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Gizmodo
12 minutes ago
- Gizmodo
Man Follows Diet Advice From ChatGPT, Ends Up With Psychosis
A case study out this month offers a cautionary tale ripe for our modern times. Doctors detail how a man experienced poison-caused psychosis after he followed AI-guided dietary advice. Doctors at the University of Washington documented the real-life Black Mirror episode in the Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases. The man reportedly developed poisoning from the bromide he had ingested for three months on ChatGPT's recommendation. Thankfully, his condition improved with treatment, and he successfully recovered. Bromide compounds were once commonly used in the early 20th century to treat various health problems, from insomnia to anxiety. Eventually, though, people realized bromide could be toxic in high or chronic doses and, ironically, cause neuropsychiatric issues. By the 1980s, bromide had been removed from most drugs, and cases of bromide poisoning, or bromism, dropped along with it. Still, the ingredient remains in some veterinary medications and other consumer products, including dietary supplements, and the occasional case of bromism does happen even today. This incident, however, might be the first ever bromide poisoning fueled by AI. According to the report, the man visited a local emergency room and told staff that he was possibly being poisoned by his neighbor. Though some of his physicals were fine, the man grew agitated and paranoid, refusing to drink water given to him even though he was thirsty. He also experienced visual and auditory hallucinations and soon developed a full-blown psychotic episode. In the midst of his psychosis, he tried to escape, after which doctors placed him in an 'involuntary psychiatric hold for grave disability.' Doctors administered intravenous fluids and an antipsychotic, and he began to stabilize. They suspected early on that bromism was to blame for the man's illness, and once he was well enough to speak coherently, they found out exactly how it ended up in his system. The man told the doctors that he started taking sodium bromide intentionally three months earlier. He had read about the negative health effects of having too much table salt (sodium chloride) in your diet. When he looked into the literature, though, he only came across advice on how to reduce sodium intake. 'Inspired by his history of studying nutrition in college,' the doctors wrote, the man instead decided to try removing chloride from his diet. He consulted ChatGPT for help and was apparently told that chloride could be safely swapped with bromide. With the clear-all from the AI, he began consuming sodium bromide bought online. Given the timeline of the case, the man had likely been using ChatGPT 3.5 or 4.0. The doctors didn't have access to the man's chat logs, so we'll never know exactly how his fateful consultation unfolded. But when they asked ChatGPT 3.5 what chloride can be replaced with, it came back with a response that included bromide. It's possible, even likely, that the man's AI was referring to examples of bromide replacement that had nothing to do with diet, such as for cleaning. The doctors' ChatGPT notably did state in its reply that the context of this replacement mattered, they wrote. But the AI also never provided a warning about the dangers of consuming bromide, nor did it ask why the person was interested in this question in the first place. As for the man himself, he did slowly recover from his ordeal. He was eventually taken off antipsychotic medication and discharged from the hospital three weeks after admission. And at a two-week follow-up, he remained in stable condition. The doctors wrote that while tools like ChatGPT can 'provide a bridge between scientists and the nonacademic population, AI also carries the risk for promulgating decontextualized information.' With some admirable resistance, they added that a human medical expert probably wouldn't have recommended switching to bromide to someone worried about their table salt consumption. Honestly, I'm not sure any living human today would give that advice. And that's why having a decent friend to bounce our random ideas off should remain an essential part of life, no matter what the latest version of ChatGPT is.
CBS News
13 minutes ago
- CBS News
Weiss Memorial Hospital in Chicago closes emergency department
Weiss Memorial Hospital in Uptown has officially closed its emergency department on Friday morning. The announcement comes as Weiss is set to lose access to Medicare and Medicaid this weekend. CEO Dr. Manoj Prasad confirmed that only outpatient services will continue, but surgeries and the emergency department have been shut down. He defended his management of this hospital, as many community members and leaders are blaming him for the closure. "So they finally, very kindly agreed to say, Okay, put your license on board that emergency department was hardly seeing any patients now, because there was no, no way to admit them and take care of them," he said. So they asked for a date, and we said, okay, let's close it down today, and it has been closed down, and they are holding the hospital license in hold. There is some technical term for it, till such time that we reapply or we file the appeal for CMS reconsideration, or do a new application, and then that will come back on." Dr. Manoj Prasad said the closure was connected to some issues discovered by Centers for Medicare & Medicaid surveyors having to do with recent complaints at the hospital. There have been reports of mistreatment and unclean facilities. The Illinois Department of Public Health has investigated those claims at least seven times. He recognized that it is, of course, a huge blow to the roughly 700 employees here and the large community of patients they serve. He said they plan to appeal the hold on their hospital license, but that process will likely take eight to 12 months. Dr. Prasad spoke from Oak Park, where he cautioned that another Resilience Healthcare facility, West Suburban Medical Center, could soon face the same fate as Weiss. Meanwhile, in Uptown, patients, employees, and community leaders rallied in front of the vacant emergency department—calling for help from the federal government. "It is criminal to not provide a healthy working environment for healthcare workers, so that they can do their jobs to do no harm so that they can take care of the people who are most vulnerable," Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth (48th Ward) said. ER tech at Weiss Hospital, Alaa Alkhati, echoes the shame emotion and said he will have to look for a new job. "It's a shame to be closing down a hospital that has so many amazing people working in it," he said. "I'm going to have to look for a new job, like many of us are, but there are only so many of these jobs near here." The group that rallied here is asking for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to grant an eight-week extension for this Emergency Department to stay open. There is no word from CMS on whether that could happen. The video above is from an earlier report.
