Health

(NEW YORK) — Maternal mortality rates in the United States continue to rise and Black women continue to be most affected, new data shows.

Deaths of women during and just after pregnancy have been steadily increasing over the past few years, according to a report published Thursday by the National Vital Statistics System.

Rates jumped from 23.8 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2020 to 32.9 in 2021, the new report found. Rates went up from 2019 to 2020 as well.

“It was a continuation of what we saw from 2019 to 2020,” Donna Hoyert, author of the report and a statistician at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told ABC News. “But it was a bigger increase than in previous years.”

Mortality rates were highest in non-Hispanic Black women.

According to the report, non-Hispanic Black women died during and just after pregnancy at a rate 2.6 times that of non-Hispanic white women. That gap is consistent with previous reports.

“The maternal mortality rates in black women certainly reflects the systemic racism and discrimination in health care,” Dr. Joanne Stone, professor and system chair of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive science at the Icahn School of Medicine, told ABC News. “Black women are at a higher risk for complications like preeclampsia and hemorrhage, as well as chronic health conditions.”

People of color often face discrimination or other gaps in care when receiving health care, and that is linked to poorer treatment, according to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health.

Black women often do not receive adequate health care, so pregnancy complications like high blood pressure are not properly treated, which can lead to death, according to another study published in the American Journal of Public Health.

“There are certain things that are happening for some groups that aren’t happening for others,” said Martha Wingate, professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Organization at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health.

Thursday’s National Vital Statistics System report also found that women 40 years and older had higher rates of death during pregnancy.

That may be because as women get older, they have a higher risk for chronic conditions like hypertension and diabetes, which may complicate childbirth, said Stone. These women are also more likely to need fertility treatments to get pregnant, she said, which can lead to carrying multiple fetuses at the same time and can lead to greater mortality rates as well.

Pregnant people can take some steps to lower their mortality risk. The CDC says that women of reproductive age should maintain a healthy weight and diet, stop use of all substances and take care of health problems before becoming pregnant.

While more research is needed to identify ways to reduce mortality rates and close the gap between inequities in healthcare, Westgate said women should listen to their bodies and seek out care if something feels wrong. Reducing those rates does not just help pregnant people — it helps everyone around them, she said.

“We’re talking about families,” Westgate said. “It’s not just the mom.”

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(NEW YORK) — A U.S. Food and Drug Administration analysis did not find a clear association between the COVID-19 antiviral drug Paxlovid and illness rebound, the FDA said in a new report.

Rebound rates are around the same in people who took the drug and those who didn’t, the study said. It’s the first time the FDA has weighed in on COVID-19 rebound.

“Virologic and/or symptomatic rebound may occur as part of the natural progression and resolution of COVID-19 disease, irrespective of PAXLOVID treatment,” the FDA wrote. Around 10 to 16% of people with COVID-19 had rebound symptoms, according to the FDA’s analysis.

Multiple high-profile people experienced COVID-19 rebound after taking Paxlovid, including President Joe Biden and Dr. Anthony Fauci— it was a major talking point around the drug. This new report offers data to counterbalance those anecdotal reports.

Pfizer, which makes Paxlovid, said it’s running two additional studies to try and understand symptom rebound.

One will look at rebounds in immunocompromised patients who take Paxlovid for different amounts of time. The second will check if patients who take Paxlovid and then have symptom rebound should take another course of the drug.

The info was part of the FDA’s briefing document ahead of a meeting of the agency’s advisors Thursday, where they’ll discuss whether the FDA should fully approve Paxlovid. The drug is currently available because of the FDA’s emergency use authorization.

A February study showed COVID rebound is “common” for those who did not take antiviral treatments, “but the combination of symptom and viral rebound is rare.”

The FDA approved pharmacies to prescribe Paxlovid in July 2022.

“The FDA recognizes the important role pharmacists have played and continue to play in combatting this pandemic,” Dr. Patrizia Cavazzoni, director for the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a statement last year. “Since Paxlovid must be taken within five days after symptoms begin, authorizing state-licensed pharmacists to prescribe Paxlovid could expand access to timely treatment for some patients who are eligible to receive this drug for the treatment of COVID-19.”

