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Major study reveals why COVID vaccine can trigger heart issues, especially in one group

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Major study reveals why COVID vaccine can trigger heart issues, especially in one group

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One of the most widely known risks linked to the COVID-19 vaccine is myocarditis, especially in young males — and now a new Stanford study has shed some light on why this rare effect can occur.

Myocarditis, which is inflammation of the heart, occurs in about one in 140,000 people who receive the first dose of the vaccine and one in 32,000 after the second dose, according to a Stanford press release. Among males 30 and younger, that rises to one in 16,750.

Symptoms of the condition include chest pain, shortness of breath, fever and palpitations, which can occur just one to three days after vaccination. Another marker is heightened levels of cardiac troponin, which indicates that the heart muscle has been damaged.

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In most cases, people who experience myocarditis recover quickly and restore full heart function, according to study author Joseph Wu, MD, PhD, the director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute and a professor of medicine and radiology.

One of the most widely known risks linked to the COVID-19 vaccine is myocarditis, especially in young males. (iStock)

“It’s not a heart attack in the traditional sense,” Wu told Fox News Digital. “There’s no blockage of blood vessels as found in most common heart attacks. When symptoms are mild and the inflammation hasn’t caused structural damage to the heart, we just observe these patients to make sure they recover.”

In rare cases, however, severe heart inflammation can lead to hospitalizations, critical illness or death, Wu noted.

Finding the cause

The new Stanford study — conducted in collaboration with The Ohio State University — aimed to determine the reasons for the myocarditis. The research team analyzed blood samples from vaccinated people, some with myocarditis and some without. 

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They found that those with myocarditis had two proteins in their blood, CXCL10 and IFN-gamma, which are released by immune cells. Those proteins then activate more inflammation.

COVID VACCINE UNDER NEW SCRUTINY AFTER STUDIES REVEAL POSSIBLE HEALTH RISKS

“We think these two are the major drivers of myocarditis,” said Wu. “Your body needs these cytokines to ward off viruses. It’s essential to immune response, but can become toxic in large amounts.”

In mouse and heart tissue models, high levels of these proteins led to signs of heart irritation, similar to mild myocarditis.

Prevention mechanism

“One of the most striking findings was how much we could reduce heart damage in our models by specifically blocking these two cytokines, without shutting down the entire (desired) immune response to the vaccine,” Wu told Fox News Digital, noting that a targeted, “fine‑tuning” immune approach might be enough to protect the heart.

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Myocarditis, which is inflammation of the heart, occurs in about one in 140,000 people who receive the first dose of the vaccine and one in 32,000 after the second dose. (iStock)

“This points to a possible future way to prevent or treat myocarditis in people who are at the highest risk, while keeping the benefits of vaccination,” he added.

The team also found that genistein, an estrogen-like natural compound found in soybeans, reduced inflammation in lab tests, but this has not yet been tested in humans.

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The findings were published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

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“This is a very complex study,” Fox News senior medical analyst Dr. Marc Siegel told Fox News Digital. “Myocarditis is very rare, and the immune mechanism makes sense.”

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“Myocarditis is worse with COVID — much more common, and generally much more severe.” 

Wu agreed, adding that COVID infection is about 10 times more likely to cause myocarditis compared to mRNA-based vaccines.

‘Crucial tool’

The researchers emphasized that COVID-19 vaccines have been “heavily scrutinized” for safety and have been shown to have an “excellent safety record.”

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In rare cases, however, severe heart inflammation can lead to hospitalizations, critical illness or death. (iStock)

“mRNA vaccines remain a crucial tool against COVID‑19, and this research helps explain a rare side effect and suggests ways to make future vaccines even safer, rather than a reason to avoid vaccination,” Wu said.

“The overall benefits of COVID‑19 vaccination still clearly outweigh the small risk of myocarditis for nearly all groups.”

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The study did have some limitations, primarily the fact that most of the data came from experimental systems (mice and human cells in the lab), which cannot fully capture how myocarditis develops and resolves in real patients, according to Wu.

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“This points to a possible future way to prevent or treat myocarditis in people who are at the highest risk.”

“These findings do not change what people should do right now, because our work is still at the preclinical (mouse and human cells) stage,” he said. “Clinical studies will be needed to confirm whether targeted treatments are safe and effective.”

The researcher also added that myocarditis risk could rise with other types of vaccines.

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“Other vaccines can cause myocarditis and inflammatory problems, but the symptoms tend to be more diffuse,” he said in the release. “Plus, mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines’ risks have received intense public scrutiny and media coverage. If you get chest pains from a COVID vaccine, you go to the hospital to get checked out, and if the serum troponin is positive, then you get diagnosed with myocarditis. If you get achy muscles or joints from a flu vaccine, you just blow it off.”

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The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Gootter-Jensen Foundation.

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Brain Health Challenge: Doctor Appointments for Your Mind and Body

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Brain Health Challenge: Doctor Appointments for Your Mind and Body

Congratulations, you’ve reached the final day of the Brain Health Challenge! Today, we’re asking you to do a few things that might feel a bit out of left field — like getting your blood pressure checked.

No, it isn’t as fun as playing Pips, but experts say it’s one of the most important things you can do for your brain. That’s because heart health and brain health are intrinsically linked.

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High blood pressure, in particular, can damage brain cells, and it’s a significant risk factor for stroke and dementia. When blood pressure is too high, it places stress on the walls of arteries in the brain. Over time, that added stress can cause the blood vessel walls to thicken, obstructing blood flow. In other cases, the increased pressure causes the artery walls to thin and leak blood into the brain.

