Not a New Year’s item

I get them too — every company I have ever done business with — and some I haven’t — has a generic “Happy New Year” message for me. So rather than add to that list, I’ll just say, “What they said.” (Have a great New Year: Stay safe, stay healthy.)

Covid-19 vaccine news

What’s taking so long?

The U.S. vaccine rollout started with a lot of noise and hope, but it’s been stumbling. The federal government has left most of the distribution up to the states, and the 50+ separate infrastructures are doing their best.

The Trump administration has shipped more than 11 million doses of the two available Covid-19 vaccines, but just over 2.1 million people nationwide have received a shot since vaccinations began December 14.

Operation Warp Speed officials walked back the initial promise of 20 million people vaccinated this year to say they meant 20 million doses would be shipped.

The good news: The just-passed coronavirus stimulus package finally includes the money states have been asking for to pay for the effort.

Where will you be?

Wondering where you are in line to get a vaccine? The New York Times has a handy-dandy tool for figuring it out, taking into account each state’s demographics and who the state has prioritized.

Just you wait, just you wait

Gut bacteria sound the alarm

You might think that, when a pathogen enters the body, it’s an immune cell that first sounds the alarm. That turns out not to be the case … at least with mice and cryptosporidium.

UPenn researchers were a bit surprised to find that it’s the gut — specifically, epithelial cells lining the intestines — that sent the initial danger signals.

[T]his new finding underscores that cells not normally thought of as part of the immune system—in this case intestinal epithelial cells—are playing key roles in how how an immune response gets launched.

Prescription mouthwash recall

If you haven’t seen it, Sunstar has recalled its GUM brand Paroex chlorhexidine gluconate oral rinse due to possible bacterial contamination.

The new dietary guidelines are here!

The last one came out five years ago, and this new one, from USDA and HHS, not only updates that, but adds information for babies and toddlers.

The downside: More politics, less science, much to the frustration of nutritionists. For example, the guidelines still say that two alcoholic drinks a day are safe for men (a decision that “should be applauded,” according to the American Beverage Association), that sugars can make up 10 percent of daily calorie intake, and they don’t suggest limiting red meat.

Contrast Harvard’s “Healthy Eating Plate,” which is updated regularly to reflect the latest science.

Potential stroke treatment

LSU neurologists say that a drug developed there — in combination with existing meds — can help stroke patients recover faster. “How so?” you ask, intrigued.

It takes a two-pronged approach, tackling both inflammation and “cell-survival pathways.” Together, the researchers say, the drugs “reduced the size of the damaged area in the brain, initiated repair mechanisms, and remarkably improved behavioral recovery.”

ICYMI

The first U.S. case of the U.K. ultra-contagious Covid-19 variant has been reported in Colorado, which you know means it’s probably in a lot of other places, too.