Overall, the drug has worked as promised, doctors said, by dramatically reducing the chances that an older or high-risk individual might wind up hospitalized or dead.

Doctors have said that Paxlovid is most effective when given as soon after a diagnosis of COVID-19 as possible. Taking it later during the course of the illness may result in the drug not being as effective.

What’s more is that it might help prevent long COVID.

A study released in November 2022 by the Veterans Administration looking at the medical records of 56,000 people found that taking Paxlovid early decreased the chances of experiencing “long COVID” by some 25%.

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(NEW YORK) — Google is expanding use of its health care artificial intelligence, including helping detect diseases, such as cancer, earlier and answering medical questions.

During the technology company’s annual The Check Up event on Tuesday, employees announced several new updates and partnerships that they claim will help expand access to care and make the field more equitable.

“The future of health is consumer-driven,” Dr. Karen DeSalvo, Google’s chief health officer, said at the event held in New York City. “People will expect a mobile-first experience with more personalized insights, services and care. That means enterprises, including Google, will need to evolve to meet consumers where they are.”

The company unveiled the latest version of its medical large language model, which is designed to provide answers to medical questions, called Med-PaLM 2.

Last year, when it was first introduced, Google said it was the first AI system to get a passing score — meaning more than 60% — when answering multiple choice and open-ended questions that appear on U.S. medical licensing exams.

Google said the latest iteration consistently answered medical exam questions on an “expert” level, scoring 85%.

During the event, Dr. Alan Karthikesalingam, a research lead at Google Health, showed examples of some of the questions Med-PaLM 2 might answer including “what are the first warning signs of pneumonia?” and “can incontinence be cured?”

Many times, the answers were similar to — and even more thorough than — the answers clinicians provided to the same questions.

However, the company admitted it’s not ready to be rolled out yet in the real world due to some gaps in answering some medical questions, including not be as detailed.

“You can see from this sort of work that we’re still learning,” Karthikesalingam said.

Google also announced new partnerships that will help detect diseases earlier and identify health information more quickly.

The first partnership, with Kenya-based Jacaranda Health — which focuses on the health of expectant mothers and newborns — is to use AI to replace traditional ultrasound machines.

AI could be implanted in low-income areas that don’t have the machines or have very few of them, which are costly and requires training workers, so more pregnant women can be monitored.

Another partnership with Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan will explore using AI models using ultrasound for breast cancer detection rather than traditional mammograms, which can also be costly.

Google is also partnering with the Mayo Clinic to see how AI can help for patients receiving radiation, a common cancer treatment.

The company says its AI may help speed up a process called contour delineation, in which clinicians use CT scans to outline healthy organs and tissue at risk so the radiation can be directed towards the tumor.

Google is also expanding the ability of its search engine to provide information about affordable health care providers.

Hema Budaraju, the senior director of product, health and social responsibility at Google Search, said the company had used Duplex to help users find community health centers that offer free and low-cost care and are adding more doctors with appointments that can be booked online.

“We also know how important it is when you’re searching for healthcare providers that the information you find is accurate, like the clinic’s phone number and address,” she said. “Duplex called hundreds of thousands of healthcare providers in the U.S. to verify their information on Google Search and we’ve used this technology to verify if providers accept certain Medicaid plans in their state.”

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(AMARILLO, Texas) — A ruling is expected to come down from a federal judge in Texas Wednesday that could see an abortion medication being taken off the market in the United States.

The lawsuit, filed by Alliance Defending Freedom – a Christian conservative legal advocacy group – has asked Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas to reverse the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone.

If the judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs, there would be a nationwide injunction on mifepristone, affecting even states where the procedure is legal.

Another drug used in combination with mifepristone for abortions, called misoprostol, would still be available, but it’s not approved by the FDA to be used for abortions on its own.

According to a transcript of a closed-door meeting, Kacsmaryk told trial lawyers that he planned to wait until late Tuesday to make public the logistics of the hearing to avoid protests.

