Health

(NEW YORK) — Several countries, including Thailand and Nepal, have increased their surveillance after cases of the deadly Nipah virus were detected in India.

So far, just two cases have been confirmed among 25-year-old nurses, a woman and a man, in West Bengal, according to the World Health Organization.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services told ABC News earlier this week that Indian health authorities have deployed an outbreak response team and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is in contact with local officials. The CDC said it is “monitoring” the situation.

Despite the virus’s high fatality rate, experts have said it’s very unlikely it will lead to a global emergency.

Here’s what you need to know about the virus, including signs and symptoms, how the virus is transmitted and what treatments are available.

What is Nipah virus?

Nipah virus is a type of zoonotic disease, meaning it’s primarily found in animals and can spread between animals and people.

It was first discovered in 1999 after a disease affected both pigs and people in Malaysia and Singapore, according to the CDC.

The virus is most often spread by fruit bats, and can spread through direct or indirect contact.

The virus can also spread from person to person by being in close contact or coming into contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms typically occur between four and 14 days after exposure. The most common symptom is fever followed by headache, cough, sore throat, difficulty breathing and vomiting.

Diagnosing the virus in the early stages is often difficult because the symptoms resemble many other illnesses, the CDC has said.

The virus can lead to severe symptoms, including disorientation, drowsiness, seizures or encephalitis, which is inflammation of the brain. These can progress to a coma within 24 to 48 hours, according to the CDC.

Deaths range anywhere between 40% and 75% among all cases, the federal health agency said. Some permanent changes among survivors have been noted, including persistent convulsions.

What are the treatments available?

Currently there are no specific treatments available for Nipah virus other than managing symptoms with supportive care, including rest and fluids.

Experts said there are treatments currently under development. One is a monoclonal antibody, a treatment that uses immune system proteins manufactured in a lab. They mimic the antibodies the body naturally creates when fighting the virus.

Dr. Diana Finkel, an associate professor of medicine in the division of infectious disease at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, previously told ABC News that the drug has already completed phase I clinical trials and is currently being used on a compassionate basis.

Researchers are also studying the potential benefit of remdesivir — the intravenous medication used to treat COVID-19 — which has been shown to work well in nonhuman primates with Nipah virus.

What is the likelihood of Nipah virus spreading?

Experts said that while anything is possible, it’s very unlikely that cases in India will lead to global spread.

“The world is small, but the likelihood that somebody’s infected, or an infected fruit bat with Nipah virus would be here, right now, is very unlikely,” Finkel previously told ABC News.

She said when people are exposed in health care settings, it’s often because proper standard precautions were not followed, such as not wearing gloves or masks.

Experts have said Nipah virus cases are also a reminder of the potentially devastating effects of habitat destruction and climate change, possibly leading to more interaction between infected animals and humans.

“You have to think about why are fruit bats that harbor this Nipah virus, why are they coming into contact with people?” Dr. Peter Rabinowitz, director of the University of Washington Center for One Health Research, previously told ABC News. “What is changing in terms of the movement of the bat populations? Are they leaving [a] habitat where there were not very many people? Are they now spending more time close to people?”

ABC News’ Youri Benadjaoud contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Last week, the Trump administration announced it was banning the use of human fetal tissue from some abortions in federally funded medical research. 

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) said the policy would go into effect immediately and advance “science by investing in breakthrough technologies more capable of modeling human health and disease,” NIH director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya said in a statement.

Scientists told ABC News that research using human fetal tissue has contributed to understanding diseases better, such as HIV and Ebola, and helped in the development of some vaccines and drugs.

Some scientists worry the ban could prevent groundbreaking discoveries about the behaviors of certain diseases and stop the development of life-saving therapies.

“It’s not a scientific decision,” Dr. Lawrence Goldstein, a professor emeritus of cellular and molecular medicine at the University of California, San Diego, told ABC News. “It’s a moral decision that places the rights of fetal tissue that would be discarded above the rights of sick people who will benefit from that research.”

How human fetal tissue has been used

Human fetal tissue has been used to study serious diseases and disorders, including AIDS, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, dengue, Ebola, hepatitis C, diabetes and spinal cord injuries.

Cell lines have been created from human fetal tissue that have led to the development of vaccines for rubella, rabies, chickenpox, shingles and hepatitis A. Research has also led to the development of drugs to treat HIV, hemophilia and sepsis.

