Apple juice recall expands to products sold at Aldi, BJ’s, Walgreens due to elevated arsenic levels

(NEW YORK) — The active ingredient found in popular medications for Type 2 diabetes and weight loss, including Ozempic and Wegovy, may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, a new study published Thursday finds.

Researchers from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio, looked at three years of electronic records of almost 1 million patients with Type 2 diabetes, including those prescribed semaglutide.

Semaglutide falls under a class of medications known as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, or GLP-1s, which mimic the GLP-1 hormone that is produced in the gut after eating.

It can help produce more insulin, which reduces blood sugar and therefore helps control Type 2 diabetes. It can also interact with the brain and signal a person to feel full, which — when coupled with diet and exercise — can help reduce weight in those who are overweight or obese.

The team found that compared to seven other anti-diabetic drugs, semaglutide helped significantly lower the risk for Alzheimer’s disease, including other types of GLP-1s.

Semaglutide was associated with a 70% reduced risk when compared with insulin and 40% reduced risk when compared with other GLP-1 drugs, according to the study.

Women experienced an even lower risk for Alzheimer’s with semaglutide when compared to men, at about 80% compared to 50%, respectively.

However, women in the study were younger and more likely to have obesity or depression. They were also less likely to have heart disease, which may have led to their lower risk.

About 120,000 Americans die from Alzheimer’s disease in the U.S. each year, and it is currently the seventh-leading cause of death nationally, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While getting Type 2 diabetes under control may already lower the risk for Alzheimer’s disease, there may be additional dementia risk reduction for semaglutide, according to Rong Xu, lead researcher and professor of biomedical informatics at Case Western.

Semaglutide is considered to be “the most potent of the GLP-1s being that it has the greatest effect at hitting the receptor,” and, of the GLP-1s, it also produces the greatest weight loss, said Dr. Louis Aronne, the director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill-Cornell Medical Center.

The greater potency of semaglutide may be why it has a stronger protective effect against Alzheimer’s.

Xu told ABC News that although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, there are several risk factors including Type 2 diabetes and obesity that may be controlled.

“If we can address those risk factors, then we can prevent Alzheimer’s disease,” she said. “So, for semaglutide, there’s some preclinical evidence showing that this medication has neuro-protective effects and is also anti-inflammation, which can address a lot of risk factors associated with Alzheimer’s disease.”

This means GLP-1 medications may not only lower blood sugar to reduce the risk for Alzheimer’s disease, but they may also play a role in reducing neuro-inflammation.

“GLP-1 receptor agonists mitigate neuroinflammation, they mitigate oxidative stress, [and] they mitigate a number of things which occur systemically but also in the brain,” Nigel Greig, principal investigator at the National Institute on Aging, told ABC News.

However, the exact mechanism behind how GLP-1 medications reduce Alzheimer’s risk is unknown so more research is needed, according to Xu.

This is only [an] association, we cannot prove causality,” Xu said. “So, it’s not recommended to say people prescribed this medication can treat or prevent Alzheimer’s disease.”

“But this study can help people who already have Type 2 diabetes or obesity and are high risk for Alzheimer’s disease, it maybe can provide some evidence for medication selection,” she added.

For future research, Xu said she wants to examine if semaglutide can also lower the risk of other neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia.

“GLP-1s provide benefit over and above weight loss alone. We are just beginning to understand the benefits of these drugs beyond weight loss alone,” said Aronne.

Itohan Omorodion, MD, MPH, is an internal medicine resident at George Washington University Hospital and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.

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(NEW YORK) — Dr. Lisa Newman, the chief of the section of breast surgery at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, sat down with ABC News to discuss breast cancer prevention, early screenings and diagnosis discrepancies.

A new American Cancer Society report, released in October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, finds that breast cancer mortality rates overall have dropped by 44% since 1989, averting about 517,900 breast cancer deaths. However, not all women have benefited from this progress.

ABC News discussed the issue with Newman, who provided more context.

ABC NEWS: Dr. Lisa Newman, chief of the section of breast surgery at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Dr. Newman, thank you so much for joining us. So overall, are you encouraged or concerned by this report?

DR. LISA NEWMAN: Well, thank you for this attention to such a major problem of breast cancer. As you mentioned, it is rising in incidence in American women. So we are very gratified to see these continued declines in breast cancer mortality rates. This is a testimony to our successes with breast health awareness, early detection through screening mammography programs and wonderful advances that we’ve made in treatment.

But as you also noted, we are still seeing some rather appalling and disturbing trends in the breast cancer statistics. It’s very concerning to us that the rates of breast cancer are rising for young women, women younger than the age of 50. And this is for a variety of reasons. We are also seeing very concerning disparities in the burden of breast cancer and, in particular, breast cancer death rates continue to be significantly higher for African-American women and for Black women younger than the age of 50.

ABC NEWS: As far as the disparities with regard to ethnic groups, which we also discussed, why the increase there as well?

NEWMAN: Yeah. The disparities in breast cancer burden are also secondary to some complex factors with the disproportionate mortality rates that we see in Black women. We know that this is going to be explained heavily by socioeconomic disadvantages that are more prevalent in the African-American community, and African-American women are more likely to be diagnosed with more advanced breast cancers because of delays in diagnosis.

Black women are more likely to have delays in initiation of treatment, and there are some tumor biology questions that we need to evaluate in research, as well. A lot of the research that I do actually looks at the breast cancer burden of women with African ancestry. And we do know that African ancestry in and of itself increases the likelihood of getting biologically aggressive forms of breast cancer and getting breast cancer at younger ages. So we need to address that, these socioeconomic disparities, but we also need more research to understand these biological differences.

ABC NEWS: And we saw that we’re just seeing that trend of an increase year after year. What can we do to, to try and bring these numbers down?

NEWMAN: Being aware of breast health is very important and making sure that you get screened regularly. For average risk women, The American Society of Breast Surgeons advocates in favor of getting yearly mammograms starting at age 40. If you have a strong family history, you should consider getting genetic testing, because if you do have inherited predisposition for breast cancer, you may need to start getting your mammograms at even younger ages.

ABC NEWS: The good news that we see here in this report: The mortality rate has dropped in the last year compared to 35 years ago. What do you attribute that to?

NEWMAN: Yeah. Very exciting to see that the mortality rates are declining. This is secondary to women advocating more forcefully for themselves and getting screened regularly. Women also, we want to remind women that mammograms aren’t perfect. And so women do indeed need to be aware of the potential danger signs of breast cancer, such as a new lump in the breast, lump in the underarm, bloody nipple discharge, changes in the skin appearance of the breast like swelling, a rash.

ABC NEWS: And what are some basic things that all women can do to protect themselves? You mentioned diet, for example. What kinds of food or diet would be helpful with this?

NEWMAN: Well, a good way to look at it is in terms of the holistic picture and in general, the dietary patterns that are good for cardiovascular health are good for breast health. So a diet that has lots of fresh fruits and vegetables in it, minimizing fat intake, minimizing alcohol intake, alcohol has also been associated with breast cancer risk.

ABC NEWS: Such important and lifesaving information. Dr. Newman, thank you very much for coming on the show.

NEWMAN: Thank you.

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(NEW YORK) — The first person in New York state to be diagnosed with eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) in nearly a decade has died, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced Monday.

The case was confirmed on Sept. 20 in Ulster County — located along the Hudson River — by the state Department of Health. It is currently being investigated by the county Department of Health.

State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald previously issued a Declaration of an Imminent Threat to Public Health after the EEE diagnosis, which allows the state to deploy resources including mosquito spraying efforts from Sept. 30 to Nov. 30, 2024.

“Eastern equine encephalitis is different this year. While we normally see these mosquitoes in two to three counties each year, this year they have been in 15 counties so far, and scattered all over New York State,” McDonald said in a statement. “This life-threatening mosquito-borne disease has no commercially available human vaccine and must be taken seriously. Mosquitoes, once a nuisance, are now a threat.”

“I urge all New Yorkers to prevent mosquito bites by using insect repellents, wearing long-sleeved clothing and removing free-standing water near their homes. Fall is officially here, but mosquitoes will be around until we see multiple nights of below freezing temperatures,” the statement continued.

The New York case is likely at least the eleventh case of EEE so far this year, according to an ABC News tally. This also includes the 10 known cases listed on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website.

Beyond New York, cases have been reported in Massachusetts, with four; New Hampshire, with two; and in New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin, with one each.

Between 2003 and 2023, there have been at least 196 EEE cases reported in the U.S., including 176 hospitalizations and 79 deaths, CDC data shows.

Most people who are infected with EEE show either mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, according to the CDC. However, severe cases usually present with fever, headache, chills and vomiting before progressing to the more serious encephalitis, which is inflammation of the brain, or meningitis, which is inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.

About one-third of all people who develop severe EEE die from the illness, the CDC says, while survivors can experience ongoing physical and neurological problems, including seizures, paralysis, cranial nerve dysfunction, personality disorders, and intellectual disabilities that can range from mild to severe.

There are no vaccines for EEE and health officials say the best protection is to prevent mosquito bites.

Health officials recommend wearing long-sleeve shirts and long pants, and tucking shirts into pants and pants into socks, at dusk or dawn, which are times of day when mosquitoes are most active.

Additionally, it is recommended to use insect repellent with DEET, to use screens on windows and doors, and to eliminate all standing water around the home where mosquitoes can breed.

ABC News’ Youri Benadjaoud and Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.

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