From Ozempic to Population Collapse: Data for Health Highlights So Far
Aging in Bursts, Shingles Vaccine & Dementia, Champagne Problems and more!
Hey everybody, and a special welcome to the many new subscribers! (who knew that random demography facts were so popular?)
I thought it was a good time to send a round-up of some previous posts that triggered a lot of interest. From Ozempic’s many promises to what champagne doesn’t do for your heart, here are some posts that hopefully leave you a bit healthier, wiser and more curious than you were before.
🎯 Weight Loss, Diabetes, and…Everything Else?
I break down a recent large “discovery” study on GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic that found a lot of unexpected benefits beyond diabetes (and some downsides). As always, this comes with a dash of lessons in study design and causal inference. A later post reviews new evidence that semaglutide improves fatty liver disease.
Oh Oh Oh Ozempic-is there anything GLP-1 drugs can’t do?
TL;DR: In a large sample of US Veterans, GLP-1 drugs were associated with reduced risk of substance use and psychotic disorders, seizures, neurocognitive disorders (including Alzheimer’s disease and dementia), coagulation disorders, cardiometabolic disorders, infectious illnesses and several respiratory conditions, but increased risk of gastrointestinal…
📉 Population Panic, Fact-Checked
How worried should you actually be about humans going extinct? In this post I unpack the real meaning of some key demographic numbers like the Total Fertility Rate and diffuse some of the current population panic.
Is our population collapsing?
TL;DR: The World and US populations are still growing, not declining.Data for Health is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
🧠 A Shot at Preventing Dementia?
Some headlines just sound too good to be true. In this post, I dive deep into a remarkable study that made bold claims about shingles vaccination and dementia risk, and explain why the design of this “observational” study was still quite convincing. I also cover a follow-up study by some of the same research team here.
Can the Shingles Vaccine Prevent Dementia?
You may have seen headlines about a fascinating new study in Nature suggesting that the shingles vaccine may lower the risk of dementia.
⏳ Acclerating Aging at Ages 44 and 60?
This headline suggesting our bodies fall off a cliff at specific ages really caught my attention. But upon closer reading, I am less worried about preciptious physical decline at these ages. Read why:
💉 Are additional COVID vaccine doses still worth it?
Amidst all of the recent vaccine discussions (chaos?) in the US, I take a fresh look at existing data on COVID vaccines. I walk through the process of gaining scientific knowledge by triangulating different types of evidence rather than always starting from scratch. And you start to see my GenX penchant for Princess Bride memes…
Do additional COVID vaccines really help?
If you missed Part I, please go back to read why I think there is compelling evidence that kids can benefit from regular COVID vaccines. We need to talk about this more often, because take-up has been low in the US (much lower than annual pediatric flu vaccines), despite universal recommendations. While I’m emphasizing the importance of vaccines for kid…
🍾 The Champagne Study That Popped Off
Finally on a lighter note…the media loved a study linking drinking champagne to reduced risk of sudden cardiac arrest. Despite my own love of bubbly, I dive into the data and all of its champagne problems.
Can Champagne Reduce Your Risk of Cardiac Arrest?
TL;DR: There is a lot to love about champagne, but protecting you from cardiac arrest is probably not one of them.Data for Health is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Thanks for reading!
One of the best parts of writing this Substack is hearing from readers who bring curious questions, thoughtful challenges, and better jokes than I do. Thanks for reading, sharing, and nerding out with me. If there’s a topic you’d love to see tackled next, hit reply or comment and let me know. Also please share with your friends if you think this content is something they would enjoy.
Stay well,
Jenn
Thanks for pointing out this "birthrate" panic. I just heard an NPR interview about it today hosted by 3 women, and they were so snooty about, saying that women just want things "perfect" to have kids and that we should be SOO concerned about it. They shouldn't care about finances or the earth's resources just have kids!!!
Anyone with a basic understanding of math will realize that the world's POPULATION is still growing!!!
Oh yeah I forgot, damn feeling bad right now