Around 1,000 More People Than Usual Are Dying Each Week In The UK

The Link Between Processed Meats And Colorectal Cancer.
Processed meats are a regular part of the average American diet.
Whether in sandwiches, on pizzas, in salads or even added to vegetable sides, processed meat consumption has remained steady over the past 18 years, according to a 2019 study.
Meanwhile, unprocessed beef consumption has declined.
But eating processed meats can come with a side of negative health consequences.
Evidence links regular and high levels of consumption with increased disease risk.
Processed meats have undergone curing, fermenting, smoking or salting, or contain chemical additives to enhance shelf life and flavour.
Heavy consumption of these products has been linked to a number of health issues including Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some types of cancer.
In 2015, the World Health Organisation’s cancer research agency (IARC) declared that processed meats can cause cancer in humans, citing sufficient evidence of the link between processed meats and colorectal cancer, or cancer of the colon or rectum.
WHO experts concluded that the risk of colorectal cancer increases by 18% with each 50-gram portion of processed meat eaten per day.
Evidence also suggests that consumption of processed meats may be related to stomach cancer but is not conclusive.
( Grace Hussain, 12.08.2022 )  ..  sentientmedia.org

What’s In Processed Meats?
Heterocyclic Amines – The National Institute of Health defines heterocyclic amines as chemicals that form when you cook meat at high temperatures, in particular from heating the amino acids, creatine or creatinine, and sugars.
HCAs are only found in meats that have been heated to temperatures above 300 degrees, as is the case with processed meats.
Evidence suggests that HCAs are “mutagenic,” which means they are capable of causing changes to DNA that may result in an increased risk of cancer.
Nitrite, N-Nitroso Compounds and Nitrosamines – Nitrites and nitrates are often added to processed meats to add smokey flavour and extend their shelf life.
However, they also open up the possibility of the formation of N-nitroso compounds within the meat product.
N-nitroso compounds are known carcinogens, which means they are recognised as increasing the likelihood of developing cancer.
There are several factors that influence whether or not N-nitroso compounds will form in processed meats, including the quantity of nitrites and nitrates added, and the heating, storage and packaging of these products.
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) – Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons also form when meat is heated.
Unlike HCAs, the temperature at which the meat is prepared is less indicative of whether PAHs will form than the preparation method itself.
PAHs are more likely to form when meat is being cooked directly over a hot surface that allows for fluids from the cooking meat to drip into the heat creating smoke.
The resulting smoke contains PAHs that adhere to the surface of the meat.
PAHs can also be found on meats that have been prepared using smokers.
Like HCAs, PAHs are mutagenic, causing changes to DNA, and have also been found to cause cancer in animals.
Sodium Chloride – Sodium chloride, otherwise known as salt, is viewed as an essential additive for meat processing, as it lengthens shelf life by helping to preserve the meat and creates a more enjoyable flavour.
The amount of salt added to processed meat varies based on the product.
Though salt in moderation plays an important role in managing blood pressure in the body, over-consumption can lead to hypertension, strokes and cardiovascular disease.

Hot Dogs.
A favourite of many sports fans, hot dogs are practically synonymous with games and other live competitions.
Cities and countries around the world have come up with creative preparations and toppings to make the dish uniquely their own.
Still, 30% of the average hot dog is fat, with water accounting for another 20% of the link.
The meat that does go into hot dogs is what is left over once an animal carcass has been butchered.
Producers will use the less desirable parts of the animal and grind them down into a batter to be formed into hot dogs, oftentimes including bits of the animal’s bones.
If the ingredient list contains “byproducts” or “variety meats,” the meat may come from the snout, lips, eyes, or brains.

Chicken Nuggets.
Chicken nuggets are favoured as a convenient and easy option that can be heated up quickly in a microwave or grabbed from a drive-through window.
But most chicken nuggets contain very little actual chicken meat and are instead made up primarily of fat, nerves, bone, skin and connective tissue.
As is the case with all processed meats, chicken nuggets also contain a wide array of additives to enhance the flavour, texture and shelf life of the breaded bites.
Common additives include emulsifiers and thickening agents, cornstarch, dextrose, whey and propylene glycol.

Deli Meats.
Cold cut sandwiches consisting of ham or turkey between two slices of white bread, slathered with mayonnaise and a half-hearted leaf of lettuce, have long been a centre-piece of childhood lunchboxes.
Yet deli meats are not as straight forward as they seem.
Many offerings contain binders, byproducts or extenders, which could include pig snouts and livers, beef blood and gelatine.