President Donald Trump himself benefited from the research: the experimental antibody treatment he took to treat COVID-19 was developed using cells derived from human fetal tissue. At the time, Trump praised the treatment as a “cure.”

The tissue has been also used in reproductive medicine research to study fertility issues, pregnancy issues, and pregnancy conditions such as pre-eclampsia.

Goldstein said that human fetal tissue research also helps create humanized mouse models to study human immune systems.

“Using fetal tissue, you can make mice that have human blood-forming and immune systems,” Goldstein said. “And that’s valuable because a lot of the viruses that trouble human health don’t grow properly in mice. But if you can make mice with human blood and immune systems, those viruses will frequently grow, and you can learn how to make therapies to block them.”

There are very strict guidelines that researchers have to follow when using human fetal tissue, ensuring they are in compliance with federal and sometimes state requirements.

Additionally, the research must be reviewed and approved by the NIH’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), which specifically assesses federally funded research that uses human subjects.

The IRB assures that donation and reception of human fetal tissue were done with consent and not coercion and that there were no enticements provided to the participant, the clinic or the research team.

A researcher with knowledge of the matter, who asked that their name not be used due to fears of retribution, told ABC News that federal law states that donation cannot be even brought up to a pregnant individual deciding to terminate their pregnancy before the decision to terminate.

“These are extremely important guardrails that are in place to ensure that everything is handled properly,” the researcher with knowledge of the matter said.

Impacts of ending NIH funding

The Trump administration first instituted a ban ending all human fetal tissue research at NIH in 2019, but it was reversed by the Biden administration in 2021.

The current ban stops NIH funds from supporting all “grants, cooperative agreements, other transaction awards and research and development contracts,” the agency said in a statement.

Some groups praised the Trump administration’s new policy, including the Independent Medical Alliance, a group that promoted unproven treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There is no ethical justification for performing experiments on tissue derived from aborted human beings,” Dr. Joseph Varon, president and chief medical officer of the Independent Medical Alliance, said in a statement. “The fact this practice continued for years within federally funded research institutions shows just how far removed parts of HHS had become from foundational medical ethics. This correction is long overdue.”

However, some scientists say the ban will affect ongoing and future work.

Dr. Anita Bhattacharyya, an associate professor of cell and regenerative biology in the school of medicine and public health at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said she was hoping to apply for a future NIH grant to study human fetal tissue research and will now not be able to do so.

Bhattacharyya explained she currently uses human-induced pluripotent stem cells, which are reprogrammed cells that are similar to embryonic stem cells, in her work. However, the loss of NIH funding for human fetal tissue research could affect future work.

“My reaction was, ‘How are we going to do some of our research if we can no longer use human fetal tissue?'” she recalled to ABC News. “In particular, my lab studies Down syndrome and so we know that in Down syndrome, the brain develops differently to lead to the intellectual disability that people with Down syndrome have.”

Bhattacharyya said human fetal tissue is valuable when studying Down syndrome or neuropsychiatric disorders because it can recapitulate what’s happening in brain development.

“And so that’s where the human fetal tissue really provides us with a benchmark or the ground truth so that we can validate our models,” she said.

Finding alternative methods of funding is another issue, scientists told ABC News. The NIH was the largest funder of research involving human fetal tissue, and no longer financially supporting such research may leave scientists scrambling to find other donors.

Goldstein said there are private disease foundations that will sometimes fund human fetal tissue research, such as the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which funds stem-cell-related research in California.

However, experts say the hole left behind by the lack of NIH funding cannot be made up through private donations.

“There’s really nothing adequate to substitute for the federal effort,” Goldstein said. “It is the largest funder of medical research in the United States. It has systems in place to regulate quality and ensure that ethics and scientific principles are being adhered to. We really can’t move ahead as efficiently as we would like with the absence of the NIH.”

Although the NIH said tissue from spontaneous abortions will still be available, the researcher with knowledge of the matter said this tissue is very often not suitable for research purposes.

“The reason is because, most often, spontaneous abortion happens as a result of some sort of genetic abnormality or some injury, infection, some kind of damage to the fetus itself, that renders that tissue completely unusable for scientific research,” they said.

“Additionally, because spontaneous abortions are just that, they’re spontaneous and therefore completely unpredictable,” the researcher continued. “We have to be very careful in the way that we handle that tissue. It makes those studies intractable. And so, for that reason, spontaneous abortions are not a suitable replacement for fetal tissue research that we would normally obtain.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — So-called “night owls” may face a higher risk for heart attack and stroke, a new study published Wednesday finds.

