Latest news with #UniversityofUtah
Jordan News
16-07-2025
- Health
- Jordan News
New and Unexpected Benefits of Turmeric - Jordan News
New and Unexpected Benefits of Turmeric Wastewater can become a true breeding ground for antibiotic-resistant bacteria—but natural compounds like curcumin from turmeric and emodin from rhubarb may help combat them. اضافة اعلان According to the journal Frontiers in Microbiology, the use of antibiotics can have unexpected consequences—not only for the human body but also for the environment. As is well known, some medications are excreted through urine and feces and end up in sewage systems, where they create ideal conditions for the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A scientific team led by Dr. Liwen Hao from the University of Utah discovered multiple strains of bacteria resistant to various antibiotics in wastewater treatment plants in the state. While these microbes rarely cause illness in healthy individuals, they can transfer resistance genes to more dangerous pathogens such as E. coli (Escherichia coli). Moreover, researchers found strains resistant even to colistin, an antibiotic considered a last-resort treatment for severe infections. One particular strain, labeled U2, had the highest number of resistance genes and did not respond to any of the antibiotics tested. To fight these superbugs, scientists tested 11 natural compounds known for their antimicrobial properties. Curcumin (from turmeric) and emodin (from rhubarb) showed the most promising results—inhibiting cell growth, preventing biofilm formation, and reducing bacterial activity. Dr. Hao stated: 'These substances could be integrated into environmentally friendly wastewater treatment methods.' However, researchers stressed that further testing is essential before these compounds can be applied in real-world wastewater facilities. Additional studies are needed to evaluate interactions with other substances and to assess their impact on microbial communities. —
Scientific American
14-07-2025
- Health
- Scientific American
Bariatric Surgery Does Not Resolve Weight Stigma for Everyone
Rachel Feltman: For Scientific American 's Science Quickly, I'm Rachel Feltman. While the use of weight-loss drugs is on the rise, they join a suite of already-common interventions known as bariatric surgeries. The procedures used vary, but generally, bariatric surgeries involve removing, restricting or rerouting parts of the gastrointestinal tract to change the amount of food the stomach can digest or absorb. More than half a million people undergo bariatric surgery globally each year. The reasons for pursuing surgery are complex. But a quick Google search makes one thing clear: these procedures are most often framed—and marketed—as tools for weight loss. On supporting science journalism If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today. That framing matters because in the U.S. research suggests that more than 40 percent of adults report experiencing weight stigma, or discriminatory attitudes or behavior based on body size, at some point. Such discrimination can obviously impact a person psychologically, but it can also make it harder for them to access good health care. You might assume that weight loss would reduce that stigma—or even make it disappear entirely. And while that's true for some people who undergo bariatric surgery, a significant number don't have that experience. Our guest today is Larissa McGarrity, a clinical associate professor for the School of Medicine at the University of Utah. She followed people after surgery to get a better understanding of how weight stigma impacted their lives. Thanks so much for coming on to chat today. Larissa McGarrity: Thank you. I'm excited to be here. Feltman: So how did this study come about? What led you to research the question of how weight stigma intersects with recovery from bariatric surgery? McGarrity: Sure. Really, it was inspired by my clinical work. I'm the lead psychologist at the University of Utah's comprehensive Weight Management Program, and after seeing hundreds of patients with severe obesity for assessments and therapy it's just so clear to me that the way these patients are treated in the world and the resulting way that they see themselves is a key factor in their overall mental and physical health. And this research really helps to support that growing body of literature that suggests the same thing. Feltman: Yeah, so can you walk us through how the study works and what your findings were? McGarrity: Sure, so we studied 148 patients who had had surgery at the University of Utah, and we repeated some psychological and social measures on these patients before surgery and then one and a half to three years after they underwent bariatric surgery in our program. And what we looked at for this study was the amount of weight stigma that they reported experiencing. And by weight stigma, I mean experiences of being devalued socially—experiencing judgment, discrimination and other mistreatment—as well as challenges physically and emotionally with being able to fit into public spaces and feeling like they belong in the world. And we looked at the difference from before surgery to after surgery and saw that there was an improvement for patients in the amount of weight stigma that they experienced, which is a good thing, and that that improvement was associated with some of the mental health outcomes we're really interested in: so depression, anxiety, binge eating, disordered eating—also, actually, lower weight in this case. But what we also saw on the flip side is that a significant proportion of patients, about 42 percent of them, still reported experiencing weight stigma at this [roughly] two- to three-year time point post-surgery. And for patients who did, they were at elevated risk for these mental health concerns, so stigma continues to be important in the years after bariatric surgery. Feltman: Mm, obviously, these results might sound counterintuitive to some people. What do you