“This is not a gag order but just a request for courtesy given the death threats and harassing phone calls and voicemails that this division has received,” Kacsmaryk told attorneys in the case. “We want a fluid hearing with all parties being heard. I think less advertisement of this hearing is better.”

Organizers from the Women’s March said they intend to stage a “kangaroo court” outside the courthouse, where protestors will be dressed in costume to suggest the case is based entirely on fraudulent claims.

Kacsmaryk “says he doesn’t want a ‘circus-like’ atmosphere, all while behaving like a clown who treats our lives like a political game,” the organizers of the Women’s March wrote. “So, we will bring the circus to him. Come in your clown makeup, and we will show the world what the Federal Court is all about here in Amarillo, a kangaroo court!”

If Kacsmaryk rules in favor of ADF, mifepristone would, at least temporarily, be taken off the market. All states where abortion is legal would only be able to offer in-clinic procedures.

This means patients will not be able to access telehealth services to get abortion pills and clinics already experiencing a surge of patients from states where abortion is illegal could be even more inundated.

ABC News’ Anne Flaherty contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — Social media users, online groups, and even celebrities like Martha Stewart, are touting CBD as a real aid for sleep, but some are beginning to wonder if the legal chemical found in marijuana really works.

Cannabidiol, known as CBD, is a compound found in marijuana but is not an intoxicant, meaning it does not cause a “high,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Jessica Ater, a mother of two in Washington state, said she’s been struggling with sleep.

“I can’t sleep at night. Like that’s when my brain starts going crazy,” Ater told ABC News’ Good Morning America. “Nothing worked and, if it did work, not long term.”

After reading about CBD in an online mom’s group, Ater said she bought some CBD gummies at a dispensary that helped.

“My anxiety I mean I still have it at night, but it definitely helps shut my brain off so that I’m able to sleep,” said Ater.

However, Annie Guthrie, a college student who wanted to fall asleep earlier, said her experience with CBD chocolates didn’t work for her at all.

“I had the hardest time sleeping so I needed to try something that could help that,” Guthrie told GMA. “Nothing happened. It didn’t work. It didn’t work at all.”

Dr. Ryan Vandrey, one of the country’s preeminent scientific researchers on CBD, said CBD may have better results for people with anxiety or pain compared to those who have a hard time falling asleep.

“Someone who has insomnia might not benefit from it unless the insomnia is secondary to something else like anxiety, or pain condition,” Vandrey said to GMA.

The Food and Drug Administration has indicated that they want to create more regulations for CBD. So far they’ve only approved it for the treatment of some seizure disorders.

Vandrey said that studies that exist on CBD are small and some found that the chemical doesn’t always isolate from THC, the part of cannabis that makes you high.

“So we don’t have the large randomized controlled trials,” he said. “So we see a lot of promise but we still need more evidence.”

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(CHICAGO) — An Illinois man has been indicted for allegedly cheating the U.S. government out of millions of dollars for his pop-up COVID testing company and allegedly lied about test results.

Zishan Alvi, 44, was the co-owner of Laboratory Elite, headquartered in Chicago, which purported to offer two types of COVID-19 testing, PCR tests and 15-minute rapid antigen tests, according to an indictment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.

The company also offered a service where people could pay a fee to receive expedited PCR test results

Between February 2021 and February 2022, Alvi and others at his company allegedly devised a plan to seek reimbursements for tests under the government’s Health Resources and Services Administration, which covered the cost of COVID-19 testing for those without health insurance.

These tests were either never performed, performed in such a way that the results were unreliable; or had already been paid for by patients, according to the indictment.

Additionally, to reduce costs and increase profits, Alvi allegedly told employees to use less materials for the PCR tests including reagents, which is a substance or mixture the test uses for a chemical analysis. Using less of these materials made the tests unreliable, the indictment said.

Over the course of this period, Laboratory Elite received more than $83 million from the HRSA Uninsured Program, some of which Alvi allegedly transferred to a personal account.