Researchers found that “evening type” people had poorer cardiovascular health scores than those who were neither “morning type” or “evening type” people and had an associated 16% higher risk of heart attack and stroke.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, analyzed survey and biometric data from more than 320,000 British adults aged 39 to 74.

Participants were asked whether they considered themselves a “definite morning” person, a “definite evening” person or somewhere in between, termed “intermediate.”

Researchers then calculated each person’s heart health using the American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 (LE8) score. These factors include four health behaviors — diet quality, physical activity, sleep duration and nicotine exposure — and four health factors, including blood pressure, body mass index, blood sugar and blood fat levels.

“These are the factors the American Heart Association has identified as cardiovascular disease risk factors,” Kristen Knutson, associate professor of neurology and peventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine specializing in sleep and circadian rhythm research and fellow at the American Heart Association, told ABC News.

“Different people will have them in different combinations, but they are all correlated with one another,” she added.

Evening people were 79% more likely to have poor overall heart health compared with those in the intermediate group, the study found. Morning people did slightly better than the intermediate group, with a 5% lower risk of having a poor LE8 score.

Researchers found the evening people had a 16% higher risk of both heart attack and stroke. Researchers estimated that about 75% of this higher risk was explained by other LE8 factors, rather than sleep timing alone.

“It isn’t being a night owl that’s a problem,” Knutson said. “I think being a night owl who’s trying to live in a morning lark’s world is a conflict between one’s internal clock and their social clock.”

The higher risk appeared to be due to certain lifestyle behaviors and other health factors, the study found.

Nicotine use had the strongest impact on heart health, explaining 34% of the link between late bedtime and heart disease. Shorter sleep duration accounted for 14% of the extra risk, high blood sugar for 12% and body weight and diet each accounted for about 11% of the increased risk.

Behavioral effects of being a night owl were stronger in women than in men — women were 96% more likely to have lower LE8 scores compared to 67% in men, though they did not have a higher risk of heart attack or stroke.

“Women are further stressed by that lifestyle because they’re having to still get up and be the primary caregiver for family members,” Dr. Sonia Tolani, preventative cardiologist, Associate Professor of Medicine, and co-director of the Columbia University Women’s Heart Center, told ABC News.

Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The researchers concluded prevention efforts should focus on improving lifestyle habits when spending more time awake at night.

“The most obvious way is to quit smoking and that’s not new advice,” Knutson says. “But sleep regularity, meaning trying to go to bed at about the same time every day and not jumping around the clock — particularly on days off — can really help lead to regular timing of other behaviors like light exposure, meals, exercise activity.”

“Prioritize the low-hanging fruit” recommended Tolani. If an hour at the gym is not doable, “maybe you can find a way to do a 10-minute walk or cut a little bit of salt from your diet. Just try to make small changes,” she said.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Over the last several days, many Americans have seen upsetting, and often violent, images and videos of protests in Minneapolis amid a flood of ICE agents entering the city for a federal immigration enforcement operation.

Research has shown that images of extreme violence can impact mental health, increasing symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Among the videos and images that circulated widely in recent weeks have been the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens involving federal agents just 17 days apart: Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

Psychologists and psychiatrists told ABC News that witnessing a death can add an extra level of distress for some people and lead to long-lasting consequences.

Symptoms of anxiety and depression
Studies have shown the symptoms of depression and anxiety can increase when exposed to negative news.

One 2011 study from the University of Sussex in Brighton, U.K., found that people had worsened mood and anxiety symptoms after just 14 minutes of negative news consumption.

Another 2022 study from Rutgers University, focused on COVID-19 news, found that greater daily exposure to news about the virus was linked to higher same-day and next-day worry about the pandemic as well as feelings of hopelessness and general worry.

Dr. Pierluigi Mancini, a psychologist and interim president and CEO of the nonprofit Mental Health America, told ABC News that witnessing any kind of violence whether through news, on social media or in person can lead to psychological effects

“So, people will experience fear, they’ll experience hypervigilance, they’ll experience emotional exhaustion, and they will have effects on their mental health,” he said.

Mancini added that witnessing violent events can activate the body’s “fight-or-flight response” which can include symptoms such as rapid heart rate, shallow breathing, nausea, irritability and difficulty concentrating, especially when the events happen in one’s own community.