think is behind the continued stigma people are facing and the impacts that that seems to have on their health? McGarrity: Well, stigma doesn't just go away with weight loss, and I think there's a couple pieces to this. One piece is that bariatric surgery does not typically result in patients suddenly being in what we'd consider to be the typical BMI range. It results in significant weight loss. It's the leading evidence-based treatment for severe obesity. But really, bariatric surgery is about the metabolic effects and improvements for their function; their quality of life; remission of diabetes, hypertension, other medical issues. And so in our sample for this study we saw that the BMI change was significant but still resulted, on average, in patients still being in a category that's technically considered obesity if we were looking at BMI alone. So the fact that their bodies do not conform still, years after surgery, to what society would deem to be this unrealistically thin ideal makes it so that they are certainly still susceptible to these experiences of weight stigma and discrimination. And then the other piece to it is: a big piece of weight stigma is the way we see ourselves. Feltman: Mm. McGarrity: It's not just the way that we're treated but the way we internalize those messages in ways that are harmful for our mental and physical health, and bariatric surgery does not automatically make that disappear or change someone's body image and perception of themselves. Feltman: Could you unpack some of the ways that stigma could be driving poor health outcomes? McGarrity: Absolutely. Well, we know from the general literature, outside of bariatric surgery specifically, that weight stigma is related to a variety of negative mental and physical health implications. We know that independent of a person's baseline BMI and dependent on where their weight starts, their risk for the development of obesity, the exacerbation of obesity over time is predicted by weight stigma. And this probably happens in a few ways. We know that when people experience stigma it is a chronically stressful experience, and the effect of chronic stress on inflammation in the body and our physical health is significant. Another piece of it is health behaviors. So when you think about the health behaviors most people are trying to encourage when they inadvertently make some of these stigmatizing comments, [people] like health providers, it tends to result in being more demoralized and less likely to be motivated to engage in healthy physical activity or adaptive eating behaviors. And so those health behaviors then impact our weight and our health. And then there's also just aspects of social disconnection. When you experience stigma it often affects your entire social network and the interactions that you have interpersonally with the people around you, and we know social disconnection has a big impact on our overall health. And then the last area I would say is health care avoidance. When we think about having these experiences, especially in health care settings, it doesn't really promote wanting to then go to providers where you know you might be judged before you even speak. So several pathways that I think really influence our over—overall mental and physical health. Feltman: What do you think the takeaway should be here for people who might be considering bariatric surgery or providers who counsel patients on getting this kind of treatment? McGarrity: I think an important component is that the bariatric surgery clinical team can't directly change the amount of stigma that patients face out in the real world or in their personal lives. A little bit of a picture of what the experience is like for patients by the time they present for surgery—I think it can be helpful to sort of imagine this experience, imagine spending your whole life dealing with weight struggles and associated physical health challenges, in many cases. You undergo 10 or more serious attempts to lose weight through various fad diets that feel like starving yourself, exercising consistently, meeting with doctors and dieticians and psychologists, sometimes taking medications to assist. And with each attempt you usually regain all the weight, plus 8 to 10 percent. And you keep hearing the same message: 'Just eat less. Just exercise more. Just try harder.' This leaves you each time feeling more like a failure, blaming yourself for not having enough, quote, 'willpower' and experiencing stigma from your loved ones, your health care providers, strangers alike—just this idea that something's wrong with you or that you're lazy because of a chronic health condition. And it's not hard to imagine under those circumstances that mental health challenges would arise and, for many people, an unfortunate self-fulfilling prophecy: this idea that, actually, we have worse eating and sedentary behaviors when we're stigmatized, sometimes binge eating or other eating disorders, and ultimately risk for further weight gain and the development of comorbid medical problems. I think it's important to know that this cycle's not the exception; it's actually the norm for patients we see. This clinical picture's so common, and by the time a patient comes to surgery they've usually had many years of these negative messages from the people around them and society in general about their bodies and what that means about their value. The stigma's pervasive and harmful, and the key takeaway here is that it doesn't just go away with weight loss, it doesn't just go away after bariatric surgery, and that stigma may actually be a more important component of patient mental health in the years after surgery than weight or weight loss is. But what we can do is not be one more place where that stigma is perpetuated. We can provide accurate information about weight and how complex it is and that it's not as simple as this 'Just eat less; just exercise more' message that patients get constantly for years by the time they've come to an office to consider bariatric surgery. We can really focus on treating the whole person and their whole health and I think really [focus] on weight stigma as a core piece of that health picture, the same way we would consider any other risk factor for their health. We should have those conversations explicitly with patients. We should acknowledge the experiences that they've had and [that] that's been a piece of their mental and physical health currently and will likely continue to be a piece of it, even in the years after surgery. So I think the emphasis on the kinds of conversations we can have with patients so that they know we see them as a whole person, they know that we see the complexity of what has contributed to weight gain over time and that we wanna work with them on not just their physical health but also their mental health and how they've internalized some of these messages over time to make surgery most successful for their quality of life. Feltman: And what about the implications for health care for higher-weight patients outside of bariatric surgery? McGarrity: I think an important message is: you know, to the extent possible, even though these messages and stigma are everywhere—they're in the media, they're in public health messaging, they're in their doctors' offices—a really important aspect is recognizing that we do have some control over the extent to which we internalize those messages and some control over the conversations that we can have with friends and family members who may be perpetuating some of this. And it shouldn't be on the person who's struggling with their weight to educate everyone around them, but the reality is that sometimes that does fall on the person who has the weight challenges, right? That it's important to have conversations to educate the people around you and also for yourself to know that you have worth and value as a person that has absolutely nothing to do with what your weight or shape or size is. Feltman: Given the really long-term relationship with weight loss that patients tend to have before turning to bariatric surgery and the connection you saw between weight stigma and negative outcomes, what do you think could change about health care to maybe help some of these patients get better health outcomes before getting to the point where they're considering bariatric surgery? McGarrity: Yeah, that's a great question. A lot of researchers have been advocating for a weight-neutral approach to health care, even in weight-management clinic settings. Bariatric surgery is a metabolic surgery; it's much broader than just weight loss and results in improvement in medical conditions, in overall health and function, and so we don't need to focus on the number on the scale. We don't need to focus so much on weight, whether it's in a bariatric surgery setting or primary care or any other health care setting. It's completely possible to work with patients of all shapes and sizes on overall healthy behaviors—and by that I don't mean a fad diet; I mean eating and exercising in a way that makes your body and mind feel good—without weight needing to be the focus. Feltman: Thank you so much for coming on today to chat. McGarrity: Thank you, I appreciate it. Feltman: That's all for today's episode. For more on the topic of weight stigma and health, check out our November 8 interview with Ragen Chastain. We'll be back on Wednesday with something super special: an inside look at the MIT lab where scientists are working to detect gravitational waves. And tune in on Friday for a deep dive on the psychology of Dungeons and Dragons, featuring bona fide D&D celebrity Brennan Lee Mulligan. Science Quickly is produced by me, Rachel Feltman, along with Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Naeem Amarsy and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check our show. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith. Subscribe to Scientific American for more up-to-date and in-depth science news.
Scottish Sun
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Who is Marcelo Arevalo's wife Lucia Kovarcikova?
Find out when the met and how they got married MARCELO AREVALO alongside doubles partner Mate Pavic have stormed their way into the semi-finals at the All England Club. As one half of the number one seed at Wimbledon 2025, Arevalo has shone with his wife Lucia Kovarcikova by his side - here's what we know about her. Advertisement 3 Lucia is a former ITF tennis player Arevalo and Pavic booked their place in the semi-finals after defeating the tenth seed team of Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in a third set tiebreak. They now face the duo of David Pel and Rinky Hijikata on Court 1 on July 10, 2025 for a place in the final. Who is Lucia Kovarcikova? Lucia Kovarcikova is a former ITF tennis player who represented Switzerland. The 34-year-old was born in Slovakia but studied in the US. Advertisement She attended the University of Utah where she also competed for the college tennis team. Lucia is also the owner of Magnolia Beauty Salon in Davie, Florida which specialises in hair and skincare. She has 2,801 Instagram followers as of July 10, 2025. When did they get married? 3 They tied the knot in 2019 in a courthouse Advertisement The pair met in 2017 and became official in 2018 as they frequently posted romantic pictures on social media. Lucia would regularly post snaps of her travelling around the world at tennis tournaments cheering on Arevalo. The couple had a courthouse wedding in 2019 but followed it up with a more formal celebration in December 2020. Hosted at Thalatta Estate in Miami, Florida, the ceremony was only attended by close family and friends due to Covid restrictions. Advertisement Do they have any children? 3 The couple have two children together Marcelo and Lucia welcomed their first baby together on September 10, 2019. Their first son, Marcelito Arevalo, was even able to attend the wedding ceremony in 2020. The pair had their second son Matteo Arevalo on February 29, 2024.