Prosecutors said he then used this money to cover personal expenses, including vehicles and investments in stocks and cryptocurrency.

“The indictment seeks forfeiture from the defendant of at least $6.8 million in alleged ill-gotten gains, in addition to five luxury vehicles and funds from other trade and investment accounts” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

What’s more, Alvi allegedly told employees to provide negative test results to people who had been swabbed, but their specimens were thrown out.

He was indicted by a federal grand jury on 10 counts of wire fraud and one count of theft of government funds.

“It is absolutely reprehensible that the defendant would use a public health crisis to allegedly defraud taxpayers and further put public health at risk by providing fraudulent COVID-19 test results,” Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in a statement.

If Alvi is found guilty, each count of wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison and the count of theft of government funds is punishable by up to 10 years, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

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(NEW YORK) — Recently, a review from the Cochrane Library set off a firestorm after headlines declared research published by the respected organization’s study found masks don’t work and don’t stop community transmission of respiratory viruses like COVID-19.

Over a two-month period, some commentators and politicians took to op-ed pieces and social media to say the study proved masks weren’t needed the whole time and that mandates had been ineffective.

However, the editor-in-chief of the Cochrane Library, Dr. Karla Soares-Weiser, issued a statement on March 10 to say the analysis had been misinterpreted and that the review didn’t find that masks do not work.

Rather it looked at how effective masking programs, like mandates, were at slowing the spread of respiratory viruses and, from there, found the results to be inconclusive.

“Many commentators have claimed that a recently updated Cochrane Review shows that ‘masks don’t work,’ which is an inaccurate and misleading interpretation,” Soares-Weiser wrote. “It would be accurate to say that the review examined whether interventions to promote mask wearing help to slow the spread of respiratory viruses, and that the results were inconclusive.”

Experts told ABC News the findings from the meta-analysis from the Cochrane Library have not been accurately represented and that evidence shows masks do help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

How the Cochrane review addressed different questions

The Cochrane review, published in late January, looked at several studies that had examined physical interventions to reduce the spread of respiratory viruses.

Many of the studies analyzed looked at masking interventions, meaning how effective masks are if people are given masks and information about masking, and encouraged to wear them.

However, giving people masks does not necessarily mean that people will wear masks.

“The study was misinterpreted and, when you give it a very quick glance, you see how that would happen,” Dr. Jessica Justman, an associate professor of medicine in epidemiology at Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, told ABC News. “It’s looking at interventions that tried to promote the use of different kinds of protective equipment, such as masks, and the outcomes are all going to depend on how well people actually adhere to the particular type of protective equipment.”

She continued, “So, it’s not as much a study of the mask but a study of the intervention to get people to wear a mask.”

Additionally, many of the studies analyzed in the Cochrane review didn’t look at whether people were wearing them all the time, like a at home around others, and if they were wearing them properly, including tight-fitting and covering the nose and mouth.

“Masks work if you wear them,” Justman said. “But if you wear them very imperfectly, if you wear them in a way where they are only loosely fitting on your face and you take them off, let’s say in a crowded restaurant to eat a meal, you can’t then conclude when you get COVID that the mask didn’t protect you because if you don’t wear the mask properly, you’re not going to get the full protection.”

Ramifications of people misinterpreting the results

Because the review was misinterpreted to say masks don’t work rather than the results being inconclusive, Dr. Bruce Y. Lee, a professor of health policy and management at City University of New York School of Public Health, said this could influence people to believe they don’t need to wear a mask, which could have consequences.

“This has potential ramifications like long COVID, potential hospitalization and we have to wonder how many lives could have been saved, hospitalizations could have been averted how many cases of long COIVD be avoided if masks were more prevalent,” he said.

Lee added it helps that the editor-in-chief issued the statement, but worried the misinterpretation has already been widely spread and it will be hard to change people’s minds.

“The concern is that the initial message has already been amplified and the degree to which it was amplified was significant,” he said. “One of the challenges is, once information gets out there, it takes twice, triple, sometimes quadruple, or even more than that, the effort to try to correct information that’s already out there.”