“So, the individuals that are on site where they are witnessing these effects in their neighborhoods get affected at a much higher level, but even those millions more that end up watching it on social media or traditional news sites also have those experiences,” he said.

Witnessing deaths may be especially traumatic
Research has shown that mental health impacts are even more profound when someone’s unexpected death is witnessed and shared.

A May 2021 article looked at emotional and mental health impacts after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who was killed in Minneapolis in 2020 after a white police officer knelt on his neck.

The team analyzed Gallup poll data and found that in the week following Floyd’s death, more than one-third of respondents reported feelings of anger and sadness.

Researchers found a 1.5-fold increase in feelings of anger and a 1.3-fold increase in feelings of sadness compared to poll data for the four weeks preceding Floyd’s death. Increases were seen despite already elevated levels of anger and sadness due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Johannes Eichstaedt, co-author of the study and an assistant professor in psychology at Stanford University, told ABC News he sees some similarities between the death of Floyd and the deaths of Good and Pretti, all of which occurred in Minneapolis.

He said there is scientific literature about linked fate, or the sensation someone has that a horrible event could have happened to them or someone they know.

“There is a very real fear response in the human body with lots of physiological consequences that are very real and when something like this happens and it’s recorded like this and then it traumatizes more or less everybody who watches this,” Eichstaedt said. “The problem is not that these things are getting captured in a video. The problem is that these things happen.”

Dr. Anthony Feinstein, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, told ABC News that witnessing a death can be distressing to anyone, but that it is important to determine when the stress becomes pathological.

“I think any individual with a moral compass would be distressed by seeing someone die like this on television,” he said. “It’s a very distressing thing to witness. And to feel momentary dismay and stress and sadness or anxiety in response to it strikes me as a normal human response to an abnormal event. Where it becomes problematic is when that stress and that distress doesn’t go away, when it lingers.”

Experts said witnessing deaths on the news, such as what occurred in Minneapolis, can elevate the level of potential mental health impacts, especially among those who are most vulnerable.

“It is extremely traumatic to see someone die,” Mancini said. “Once that sinks in that you witnessed someone lose their life, especially in a violent situation. It’s always traumatic even if you’re next to a loved one who’s passing and you’re expecting it, but when it’s unexpected and when it is violent, it is extremely difficult to watch and to process.”

Mancini said some people may be desensitized to violence, but others can be severely impacted. Witnessing violence can violate a person’s feeling of safety and stability, he said.

“In Minnesota, many people are experiencing that escalating stress,” he said. “They’re experiencing that fear, that violence and uncertainty in their communities. So, it’s gonna make you question everything that you were taught when you were growing up.”

How to protect mental health
For those who are experiencing mental health impacts, experts say there are steps people can take to protect their mental health.

Rather than avoiding the news altogether, Mancini said people can purposely limit the time they spend watching news coverage.

He added that watching the news is important to remain informed, but that it is just as important to have intentional engagement.

“So, for example, it is as simple as maybe … I will watch the news two times a day, and when I’m watching this news, I’m going to set a timer,” he said. “I’m gonna limit the time that I’m to be watching this news. That is the healthy thing to do.”

To limit mental health impacts, people can also take action by getting involved with a group focused on the issues they are most passionate about or joining an affinity group, which are supportive communities of people who share a common identity, experts said.

Feinstein said having psychosocial supports can help people maintain mental well-being and allow them to be more vulnerable as well.

“Peer support is important and there is literature out there that peer support is comforting and it’s protective and it’s helpful when it comes to managing situations like this,” Feinstein said. “Obviously you want to keep your responses within the letter of the law … but being part of a support group is helpful.”

Feinstein added that, in stressful times, it’s important for people to devote sufficient time to things that are healthy and meaningful in their lives, whether it be friendships, hobbies or interests.

“And, by the way, don’t feel guilty by doing it,” he said. “That’s really important. People feel, ‘Well, I’ve got a good life, and I feel guilty that I can go to the cinema and theater with other people.’ No, it’s really important that you hold on to those good positive things, because that’s how you maintain your mental well-being.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Tens of thousands of nurses and health care workers at Kaiser Permanente facilities across California and Hawaii went on strike on Monday morning.

More than 31,000 workers across at least two dozen hospitals and hundreds of clinics run by the non-profit health care system walked off the job at 7 a.m. PT, marking the largest strike of health care professionals so far this year.