The Irish Sun
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Who is Marcelo Arevalo's wife Lucia Kovarcikova?
MARCELO AREVALO alongside doubles partner Mate Pavic have stormed their way into the semi-finals at the All England Club. As one half of the number one seed at Wimbledon 2025, Arevalo has shone with his wife Lucia Kovarcikova by his side - here's what we know about her. Advertisement 3 Lucia is a former ITF tennis player Arevalo and Pavic booked their place in the semi-finals after defeating the tenth seed team of Hugo Nys and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in a third set tiebreak. They now face the duo of David Pel and Rinky Hijikata on Court 1 on July 10, 2025 for a place in the final. Who is Lucia Kovarcikova? Lucia Kovarcikova is a former ITF tennis player who represented Switzerland. The 34-year-old was born in Slovakia but studied in the US. Advertisement She attended the University of Utah where she also competed for the college tennis team. Lucia is also the owner of Magnolia Beauty Salon in Davie, Florida which specialises in hair and skincare. She has 2,801 Instagram followers as of July 10, 2025. When did they get married? 3 They tied the knot in 2019 in a courthouse Advertisement The pair met in 2017 and became official in 2018 as they frequently posted romantic pictures on social media. Most read in Sport Lucia would regularly post snaps of her travelling around the world at tennis tournaments cheering on Arevalo. The couple had a courthouse wedding in 2019 but followed it up with a more formal celebration in December 2020. Hosted at Thalatta Estate in Miami, Florida, the ceremony was only attended by close family and friends due to Covid restrictions. Advertisement Do they have any children? 3 The couple have two children together Marcelo and Lucia welcomed their first baby together on September 10, 2019. Their first son, Marcelito Arevalo, was even able to attend the wedding ceremony in 2020. The pair had their second son Matteo Arevalo on February 29, 2024. Advertisement
09-07-2025
- General
Faith-based camps like those hit by Texas floods are rite of passage for many. They're now grieving
Texas' catastrophic flooding hit faith-based summer camps especially hard, and the heartbreak is sweeping across the country where similar camps mark a rite of passage and a crucial faith experience for millions of children and teens. 'Camp is such a unique experience that you just instantly empathize,' said Rachael Botting of the tragedy that struck Camp Mystic, the century-old all-girls Christian summer camp where at least 27 people were killed. A search was underway for more than 160 missing people in the area filled with youth camps as the overall death toll passed 100 on Tuesday. Botting, a former Christian camp counselor, is a Wheaton College expert on the role camp plays in young people's faith formation. 'I do plan to send my boys to Christian summer camps. It is a nonnegotiable for us,' added the mother of three children under 4. Generations of parents and children have felt the same about the approximately 3,000 faith-based summer camps across the country. That is because for many campers, and young camp counselors, they are crucial independence milestones — the first time away from family or with a job away from home, said Robert Lubeznik-Warner, a University of Utah youth development researcher. Experts say camps offer the opportunity to try skills and social situations for the first time while developing a stronger sense of self — and to do so in the safety of communities sharing the same values. After the floodwaters rampaged through Camp Mystic, authorities and families have been combing through the wreckage strewed between the cabins and the riverbank. On Sunday, a man there carried a wood sign similar to those seen hanging outside the door of several buildings. It read: 'Do Good. Do No Harm. Keep Falling In Love With Jesus." For generations, these Texas campers have been challenged to master quintessential summer activities from crafts to swimming while also growing in spiritual practices. Campers and counselors shared devotionals after breakfast, before bed and on Sunday mornings along the banks of the Guadalupe River, according to Camp Mystic's brochure and website. They sang songs, listened to Scripture and attended Bible studies, too. How big of a role faith has in the camp experience varies, Botting said. There are Christian camps where even canoeing outings are discussed as metaphors for spiritual journeys, others that aim to insert more religious activities like reading the Bible into children's routines, and some that simply seek to give people a chance to encounter Jesus. The religious emphasis also varies at Jewish camps, which span traditions from Orthodox to Reform. Activities range from daily Torah readings to yoga, said Jamie Simon, who leads the Foundation for Jewish Camp. The group supports 300 camps across North America, with about 200,000 young people involved this summer alone. What they all have in common is a focus on building self-esteem as well as positive Jewish communities and identities — all particularly important as many struggle with antisemitism as well as the loneliness and mental health barriers common across all youth, Simon said. At Seneca Hills Bible Camp and Retreat Center in Pennsylvania, there is archery, basketball and volleyball for summer campers, but also daily chapel, listening to missionaries and taking part in Bible study or hearing a Bible story depending on their age, which ranges from 5 to 18-year-olds. 