What the science tells us about masks

“We already have information from other studies that show almost a dose-response relationship between wearing no mask at all, wearing a cloth mask, wearing a surgical mask and wearing an N95,” Justman said. “As you go up the ladder, so to speak, with each step of a better-quality mask, you see more protection.”

One example is a study published in February 2022 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examining those who said they wore masks all the time in indoor public settings.

Researchers found cloth masks were associated with a 56% decrease in testing positive for COVID-19, surgical masks by 66% and N95/KN95 masks by 83% compared to those who didn’t wear masks or face coverings.

Lee added that masks are population-based interventions, not individual-based interventions, meaning their efficacy depends on not just one person wearing a mask but how many people are wearing masks too.

“We know that masks not only protect the wearer from other people and from the virus, but they also protect other people from the wearer, because if someone’s infectious and shedding the virus, the mask can prevent them from spewing the virus into air, or at least reducing the amount of virus the air,” he said.

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(NEW YORK) — Stratford Care USA, Inc has recalled 62 brands of Omega-3 supplements for cats and dogs over concern for “potentially elevated levels of Vitamin A,” according to a release from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published Friday.

While Vitamin A is an essential nutrient for both cats and dogs, ingesting too much can lead to health issues. The company said the severity of the health issues depend on the level of Vitamin A and the length of exposure, but can result in Vitamin A toxicity. Symptoms “may include general malaise, anorexia, nausea, peeling skin, weakness, tremors, convulsions, paralysis, and death,” the company added.

Action for a voluntary recall was taken “after receiving a single Serious Adverse Event from a sole consumer regarding their dogs’ exhibiting signs of Vitamin A toxicity after consuming the supplement,” the company said, adding that they’re “taking all necessary steps in collaboration with the FDA to remove all products with these lot numbers from the market.”

Pet owners who purchased the supplement are being asked to stop feeding it to pets immediately and throw it away in a container where no other animals can access it.

Supplements were sold in a white plastic container containing 60 soft gels in veterinary clinics, distribution centers, retail stores and online retailers such as Amazon and Chewy. All of the containers recalled are labelled with “lot 31133 EXP 04/13/23” or “lot 30837 EXP 10/26/22,” and sold under the following brand names.

– Orlando Vets; Omega-V3 Softgels
– All Creatures Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– All Veterinary Supply, INC; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Jungle Pet; Skin+Coat Omega-3 Soft Gels; 85000395223
– Animal Medical Clinic; Omega V3 Softgels; 169682510808
– Animal Medical Clinic Melbourne Beach; Omega V3 Softgels
– Animal Care Hospital; Omega-3 Fatty Acid Max Strength Soft Gels
– Animal Medical Center; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Barnes Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Brentwood Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Cherokee Trail Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Clinton Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Clyde’s Animal Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Coastal Animal Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Columbia Hospital For Animals; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Compassion Veterinary Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Doc Ladue’s; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Dogwood Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Doral Centre Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Eagles Landing Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Pet Health Solutions; Omega Caps; 814087005489
– SPCA of North Brevard; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– LaVale Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Twin Maples; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– University Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Venice Pines Veterinary Clinic; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Lake Dow Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– MVH Mann Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– All Paws Animal Clinic Royal Palm Beach; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Bottle Tree Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Brookwood Veterinary Clinic; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Cleveland Park Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Crown Heights Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Eagle’s Landing Veterinary Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– LVH Veterinary; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Mt Orab Veterinary Clinic; Dr. Hayes’s Omega-V3 Soft Gels
– Oak Tree Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Patterson Veterinary Hospital – Mason; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Prospect Heights Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Smyth County Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Stateline Animal Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– The Pet Clinic of Urbana, LLC; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Valdosta Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Viking Community Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Westbrook Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– My Pet Hospital; Omega-3 Soft Gels
– North Shore Animal League America; Omega-V3 Softgels
– NPC Northgate Pet Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Northwest Tennessee Veterinary Services; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Pawstruck.com; Omega-V3 Soft Gels; 850005963080
– Perry Animal Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Pleasant Plains Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Seiler Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Stratford Animal Health; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Summerfields Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– SensoVet Animal Health Wellness; Advanced Omega-3 Softgel
– University Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Vet4Bulldog; V4B Bully Fish oil omega-3 EFA; 603981565911
– Waggin’ Wheel Vet Clinic; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Wellsboro Small Animal Hospital Veterinary Medical Center; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Wickham Road Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels
– Wilton Manors Animal Hospital; Omega-V3 Softgels