The striking workers, who are members of the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP), said they are fighting for safe staffing levels and fair wages and compensation.

UNAC/UHCP said many Kaiser facilities are currently experiencing staffing shortages, which is leading to delays in care and a risk of errors, as well as burnout and turnover.

The union also states that Kaiser is seeking wage cuts and a reduction in benefits and retirement, including active medical coverage and pension benefits.

“Kaiser’s own communications to employees reveal exactly why we are striking,” Charmaine Morales, president of UNAC/UHCP, said in a statement. “Instead of addressing unsafe staffing and patient care concerns, Kaiser is issuing messages that pressure workers not to strike, exaggerate the risks of participation, and encourage employees to report one another. That is intimidation.”

The union argues that Kaiser is engaging in unfair labor practices by stalling negotiations and attempting to bypass “the established national bargaining process.”

Both sides have been negotiation since May but are currently in a stalemate. The union filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing Kaiser of walking away from the bargaining table in December.

Additionally, UNAC/UHCP released a report earlier this month, accusing Kaiser of earning a net income and surplus above what is traditional for a non-profit health care system.

The report also criticized Kaiser for allegedly investing in private prisons and ICE detention centers, which the union claims raises “urgent ethical questions.”

“Kaiser isn’t strapped for resources. It’s making choices — and those choices are hurting people. It’s time for accountability,” Morales said in a statement at the time.

In a statement, Kaiser referred to the strike as “unnecessary when such a generous offer is on the table” and said the strike has occurred despite a recent agreement to return to local bargaining.

Kaiser said that as health care costs rise, and many Americans risk losing access to health insurance, it is committed to delivering fair and competitive pay for its staff while protecting affordability for patients.

“Despite the union’s claims, this strike is about wages,” the statement read, in part. “The strike is designed to disrupt the lives of our patients — the very people we are all here to serve.”

The health care system said that all of its hospitals and nearly all of its medical offices will remain open during the strike and that contingency plans have been put in place to ease disruptions.

Kaiser said that some in-person appointments may need to be virtual instead and some appointments, elective surgeries and procedures may need to be rescheduled.

This is not the first time Kaiser workers have gone on strike. In October, thousands of workers participated in a five-day strike across California and Hawaii to demand safer staffing and fair compensation. 

Kaiser’s strike comes amid the largest nursing strike in New York City history with nearly 15,000 nurses walking off the job at five hospitals across the city.

The strike, which began two weeks ago, has shown some signs of progress with the New York State Nurses Association — the union representing the workers — saying at least two hospitals have agreed on maintaining health benefits for nurses.

However, nurses have indicated that the strike will continue until at least tentative contract agreements are reached.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — Long-term alcohol use has been linked to higher risks of colorectal cancer, according to a study published Monday in the journal Cancer.

Researchers found that those with heavy lifetime alcohol consumption have up to a 91% higher risk of developing colorectal cancer compared with those who drank very little. That risk significantly increased with consistent heavy consumption, whereas those who quit drinking may have demonstrated decreased risk of precancerous tissue.

“The longer someone drinks, the longer their colon and rectum are exposed damage and impaired repair, both major mechanisms of cancer,” Dr. Lynn M O’Connor, section chief of colon and rectal surgery at Mercy Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital in New York, told ABC News.

The study followed more than 88,000 adults with no prior history of cancer. Participants reported their alcohol use beginning in early adulthood and were followed for nearly a decade to track cancer outcomes.

Compared with those who averaged one drink or less per week over their lifetime, those who consumed over 14 drinks a week had a 25% higher risk of developing colorectal cancer. The link was even stronger for rectal cancer, where one’s risk nearly doubled.

Rectal cancer is “often more difficult to treat and more involved clinically, which makes screening and early identification all the more important,” Dr. Jeffrey Farma, a colorectal cancer specialist, told ABC News.

The results come as colorectal cancers are on the rise, especially in younger people.

“We’re seeing an uptick in rectal cancers. If alcohol affects the lower part of the colon differently —we need to understand why,” Dr. Fola May, a GI specialist and associate director of the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity, told ABC News.

In the study, researchers found the highest risks among people who drank heavily at every stage of life. Those who consistently exceeded recommended drinking limits across each stage of adulthood had a 91% higher risk of colorectal cancer compared with lifelong light drinkers or those with gaps in heavy drinking.

