Former US President Joe Biden diagnosed with prostate cancer
Former US President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an "aggressive form" of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, his office said on Sunday (May 18). It added that Biden and his family are reviewing treatment options with doctors. Cancer specialists say that while Biden's cancer is no longer curable, there are treatments that can control it - possibly for years.
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CNA
19 hours ago
- CNA
Longevity hacks for busy people: Which healthy behaviours pack the biggest benefits?
The fundamentals of healthy ageing are no big secret: Regular exercise, eating well, quality sleep and a robust social life can all help you live better for longer. But doing these things takes time – and when there's only so much time in the day, it's hard to know where to start. For one, experts say, don't model your habits after the longevity influencers, with their elaborate treatment schedules and strict regimens. People may be 'overeager to pile a tonne of different interventions onto themselves' and could end up discouraged when they can't stick to them, said Dudley Lamming, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies ageing. Setting aside just a few minutes a day for healthier habits can be enough to lower your mortality risk, said Dr Sara Espinoza, a director of the Diabetes and Aging Center at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles. And while some of the steps most likely to increase your life span are neither quick nor easy (for example, quitting smoking or cutting down on alcohol if you're a heavy drinker), small, consistent behavioural changes can also add up, said Linda Ercoli, a geriatric psychologist and interim director of the Longevity Center at UCLA. We asked experts to share which low-lift daily habits seem to impart the biggest longevity benefits, and how to determine which will work best for you. 1. PRIORITISE YOUR "WHY" If you're unsure how to prioritise longevity habits, start by assessing your family history and focus on behaviours that could help reduce your risk of diseases you're predisposed to, Dr Ercoli said. For instance, if you're prone to diabetes, consider modifying your diet and exercise regimen. Another strategy is to ask yourself why you want to stay healthy and identify habits that help you meet that goal, said Steven Kritchevsky, a professor of geroscience at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. If you want to continue staying active with your grandchildren, you might focus on fitness and agility; if you're an avid bridge or chess player, you may want to prioritise preventing cognitive decline. 2. BE REALISTIC AND FLEXIBLE Set approachable goals – whether it's cutting down on ultraprocessed foods, learning how to meditate or introducing a new exercise routine – and reassess them each week, said Nathan LeBrasseur, the director of the Robert and Arlene Kogod Center on Aging at the Mayo Clinic. And if you can't hit those targets, be cleareyed about why, he said: 'Is it really not that important to me? Is it just too hard? If so, what else can you do?' 3. DEDICATE 3 PER CENT OF YOUR DAY TO PHYSICAL ACTIVITY 'If you had to pick one thing to do,' it's exercise, said Dr Michael Fredericson, a sports medicine physiatrist and a co-director of the Stanford Center on Longevity. Exercise lowers your risk of cardiovascular, cognitive and metabolic disease, in addition to boosting mental health and improving sleep, so you get a big bang for your buck. You may need less exercise than you think: Studies suggest that even just 30 minutes of moderate physical activity a day – about 3 per cent of your waking hours – is enough to move the needle, Dr LeBrasseur said. And it doesn't need to be all at once. Three-to-four minute bursts of higher-intensity exercise – like push-ups, squats or climbing the stairs – over the course of the day can still lower your mortality risk, Dr Fredericson added. 4. GET OUT OF BED AT THE SAME TIME EACH MORNING Poor sleep can increase your risk for a host of diseases that shorten life expectancy, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, depression and dementia. It can also slow your metabolism and make it harder to consistently exercise, undoing other healthy habits you may be practising, said Dr Zhaoping Li, the chief of the division of clinical nutrition at UCLA Health. Most people need about seven hours of uninterrupted sleep a night to reach the more restorative stages that allow the brain and body to heal from stress, said Sara Nowakowski, an associate professor at Baylor College of Medicine who studies sleep. One easy way to help you hit that target is to get up at roughly the same time each day, even if you're tired, Dr Nowakowski said. This forces your sleep hormones to operate on a consistent schedule, which can make it easier to fall asleep the following night. 'We're actually trying to build 'sleep pressure,' or this biological need to sleep,' Dr Nowakowski said. 5. PRACTISE AN EASY FORM OF MINDFULNESS Chronic stress, anxiety, depression and loneliness are all linked to a higher risk of age-related disease and earlier mortality. Even just a few minutes of consistent mindfulness or meditation, or a daily gratitude exercise, can train your nervous system to stay calm, even under pressure, Dr Ercoli said. 'These behaviours have a cumulative effect' on physical stress, and can even help lower blood pressure and cardiovascular risk long-term, she said. You can quickly boost your mental and physical well-being with an 'active noticing' exercise each day, said Ellen Langer, a professor of psychology at Harvard University who has written several books on mindfulness. Remaining in the moment is a way to stay mindful: Take a few minutes to notice three new things about a friend or co-worker, or walk outside and observe something new about your environment, she said. 'When you're more mindful, you find and look for multiple solutions to problems, and you're less frustrated,' Dr Langer said. 'Rather than trying to add more years to your life, it would be best to add more life to your years,' she added.