Yahoo
41 minutes ago
- Yahoo
HRT for beginners: Your complete guide to menopause hormone therapy
As a woman in her late 40s, I can't open Instagram, a news roundup or my email — much less the group chat — without seeing something about hormone therapy or menopause. Sure, the algorithm is just doing its thing (unlike my periods), but these really are hot topics now (sorry, brain fog prevented a clever hot flash analogy). Not only has search interest in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) more than tripled over the past five years, according to Google Trends, but celebrities and influencers are talking about it — and it's all over the news. It's curious, then, that prescribing rates are in the basement. Usage was a mere 4.7% among postmenopausal women, according to a 2024 study in JAMA Health Forum, and recent research suggests there hasn't been an uptick since. "It's surprising," says Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director of The Menopause Society and director of the Mayo Clinic Center for Women's Health. "Not every woman needs to be on hormone therapy, but a lot who need it probably aren't getting it." Hormone curious? Feeling overwhelmed by information? Just want to wake up not drenched in sweat? You're in the right place. What is hormone therapy for menopause? You probably know the term "hormone replacement therapy" or HRT, but experts prefer "menopause hormone therapy" (MHT) or just hormone therapy. "It's more accurate. We're not trying to replace hormones," Faubion says. "It takes a much lower dose to manage symptoms than what the premenopausal ovary would have made." Think about estrogen and/or progestin like a supplement rather than a replacement. Officially, MHT is for healthy women under the age of 60 and within 10 years of menopause to help with hot flashes and vaginal changes like dryness and painful sex. Beyond hot flashes: How hormone therapy can help Not to get into semantics again, but saying MHT "helps" is like saying weighted vests are just … popular. Even impressive stats like a 55% to 90% improvement in hot flashes, per a review in the Journal of Menopausal Medicine, seem to understate things. "For myself and many patients, hormone therapy has been life-changing," says Elana Bodzin, DPT, a pelvic floor physical therapist and menopause coach in Pleasant Ridge, Mich. "I was miserable with hot flashes and fatigue. Almost immediately I was sleeping through the night. My hot flashes were gone, my energy was back, my mental health improved; it was astounding how quickly I felt human again." Approved by the FDA for hot flashes (called vasomotor symptoms or VMS) and vaginal changes (aka genitourinary syndrome of menopause or GSM), MHT often has a ripple effect on other symptoms, quality of life and overall health, says Dr. Robert Kauffman, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Texas Tech University in Amarillo, and a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. For vaginal health, estrogen can alleviate dryness, increase blood flow and restore elasticity to vaginal tissues, which may help you get your groove back in the bedroom, as well as improve some urinary or incontinence issues, Bodzin says. Good news if your "I have to go" suddenly turns into "I have to go change my undies." And those are just the benefits you can feel. A review in the journal Best Practice & Research Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that MHT prevents bone loss and reduces the risk of fracture by 20% to 40%. It's also been shown to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, colon cancer and dementia, especially in high-risk groups. Is hormone therapy safe? The short answer: Yes. But, like anything, caveats exist. According to the Menopause Society, women with a history of breast or uterine cancer, cardiovascular or severe liver disease, blood clots or unexplained uterine bleeding are generally advised to avoid systemic menopausal hormone therapy — meaning the kind that travels through your entire body via options like pills or patches. "Otherwise, risks of adverse effects are very low for healthy women in their 40s and 50s — but not zero," says Faubion. "They include a slight increased risk for blood clots, stroke — and breast cancer with combo estrogen/progesterone therapy." Putting the risks in perspective Are those things scary? Sure. But risks can be minimized and the benefits tend to far outweigh the potential problems — especially when put in context. Take breast cancer. Only after three to five years of certain hormone regimens does breast cancer risk begin to rise — and even then, it's modest, states a 2025 report in the European Journal of Cancer. "We're talking a few extra cases per thousand after five years of estrogen plus progestogen therapy," says Faubion. "Consider other factors that also increase the risk of breast cancer, like being inactive or overweight or having one to two glasses of wine a night. Somehow hormone therapy has been demonized in ways other things haven't." The lingering fear factor Indeed, the biggest problem with hormone therapy may be its history. Back in the late 90s, MHT use was as high as 27%. Then the Women's Health Initiative study initially linked hormones to increased risk of heart attack, stroke and breast cancer — but those risks were most pronounced in women over 60, particularly those who started treatment many years after menopause. Panic-inducing headlines followed, and usage plummeted. Since then, additional analysis and new studies have shown minimal or no health risks in younger women using lower doses for shorter periods. The science evolved, but public opinion didn't. "There's still