“These numbers are not guarantees, but signals to do something before it’s too late,” May said. “Colorectal cancer is one of the few cancers we can actually prevent or catch early, but fewer than 70% of eligible people get screened.”

The study also looked at adenomas —polyps that can develop into cancer. While heavy drinking was not strongly linked to adenoma risk, those who quit drinking had significantly lower odds of developing nonadvanced adenomas compared to light drinkers.

“These are modifiable risks. The choices people make over time matter, and the body can respond when those risks are reduced,” Farma said.

The results align with a growing body of evidence linking alcohol, a well-recognized carcinogen, to colorectal cancer.

Colorectal screening is recommended for all adults starting at age 45 according to the United States Preventative Services Task Force. Screening tools include annual stool tests, CT scans every five years, or colonoscopies every 10 years.

“Everyone should be screened. It saves lives, and people are dying unnecessarily when they put it off,” May said.

Those who may be at higher risk may need to be screened at an early age or more often than typically recommended.

“If you’ve had prolonged heavy drinking and you develop symptoms like bleeding or persistent changes in bowel habits, you need to be evaluated — even in your 30s,” Farma said. “That’s how we catch this early and save lives.”

Tyler Beauchamp, MD, is a pediatric resident at UNC Children’s Hospital and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Flu activity is starting to decline nationwide, according to newly released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC estimated on Friday that there have been at least 19 million illnesses, 250,000 hospitalizations and 10,000 deaths from flu so far this season.

Currently, seven states are seeing “very high” levels of flu-like illnesses while 23 states are seeing “high” levels, CDC data shows.

At least 12 flu-associated deaths were reported among children this week, for a total of 44 pediatric deaths this season. Last season saw a record-breaking 289 children die from flu, the highest since the CDC began tracking in 2004.

Despite flu activity on the decline, flu-related emergency department visits for school-aged children between ages 5 and 17 increased since last week while hospitalizations remained stable.

“I think what distinguished this year’s flu season to previous seasons is that, first of all, it began a little bit earlier,” Dr. Daniel Kurtzikes, former chief of infectious diseases at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told ABC News.

Kuritzkes added that although data does not show that cases increased more dramatically than last year, “we may have perceived it as being worse than it really was, and it now seems like it peaked rather abruptly and is on a rapid decline.”

However, Kuritzkes noted that last year, flu season had a second bump in late winter. He warned that the same thing could happen this year.

Data shows that the majority of this season’s cases are linked to a new flu strain called subclade K — a variant of the H3N2 virus, which is itself a subtype of influenza A.

Subclade K has been circulating since the summer in other countries and was a main driver of a spike in flu cases in Canada, Japan and the U.K.

Dr. Geeta Sood, an assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, explained that the annual flu vaccine formulation was decided before subclade K emerged, meaning the vaccine is a “mismatch” for the strain, to an extent, while still providing protection against serious disease, hospitalization and death.

“So, this year, we have a couple of problems,” she told ABC News. “One is that the circulating strain that’s predominantly out there is pretty different from the strains that we’ve seen in previous years. … Again, it changes every year, but the amount that it changes can be a lot some years and not so much other years.”

However, she said that early data from the U.K. shows that the vaccine has been protective against serious complications, particularly among children.

“It certainly protects against severe disease, but it’s not one of our best matching vaccines,” Sood said.

Another problem, according to Sood, is that vaccination rates are lower than she would like to see.

As of Jan. 10, 45.6% of adults aged 18 and older and 44.2% of children have received an annual flu vaccine, according to CDC data.

Sood said it’s not too late to get vaccinated, especially because influenza season can last through early spring.

“Even though it takes two weeks to get full immunity, you still get immunity sooner rather than later,” she said. “There’s still plenty of influenza out there, and there’s reactivity to protect you against other strains”

Doctors told ABC News they recommend other hygiene methods, including thoroughly washing hands with soap and water, avoiding crowded places, getting good circulation by opening windows and considering masking.

Richard Zhang, MD, MA, is a child and adolescent psychiatry fellow at Yale School of Medicine and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — High blood pressure and body mass index, or BMI, may be directly linked to the increased risk of developing vascular dementia, according to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

This is the strongest evidence to date showing a direct relationship between BMI and the increased risk of developing vascular dementia, a risk heavily influenced by elevated blood pressure, according to the study.

Researchers say these findings highlight how important reducing these risk factors are to help prevent this form of dementia and protect brain health.

