5% to 10% of their body weight, that’s already a lot. So this result in animals is very significant,” says the professor. Gene expression and metabolic improvements Another highlight of the most recent study was the preservation of muscle morphology. Obesity typically causes a reduction in muscle fiber diameter, but green tea prevented this muscle atrophy. “One way to assess muscle function is to look at fiber diameter. If it increases, we have more active muscle components. Green tea managed to maintain this diameter, showing that it protects muscle against the harmful effects of obesity,” Otton explains. In addition to morphological data, the researchers evaluated the expression of genes related to glucose metabolism. Treatment with green tea increased the expression of Insr, Irs1, Glut4, Hk1, and Pi3k – genes that are important for glucose uptake and use in muscles. The activity of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), an enzyme that is essential for glucose metabolism, was also restored. According to Otton, there is evidence indicating that green tea does not affect the weight of lean animals, suggesting that it acts selectively against excess body fat. “It makes obese animals lose weight but keeps lean animals at a balanced weight. This shows that the tea seems to need an environment with excess nutrients to act, which supports the hypothesis that it acts directly on fat cells.” Another aspect investigated by the team was the action of the compounds in isolation. “Green tea is a complex matrix with dozens of bioactive compounds. We’ve tried to separate these compounds and study their effects individually, but the whole extract is always more effective. There’s a synergy between the compounds that we can’t reproduce when they’re isolated,” she says. According to the scientist, one hypothesis explaining the mechanism by which green tea affects obesity involves adiponectin, a protein produced by adipocytes that has anti-inflammatory and metabolic regulation functions. “We conducted a study with adiponectin-knockout mice, meaning they don’t produce it. And in these animals, green tea had no effect. This suggests that adiponectin is a key player in the mechanism of action of the tea,” she comments. Looking toward human applications Despite the encouraging results of the mouse study, Otton points out that it is not yet possible to determine a safe and effective dose of green tea for humans. This is mainly due to the variability of the extracts and the fact that each person behaves differently. “The ideal is chronic consumption, as we see in Asian countries. In Japan, for example, people consume green tea every day, throughout their lives, and obesity rates are low. But this is different from drinking tea for five months and expecting a miraculous weight loss effect,” she ponders. The researcher argues that natural and accessible treatments should gain ground in the fight against obesity, especially as alternatives to expensive medications that often have side effects. “The idea is to have safe, natural, effective, and high-quality compounds. The Camellia sinensis plant offers this. We’re still studying all the compounds involved, but there’s no doubt that green tea, as a plant matrix rich in flavonoids, has important therapeutic potential.” The researcher emphasizes that science always seeks to develop practical solutions. “What we see in animals doesn’t always reproduce in humans. But if we want to make this translation to real life, we need to think about all the details, such as ambient temperature. It’s these precautions that increase the validity of our data. We’re far from having all the answers, but we’re getting closer and closer.” Reference: “Does Green Tea Ameliorate Obesity in Mice Kept at Thermoneutrality by Modulating Skeletal Muscle Metabolism?” by Celso Pereira Batista Sousa-Filho, Marcus Vinicius Aquino Silva, Victória Silva, Kauan Lima, Allanis Valon, Isabela Fiorentino Souza Nascimento, Maria Angélica Spadella and Rosemari Otton, 16 June 2025, Cell Biochemistry and Function.DOI: 10.1002/cbf.70094 Funding: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo Never miss a breakthrough: Join the SciTechDaily newsletter.

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A Simple Test Strip That Reveals the Invisible Nanoplastic Threat

Researchers at the University of Stuttgart have created an “optical sieve” capable of detecting minute nanoplastic particles. Functioning much like a test strip, this innovation is designed to provide a new analytical tool for environmental and health research. Researchers from the University of Stuttgart in Germany and the University of Melbourne in Australia have introduced [...]

