When Serena Williams was pregnant in 2017, she won the Australian Open, and you can bet her heart was filled with joy -- and healthy. That promises good things for her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. According to a new study in JAMA Network, mom’s heart health while pregnant has a lot to do with her child’s heart health during ages 10 to 14.
The researchers looked at 2,300 future moms’ body mass index, blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose and smoking status during their 28th week of pregnancy. Then, 10 to 14 years later, the scientists evaluated the kids’ cardiovascular health using body mass index, blood pressure and cholesterol and glucose levels. They found kids born to moms with the worst heart health are eight times more likely to suffer heart problems when they’re alarmingly young, compared with kids born to mothers with ideal cardiovascular health.
Unfortunately, previous studies indicate that 90% of pregnant moms have less-than-great heart health! So if you’re obese, have pre- or full-blown diabetes, high blood pressure, chest pain or atherosclerosis, or had preeclampsia or eclampsia during a prior pregnancy, talk to your doc before you become pregnant about making nutritional upgrades, increasing physical activity and exercise, and getting medical intervention if needed (statins, diabetes meds, weight-loss surgery, etc.).
If you are currently pregnant and have heart-health issues, talk with your doctor about an exercise regimen (it’s safe!), stress management and a food optimization program. For guidelines, go to AmericanPregnancy.org. And check out “A Female Cardiologist’s Advice for Your Heart Health” at DoctorOz.com.
Allergy news: Handling early sneezes and wheezes
Sneezing can be funny. Comedian Henny Youngman thought so: “When God sneezed, I didn’t know what to say.” But whatever you think about your sneezing and wheezing, as allergy season blooms, one thing’s for sure -- it’s arriving sooner and lingering longer with more intensity than ever before.
A new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals that the North American pollen season is up to 20 days longer than it was three decades ago. To make matters worse, the concentration of pollen in the air has increased 21%. Texas and the Midwest are the hardest hit.
Why is this happening? The study cites lab experiments indicating elevated temperatures and carbon dioxide concentrations from climate change have increased pollen production. It’s also because of related changes in weather patterns, say researchers from Germany. Wind is now transporting pollen from far-flung places, making allergy season arrive earlier and delivering new pollen types to tickle your nose.
This pollen-palooza has far-reaching effects: It ups the number of emergency room visits for asthma sufferers and increases susceptibility to viral infections because of respiratory inflammation and a weakened immune response. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 2021 guidelines for managing allergies advise:
-- Use only second-generation antihistamines such as cetirizine (Zyrtec), levocetirizine (Xyzal), fexofenadine (Allegra), loratadine (Claritin) or desloratadine (Clarinex). Think twice, they say, before using Benadryl or Chlor-Trimeton.
-- Use intranasal corticosteroids (fluticasone, mometasone, budesonide, triamcinolone) for persistent allergy symptoms, including eye allergies.
-- Find an allergist in your area by going to acaai.org/locate-an-allergist.