The study’s findings show that being overweight and having high blood pressure “are direct causes of increased vascular dementia risk,” said Dr. Ruth Frikke-Schmidt, study co-author, chief physician at Copenhagen University Hospital — Rigshospitalet and clinical professor at University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

“That makes them highly actionable targets for dementia prevention at the population level,” Frikke-Schmidt told ABC News.

Vascular dementia is a type of dementia caused by damage to blood vessels that leads to reduced blood and oxygen to the brain, according to the National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute. The initial damage to blood vessels leading to this condition is often due to other underlying health problems such as high blood pressure, atherosclerosis, or diabetes.

Symptoms vary depending on the affected brain area but often include confusion, memory problems and difficulty with daily activities. There is no cure, making prevention key, experts say.

In the study, researchers analyzed data from large European populations across Copenhagen and the United Kingdom. Using analytical methods that mimic a randomized controlled trial, the researchers found that as BMI increased by approximately 4.5 points, the risk of vascular dementia rose across all BMIs, directly linking BMI to an increased risk of developing vascular dementia.

Additional analysis showed that elevated blood pressure, in association with BMI, directly contributed to increased risk of vascular dementia, adding to a growing body of evidence strongly linking cardiovascular health to brain function.

“What is good for the heart is good for the brain,” Frikke-Schmidt said.

BMI is a measure of a person’s body weight relative to their height. While doctors say the number should be taken in context with an individual’s overall health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categorizes an ideal BMI as 18.5 to 24 for adults. Overweight and obesity are categorized as a BMI 25-29 and BMI 30 or greater, respectively.

Dr. Leah Croll, assistant professor of neurology at the SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, told ABC News many dementia cases may be preventable, and this new research adds to evidence showing how important targeting risk factors like elevated BMI and cardiovascular disease are to preserving brain health.

“Dementia prevention is the wave of the future,” Croll said. Adding that it’s important to reinforce or develop habits to maintain a healthy weight and manage blood pressure through diet, exercise, and routine medical care.

While some people may be more motivated to lose weight, Croll said that blood pressure is a silent symptom that can be easier to ignore or may often go unnoticed.

“A paper like this really allows me to have conversations with my patients in the clinic where I can motivate them to stay on top of their blood pressure,” Croll said. “If you can stay on top of your blood pressure, that seems to significantly impact your brain health later on in life.”

Dr. Jennifer Miao, a board-certified cardiologist and ABC News Medical Unit fellow, told ABC News it’s important for people to monitor their blood pressure and should know how to measure it and know what the numbers mean.

“This can be done at a local pharmacy, urgent care or walk-in clinic, community health centers or by purchasing a blood pressure cuff to use at home,” Miao said.

Blood pressure contains two numbers — a systolic number on the top and a diastolic number on the bottom. Normal blood pressure is less than 120 on the top and less than 80 on the bottom, according to the American Heart Association.

“If left untreated, high blood pressure can have significant and harmful effects on overall health,” Miao said.

Camille Charles, DO, is a pediatric resident and member of the ABC News Medical Unit. Jade A. Cobern, MD, MPH, is a practicing physician, board-certified in pediatrics and general preventive medicine, and is a fellow of the ABC News Medical Unit.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK ) — Fewer people are dying from heart disease, but the condition is still the leading cause of death in the U.S., a new report from the American Heart Association (AHA) finds.

Although death rates from heart disease have dropped for the first time in the past five years, it still kills more Americans than any other condition, according to the report, published early Wednesday in the journal Circulation.

Annual heart disease deaths decreased by 2.7% between 2022 and 2023 — from 941,652 to 915,973, according to the report. However, cardiovascular disease still killed more people in the U.S. than cancer and accidents combined.

Deaths related to blockages in the coronary arteries, which are blood vessels that wrap around the heart’s surface, decreased by 5.9% from 371,506 to 349,470 over the same period, the report found.

Coronary artery disease often leads to a heart attack, with two people dying of coronary heart disease every three minutes, the report noted.

Other chronic conditions that damage blood vessels and increase risks for heart disease are also common among Americans, according to the report.

The percentage of U.S. adults with high blood pressure increased slightly to 47.3% while the rate of obesity decreased slightly to 50%, the report found. However, obesity is on the rise among the younger generation — increasing from 25.4% to 28.1% among those between ages 2 and 19, according to the report.

