Heart News
Microscopic plastics might increase risk of heart attack and stroke
If confirmed� the finding could lead to significant health ris�s due to u�i�uitous plastic pollution
Tiny bits of plastics that can be found almost everywhere in the environment and even in human tissues have been associated with a surge in stroke , heart attack , and early death � a worrying finding given the staggering level of plastic pollution around the world .
Researchers in Italy analysed fatty plaques from the blood vessels of patients with diseased arteries and found the presence of microplastics or nanoplastics in more than half of them . These individuals were then assessed to be 4.5 times more likely to die from any cause or to have a stroke or heart attack in the 34 months following the observation compared to patients without the tiny particles .
Experts caution that this research doesn ’ t prove tiny plastics cause health problems , as other factors , like socio-economic status , could be also responsible for the increased risk . However , previous lab research has shown that the amount of microplastics usually ingested by people while eating contaminated food can damage human cells or kill them .
Over the years , researchers have found microplastics in almost every corner of the world , from Antarctic sea ice to high mountains , as well as in the air , drinking water , and animal tissues . It ’ s no surprise then that microplastics have also been found in human blood , breast milk , and placenta .
�Our data will dramatically impact cardiovascular health if confirmed because we are defenceless against plastic pollution , � said Dr �affaele Marfella , study author and professor of internal medicine at the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli , according to the Guardian .
First weight-loss drug approved by US health authorities to cut risk of heart disease and death
The move reaffirms medication efficacy at reducing mortality and heart pro�lems
T
he US Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) has greenlighted the use of semaglutide to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death , heart attack , and stroke in adults with obesity or overweight .
The drug , commercialised as Wegovy , is commonly prescribed for type 2 diabetes or chronic weight management , but a recent large clinical trial showed that it could also cut the risk of death from heart disease , reducing cardiovascular events by 20 percent . This finding was based on data from over 17,000 people in 41 countries who had previously suffered from a heart attack , stroke , or peripheral artery disease and who received either semaglutide or a placebo ( dummy pill ).
�Wegovy is now the first weight loss medication to also be approved to help prevent life-threatening cardiovascular events in adults with cardiovascular disease and either obesity or overweight ,” said Dr John Sharretts , director of the Division of Diabetes , Lipid Disorders , and Obesity in the FDA ’ s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research , in a press release . “ This patient population has a higher risk of cardiovascular death , heart attack and stroke . Providing a treatment option that is proven to lower this cardiovascular risk is a major advance for public health .”
The FDA stresses that Wegovy should be prescribed in combination with increased physical activity and a diet aimed at reducing calories .
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