PRODUCTIVITY

Less social media makes you happier and more efficient at work

Psychology

Peer-Reviewed Publication

RUHR-UNIVERSITY BOCHUM

 

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IF WE ARE CONSTANTLY DISTRACTED BY SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS, OUR WORK AND OUR SATISFACTION WITH IT WILL SUFFER.

 

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CREDIT: © RUB, MARQUARD

If you feel overworked and stressed, you’ll be less committed to your job and perform less well. Many companies are aware of this problem and, therefore, spend money on professionals to look after the mental health of their employees. And yet there’s a much simpler and more cost-effective way to increase satisfaction and efficiency: In a one-week study, just 30 minutes less social media use per day improved the mental health, job satisfaction and commitment of the participants. Associate Professor Julia Brailovskaia and her team from the Mental Health Research and Treatment Center at Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, and the German Center for Mental Health published their findings in the journal Behaviour & Information Technology on December 8, 2023.

Positive emotions that are lacking in real life

Social media have become an integral part of many people’s lives, not just the younger generation. A number of studies have explored the effects of intensive social media use: Some have shown that engaging with social media is a mood booster, others that it has a negative impact on mental health and causes users to fear missing out on something important happening in their network when they aren’t online – a phenomenon referred to as FoMO (acronym of Fear of Missing Out).

“We suspect that people tend to use social networks to generate positive emotions that they’re missing in their everyday working lives, especially when they are feeling overworked,” explains Julia Brailovskaia. “In addition, some platforms such as LinkedIn also offer the opportunity to look for new jobs if you’re unhappy with your current role.” In the short-term, escaping from reality into the world of social networks may indeed improve your mood; but in the long-term, it can lead to addictive behavior that has the opposite effect.

Effects evident after one week

The team launched an experiment to explore these correlations. A total of 166 people took part, all of whom worked either part-time or full-time in a range of sectors and spent at least 35 minutes a day on non-work-related social media use. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group didn’t change their social media habits. The other group reduced the time spent on social networks by 30 minutes a day for seven days. The participants completed various questionnaires online before the start of the experiment, the day after it began and one week later, providing information about their workload, job satisfaction, commitment, mental health, stress levels, FoMO and behaviors indicating addictive social media use.

“Even after this short period of time, we found that the group that spent 30 minutes less a day on social media significantly improved their job satisfaction and mental health,” points out Julia Brailovskaia. “The participants in this group felt less overworked and were more committed on the job than the control group.” Their sense of FoMO decreased likewise. The effects lasted for at least a week after the end of the experiment and even increased in some cases during this time. The participants who’d reduced their daily social media use voluntarily continued to do so even after a week.

More time to do a good job and for colleagues

The researchers assume that, by reducing their social media use, the participants had more time to do their job, which meant they felt less overworked, and also suffered less from divided attention. “Our brains can’t cope well with constant distraction from a task,” explains Julia Brailovskaia. “People who frequently stop what they’re doing in order to catch up on their social media feed find it more difficult to focus on their work and they achieve poorer results.” In addition, time spent on social media may prevent people from interacting with their colleagues in real life, which can lead to alienation. Reducing time spent on social media could reduce this effect.

The results of the study are in line with previous research done by the group, which showed that reducing daily consumption by as little as 20 to 30 minutes reduced depressive symptoms and improved mental health. “Reducing the amount of time spent on social media each day could be a useful addition to business coaching training, mental health programs and psychotherapeutic interventions,” concludes Julia Brailovskaia.

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JOURNAL

Behaviour and Information Technology

DOI

10.1080/0144929X.2023.2286529 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Less Social Media Use – More Satisfied, Work-Engaged and Mentally Healthy Employees: an Experimental Intervention Study

 

Prone to abandoning New Year’s resolutions? Bayes’ research suggests blaming money worries rather than being time-poor

Studies find people are more likely to accept excuses for breaking New Year’s resolutions that blame shortage of money than shortage of time

Peer-Reviewed Publication

CITY UNIVERSITY LONDON

People who abandon New Year’s resolutions or other commitments can maintain the respect of their peers by blaming external factors such as lack of money, new research suggests.