Consumers who wish to contact Stratford Care USA, Inc directly can call 877-498-2002 Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm EST, or via email at Adverseevents@stratfordrx.com. Customers who purchased a recalled product directly from Stratford Care USA Inc can receive a refund by emailing their information to refunds@stratfordrx.com.

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(NEW YORK) — Following a diet rich in plant-based foods and seafood can help lower the risk of getting dementia, according to a new study.

The study, published Monday in the journal BMC Medicine, found that people who closely followed a Mediterranean diet had as much as a 23% reduced risk for dementia than people who followed the diet less closely.

Researchers studied more than 60,000 people across Europe and found that the risk of dementia when following a Mediterranean diet was reduced even for people with a genetic risk, or predisposition, for dementia.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia among older adults. Dementia is a broad term that describes the impaired memory, thinking and decision-making, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC projects there will be as many as 14 million people with dementia in the United States by 2060. Though it mostly affects older adults, dementia is not a “part of normal aging,” according to the CDC.

In addition to reducing the risk of dementia, the Mediterranean diet has previously been shown to reduce the risks of heart attacks, strokes and diabetes, according to ABC News medical contributor Dr. Darien Sutton, a board-certified emergency medicine physician.

“At the end of the day, it’s really about leaning away from processed foods and leading toward plant-based diets,” Sutton said Tuesday on “Good Morning America.” “That’s really what the epicenter, or the center, of the Mediterranean diet is.”

Here is what to know about the Mediterranean diet:

What is the Mediterranean diet?

The Mediterranean diet is not one way of eating but a broad term used to describe the eating habits popularized in the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, including Italy, Greece, Morocco, Spain and Lebanon.

The way of eating focuses on the quality of foods consumed rather than focusing on a single nutrient or food group, according to U.S. News and World Report, which for the past six years has ranked the Mediterranean diet as best overall diet in its annual ranking of best diets.

There are no specific serving size recommendations or calculations with the diet, meaning the amount of food a person eats on the diet depends on their own needs.

Nutrition experts say there’s no one diet that will work for everyone. Certain diets may be more beneficial depending on your circumstances, and some may be harmful depending on your health conditions. Anyone considering changes to their diet should consult with their doctor.

What types of foods are eaten on the Mediterranean diet?

Overall, the diet is mostly plant-based and focuses on healthy fats.

Healthy fats emphasized in the Mediterranean way of eating include virgin olive oil, avocados, nuts, salmon and sardines, according to the Harvard School of Public Health. Red meat consumption is limited to a few times a month.

All types of vegetables and fruits are encouraged on the diet, as are non-meat sources of protein like beans and other legumes.

Fish is encouraged twice weekly and other animal proteins like poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt are encouraged in smaller portions, according to the Harvard School of Public Health.

The main source of hydration should be water.

Mild to moderate wine consumption, often with meals, is typical of the Mediterranean diet but is considered optional. In this context, moderation in wine consumption is defined as one to two glasses per day for men and as one glass per day for women.

Are any foods prohibited?

No, the diet does not totally eliminate any foods or food groups.

Some foods though are encouraged sparingly on the diet, desserts, butter, heavily processed foods like frozen meals and candy and refined grains and oils.

U.S. News and World Report describes the diet as leaving “little room for the saturated fat, added sugars and sodium that inundate the standard American diet.”

What are the health benefits?

According to U.S. News and World Report, “People who eat a Mediterranean-style diet have longer lifespans, report a higher quality of life and are less likely to suffer from chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.”