CNA
a day ago
- CNA
COVID-19 wave subsiding, infections and hospitalisations decline: Ong Ye Kung
SINGAPORE: The recent COVID-19 wave that started in late April is subsiding, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said on Saturday (Jun 14), noting the decline in infections and hospitalisations. Mr Ong said in a Facebook post that the latest data showed "encouraging trends", with estimated weekly infections falling to 15,300 cases. This is down from about 26,400 estimated weekly infections at the beginning of the wave. Similarly, the number of those hospitalised has also decreased to about 118 daily, down from about 174. Mr Ong also said wastewater surveillance readings have fallen, supporting this downturn. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Singapore began testing wastewater to trace the spread of the disease, mirroring efforts by other countries. "The good news is that ICU cases remained consistently low throughout this wave, staying at just about two to three cases daily. This shows how our healthcare system has built up stronger resilience in managing COVID-19," he added. "This experience reminds us that COVID-19 waves, like seasonal influenza, can still put pressure on our healthcare system. While we have become more resilient in managing these surges, we must continue to fortify our defences and prepare for future waves or any new pandemics." He added that the Ministry of Health will keep monitoring the situation closely, particularly the emergence of new variants, and update the public accordingly.
CNA
2 days ago
- CNA
That cup of coffee may have a surprising perk – a healthier, longer life
Most people who drink coffee appreciate the quick jolt of energy it provides. But in a new study, presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, scientists have found that coffee may offer the much longer-term benefit of healthy ageing. The study has not been peer-reviewed or published, but it was rigorous and included a large number of women who were followed for many years. It also adds to a large body of evidence linking coffee to longer lives and various health advantages, including lower risks of certain chronic diseases – though all of these studies had limitations, including that they were observational and could not prove cause and effect. Still, the results linking coffee to healthier ageing were not surprising, said Fang Fang Zhang, a professor of nutritional epidemiology at Tufts University who was not involved with the study. 'The data is quite consistent that coffee consumption is actually beneficial,' she said. WHAT DID THE NEW RESEARCH FIND? In the study, researchers followed more than 47,000 female nurses for several decades beginning in the 1970s. Every few years, the women answered detailed questions about their diets, including how much coffee, tea and cola (like Coca-Cola or Pepsi) they typically drank. Then, the scientists looked at how many of the women were still alive and met their definition of 'healthy ageing' in 2016. Just over 3,700 women met that criteria: They were 70 or older; reported good physical and mental health, with no cognitive impairment or memory problems; and were free of 11 chronic diseases such as cancer, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney failure, Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis. The researchers found a correlation between how much caffeine the women typically drank (which was mostly from coffee) when they were between 45 and 60 years old and their likelihood of healthy ageing. After adjusting for other factors that could affect aging, such as their overall diet, how much they exercised and whether they smoked, those who consumed the most caffeine (equivalent to nearly seven eight-ounce cups of coffee per day) had odds of healthy ageing that were 13 per cent higher than those who consumed the least caffeine (equivalent to less than one cup per day). Drinking tea or decaffeinated coffee was not associated with healthy ageing, the researchers found. That may be because the study participants generally consumed less tea and decaffeinated coffee overall, so perhaps there were fewer chances for the researchers to find benefits linked to them, said Sara Mahdavi, an adjunct professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto who led the study. Tea and decaf coffee also have less caffeine, and tea has different plant compounds from regular coffee, so that may explain the results, too, she added. Drinking cola, another potential source of caffeine, was associated with significantly decreased odds of healthy ageing. Dr Mahdavi cautioned that while drinking up to seven small cups of coffee per day was associated with healthy ageing in her study, that doesn't necessarily mean that drinking that much will benefit everyone, nor that it is healthy to do so. Research in other groups of people suggests that the health benefits of coffee may plateau or even dip when they drink more than three to four cups per day. WHAT DOES OTHER RESEARCH SUGGEST? Many other studies have linked drinking coffee regularly to a lower risk of early death. In a study of more than 46,000 US adults published in May, Dr Zhang and her colleagues found that those who consumed one to three cups of coffee per day were about 15 percent less likely to die within the next nine to 11 years than those who didn't drink coffee. That benefit disappeared, though, for people who said they typically added more than about a half teaspoon of sugar to their coffee and for people who added more than one gram of saturated fat (equivalent to about one tablespoon of half-and-half or 3.5 tablespoons of whole milk) per cup of coffee. Research has also suggested that people who drink coffee regularly have lower risks of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, Parkinson's disease, liver disease, osteoporosis and some types of cancer. These kinds of studies can't prove cause and effect, said Aladdin Shadyab, an associate professor of public health and medicine at the University of California, San Diego. But because the benefits associated with coffee have been so consistent, it's unlikely that they are entirely explained by other aspects of a person's life, Dr Zhang said. If anything, drinking coffee is often associated with unhealthy habits, like smoking and less exercise. The fact that you see benefits after accounting for these differences means that coffee is probably helping, Dr Zhang said. HOW MIGHT COFFEE PROTECT YOUR HEALTH? Researchers aren't entirely sure why coffee may be beneficial. 'It's a bit of a mystery,' said Marilyn Cornelis, an associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine. Studies in mice have found that caffeine may improve memory and protect brain cells from damage. And human studies have found links between regular (not decaffeinated) coffee and a reduced risk of Parkinson's disease. Both regular and decaf coffee contain hundreds of chemical compounds, including many that may lower inflammation and prevent cell damage, Dr Mahdavi said. While the new study didn't find a benefit associated with decaf coffee, other research has linked it, along with regular coffee, to lower rates of Type 2 diabetes and other conditions, Dr Cornelis said. Tea also contains many beneficial compounds, and drinking it has been associated with better heart health and a longer life. WHAT'S THE TAKEAWAY? If you drink coffee regularly, consider the new findings and others like it as good news that it may benefit your health – so long as you don't add too much cream or sugar, Dr Zhang said. But if you don't enjoy coffee, Dr Mahdavi added, there's no need to start drinking it. It can interfere with sleep or make some people feel anxious or jittery.
