Reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s could be as simple as eating the right food.

A new study by researchers in Boston, Chicago and Washington, D.C., found that eating foods high in choline could lower the risk of developing the common dementia.

Choline is an essential micronutrient found in various foods, including poultry, dairy products (such as milk, yogurt and eggs), cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and Brussels sprouts, beans and some fish, according to the USDA.

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Dietary choline intake has been associated with a lower risk of cognitive function and reduced risk of dementia, the researchers concluded.

In the study, participants averaging 81 years of age who did not have Alzheimer's completed dietary questionnaires and underwent annual neurological exams.

After an eight-year follow-up, researchers determined that consuming about 350 milligrams of choline per day was associated with the lowest risk of clinical Alzheimer’s diagnoses in older adults.

Los Angeles-based registered dietitian nutritionist Ilana Muhlstein has also backed the impact of choline on brain health, citing a 2024 China-based study that found intake improves cognitive function, especially among women.

"This is the study that inspired me to start supplementing choline," she said. "My memory has gotten worse over the years. I first wrote it off as ‘pregnancy brain,’ then ‘mommy brain,’ but eventually realized I should do my best to help it." 

"I already sleep well, exercise regularly, play mahjong and limit my alcohol, so choline was the next obvious tool worth trying." 

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Muhlstein shared that more than 90% of the choline in eggs comes from the yolk. For those who choose to eat egg whites for dietary reasons, taking a choline supplement may be a better option.

Choline intake should be tailored to each person's individual needs, the nutritionist noted, referencing guidance from the Harvard School of Public Health.

"Premenopausal women may have lower requirements for dietary choline, because higher estrogen levels stimulate the creation of choline in the body," the university wrote.

In a separate interview with Fox News Digital, Dr. Daniel Amen, a psychiatrist, brain imaging doctor and founder of Amen Clinics in California, emphasized the importance of eating the right foods for brain health.

"Your brain uses 20% to 30% of the calories you consume," he said. "So, nutrition is critical to help your brain or hurt your brain." 

Walnuts are one of Amen’s favorite brain-healthy food options, as they contain choline as well as omega-3 fatty acids.

He also recommends including wild salmon as a dietary staple, as it's high in omega-3s and healthy protein, as well as organic blueberries and green, leafy vegetables.

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"If you had a salad every day, and you put blueberries and salmon and walnuts on it with a little lemon and olive oil, that would be a perfect brain-boosting lunch," he said.

The doctor also suggested considering certain supplements to foster better brain health, including vitamin D, omega-3 or fish oil, or a daily multi-vitamin.

For more Health articles, visit www.foxnews.com/health.

"Nearly two-thirds of the American population is low in vitamin D," he said. "And if it's low, it's a universal risk factor for every bad thing related to your brain, but also to your body, including obesity and cancer … Know and optimize your vitamin D level."

Fox News Digital reached out to the study researchers for comment.

La Altagracia.- The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources has initiated a broad environmental operation in the eastern Dominican Republic to address the growing presence of sargassum on its beaches. The effort, guided by Resolution No. 0046-2025 issued on July 10, aims to reduce the environmental, social, and economic impacts of this recurring natural phenomenon.

As part of the operation, technical brigades are inspecting current cleanup protocols, assessing environmental impacts, and identifying sustainable solutions. On July 11, the Ministry met with hotel representatives to outline new guidelines for the safe collection, containment, and disposal of sargassum. Hotels received formal permits valid for 10 days and were reminded that any resulting environmental damage is their responsibility.

Inspections have already been carried out at over 15 hotel properties between Uvero Alto and Cabeza de Toro. These evaluations help determine which hotels can manage temporary sargassum collection points and which must rely on government-approved disposal sites.

Through easy-to-follow demonstrations, common items like mangoes, lentils, and carrots can be transformed into tasty soups, dips, desserts, and more

View the full post GFNC: Minimising Food Waste Educational Video Part 2 on NOW Grenada.

View the full post Grenada Association of Pharmacists reconstitute new executive on NOW Grenada.

Santo Domingo.- First Lady Raquel Arbaje announced that comprehensive, values‑centered sex education has been introduced in the early grades of public schools, with plans to expand the curriculum to seventh and eighth grades later this year to further reduce adolescent pregnancies, Diario Libre reported.

“We have begun teaching comprehensive sex education, rooted in values, in our primary grades, and next we will introduce it in seventh and eighth grades,” Arbaje said during the launch of the “Child‑Friendly Justice Guide” for judges and court staff, as reported by the news outlet.

Diario Libre noted that pregnancies among girls and minors declined by 4.15 percent in the first four months of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024.

Alexandra Santelises, Executive Director of the National Council for Children and Adolescents (Conani), explained that every under‑age pregnancy is logged and routed through a “critical response pathway” to ensure access to legal, psychological and family support services. A specialized working group will track cases involving adult‑minor relationships to guarantee accountability and follow‑through, she added.

The announcement coincided with the formal unveiling of the “Child‑Friendly Justice Guide,” a training manual designed to help judges identify and remove barriers that prevent children and adolescents from accessing justice. By pairing preventive education with strengthened legal protections, the government aims to create an integrated framework that promotes both youth well‑being and institutional accountability.

Bringing testing, treatment and counselling services closer to people is one reason for integrating HIV services into primary healthcare

View the full post Grenada to integrate HIV care into primary healthcare services on NOW Grenada.

A resident of northern Arizona has died from pneumonic plague, health officials said Friday.

Plague is rare to humans, with on average about seven cases reported annually in the U.S., most of them in the western states, according to federal health officials.

The death in Coconino County, which includes Flagstaff, was the first recorded death from pneumonic plague since 2007, local officials said. Further details including the identify of the victim were not released.

Plague is a bacterial infection known for killing tens of millions in 14th century Europe. Today, it’s easily treated with antibiotics.

The bubonic plague is the most common form of the bacterial infection, which spreads naturally among rodents like prairie dogs and rats.

There are two other forms: septicemic plague that spreads through the whole body, and pneumonic plague that infects the lungs.

Pneumonic plague is the most deadly and easiest to spread.

The bacteria is transmitted through the bites of infected fleas that can spread it between rodents, pets and humans.

People can also get plague through touching infected bodily fluids. Health experts recommend taking extra care when handling dead or sick animals.

Most cases happen in rural areas of northern New Mexico, northern Arizona, southern Colorado, California, southern Oregon and far western Nevada, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

SOURCE: AP

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Nurses in public healthcare are set to benefit from a comprehensive safety review across the system, following fresh commitments from the Ministry of Health to address longstanding concerns about workplace security, the Barbados Nurses Association (BNA) said Friday, declaring progress with the authorities on improving safety for nurses.

Plans include strengthening security at polyclinics and the hospital, and looking into panic buttons for staff, said BNA President Faye Parris. 

“BNA had a call from an organisation… who wanted to assist with having panic buttons,” she said, adding that there must first be a “comprehensive assessment so that we can put everything in place.”

A recent town hall meeting with the Ministry of Health was a step in the right direction, according to the BNA. 

“We were very grateful to the ministry for accommodating us and having a town hall meeting, and to be working to strengthen the shuttle service across the system,” Parris said. She added that the BNA is “working with the ministry to collate the information and strengthen that service across the system.”

Safety remains a top concern for nurses, Parris said, noting that after the meeting, the ministry agreed to a full safety review. 

“One of the things that came up at that town hall is that there’s going to be a comprehensive assessment that BNA has been calling for, for a while, of the institutions to assess all their safety needs and come up with a comprehensive plan,” she explained.

While welcoming the government’s response as “favourable”, Parris said “members felt that there could be more urgency when dealing with the matters”.

She was adamant that nurses should not have to work in fear, adding: “What I find we’ve been doing is being reactive… So it has to be collaborative, a joint effort… so that we can be proactive. I want us to be proactive because we can’t afford… a loss of life of a nurse.”

The BNA is also rolling out self-defence classes which are gaining in popularity. 

“We are facilitating defence classes for nurses and as well as we’re going to be doing webinars since the first webinars, and the defence classes are attracting a lot of persons,” Parris said. “We have quite a number of nurses who are signing up for these defence classes.” (LG)

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Health experts have sounded an alarm over the nation’s reliance on imported fruits and vegetables, warning that ultra-processing and genetic modification are stripping food of its nutritional value and threatening public health. 

They called for urgent action to shift eating habits back to locally grown, seasonal produce, as concerns mount over the impact of trade policy on the island’s food security.

Speaking at a Heart & Stroke Foundation of Barbados workshop at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel on Thursday, clinical nutritionist Nicole Elliott, co-chair of the Barbados Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition, warned that imported produce — particularly apples and corn — may be undergoing ultra-processing or genetic modification that alters their natural characteristics while still appearing deceptively fresh.

“We had an experiment running at school — how long we could keep apples out of the fridge before they went bad — and you can try this out when you get home,” Elliott revealed. “Normal red apples, the ones we used to call ‘50 cent apples’ (gala apples), I guarantee you that if you keep them in the refrigerator, they will last you a year and they will not go rubbery, they will not turn brown. And even if you leave them outside, the same thing will happen. For some reason, those innocent apples that we are accustomed to purchasing now are being subjected to ultra-processing, and they still look like they’re in their natural form.”

She explained that modern food technology and genetic engineering were driving changes that many consumers were unaware of.

“We’ve been seeing product modification and food technology at play for a long time. Depending on where our products come from — and who the importer is — we get foods from countries that do genetic modification, especially with corn, apples, and other items that are in high demand and require large-scale production,” she said.

“So, you’ll find that some apples spoil the way you’d expect — they go through the normal food spoilage process. But others? You leave them out, and nothing happens. They just sit there. Sometimes, you’ll look at an apple and say, ‘This looks too shiny, too perfect,’ almost like the one from the Snow White story. And when you pour hot water on it, the wax coating comes off. That’s because wax is added to make it look more appealing. And that works — we’ve all been conditioned from childhood to think that’s what a ‘good’ apple should look like.”

Elliott cautioned that while not all imported apples or fruits are problematic, Barbadians must begin to think critically about food sources and push for minimal processing.

“Eat the apple — don’t eat the Apple Jacks [cereal]. That’s what I’m saying. We can’t stop eating, but we have to start choosing the lesser of the two evils. A good place to start is eating as close to the farm as possible, as close to the source as possible. Because if that apple already has something added to it at the fresh stage, imagine what’s happening when you start dehydrating it, packaging it in a special kid snack, or mixing it into granola.

“The apple is just an example — not all apples behave the same — but the point is, the more we process it, the further it gets from being an actual apple. By the time you get that so-called ‘apple’, you might as well have been eating dirt. There’s no value left in it — no nutrition, no substance, no flavour — just a name.”

Her comments were echoed by Dr Maddy Murphy, senior lecturer at the George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Centre, part of the University of the West Indies Cave Hill campus. Murphy said the dominance of imported produce in the region’s food systems was driven largely by trade policy — not public health.

“This is one of the biggest issues we have with parents — what are the options? Because the fruits and vegetables are going in a certain direction,” she said. “For most countries in the Caribbean, most of our fruits and veg are imported. [There’s] a whole range of reasons, and it’s not related to health. A lot of this is about the Ministry of Economics and Trade, and those kinds of things. It’s about the World Trade Organisation and being able to bring certain things in.”

Dr Murphy added: “Some of those farms are bigger than some of our islands, so the price that they’re able to send down their fruit and veg — our local products can’t compete a lot of times when it comes to price. That’s something we really need to change in terms of our food and nutrition security.”

She said regional food systems must move towards greater self-sufficiency and cohesion, highlighting the need to increase the availability and appeal of local, seasonal produce.

“We’ve spoken to parents, and they’ll tell you: their kids don’t know what dunks and ackees are any more. They’re just not exposed. When you talk to farmers, they’ll say there’s so much construction and development that a lot of those indigenous fruits and vegetables are being removed and not replaced.”

Both Elliott and Dr Murphy called for renewed efforts to educate Barbadian families — especially children — about local fruits and vegetables, food preparation, and the risks of over-reliance on cheap, imported goods.

“It’s all nice and shiny to have blueberries and strawberries and everything else. But you have a lot of foreigners who come down here — tourists come here and they want to eat our local produce. They see the benefits and talk about breadfruit as a superfood.

“I think what we need to do is education and appreciation for what we have, and really to start getting people to eat local. The food preparation is important. You don’t want to add too many things, but it’s closer to home, it’s less of the pesticides, it’s less of the storage, the waxes and all those things.” 

(SZB)

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Puerto Plata.- The U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic has announced the upcoming arrival of the USNS Comfort, a hospital ship from the U.S. Southern Command, as part of the “Continuing Promise 2025” humanitarian mission. The initiative aims to provide free medical services to thousands of Dominicans, reinforcing bilateral cooperation and the shared commitment to public health and humanitarian aid.

During its visit, the ship’s medical team—comprising both U.S. and Dominican professionals—will offer general and pediatric consultations, dental and eye care, preventive exams, minor procedures, and health education workshops. These activities are designed not only to address immediate medical needs but also to promote long-term wellness through hygiene and disease prevention awareness.

The USNS Comfort, which has visited the country in past missions, has long served as a vital resource in responding to natural disasters and delivering large-scale medical aid. Its return underscores the enduring partnership between the two nations. Authorities stated that more information on locations, dates, and service requirements will be released soon, with thousands of Dominicans expected to benefit from the mission’s life-changing services.