Nanoplastic particles made visible: the newly developed test strip from the University of Stuttgart allows dangerous nanoplastic particles to be detected under a light microscope. Credit: University of Stuttgart / 4th Physics InstituteResearchers at the University of Stuttgart have created an “optical sieve” capable of detecting minute nanoplastic particles. Functioning much like a test strip, this innovation is designed to provide a new analytical tool for environmental and health research. Researchers from the University of Stuttgart in Germany and the University of Melbourne in Australia have introduced a simple way to analyze very small nanoplastic particles in environmental samples. The approach relies on a standard optical microscope and a newly designed test strip called the optical sieve. The findings are reported in Nature Photonics. “The test strip can serve as a simple analysis tool in environmental and health research,” explains Prof. Harald Giessen, Head of the 4th Physics Institute of the University of Stuttgart. “In the near future, we will be working toward analyzing nanoplastic concentrations directly on site. But our new method could also be used to test blood or tissue for nanoplastic particles.” Nanoplastics as a danger to humans and the environment Plastic waste ranks among the most urgent global challenges of the 21st century. It contaminates oceans, rivers, and beaches, and microplastics have been found in living organisms. Until recently, researchers have mainly examined larger fragments of plastic. Evidence now points to an even more concerning threat: nanoplastic particles. These particles are far smaller than the width of a human hair, form as bigger pieces of plastic break down, and cannot be seen with the naked eye. At sub-micrometer sizes, they can also pass through biological barriers, including the skin and the blood-brain barrier. Color changes make tiny particles visible Because of the small particle size, their detection poses a particular challenge. As a result, there are not only gaps in our understanding of how particles affect organisms but also a lack of rapid and reliable detection methods. In collaboration with a research group from Melbourne in Australia, researchers at the University of Stuttgart have now developed a novel method that can quickly and affordably detect such small particles. Color changes on a special test strip make nanoplastics visible in an optical microscope and allow researchers to count the number of particles and determine their size. The optical sieve nanoplastic particles fall into holes of the appropriate size in the test strip. The color of the holes changes. The new color provides information about the size and number of particles. Credit: University of Stuttgart / 4th Physics Institute“Compared with conventional and widely used methods such as scanning electron microscopy, the new method is considerably less expensive, does not require trained personnel to operate, and reduces the time required for detailed analysis,” explains Dr. Mario Hentschel, Head of the Microstructure Laboratory at the 4th Physics Institute. Optical sieve instead of expensive electron microscope The “optical sieve” uses resonance effects in small holes to make the nanoplastic particles visible. A study on optical effects in such holes was first published by the research group at the University of Stuttgart in 2023. The process is based on tiny depressions, known as Mie voids, which are etched into a semiconductor substrate. Depending on their diameter and depth, the holes interact characteristically with the incident light. This results in a bright color reflection that can be seen in an optical microscope. If a particle falls into one of the indentations, its color changes noticeably. One can therefore infer from the changing color whether a particle is present in the void. “The test strip works like a classic sieve,” explains Dominik Ludescher, PhD student and first author of the publication in “Nature Photonics”. Particles ranging from 0.2 to 1 µm can thus be examined without difficulty. “The particles are filtered out of the liquid using the sieve in which the size and depth of the holes can be adapted to the nanoplastic particles, and subsequently, the resulting color change can be detected. This allows us to determine whether the voids are filled or empty.” Number, size, and size distribution of particles can be determined The novel detection method used can do even more. If the sieve is provided with voids of different sizes, only one particle of a suitable size will collect in each hole. “If a particle is too large, it won’t fit into the void and will be simply flushed away during the cleaning process,” says Ludescher. “If a particle is too small, it will adhere poorly to the well and will be washed away during cleaning.” In this way, the test strips can be adapted so that the size and number of particles in each individual hole can be determined from the reflected color. Synthesized environmental samples examined For their measurements, the researchers used spherical particles of various diameters. These are available in aqueous solutions with specific nanoparticles. Because real samples from bodies of water with known nanoparticle concentrations are not yet available, the team produced a suitable sample themselves. The researchers used a water sample from a lake that contained a mixture of sand and other organic components and added spherical particles in known quantities. The concentration of plastic particles was 150 µg/ml. The number and size distribution of the nanoplastic particles were also determined for this sample using the “optical sieve.” Can be used like a test strip “In the long term, the optical sieve will be used as a simple analysis tool in environmental and health research. The technology could serve as a mobile test strip that would provide information on the content of nanoplastics in water or soil directly on site,” explains Hentschel. The team is now planning experiments with nanoplastic particles that are not spherical. The researchers also plan to investigate whether the process can be used to distinguish between particles of different plastics. They are also particularly interested in collaborating with research groups that have specific expertise in processing real samples from bodies of water. Reference: “Optical sieve for nanoplastic detection, sizing and counting” by D. Ludescher, L. Wesemann, J. Schwab, J. Karst, S. B. Sulejman, M. Ubl, B. O. Clarke, A. Roberts, H. Giessen and M. Hentschel, 8 September 2025, Nature Photonics.DOI: 10.1038/s41566-025-01733-x Never miss a breakthrough: Join the SciTechDaily newsletter.

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Understanding Lupus: Symptoms, Risks and New Advances in Treatment

By Michael R. York, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine HealthDay ReporterTUESDAY, Sept. 23, 2025 (...

TUESDAY, Sept. 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), often simply called lupus, is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system malfunctions and mistakenly attacks its own healthy tissues and organs.Lupus can involve almost every organ system, but it most commonly affects the skin, kidneys, joints and the linings of the heart and lungs. Types of lupusLupus can affect almost every organ system. Some patients only have skin disease, and this can be an intermittent rash that often flares during the summer months, as lupus is very sensitive to the rays of the sun. The rash of lupus can look like a sunburn on the face and upper chest, but can also be a deep, scarring rash (discoid lupus). The rash of discoid lupus can lead to permanent hair loss. SymptomsLupus can affect almost every organ system and, therefore, is often hard to diagnose. Additionally, lupus often isn’t the first condition that comes to mind with any of the symptoms a patient may have. It would be unusual for someone to present to a doctor suspecting lupus as a diagnosis, as it is more of a condition that explains multiple different symptoms and signs. It is a very difficult diagnosis to make without laboratory studies, as so many other conditions can cause similar symptoms, such as fatigue or heart or lung inflammation. Rash: The most obvious symptom is a rash, usually worsened by sun exposure. The rash can cause scarring, so it is important to avoid sun exposure, even in the winter months. It could present as a severe sunburn in someone who hasn’t had sunburns in the past or as deep scars in the scalp, ears or face. A fever and rash could be many diseases, and infection should be ruled out before considering lupus.  Inflammation of the kidney, heart or lung: Inflammation of the lungs and heart is usually something that brings patients to an emergency room. Kidney involvement is usually found with lab testing, and patients are often asymptomatic. Blood clots: Blood clotting issues are usually dramatic and life-threatening, such as losing a pregnancy near term or developing blood clots to the lungs. These episodes are not usually diagnosed at home, but with special tests and imaging.  Joint pain: Some patients have a pattern of disease that overlaps with rheumatoid arthritis and is mainly swollen, tender joints and morning stiffness. Many patients are referred to rheumatologists with “pain all over,” and this is very unlikely to be due to lupus. The morning is usually the worst time of the day, with pain and stiffness improving as the day proceeds.  Mental health: Lupus causes issues with mental health and thinking, due to a cognitive impairment commonly known as “brain fog.” Symptoms include difficulty concentrating, struggling with complicated tasks like schoolwork and increased rates of depression and anxiety. This effect of lupus is not well understood. Blood disorders: Lupus can make the blood cell counts for red cells (anemia), white blood cells and platelets lower than expected. These are usually asymptomatic, but an important laboratory finding in making the diagnosis of lupus. When to see a doctor about lupusLupus can cause a wide variety of symptoms. Rash is the most obvious sign, but it is not present in most patients. Other symptoms may include chest pain from inflammation in the heart or lungs; unexplained blood clots; arthritis at a young age; or unexplained kidney failure.It can be difficult to diagnose lupus, since these symptoms have more common causes, and lupus is usually not the first diagnosis considered. How is lupus diagnosed? Lupus is often diagnosed after laboratory testing. Tests showing kidney problems, low blood cell counts and signs of inflammation are helpful clues. A test called the anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) is invaluable.This antibody is found in many other diseases such as autoimmune liver disease, thyroid conditions and sometimes even healthy individuals, but it is always present in patients with active lupus. As such, a negative ANA excludes lupus as a diagnosis. Skin and kidney biopsies are also helpful for diagnosis. Not all patients will have all the symptoms and test results related to lupus, making diagnosis a challenge. Lupus can often be mistaken for an infection such as the