Studies have found that people were more likely to be seen as having good self-control despite abandoning a commitment to live a healthier life if they claimed they did not have the money for a gym membership or expensive new cooking equipment. People who instead claimed they didn’t have the time to exercise or to replace a takeaway habit with healthy, home-cooked food, were more likely to be seen as having poor self-control.

Dr Janina Steinmetz, Reader in Marketing at Bayes Business School (formerly Cass), who conducted the research, analysed which excuses boost the chances of people appearing to have good self-control even after they fail to keep a resolution or pledge.

She said: “Many resolutions or commitments involve either time or money so the lack of one or the other seems to provide a good excuse for breaking it without adversely affecting how others see us. However, these two excuses are not equally effective. My six experiments involving around 1,200 people found that pleading a lack of money leads to better outcomes – in terms of perceptions about the individual – than citing lack of time.”

For example, in one experiment, 200 online participants read about people who failed to keep a commitment to eat healthier food. Some of those they read about blamed the cost of cooking good meals while others said they were defeated by a lack of time. Participants saw the first group as having better self-control and were more likely to consider them as potentially good gym partners.

The differences appear to reflect how much the excuse is seen as being within the person’s control, Dr Steinmetz suggests.

She said: “These results are surprising because people like to use lack of time as an excuse when they can't do something. They equate lack of time with high status. However, the studies suggest we tend to think others could find the time to exercise or cook healthy meals if they were sufficiently motivated. That is why citing factors many of us have less control over, such as lack of money, can produce perceptions of having better self-control even when we abandon our New Year’s resolution or break a commitment.”

The results, published last week in the European Journal of Social Psychology, could have implications for local authorities, NHS organisations and others campaigning on public health issues – and health professionals working with obese people.

Dr Steinmetz explained: “People often justify a diet heavy in fast food or TV dinners by saying it is quicker than buying and cooking healthy ingredients. Organisations promoting or marketing healthy lifestyles or working with patients around behaviour change can challenge that self-aggrandising claim that people are ‘just too busy’ to choose the healthy option. They can promote healthy but easy-to-prepare meals using affordable ingredients, or the benefits of even half an hour’s aerobic activity. That would undermine the credibility of an all-too-familiar excuse.”

There might also be lessons in the research for anyone in the market for a new job or romance.

Dr Steinmetz said: “In job interviews and on dating website questionnaires people are often invited to talk about a failure they’ve had in life. Obviously, we’ve all had them but when explaining why, whether you’re looking for a job or for romance, blaming uncontrollable factors might help you convey a positive image. Although my research didn’t look at those contexts, it might be wise to avoid the temptation to blame lack of time.”

ENDS

 

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JOURNAL

European Journal of Social Psychology

DOI

10.1002/ejsp.3010 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Survey

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Too little money or time? Using justifications to maintain a positive image after self-control failure

 

Revolutionary seaweed and carbonated water based hydrogel for treating skin wounds

A sustainable hydrogel formulation for wound dressing prevents wound expansion with its low-adhesion and low-swelling properties and heals wounds

Peer-Reviewed Publication

TOKYO UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE

 

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ALGINATE IS A BIOCOMPATIBLE AND BIODEGRADABLE SUBSTANCE FOUND IN SEAWEED. NOW, researchers from Tokyo University of Science HAVE USED ALGINATE FROM SEAWEED WASHED ASHORE, CACO3, AND CARBONATED WATER TO DEVELOP A HYDROGEL WHICH EXHIBITS LOWER SKIN ADHESION AND SWELLING. THESE PROPERTIES, THOUGH EXACTLY OPPOSITE OF CONVENTIONAL WOUND DRESSINGS, CAN HELP PREVENT THE EXPANSION OF THE WOUND SITE DURING RECOVERY AND THE OBTAINED HYDROGEL HAS HIGH WOUND HEALING EFFICACY.

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CREDIT: RYOTA TESHIMA FROM TOKYO UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE

Acting as the main interface between the internal and the external world, the skin is the largest and most important organ of the human body. It is frequently exposed to many types of physical injuries or wounds, including cuts, scrapes, scratches, infections, and ulcers. Unfortunately, as one ages, the skin becomes more frail and less capable of healing itself without help. With many countries experiencing a rapid rise in the aging population, the demand for treating such skin wounds has created a greater need for accessible and effective wound care products.