an unreasonable fear among both women and physicians. I'm stunned how many physicians are afraid of it; we've lost an entire generation who could have benefited," Kaufmann says. Whether MHT is right for you is a decision to make with your care provider based on health history, symptoms, and other factors. "If a woman watched her mother die of breast cancer, she may not want to take any chance, and that's OK, but others may feel differently," Faubion says. "Hormone therapy isn't the anti-aging miracle it's sometimes touted online but it's also not an evil thing out there killing people." Types of hormone therapy: Finding what works for you There are two main types of hormones, and within those, approximately a million ways to deliver them, give or take: Systemic: This estrogen-plus-progestin therapy is absorbed into your bloodstream and travels throughout the body — helping with classic menopause symptoms like hot flashes and bone loss. It comes in pills, patches, sprays, gels or high-dose vaginal rings (like Femring). Local or vaginal: This treatment (also called vaginal estrogen therapy) stays mostly in the vaginal tissues, easing symptoms like dryness, irritation and recurring UTIs — without significantly raising hormone levels in the rest of your body. It's available as creams, suppositories, vaginal gels and low-dose vaginal rings (like Estring). This type of hormone therapy does not increase your risk of blood clots or cancer. And it may even be safe for breast cancer patients and others who aren't candidates for systemic hormones. What you choose depends on personal preference, symptoms, health history — even insurance. Pills, patches and gels are often covered; vaginal rings, not so much. "We often start with transdermal estrogen — like a patch or gel — versus a pill because it bypasses the liver, so the risk of a blood clot is thought to be lower," Faubion says. Your health care provider might also suggest both systemic and local vaginal hormones. 'The lowest dose of systemic may work well for hot flashes, but often isn't enough to restore the vaginal tissues,' she says. One non-negotiable: If you have a uterus and take systemic estrogen, you must also take the hormone progestin, which protects against uterine cancer, reports the American Cancer Society. You can get a 2-in-1 or separate meds. Or, if you have a hormonal IUD like Mirena (perimenopause is hard enough without throwing an unintended pregnancy into the mix, amiright?), it takes care of the progestin. Dosage and monitoring The dose prescribed depends on different factors, including how far into menopause you are, age and severity of symptoms. For example, a menopausal woman in her 50s likely needs a lower dose than a 39-year-old who just had her ovaries removed and is thrust into menopause, Faubion says. The goal: Find the lowest effective dose, which may take trial and error. That's why tracking symptoms and follow-ups are important — as is speaking up if you don't get relief. "Unfortunately, some clinicians start with the lowest dose and never raise it, so women may not achieve symptom relief," Faubion says. Similarly, say something if you feel off. Just as some women don't do well with certain types of hormonal birth control, certain forms of MHT could trigger emotional or physical changes that others wouldn't, Bodzin says. With options on options, you can switch things up. Finding a provider fluent in hormones You might also need to reconsider your health care provider. The ob-gyn who expertly delivered your babies or handled your Pap smears with care may not have the same expertise — or enthusiasm — when it comes to menopause management. In fact, according to Mayo Clinic Proceedings, while 94% of ob-gyn residents say it's important to be trained in menopause care, more than a third wouldn't prescribe hormone therapy to a healthy, newly menopausal woman who could benefit. It's also not uncommon for clinicians to downplay symptoms or, because many were never educated on menopause management and aren't sure what to do, they may default to doing nothing, Faubion says. If this happens to you, it's time for a second opinion, allowing the Menopause Society to be your guide with their provider search. Still, some women are bypassing traditional office visits altogether in favor of online clinics that specialize in hormone therapy. While telemedicine clinics are convenient and improve accessibility, experts warn that MHT shouldn't be like shopping online for a pair of readers. "You still need regular pelvic exams and an assessment to be sure you don't have uterine cancer or other issues," reminds Kauffman, noting that follow-ups and monitoring are key. "Expanding access to care is a good thing, but I get some heartburn over what can't be done through the internet." In short, if you do go virtual, make sure you also have IRL care too. And regardless of where you go, remember: You are your best advocate. "It's never the right answer to be told nothing can be done," Faubion says. Meet the experts Stephanie Faubion, MD, director of the Mayo Clinic Center for Women's Health and medical director of the Menopause Society Robert Kauffman, MD, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, assistant dean for research education, and clinical professor of laboratory sciences and primary care at Texas Tech University and a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology Elana Bodzin, DPT, pelvic floor physical therapist, menopause coach and founder of Aligned Physical Therapy and Wellness Our health content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional medical advice. Consult a medical professional on questions about your health.