Around 1,000 More People Than Usual Are Dying Each Week In The UK.
The effects of the pandemic lockdown could be causing more deaths than Covid as nearly 10,000 more deaths than the five-year average are recorded.
The Office for National Statistics’ figures for excess deaths in the UK has revealed that about 1,000 more people than usual are dying each week from illnesses and conditions other than Covid.
This makes the rate for excess deaths 14.4% higher than the five-year average, meaning 1,350 more people have died than usual in the week ending 5 August 2022.
Covid-related deaths made up for 469 of them, but the remaining 881 have ‘not been explained’.
Since the start of June 2022, nearly 10,000 more deaths unrelated to Covid have been recorded than the five-year average, making up around 1,089 per week.
This figure is over three times the number of people who died from Covid, 2,811, over the same period.
ONS analysis takes into consideration the ageing population changes, yet still found a ‘substantial ongoing excess’.
The excess deaths may be linked to the delays in medical treatment as a result of the ongoing strain on the NHS.
Lockdowns pushed back treatment for conditions including cancer, diabetes and heart disease, with the British Heart Foundation saying it was ‘deeply concerned’ by the findings.
The Stroke Association said it had been anticipating the rise in deaths for some time.
England-wide statistics showed that A&E standards in hospitals hit an all-time low, with over 20,000 patients facing a 12+ hour wait for medical treatment.
( Lizzie May, 19.08.2022 )  ..  dailymail.co.uk

Even A Mild Case Of COVID-19 Can Shrink Part Of The Brain.
The United States remains the world’s worst affected country by cases and numbers of Covid deaths.
Of the roughly 80 million Americans who’ve gotten COVID-19 so far, about one of every four survivors suffers from impaired cognition, commonly described as brain fog – a symptom mirrored in other parts of the world.
While this isn’t a formal medical term, says Edward Shorter, a professor of psychiatry at University of Toronto, it has become an umbrella term for describing an array of symptoms such as confusion, word-finding difficulties, short-term memory loss, dizziness, or inability to concentrate.
Patients hospitalised with COVID-19 are almost three times more likely than those not hospitalised to have impaired cognition.
But brain scans now show that even a mild case of COVID-19 can shrink part of the brain, causing physical changes equivalent to a decade of ageing.
Some of the most compelling evidence of neurological damage after mild COVID-19 comes from UK researchers who investigated brain changes in people before and after they got the disease.
Even before COVID-19, viral infections were known to cause long-lasting cognitive impairments.
It is well established that viral infections significantly increase the world’s burden of neurological diseases.
While there’s no consensus yet on the exact cause of COVID-19’s cognitive impacts, its effects on various organs can be catastrophic, which means there are many ways the disease could be affecting the brain.
( Sanjay Mishra, 19.04.2022 )  ..  nationalgeographic.co.uk

Heart And Neurological Disorders Have Increased After Covid.
Coronavirus disease or Covid-19 is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
It is a virus that causes respiratory illness in the human body.
It spreads when people breathe in air contaminated by droplets and small airborne particles containing the virus.
The Covid-19 pandemic has put a major effect on human lives.
At the time of the second wave, health experts noted a unique trend.
Heart and neurological disorders have increased as a result of post-covid conditions.
These health problems have been rising since the second wave of Covid-19, say health experts.
As Covid-19 is a respiratory or lung disease, problems related to the heart have risen.
Though Covid-19 infection primarily affects the lungs, its effect has been seen on several other organs, particularly the brain.
There is a rise in brain diseases like brain strokes and benign brain tumours post-pandemic.
After the second wave, there is a slight increase in heart and brain-related issues.
More clots in the heart and brain are being seen in people.
About 90% of people with moderate to severe infections have lasting effects on the heart, said experts.
It has been observed that heart attacks and heart failures have been high, and deaths due to heart disease have also increased significantly.
( Kalinga TV Bureau, 05.09.2022 )  ..  kalingatv.com

Tens Of Thousands Of People Die In Poverty Each Year In The UK.
Tens of thousands of people die in poverty each year in the UK, with working-age adults twice as likely to die below the poverty line as pensioners.
The Loughborough University study was commissioned by Marie Curie and estimates suggest that in 2019, the latest year for which data is available, 93,000 people died having experienced poverty in the final year of their life – around one in seven of the total number of people who died that year.
This comprised of 68,000 pensioners and 25,000 working-age people who died from any cause.
More than 28% of working-age adults who died were estimated to have been in poverty, compared to 13% of those who died having reached pension age.
The research also suggests that women, parents with dependent children and people from ethnically diverse communities are more vulnerable to poverty toward the end of life.
( Amar Mehta, 12.05.2022 )  ..  news.sky.com