'There's a whole host of activities, but really the focus for camp is building relationships with one another and encouraging the kids' relationships with God,' said camp executive director Lindon Fowler. For many, participating in the same summer camp is also a generational tradition. Children are sent to the same place as their parents and grandparents to be around people who share the same value system in ways they can't often experience in their local communities. Because of their emphasis on independence and spending time away from family, summer camps in general have been especially popular in North America, Lubeznik-Warner said. In the United States, faith-based summer camps date back to two parallel movements in the 19th century — the revivalist religious gatherings in tents and the 'fresh-air movement' after the industrial revolution — and boomed after World War II, Botting said. Particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, as questions about children's dependence on technology have surged, interest has grown in summer camps as 'places where kids can really unplug, where kids can be kids,' Botting said. Many parents like that camp can disconnect their children from their devices. 'We're interested in campers hearing similar messages that they're going to get at home or in their church or their faith communities,' Fowler said. He added: 'I think they can hear … the meaning of things more clearly while they're at camp" and away from distractions. For Rob Ribbe, who teaches outdoors leadership at Wheaton College's divinity school, all the elements of camp have biblical resonance. 'God uses times away, in community, often in creation … as a way to shape and form us, and help us to know him,' Ribbe said. There are faith-related challenges, too. As children explore their identities and establish bonds outside their families, many programs have been wrestling with how to strike a balance between holding on to their denominations' teachings while remaining welcoming, especially on issues of gender and sexuality, Botting said. Rising costs are also a pressing issue. Historically, camps have been particularly popular among middle to upper-income families who can afford fees in the thousands of dollars for residential camps. And then there is safety — whether in terms of potential abuse, with many church denominations marred by recent scandals, or the inherent risks of the outdoors. In Texas' case, controversy is mounting over preparedness and official alerts for the natural disaster. Every summer, hundreds of thousands of parents trust Brad Barnett and his team to keep their children safe — physically and spiritually — at the dozens of summer camps run by Lifeway Christian Resources. Barnett, director of camp ministry, said already his staff has shared personal connections to Camp Mystic: One staff member's daughter was an alum; another's went to the same day camp with a girl who died in the flood; and a former staff member taught at the high school of a counselor who died. But the tragedy is also informing their work as they provide yet another week of Christian summer camp experiences for children across the country. 'That's the punch in the gut for us,' he said. 'We know that there's an implicit promise that we're going to keep your kid safe, and so to not be able to deliver on that and the loss of life, it's just so tragic and felt by so many.' Experts say camp staff are likely to double down on best practices to respond to emergencies and keep their campers safe in the aftermath of the Texas floods. 'It's, truly, truly heartbreaking for the whole community of Christian camping,' said Gregg Hunter, president of Christian Camp and Conference Association, which serves about 850 member camps catering to about 7 million campers a year. But the positive and often lifelong impacts on children's confidence and faith identity are so powerful that many leaders expressed hope the tragedy wouldn't discourage children from trying it. 'It's where my life took a dramatic turn from being a young, obnoxious, rebellious teenager,' Hunter said. 'My camp experience introduced me to so many things, including to my faith, an opportunity, an option to enter into a relationship with God.' Simon, a former camper and camp leader, said she is happy her son is currently at camp — even though there is a river by it. 'I wouldn't want him to be anywhere else,' she said. ___