These changes to the blood vessels can sometimes cause a large stroke to occur. More commonly, the damage leads to micro-strokes and micro-hemorrhages, which cause fewer immediate problems and often go unnoticed. But if someone has hypertension for years or decades, these injuries can build up, and the person may start to experience cognitive impairment.

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High blood pressure “is known as a silent killer for lots of reasons,” said Dr. Shyam Prabhakaran, the chair of neurology at the University of Chicago. “It doesn’t cause you any symptoms until it does.”

Because the damage accumulates over many years, experts say that managing blood pressure in midlife matters most for brain health. Hypertension can be addressed with medication or lifestyle changes, as directed by your doctor. But the first thing you need to do is know your numbers. If your blood pressure comes back higher than 120/80, it’s important to take it seriously, Dr. Prabhakaran said.

While you’re at it, there are a few other aspects of your physical health that you should check on.

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Your eyes and ears are two of them. Hearing and vision loss have both been shown to increase the risk of dementia. Experts think that with less sensory information coming in to stimulate the brain, the regions that process hearing and vision can start to atrophy. What’s more, people with sensory loss often withdraw or are left out of social interactions, further depriving them of cognitive stimulation.

Oral health can also affect your brain health. Research has found a connection between regular flossing and reduced odds of having a stroke. That may be because good oral health can help to reduce inflammation in the body. The bacteria that cause gum disease have also been tied to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s.

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And have you gotten your shingles vaccine? There is mounting evidence that it’s a powerful weapon for protecting against dementia. One study found that it lowered people’s odds of developing the condition by as much as 20 percent.

To wrap up this challenge, we want you to schedule a few medical appointments that benefit your brain, as well as your body.

After five days of feeding, exercising and challenging your brain, you are well on your way to better cognitive health. Thanks for joining me this week, and keep up the good habits!

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Health experts react as Andrew Huberman backs Trump admin’s new food pyramid

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Health experts react as Andrew Huberman backs Trump admin’s new food pyramid

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The Trump administration has taken a new approach to the food pyramid.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced new guidelines on Wednesday with an updated, inverted pyramid. The top of the pyramid, which is now the wider part of the structure, is built on meat, fats, fruits and vegetables, while whole grains are at the narrow bottom.

This follows HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s mission to “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA), aimed at addressing chronic disease, childhood illnesses and ultraprocessed foods.

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“The new guidelines recognize that whole, nutrient-dense food is the most effective path to better health and lower health care costs,” Kennedy said during a press briefing in Washington, D.C. 

“Protein and healthy fats are essential, and were wrongly discouraged in prior dietary guidelines. We are ending the war on saturated fats.”

The Trump administration announces the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, putting “real food” back at the center of health. (realfood.gov)

The HHS secretary rallied against refined carbohydrates, food additives and added sugar, highlighting the health risks associated with sugar-sweetened beverages. 

Kennedy’s main message to Americans was to “eat real food.”

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TRUMP ADMIN’S NEW NUTRITION GUIDELINES TARGET ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS, EASE UP ON RED MEAT AND SATURATED FATS

The announcement triggered reactions from top health and wellness voices, including Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Huberman, host of the “Huberman Lab” podcast.

In a post on X, Huberman shared the White House’s graphic of the new pyramid, praising the decisions that were made.

“Oatmeal (and I think that’s rice and sourdough) made the cut!” he commented. “In all seriousness, assuming overall calories are kept in check and people exercise & get sun(day)light, this looks spot on.”

He added, “Maybe up the veggies a bit, add low-sugar fermented foods like sauerkraut & this is great.”

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Huberman said in a thread on the same post that Americans “don’t have to eat all the foods” shown in the diagram.

“You won’t see me drinking milk or eating shrimp,” he said. “Nothing against shrimp, I just don’t like the taste. Aversion to crustaceans.”

“Maybe up the veggies a bit, add low-sugar fermented foods like sauerkraut & this is great,” Huberman commented on X. (Chance Yeh/Getty Images for HubSpot; iStock)

The new guidelines received praise from other major health figures, including former FDA commissioner Dr. David Kessler.

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“There should be broad agreement that eating more whole foods and reducing highly processed carbohydrates is a major advance in how we approach diet and health,” Kessler told The Associated Press.

“Protein and healthy fats are essential, and were wrongly discouraged in prior dietary guidelines.”

Dr. Bobby Mukkamala, president of the American Medical Association, shared in a statement that these guidelines “affirm that food is medicine and offer clear direction patients and physicians can use to improve health.”

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“The American Medical Association applauds the Administration’s new Dietary Guidelines for spotlighting the highly processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages and excess sodium that fuel heart disease, diabetes, obesity and other chronic illnesses,” Mukkamala wrote.

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The American Medical Association applauded the HHS for its updated nutrition guidelines. (iStock)

But not all feedback was positive.

Some people expressed concern about prioritizing red meat and dairy, while calling for the limitation of saturated fat.

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Neal Barnard, president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, shared in a reaction to STAT that while the guidelines “do have one or two good points, emphasizing fruits and vegetables and limiting alcohol,” the guidelines are “for the most part a strong reflection of industry influence.”

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Christopher Gardner, a nutrition expert at Stanford University, also spoke out against the new guidelines, as reported by NPR.

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“I’m very disappointed in the new pyramid that features red meat and saturated fat sources at the very top, as if that’s something to prioritize. It does go against decades and decades of evidence and research,” said Gardner, who was a member of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.

Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf, as well as Alexandria Hoff of Fox News, contributed reporting.

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Matt Damon’s Gluten-Free Diet Helped Him Lose 18 Pounds

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Matt Damon’s Gluten-Free Diet Helped Him Lose 18 Pounds


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Matt Damon’s Weight Loss: Actor Drops 18 Lbs with This Diet | Woman’s World




















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