ISSUE 9: APRIL 2025 

 

• Measles is back on the radar and toddlers are my biggest worry because they are too young to be vaccinated. Parents, if you are worried too…there's a workaround. 
• Work and health intersected for Cat McKenzie, the Executive Producer of GMA3: What You Need To Know. A life-threatening medication reaction (that you need to know) inspired how she decides what health information makes it to the national news.
• Speaking of news….is it giving you a headache? That's politics, but what we now know is that migraines aren’t just “bad headaches”—they’re electrical storms in the brain, and treatment is finally catching up with the science.
• And, If you are thinking about using Xanax to take the edge off these anxiety-producing times — know what you’re getting into. Stopping it suddenly could bring a whole new set of problems.

• If you are one of 15 million 23andMe users, you can avoid potential problems if you delete your data. But before you do that, take some extra steps so you don't lose all that information. 
• Love getting all that data from your Apple Watch? Me too. But don't put too much focus on your heart rate variability reading. Instead….
• Focus on planning ahead for how you want to age. Want to age in place?  It takes more than grab bars and good genes. I have some strong (maybe even unpopular) feelings about this topic that I shared on Minnesota Public Radio. 
• And five years after COVID turned the world upside down, a reflection on the science, the social shifts, and yes, the good that came out of it. 

 

I hope you learn something new so that you can Speak Up For Your Health. 

You can dive deeper into each topic by linking the segment or podcast. Links are in  red, underlined, and bolded. Thanks for reading! 

WHO SHOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT MEASLES?

Measles cases are rising fast. As of April 11, there are 712 confirmed cases across 20 states and 2 reported deaths. Unsurprisingly, 97% of those infected are either unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status. I covered this story back in early March, when there were just 159 cases—and when HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was muddying the waters by promoting Vitamin A, budesonide, and clarithromycin as measles treatments. I assumed his claims were baseless, but as I dug into the research, I found that while these certainly aren’t substitutes for vaccination, there is evidence they can help once someone is seriously ill with measles. Context matters. LINK

DRESS: THe Inspiration for Good Morning America

If you watch GMA3: What You Need to Know—the third hour of Good Morning America—you’ve probably noticed that health stories are a big part of the format. Here's why. Cat McKenzie, the show’s Executive Producer, launched this version of GMA3 back in 2020 after having a life-threatening reaction to a sulfa-based medication. That moment changed everything. She realized just how important it is for people to understand their own health and know how to speak up. In Part 1 of my conversation with Cat, we talk about the “red flag” symptoms that were missed by her doctors, the impact of delayed diagnoses, and the tough side effects she faced while on prednisone. In Part 2, she shares how her personal health scare fuels the way she curates national health stories. 

MIGRAINES: Not What We THought

Migraine headaches affect about 1 in 8 people age 12 and older in the U.S. — and they’re three times more common in women than men. When I was in med school (and until recently) we believed migraines were caused by vascular spasms, but now we now know that they're actually triggered by nerve hyperexcitability. When the trigeminal nerve (a major nerve on the sides of your face/jaw) and nearby blood vessels get overly “excited,” it triggers inflammation and pain. The good news? This deeper understanding has led to better, more targeted treatments for both prevention and relief. LINK

Is Your GEnetic Data At Risk?

23andMe recently filed for bankruptcy. While they have to comply with privacy policies, your genetic data could be sold as part of company assets. Since it's such an unknown, California’s Attorney General is recommending that users delete their information.

But before you delete anything—download your raw DNA data! This is valuable information that you can upload it to another service and continue getting insights. Once you’ve done that, go back and request deletion of BOTH your data and saliva sample and then close your account. Not sure where to upload your data? Choose a new service based on what you’re looking for. If you are interested in ancestry information, try Ancestry.com or MyHeritage. If you want health info, look at Promethease ($12), GeneticGenie (free), or LiveWello ($75/year).LINK

Heart Rate variability: Know What It Means

"Elizabeth, don't panic."
I don’t usually give personal medical advice on-air, but during a recent segment on Minnesota Live, co-host Elizabeth Ries shared that her Oura ring was consistently showing a heart rate variability (HRV) of 11—and she was worried it meant she had heart disease.

#NO. It doesn't. HRV measures the tiny, millisecond differences between each heartbeat. While devices often suggest that higher is better, HRV is incredibly personal. A reading of 11 might be completely normal for you. Doctors only use HRV in very specific clinical settings—like monitoring heart failure, recent heart attacks, or diabetes. For healthy people, it’s not a diagnostic tool. So, why do smart devices track and report this data? Because they can. (Sorry, not sorry for the snark). LINK

USING XANAX CAN BE WORSE THAN WHAT IT TREATS

Medications like Xanax (and other benzodiazepines like Valium and Ativan) are commonly prescribed for anxiety and insomnia, but they come with risks many people don’t realize. The FDA has a black box warning on these meds to highlight a serious risk: dependence and withdrawal. Even when taken as directed, dependence can develop in just 3 to 6 weeks—and withdrawal symptoms can be more severe than the symptoms being treated. LINK

Dawn Simonson, CEO of Trellis, and I were guests on MPR to discuss (and debate) the complexities of aging in place. I have some pretty strong feelings about this topic. Many seniors want to remain in their homes, and that is wonderful IF it is safe and not an unwanted responsibility on family, children, & friends. There are pros and cons but (IMHO) the pros get over-romanticized and the cons are not discussed. My recommendation (clinically and as a daughter): the focus should be HOW we age not WHERE we age. LINK

COVID 5 Years Later

Here's my take on where we are with COVID: Hospitalizations and deaths are way down—50 times lower than early 2020—but COVID isn’t gone. The current strain (XEC, a cousin of Omicron) is milder, and most of us (96%) have some level of immunity either from infection, vaccination or both. Still, those over 75 remain at highest risk, and long COVID continues to affect 1 in 10 people. Looking back on the pandemic with some rose-colored glasses (because that's how I am wired) there are 3 long lasting benefits: telehealth, wastewater tracking of infections and mRNA technology. #stayingpostive LINK

 You can find previous editions of ArcHealth on my website. 

This newsletter is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional medical advice. Always consult a healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment.