Last year in June, when a woman collapsed on an escalator at Buffalo's airport, and Phil Clough, who is an experienced emergency medical responder knew exactly what to do. He and a bystander, as the Washington Post reported, quickly laid the woman flat on her back. They checked her pulse and breath. Her pulse was faint and her breathing was shallow and erratic. A few moments later, she stopped breathing altogether.

Realizing she might be experiencing a cardiac arrest, Clough immediately began performing chest compressions. He pressed hard and fast on the center of her chest while other bystanders called 911 and fetched an automated external defibrillator (AED). Within seconds of receiving a shock from the AED, the woman opened her eyes. By the time the airport rescue team arrived, just minutes later, she was conscious and able to speak.

Clough’s quick actions saved the woman’s life, but he credits his preparedness to a life-changing incident several years earlier. After witnessing a woman collapse at his gym and feeling helpless, he took a college course to become certified as an emergency medical responder. This training allowed him to respond with confidence when faced with a life-or-death situation.

The Challenge of Cardiac Arrest

The woman in Buffalo was fortunate that bystanders knew how to respond. Unfortunately, most people who experience cardiac arrest do not receive immediate help.

According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of hospitals in the U.S. annually. Tragically, 90% of these individuals do not survive, often because help arrives too late. For each minute that passes without intervention, a person’s chances of survival decrease by 10%. However, with prompt cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and an AED shock if necessary, survival rates can double or even triple.

Despite the importance of swift intervention, fewer than half of people who suffer cardiac arrest outside of a hospital setting receive immediate assistance. This lack of action is often due to a lack of training and preparedness. Cardiac arrest can happen anywhere, but with public access to AEDs and trained bystanders, survival rates could improve dramatically.

The Role of AEDs in Saving Lives

A crucial part of treating cardiac arrest is the use of an AED, a portable device that delivers an electric shock to the heart. The AED analyzes the heart’s rhythm and guides the user through the steps to apply a shock if needed. Although many states require AEDs to be available in public places such as airports and malls, they are not always easy to find. A study spanning 2019 to 2022 revealed that in public settings, AEDs were used only 7% of the time, and CPR was performed 42% of the time after a cardiac arrest incident.

To address this issue, PulsePoint, a nonprofit organization, has registered 185,000 AEDs in 5,400 U.S. communities, reports the Washington Post. The group’s goal is to help communities build their AED registries and integrate them with local 911 services. In addition, PulsePoint’s mobile app alerts trained CPR responders about nearby cardiac arrests and identifies the closest AEDs, enhancing the chances of saving a life.

Overcoming Barriers to Bystander Intervention

While CPR and AED knowledge can save lives, many people hesitate to intervene during an emergency due to fear of making a mistake, lacking confidence, or worrying about legal liability. However, all 50 states and Washington, D.C. have “Good Samaritan” laws that protect individuals from legal consequences when they provide help in a medical emergency.

Lack of CPR training is another significant barrier. A study found that only 18% of people had received CPR training within the last two years, which is crucial for skill retention. Although many people have received CPR training at some point in their lives, the skills may be outdated or forgotten.

To address this, some states have made CPR training mandatory for high school graduation, and countries like Denmark and Norway have implemented similar requirements. In the U.S., CPR courses are widely available online and in-person, and many take just a few hours to complete. These courses teach individuals the basics of CPR, which involves performing chest compressions at a rate of 100 to 120 per minute and a depth of at least two inches.

Just like every other organ in the body, the brain changes as you get older. Ocasional subtle memory problems are usually no big deal. They are considered a part of normal ageing. However, when you see yourself repeating things or facing difficulties in accessing things quickly, like names and certain words, then it is definitely time for an evaluation. Recently, Time quoted an expert on subtle signs that indicate that you may be at risk of neurodegenerative diseases like Dementia.

7 Signs It’s Time to Take Your Memory Issues Seriously

You Have Trouble With Familiar Tasks

Many people love to multitask—jumping between texting, watching videos, and cooking dinner. That’s often doable thanks to neuroplasticity, which makes younger brains more adaptable. But as you enter middle age, your attention span tends to shrink, and life usually becomes more demanding. One day, you might find yourself staring at the toaster oven, blanking on how to use it.

You Miss Your Usual Commitments

If you begin to forget regular commitments that you've reliably handled for years, it could be more than just normal ageing. However, when to worry depends on your personal baseline. If forgetting an important event is highly out of character for you, it’s worth mentioning to a doctor. However, if you’ve been overwhelmed or unusually busy, an isolated incident may not be cause for alarm—unless it becomes a pattern.

Your Personality or Mood Changes

Many associate dementia solely with memory loss, but behavioural changes are often early signs too. Symptoms like irritability, depression, anxiety, and apathy can appear well before a diagnosis. "There's a behavioural aspect to dementia that people often overlook,' say brain scientists. In fact, these personality shifts can be seen years before Alzheimer’s is formally identified.

You Misplace Important Belongings

Imagine walking in the door, talking on the phone, and heading straight to the fridge. You put your keys down—but forget where. That’s multitasking, and it's normal. What's concerning, according to Dr. Tan, is when misplacing important things becomes frequent or disruptive. Again, it depends on your baseline. If you're naturally scatterbrained, occasional forgetfulness isn’t unusual. But if you’ve always been organized and suddenly start losing things, it could be a red flag.

You Repeat Certain Questions

Everyone has a friend who tells the same stories over and over. But if someone suddenly starts repeating questions or information they never used to, it could signal a deeper issue. If you miss something because you were distracted, like listening to music while driving, that’s understandable. But if there's no clear reason for the lapse, it might be time to pay closer attention.

You Get Lost in Familiar Places

Getting lost in places you know well is another warning sign. This often happens because of a decline in visual-spatial memory. For instance, to get to the grocery store, I know I have to turn right here, then left there, and there’s a drugstore on the corner where I make a sharp left. When that kind of route starts to confuse someone—despite paying attention—that’s a red flag, unless the place has drastically changed.

Your Parent Developed Alzheimer's At Same Age

The age at which symptoms appear often runs in families. If your mother was diagnosed with dementia at 85, forgetting where you put your keys in your early 60s may be nothing to worry about. But if she developed Alzheimer’s at 62, it’s wise to take memory lapses more seriously.

In a refreshing departure from traditional workouts, an international team of researchers has identified a joyful and highly effective way to reduce stress, build resilience, and enhance well-being—dancing. According to a recent study published in the Psychology of Sport & Exercise, dancing not only lifts your mood but also triggers a powerful biological response that supports mental health.

“By dancing, we can tap into a natural stress-relief mechanism that enhances our resilience and helps us cope with daily pressures,” said Jonathan Skinner, co-author of the study and a researcher at the University of Surrey in the UK. “It’s fascinating to see how something as enjoyable as dance can have such profound effects on our mental health.”

The study highlights how dancing encourages the release of feel-good hormones such as endorphins and oxytocin. These chemicals are known to reduce anxiety and foster social bonding. Researchers observed a decrease in levels of cortisol—the stress hormone—as well as reductions in heart rate and blood pressure among participants who danced regularly.

Beyond the biological benefits, dancing offers psychological advantages too. It allows for emotional expression, strengthens social connections, and can be a gateway to a sense of community. “Encouraging people to move together can create a sense of belonging and support while enhancing their ability to cope with stress,” Skinner added.

Mental Health Concerns Are On Rise Globally

These findings come at a time when mental health concerns are on the rise globally. Experts are now advocating for dance to be incorporated into community health programs, schools, and wellness initiatives. The accessibility of dance is a key advantage—it can be done solo or in groups, at home or in studios, and requires no special equipment, making it an inclusive form of exercise.

In fact, a 2022 review published in Frontiers in Physiology echoed similar conclusions. It noted that dancing improves both physical and emotional health in children and adolescents, and recommended that policymakers and educators seriously consider dance-based programs to promote long-term physical activity.

For adults, dance can be a fun way to meet the World Health Organisation's recommendation of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, along with muscle-strengthening exercises on two or more days.

The style of dance also plays a role in how many calories you burn. According to Healthline, a 150-pound person can burn around 118 calories in 30 minutes of ballroom dancing and up to 207 calories doing swing. Ballet improves strength and posture, Zumba boosts cardiovascular endurance, and even pole dancing is gaining popularity among older adults for its fitness benefits.

Whether it is salsa, hip-hop, or a kitchen dance party, the rhythm of movement could be just what your body and mind need. In a world that often prioritises high-intensity routines and rigid schedules, dance offers a more joyful, expressive path to health.

Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk scored a huge legal victory that restricts compounding pharmacies from marketing or selling cheaper, unapproved versions of its blockbuster weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy. On Monday, US District Judge Mark Pittman denied the Outsourcing Facilities Association's bid for a preliminary injunction that would have prevented the FDA from taking action against its members for making copies of semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy.

What Do Compounding Pharmacies Do?

Compounding is a process where pharmacies mix ingredients of a drug to create a specialised version for specific patients. Say someone is allergic to a dye in a branded medication or needs a liquid form, and the main manufacturer only sells capsules. In that case, the patient can turn to a compounded version or the liquid form. Moreover, when drugs are in short supply, they can be compounded in larger quantities to help fill the gap.

Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to these compounding firms when they didn't have enough money to afford the costly weight loss treatments. The prices of both Wegovy and Ozempic rose exponentially, given the skyrocketing demand in the last two years. Notably, the Texas judge's verdict came in response to a February lawsuit from a compounding trade group against the FDA's determination that the active ingredient in those drugs, semaglutide, is no longer in shortage in the US. The decision also means the FDA can start targeting federally regulated 503B pharmacies, which manufacture compounded drugs in bulk with or without prescriptions, after May 22. The agency’s actions can include product seizures and warning letters to pharmacies.

How Do Semaglutides Work?

Semglutide is the synthetic version of GLP-1, a natural hormone produced in the intestines that regulates blood sugar, appetite, and digestion. Now, every time you eat, your body produces various hormones, including GLP-1. These are called post-nutrition hormones and help you absorb the energy you just consumed.

GLP-1 travels to your pancreas, prompting it to produce insulin. It also travels to the hypothalamus in your brain, which gives you the feeling of being full or satiated. Ozempic imitates this hormone, thereby silencing the food chatter in the brain. Interestingly, for some people this food chatter is really quiet ( people with low appetite), and for others, it is an outburst (people who generally binge eat.) So with Ozempic, silencing this self-talk in the brain, people tend to lose their appetite and eventually weight.

However, it is important to note that losing weight includes not just fat but muscle as well. Losing too much muscle can lead to reduced strength and a shorter life span. Notably, records show that most people who start taking them stop it at 12 weeks; therefore, it is important for some but not for others.