flu, mononucleosis (“mono”) and pneumonia. The presence of a typical lupus rash often helps with making the diagnosis sooner, but the rash is not always present.How is lupus treated? Several recent medical advances in lupus research have occurred, especially in drug development. Hydroxychloroquine is an important medication that almost every patient with lupus should take regularly.It is safe and effective at treating many aspects of lupus such as arthritis, skin disease, hair loss and kidney disease. It can be taken during pregnancy and even during breastfeeding. One notable advancement is the development of anifrolimumab, a medication that targets the type I interferon pathway, which is overactive in many individuals with lupus. Anifrolimumab is a monoclonal antibody, a lab-created protein designed to mimic the body’s natural antibodies. This medication has shown promise in treating the skin manifestations of lupus.Another exciting area of research involves CAR-T cell therapy, which uses a patient's      immune cells (T cells) to fight disease. This innovative approach, which has shown some success in certain blood cancers, is now being explored for autoimmune diseases like lupus. Multiple clinical trials, including one at Boston Medical Center, are underway to evaluate the safety and efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy in patients with severe lupus who haven't responded adequately to conventional treatments.While still in the experimental phase, CAR-T cell therapy represents a potentially transformative treatment option for individuals living with lupus.Causes of lupus The exact cause of lupus is unknown, but a combination of genetic, hormonal and environmental factors are thought to trigger the immune system to attack itself. However, a study in the journal Nature showed that one cause is a genetic mutation in a gene called “toll-like receptor 7.”This mutation increased the chance that the immune system would be easily activated to attack healthy organs, even in the absence of infection. Risk factors Sex: Women between the ages of 15 and 45 are much more likely to develop lupus and make up about 90% of all cases.  Family history: Having a sibling with lupus increases a person’s risk by about 20-fold compared to the general population. Race: People who are African American/Black, Inuit and Native American have triple the risk of lupus compared to white people, and their disease severity is often worse, especially kidney disease and the risk of death. Non-white Hispanic and Arab patients have about double the lupus risk compared to white patients in Canada and the United States. Living with lupus Living with lupus can be challenging, but with the proper care and lifestyle adjustments, many people can lead full, active lives. Symptoms like fatigue, joint pain and skin rashes have treatments available to help manage discomfort and prevent flare-ups. It's important to work closely with your health care team, take medications as prescribed, and protect your skin from the sun. Even patients with dark skin who have never had issues with sunburns in the past need to use sunscreen regularly.Sun exposure can trigger flares of the disease (including kidney disease) and cause scarring skin and scalp lesions (discoid lupus).  Does lupus increase the risk of other diseases? Lupus can affect many body parts including the heart, kidneys and lungs. It can also raise the risk for infections, osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease. Some of these risks are related to the inflammation caused by lupus itself, while others may be linked to medications used to control the disease.Michael R. York, MD, is a rheumatologist at Boston Medical Center (BMC). Dr. York is also an assistant professor of medicine in the Department of Rheumatology at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. He has over 20 years of experience and is an expert in caring for patients with scleroderma (scleroderma), systemic sclerosis, morphea, lupus and psoriatic arthritis. Dr. York's research focuses on the role of the immune system on the development of systemic sclerosis, and other vascular and fibrotic diseases.Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

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Lyme Disease: What To Know About Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention

By Charlotte Mao, MD, MPH, Bay Area Lyme Foundation HealthDay ReporterMONDAY, Sept. 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Lyme disease is the most common...

