health briefs

Close Relationships May Influence Physical Well-Being

A new study published in Social Psychological and Personality Science has found that a person’s close relationships may either benefit or undermine physical health. The threeweek study involving 4,005 participants looked at how both positive and negative relationship experiences affect the body, and how daily fluctuations in those interactions may influence changes in well-being, as reflected in self-reported stress levels and coping abilities, as well as blood pressure and heart rate reactivity biomarkers.

The researchers observed that people with more positive experiences and fewer negative ones reported lower stress, improved coping skills and better physical functioning. They also noted that ups and downs in negative relationships were especially predictive of outcomes like stress, coping and overall systolic blood pressure.

Seniors Want Fewer Prescriptions

In a new National Poll on Healthy Aging by the University of Michigan involving adults aged 50 to 80, the vast majority of respondents expressed an interest in cutting back on prescription medications. Eighty percent would be willing to stop taking one or more drugs if their healthcare provider said it was possible, and 26 percent had already stopped taking at least one drug they had been taking for more than a year. When asked which meds they would be most interested in stopping, 43 percent named their heart disease pills for high blood pressure or high cholesterol, 13 percent mentioned diabetes medicines and 10 percent included pain management prescriptions.

These results reflect a growing trend dubbed “deprescribing.” According to Deprescribing.org, a researcher-led online resource, it is the planned process of reducing or stopping medications that may no longer be of benefit or could be causing harm. The goal is to reduce medication burden or harm while improving quality of life. Seniors interested in cutting down on the drugs they are taking should consult their healthcare provider to ensure it is safe and helpful to do so.

Effects of Cannabis Use Before and After Surgery

In January 2023, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine published guidelines recommending that all patients undergoing anesthesia be screened and questioned about cannabis use, including how much and how often they use, how they take it and when they last used it.

One of the largest studies on the effects of cannabis use on sedation, published in the Journal of Osteopathic Medicine, looked at 250 patients undergoing an endoscopy while under anesthesia. Those that reported regular cannabis use required significantly higher doses of anesthesia than nonusers. Another study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, found that daily cannabis users required a higher dose of sedatives prior to an endoscopy than weekly or monthly users.

On a related note, a 2018 study published in the journal Patient Safety in Surgery reported that marijuana use may interfere with painkillers after surgery. The study looked at 261 trauma center patients and concluded that marijuana use, especially chronic use, may affect the pain response to injury and require higher doses of opioids for pain management.