Health
As Measles Continues to Spread in Texas, Cases Jump in New Mexico
A raging measles outbreak in West Texas, which has so far killed one child, has not abated and may have taken root in New Mexico, state health officials reported on Friday.
The outbreak has sickened nearly 200 people — roughly 40 more cases than were reported on Tuesday — and has left 23 hospitalized in West Texas. Local health officials say even that number may be an undercount.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health and human services secretary, has faced criticism for his handling of the worsening outbreak. A prominent vaccine skeptic, Mr. Kennedy has offered muted support for vaccination and has emphasized untested treatments for measles, like cod liver oil.
The outbreak has largely spread within a community of Mennonites in Gaines County, Texas, who historically have had lower vaccination rates and often avoid interacting with the health care system.
Last year, roughly 82 percent of the county’s kindergarten population had received the measles vaccine. Experts say that vaccination rates must reach at least 95 percent to stave off outbreaks in a community.
In a news release on Friday, Texas health officials wrote that more cases are “likely to occur,” because of the contagiousness of the virus.
Health officials in Lea County, N.M. — which borders Gaines County — reported 30 measles cases on Friday, a substantial jump from the nine cases reported on Tuesday.
While the cases in New Mexico have not officially been connected to the Texas outbreak, officials have said a link is “suspected.”
On Thursday, state officials said an unvaccinated person who died in Lea County tested positive for the virus, though they have not yet confirmed that measles was the cause of death.
Most of these cases along the New Mexico-Texas border have involved someone unvaccinated or with unknown vaccine status. Two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine prevent more than 97 percent of measles infections.
Just 93 percent of kindergarten students nationwide had received the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella in the 2023-24 school year, down from 95 percent before the pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
While symptoms typically resolve in a few weeks, measles can be extremely dangerous in rare cases. It may cause pneumonia, making it difficult for patients, especially children, to get oxygen into their lungs.
The infection can also lead to brain swelling, which can cause lasting damage, including blindness, deafness and intellectual disabilities. For every 1,000 children who get measles, one or two will die, according to the C.D.C.
The virus also causes “immune amnesia,” making the body unable to defend itself against illnesses it has already been exposed to and leaving patients more susceptible to future infections.
A 2015 study found that before the M.M.R. vaccine was widely available, measles might have been responsible for up to half of all infectious disease deaths in children.
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More than 59% of women may have high blood pressure by 2050, according to a new report from the American Heart Association.
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A new report by the American Heart Association (AHA) included some troubling predictions for the future of women’s health.
The forecast, published in the journal Circulation on Wednesday, projected increases in various comorbidities in American females by 2050.
More than 59% of women were predicted to have high blood pressure, up from less than 49% currently.
The review also projected that more than 25% of women will have diabetes, compared to about 15% today, and more than 61% will have obesity, compared to 44% currently.
As a result of these risk factors, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease and stroke is expected to rise to 14.4% from 10.7%.
The prevalence of cardiovascular disease and stroke in women is expected to rise to 14.4% from 10.7% by 2050. (iStock)
Not all trends were negative, as unhealthy cholesterol prevalence is expected to drop to about 22% from more than 42% today, the report stated.
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Dr. Elizabeth Klodas, a cardiologist and founder of Step One Foods in Minnesota, commented on these “jarring findings.”
“The fact that on our current trajectory, cardiometabolic disease is projected to explode in women within one generation should be a huge wake-up call,” she told Fox News Digital.
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“Hypertension, diabetes, obesity — these are all major risk factors for heart disease, and we are already seeing what those risks are driving. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, eclipsing all other causes of death, including breast cancer.”
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S. and around the world. (iStock)
Klodas warned that heart disease starts early, progresses “stealthily,” and can present “out of the blue in devastating ways.”
The AHA published another study on Thursday revealing one million hospitalizations, showing that heart attack deaths are climbing among adults below the age of 55.
The more alarming finding, according to Klodas, is that young women were found more likely to die after their first heart attack than men of the same age.
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“This is all especially tragic since heart disease is almost entirely preventable,” she said. “The earlier you start, the better.”
Children can show early evidence of plaque deposition in their arteries, which can be reversed through lifestyle changes if “undertaken early enough and aggressively enough,” according to the expert.
Moving more is one part of protecting a healthy heart, according to experts. (iStock)
Klodas suggested that rising heart conditions are associated with traditional risk factors, like smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.
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Doctors are also seeing higher rates of preeclampsia, or high blood pressure during pregnancy, as well as gestational diabetes. Klodas noted that these are sex-specific risk factors that don’t typically contribute to complications until after menopause.
The best way to protect a healthy heart is to “do the basics,” Klodas recommended, including the following lifestyle habits.
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Klodas especially emphasized making improvements to diet, as the food people eat affects “every single risk factor that the AHA’s report highlights.”
“High blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, excess weight – these are all conditions that are driven in part or in whole by food,” she said. “We eat multiple times every single day, which means what we eat has profound cumulative effects over time.”
“Even a small improvement in dietary intake, when maintained, can have a massive positive impact on health,” a doctor said. (iStock)
“Even a small improvement in dietary intake, when maintained, can have a massive positive impact on health.”
The doctor also recommends changing out a few snacks per day for healthier choices, which has been proven to “yield medication-level cholesterol reductions” in a month.
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“Keep up that small change and, over the course of a year, you could also lose 20 pounds and reduce your sodium intake enough to avoid blood pressure-lowering medications,” Klodas added.
“Women should not view the AHA report as inevitable. We have power over our health destinies. We just need to use it.”
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