MONDAY, Sept. 22, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States, a potentially disabling infection caused by bacteria transmitted through the bite of an infected tick to people and pets.Another possible route of transmission, which is less well known and understudied, is from an infected pregnant mother to her unborn baby.Each year, the U.S. sees about 500,000 new cases of Lyme disease, according to statistics released in 2018 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).Here’s what to know about how Lyme disease spreads, symptoms to watch for, treatment options and how to live well even if symptoms persist.What Is Lyme disease?Lyme disease is an infection caused mainly by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi in the United States. The bacteria are transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blacklegged ticks: the Western blacklegged tick (Ixodes pacificus) and Eastern blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis), sometimes called a deer tick.The disease was first recognized in the 1970s after an outbreak in Lyme, Connecticut. Today, Lyme has been reported in all 50 states. However, while the geographic areas inhabited by ticks that carry Lyme-causing bacteria have expanded, ticks carrying these bacteria have not been identified in every state at this time.The highest rates are in the Northeast, Upper Midwest, and parts of Northern California and the Pacific Northwest.How Is Lyme disease transmitted?Ticks pick up the Lyme bacteria by feeding on infected animals, such as mice or birds. When an infected tick bites a person, the bacteria can be transmitted through the tick’s saliva.Ticks go through three life stages: larva, nymph and adult. Nymphs, which are roughly the size of a poppy seed, cause most human infections because they are easy to miss and active in warmer months when people are more often outdoors.How long a tick must be attached to a person’s skin before it transmits disease can vary. One European study documented six cases of confirmed Lyme disease in which tick attachment lasted less than six hours and nine more where transmission occurred in less than 24 hours.While it can take 24 to 36 hours for the bacteria to travel from the tick’s midgut to its salivary glands, transmission can start immediately in an estimated 10% of infected ticks that already carry bacteria in their saliva (due to having taken a partial blood meal before detaching and reattaching to a new host). Removing ticks promptly, ideally before they attach, is thus one of the best ways to prevent infection.What are the symptoms of Lyme disease?Symptoms can vary from mild to severe and may appear days, weeks or even months after the tick bite. Not everyone notices a tick or remembers being bitten. Symptoms vary from person to person and can be intermittent or changing and overlap across different stages, which makes diagnosis more confusing. Potential symptoms include but are not limited to:Early localized disease (days to weeks after infection):Expanding rash, sometimes with a bull’s-eye appearance (erythema migrans) — Importantly, a classic bullseye appearance with central clearing of the rash occurs in a minority of U.S. patients (about 20% reported in one study), although up to 80% of patients may have a rash of varying shapes Fatigue Fever and chills Headache Muscle and joint aches Swollen lymph nodes Early disseminated disease (weeks to months after infection):Multiple rashes on the body Facial weakness or paralysis, usually on one side but can be both (Bell’s palsy) Severe headaches and neck stiffness Pain, tingling or numbness in the arms or legs Cardiac problems, most commonly conduction disturbances (“heart block”) but also a variety of rhythm disturbances, pericarditis or myocarditis Late disease (months to years after infection):Joint swelling or pain, typically in a single or a few large joints such as the knee Neurological problems, such as numbness, tingling, vision/hearing problems or cognitive/memory issues. Reported across all stages of disease:Neuropsychiatric or behavioral manifestations (mood swings, anxiety, depression) Presumed dysautonomia symptoms, such as dizziness, lightheadedness, increased heart rate when standing, and temperature regulation issues, have also been described. Some people never develop the classic rash or other early symptoms, or these signs go unrecognized, so they first present with early disseminated or late-stage symptoms. Why is Lyme disease sometimes missed?Lyme disease is sometimes called “the great imitator” because its symptoms resemble those of other conditions such as flu, chronic fatigue syndrome or autoimmune disorders. Diagnosis is based on a combination of symptoms, possible tick exposure and lab tests.The standard blood tests detect antibodies to Lyme bacteria and not the infection itself. Therefore, these tests may not show a positive result in people with early infection, as their bodies have not yet produced enough antibodies. Importantly, it can also fail to detect later-stage disease, contributing to many missed diagnoses. For this reason, doctors rely on symptoms and exposure history in addition to lab tests when making a clinical diagnosis.How can you prevent Lyme disease?The best way to avoid Lyme disease is to prevent tick bites. Here’s how:Use U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-registered insect repellents containing DEET, picaridin or IR3535. Treat clothing and gear with permethrin. Wear long sleeves, long pants and closed shoes when in grassy or wooded areas. Tuck pants into socks to block ticks from crawling up legs. Stay in the center of trails and avoid tall grass or leaf litter. Check your body, clothing, gear and pets for ticks after outdoor activities. Shower