Prevention, including addressing risk factors, remains key in reducing heart disease deaths, Dr. Sadiya Khan, a board-certified cardiologist at Northwestern and vice chair of the volunteer committee behind the report, told ABC News.

“We cannot cure heart disease and so, if we wait until symptoms are present, we are left with trying to manage symptoms and treat, which saves lives but the yield of prevention is even greater,” she said.

There are four lifestyle behaviors and four health metrics essential for heart health, according to the AHA report. These include healthy eating, physical activity, sleeping well and quitting tobacco as well as controlling weight, cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure.

Addressing these eight factors could prevent up to 40% of heart disease deaths and lower the risk of developing major heart disease symptoms by up to 74%, according to a 2024 analysis from researchers in the Netherlands and Sweden.

Those same preventative measures have benefits beyond the heart, Khan pointed out. They can also help slow brain aging and lower the risk for dementia. Managing blood pressure is especially helpful against cognitive decline, she added.

Reducing cardiovascular disease in the U.S. could improve the health of not just the general public but also the health of the economy, Dr. Jennifer Miao, a board-certified Yale cardiologist and ABC Medical Unit fellow, told ABC News.

“We’re seeing an incredible financial burden of cardiovascular disease on the U.S. economy, with an estimated average of $414.7 billion in direct and indirect costs of treating cardiovascular disease from 2021 to 2022,” she said.

Despite the well-documented positive effects from good lifestyle habits, getting Americans to focus on their cardiovascular health has been an uphill battle, Khan said.

For example, only one in four US adults currently meet national guidelines for both aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercise. Additionally, only 43.5% of Americans with type 2 diabetes have their condition under control, according to the report.

“Staying physically active and engaging in regular exercise routines to the best of your ability are day-to-day goals that can significantly impact your overall health,” Miao said. “Talk to your health care provider about any questions you might have on safe exercise plans and appropriate health screenings that are suited for you as an individual.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — The American Red Cross declared a severe emergency blood shortage on Monday and called on people to donate.

The humanitarian organization, which says it’s the largest supplier of blood products for hospitals and for patient need in the U.S., said the demand from hospitals has outpaced the available supply of blood.

Dr. Courtney Lawrence, divisional chief medical officer at American Red Cross, told ABC News that almost one-third of the organization’s blood stores across the country have been depleted due to hospital need.

Lawrence said inclement winter weather, which has forced more than 400 Red Cross blood drives around the U.S. to be canceled, is among the reasons that donations are down.

Additionally, the U.S. is experiencing a moderately severe flu season, with some states reporting record levels of weekly cases and hospitalizations.

“That can overwhelm our health care system, and it can also mean that donors may not be feeling well enough to come in to donate or may be busy taking care of their loved ones who are sick,” Lawrence said.

When blood supplies are low, it can affect the ability to treat patients in need including trauma patients, chemotherapy patients with underlying blood disorders, those living with sickle cell disease and others, Lawrence said. She called on Americans to donate if they’re able to.

Reihaneh Hajibeigi, 34, from Austin, Texas, was one of those patients in need, telling ABC News that blood transfusions saved her life.

Hajibeigi said she lost a lot of blood while giving birth to her first child in 2023, and that the hospital gave her some blood and sent her home with her husband and newborn daughter.

“After about a couple weeks, things started to not be so great,” she told ABC News. “What I assumed was just being new mom tired really turned into fatigue. I was losing a lot of blood. I was starting to just not feel so great”

When Hajibeigi went back to the doctor two and a half weeks after giving birth, she said medical staff discovered she had retained a roughly four-centimeter piece of placenta on her uterine wall that was becoming toxic.

Hajibeigi said she underwent a procedure the next morning and began hemorrhaging during the operation, losing about 40% of her total blood volume.

In the recovery room, Hajibeigi said she started to crash again from the loss of blood and doctors raced to give her a blood transfusion.

“Fortunately, they had the blood on hand. They were able to get it into my system and basically brought me back to life,” she said.

Hajibeigi said she hopes that by sharing her story, she can encourage people to donate if they’re able, especially knowing there’s a chance their donation can help someone in need.

“It just made it that much clearer how vital blood donations are and how much sometimes we take it for granted, just assuming that the blood supply was always going to be intact,” she said. “And in that case, I needed the blood. Wonderful.”

“It’s a scary thought to think what if the blood product that I needed wasn’t there?” Hajibeigi said. “Then what would have happened?”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.