November Newsletter
November, 2022
Welcome to the November newsletter. This newsletter aims to provide information and analysis of timely topics from recent articles published in the medical literature. I hope you find this information useful and helpful in your health journey. If you have comments or questions, please let us know. I hope you enjoy these articles!
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We continue to have a large number of circulating viruses. My most recent weekly update of circulating viruses shows a small regression in RSV and adenovirus. Covid has been trending down but I have seen a few cases in my practice over the past 2 weeks after not seeing a case for over a month. The biggest note is that two strains of influenza A have gone up a lot over the past 2 weeks. We are not getting hit as hard here in the Midwest as in the South, but it is certainly trending upward. The early flu season I anticipated is happening. We still have plenty of flu vaccine for anyone who would like to get one. Speaking of the flu vaccine, there is an interesting link between the flu vaccine and dementia that is discussed in the second article. Keep your immune system strong with good nutrition, exercise, sleep, and vitamins D and C. I also carry a supplement called Virucid which is great at knocking down viral infections at their onset. You may want to keep some in your medicine cabinet at home and keep it handy at work as well.
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How Little is Enough?
Current physical activity guidelines recommend a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity (walking) weekly or 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity weekly (jogging). But I think most of us are interested in the minimum effective dose of exercise that will get us the most benefits in the shortest time. If you are interested in finding out the smallest amount of vigorous exercise needed for a reduction in mortality as well as the optimum dose of vigorous activity for the maximal reduction in mortality, check out this study. 
 
Another Flu Shot Benefit?
An estimated 6.2 million Americans over age 65 have Alzheimer’s disease. That number is on track to triple by 2050. We don’t have any effective therapeutics to prevent or delay Alzheimer’s disease and available medications have limited effectiveness. Therefore, prevention and risk reduction are very important. This study showed a possible benefit of the annual flu shot in the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease. To learn more about the reasons for this relationship, continue reading below. 
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Under Pressure
This is another article looking at ways to reduce our risk of dementia. It has been shown that having high blood pressure increases the risk of dementia. This meta-analysis of five randomized controlled trials evaluated the effectiveness of antihypertensive medication in preventing dementia later in life. We know lowering blood pressure is beneficial for heart disease, but how much do we have to lower blood pressure to get dementia benefits? How low is low enough? Does the systolic number matter more than the diastolic number? 
To Your Health...
Thank you for taking the time to read through this newsletter. We hope you have found this information useful. Feel free to pass this on to anyone you think would benefit from this newsletter.

Mark Niedfeldt, M.D.


Old-fashioned medicine with 21st Century convenience and technology