within two hours of coming indoors to help remove ticks before they attach. If you find an attached tick, remove it promptly with fine-tipped tweezers, grasping it close to the skin and pulling straight out.Once removed, consider sending the tick for testing to determine what pathogens it may be carrying. This will give you a good gauge of what to look out for.Of note, if the tick is carrying pathogens, it does not necessarily mean they were passed to you, and if the tick is not carrying pathogens, you should still consider that it is possible you were bitten by another tick that went unnoticed.How Is Lyme disease treated?Early Lyme disease is typically treated with oral antibiotics, such as doxycycline, amoxicillin or cefuroxime. The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and CDC recommend 10 to 14 days of antibiotics for early-stage Lyme disease with the caveat that regimens “may need to be adjusted depending on factors such as age, medical history, underlying health conditions, pregnancy status or allergies.” The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS), recommends four to six weeks of antibiotics, with the duration tailored to the patient’s response and clinical circumstances; ILADS guidelines also state that, when necessary, antibiotic therapy should be extended. Patients with certain neurological or cardiac forms of illness may require intravenous treatment with drugs such as ceftriaxone or penicillin.  More advanced neurological or joint disease sometimes requires treatment with longer and more complex regimens or IV antibiotics. Many people can recover fully with prompt treatment, but some continue to experience symptoms for months or years after finishing antibiotics.What about lingering symptoms?Persistent symptoms after treatment, sometimes called persistent Lyme disease (PLD) or Post Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS), can include, but are not limited to, fatigue, pain and cognitive difficulties. The cause is debated. The possibility of unidentified coinfections contributing to lingering symptoms should be excluded with testing. Additional hypotheses for the cause of persistent symptoms include incompletely eradicated Lyme bacteria, lingering immune responses (autoimmunity), residual tissue damage and other complicating factors acting individually or in combination.Scientific studies funded by Bay Area Lyme Foundation have shown that Lyme infection can persist post-treatment due to Lyme bacteria that are not completely eradicated.On the horizon: Next steps in researchResearchers across the country, including teams supported by Bay Area Lyme Foundation and its affiliates, are working to close critical gaps in Lyme disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment.Current priorities include creating more sensitive and specific diagnostic tests that not only better detect infection early on but also improve recognition of past and late-stage disease, distinguish active from past infections, and confirm when treatment has been successful.Efforts are also underway to identify new therapeutic options for patients with persistent symptoms, to explore vaccines, develop novel prevention tools, and to deepen scientific understanding of Lyme bacteria and the immune system’s response to it.How Bay Area Lyme Foundation is powering progressBay Area Lyme Foundation funds innovative research and fosters collaboration among scientists, clinicians and public health experts to accelerate solutions for Lyme disease.The Foundation’s initiatives include supporting the development of next-generation diagnostics and advancing potential new treatments. It is the founding/operating Lyme Disease Biobank, a vital resource of well-characterized biological samples — including donated blood, urine and tissue  — for researchers worldwide.With its mission to make Lyme disease easy to diagnose and simple to cure, Bay Area Lyme Foundation is committed to reducing the impact of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases for patients everywhere.The bottom lineLyme disease is common, but with awareness, early diagnosis and effective treatment, most people recover fully.To reduce the burden of the disease and help those with persistent symptoms, continued research into new, more accurate diagnostics and improved treatments is essential.Prevention is key: Protect yourself against tick bites, check for ticks after being outdoors, and seek medical care promptly if you develop symptoms.Charlotte Mao, MD, MPH, Bay Area Lyme Foundation, is a pediatric infectious diseases physician whose area of clinical focus is Lyme disease and associated infections. She is a member of Bay Area Lyme Foundation’s Advisory Board and Science Committee. Graduating from Harvard Medical School, she completed her pediatric residency and pediatric ID fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital. Her prior area of subspecialty during 25 years at Boston Children’s Hospital was pediatric HIV clinical care and clinical research. She turned her focus to Lyme disease and associated infections on gaining extensive clinical experience with pediatric Lyme disease in the referral infectious disease clinic there. Later joining the Department of Pediatric Infectious Disease at Massachusetts General Hospital, she provided consultative pediatric infectious disease specialty care in a multidisciplinary clinic for children with complex Lyme disease and associated infections at the Dean Center for Tickborne Illness at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital. Click here to read her published paper entitled Microbes and Mental Illness: Past, Present, and Future.Copyright © 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

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