The American Heart Association says the Mediterranean diet can “play a big role” in helping to prevent heart disease and stroke and reducing risk factors like diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Consuming virgin olive oil, in particular, may help the body “remove excess cholesterol from arteries and keep blood vessels open,” according to the AHA.

Citing research, the Cleveland Clinic touts the Mediterranean diet as a way to help maintain a healthy weight, slow the decline of brain function, increase longevity, support a healthy gut and lower the risk of certain cancers.

Is the diet adaptable and budget-friendly?

In U.S. News and World Report’s 2023 ranking of best diets, the Mediterranean diet was not only best overall diet but also rated high in the categories of Best Family-Friendly Diets and Easiest Diets to Follow.

Gretel Schueller, managing editor of health at U.S. News and World Report, told “GMA” earlier this year the foods promoted in the Mediterranean way of eating are not only budget-friendly and easily accessible but also adaptable.

“Olive oil is one of the cores of the of the Mediterranean diet as a primary source of healthy fat, but you can replace that with a similar oil like grapeseed oil or sesame oil or another heart-healthy, fun saturated fat like nuts or avocado,” she said. “And you can take those principles and adapt them to other cuisines by adding the vegetables and whole grains from that country or region, lowering the red meat [intake] and eating more efficient plant proteins.”

She continued, “For example, if you prefer Asian cuisine, you can apply the Mediterranean diet principles and that might mean eating more brown or black rice instead of white rice, and seafood or tofu instead of meat.”

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(AMARILLO, Texas) — A federal judge in Amarillo, Texas, sought to delay publicly divulging details about a major hearing on abortion rights set for Wednesday, telling lawyers involved in the case that he preferred to keep it quiet to minimize disruptive protests and harassment, according to a transcript of the closed-door discussions last week.

The unusual move by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas could limit public understanding of a case that impacts as many as 64 million women of childbearing age in the U.S.

At Wednesday’s hearing, opponents of abortion access suing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are expected to spar with government lawyers on whether regulators had the right to approve the abortion medication mifepristone 23 years ago.

If the plaintiffs win their case, sales of abortion medication would be halted nationwide, even in states where abortion is legal. About half of all abortions use mifepristone, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health policy research organization.

According to the transcript of a status hearing on Friday, Kacsmaryk told lawyers involved in the case that he planned to wait until late Tuesday — possibly even after business hours — to publicize the logistics of the hearing to avoid attracting attention.

He also asked the attorneys to do the same, citing limited security resources.

“This is not a gag order but just a request for courtesy given the death threats and harassing phone calls and voicemails that this division has received. We want a fluid hearing with all parties being heard. I think less advertisement of this hearing is better,” Kacsmaryk said during the meeting, the transcript states.

A brief notice of the hearing date was posted Monday by the court — but with specific details omitted on news coverage and whether the public can attend, though Kacsmaryk has indicated they can.

His desire to lower the hearing’s profile appears to have backfired. The Washington Post first reported the judge’s plans to lessen awareness of the hearing, and abortion rights groups swiftly announced plans to descend upon Amarillo. (Kacsmaryk’s office did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment on his push to limit public details of the case.)

Organizers of the Women’s March said they intend to stage a “kangaroo court” outside the courthouse, in which protestors will be dressed in costume to suggest the case was based entirely on fraudulent claims.

Kacsmaryk told lawyers on Friday that the media will be allowed into the hearing with the rest of the public, although it appears that reporters will not be guaranteed a spot.

“I will note that once those seats are filled, the courtroom will be closed at that point,” he said.

Only the lawyers will be allowed to bring in electronic devices, a common rule in high-profile court cases.

When asked by lawyers representing the FDA when he planned to outline these rules to the public, Kacsmaryk said on Friday that he wanted to wait until late in the evening Tuesday, just hours before the hearing starts, so that people don’t know about it.

“It will” be made public, he said. “But to minimize some of the unnecessary death threats and voicemails and harassment that this division has received from the start of the case, we’re going to post that later in the day. So it may even be after business hours, but that will be publicly filed.”

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