Over the past few decades, hydrogels have received a lot of attention for treating skin wounds. When applied over a lesion, these special gels can promote healing by absorbing discharged fluids (exudates) and keeping the wound protected, well-hydrated, and oxygenated.

However, most developed hydrogels are given adhesive properties to skin tissue to follow skin movement. Since these hydrogels are sticky and adhere to the skin and wound site, they stretch and expand the wound itself once they swell up after absorbing exudates. This not only causes pain to the user but also puts them at a higher risk of bacterial infection due to the wound area expansion. Therefore, in order to create hydrogels that can effectively treat wounds without interfering with the wound healing process, it is necessary to experiment with the preparation of hydrogels based on new ideas while utilizing existing material properties.

Against this backdrop, a team of researchers from Tokyo University of Science (TUS), Japan, have now proposed an innovative and highly-value added medical material for treating skin wounds. As reported in their recent study published in the International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, they developed a novel, low-cost hydrogel using a component found in seaweed, achieving physical properties completely different from those of conventional hydrogels. The study, which was made available online on 8 November 2023, and will be published in Volume 254, Part 3 of the journal in January 2024, was led by Mr. Ryota Teshima, a Master’s student at TUS. Assistant Professor Shigehito Osawa, Ms. Miki Yoshikawa, Associate Professor Yayoi Kawano, Professor Hidenori Otsuka, and Professor Takehisa Hanawa, all from different faculties and departments at TUS, were also a part of this study.

The method of preparation of the proposed hydrogel is quite straightforward. It was made using alginate, calcium carbonate, and carbonated water. Alginate is a biocompatible substance that can be extracted from beach-cast seaweed. Most importantly, it does not adhere strongly to cells or skin tissues. Thanks to the special structure formed by alginate and calcium ions, in addition to the protective effect of the CO2 in carbonated water against acidification, the resulting hydrogel not only exhibited ideal pH and moisture conditions for wound recovery but also demonstrated significantly lower adhesion and swelling, compared to other commercial hydrogel wound dressings.

The researchers tested the effectiveness of their new hydrogel using cell cultures and a mouse model, both of which yielded excellent results. “Through animal experiments, we demonstrated that our hydrogel has a high therapeutic effect and at the same time can suppress the temporary expansion of the wound area caused by conventional clinical preparations,” remarks Mr. Teshima. “This proves our initial hypothesis that gels with low skin adhesion and low-swelling properties are excellent as wound dressing materials, which is the complete opposite of conventional wisdom.”

Worth noting, alginate can be extracted from beach-stranded seaweed, a renewable resource that is often regarded as a coastal waste material. Since the proposed hydrogel is not only inexpensive but also biodegradable, this development marks an important step towards future progress on sustainable medicine. “Medical materials still lack a sustainability-oriented perspective, and we believe this research will serve as a benchmark for the design of future medical materials and lead to sustainable and low-cost wound care,” says Mr. Teshima. “Moreover, our findings can help clarify issues with hydrogel formulations currently in clinical use and provide new design guidelines for next-generation wound treatment gels.”

We surely hope that the insights revealed by this study will pave the way for novel solutions aimed at enhancing medical care for aging societies!

 

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Reference                    

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127928

 

About The Tokyo University of Science

Tokyo University of Science (TUS) is a well-known and respected university, and the largest science-specialized private research university in Japan, with four campuses in central Tokyo and its suburbs and in Hokkaido. Established in 1881, the university has continually contributed to Japan's development in science through inculcating the love for science in researchers, technicians, and educators.

With a mission of “Creating science and technology for the harmonious development of nature, human beings, and society", TUS has undertaken a wide range of research from basic to applied science. TUS has embraced a multidisciplinary approach to research and undertaken intensive study in some of today's most vital fields. TUS is a meritocracy where the best in science is recognized and nurtured. It is the only private university in Japan that has produced a Nobel Prize winner and the only private university in Asia to produce Nobel Prize winners within the natural sciences field.

Website: https://www.tus.ac.jp/en/mediarelations/

 

About Ryota Teshima from Tokyo University of Science

Mr. Ryota Teshima is a Master's student at the Tokyo University of Science. As a young researcher, he has already published five research papers in science education and the development of hydrogels for biomaterials. Mr. Teshima's academic journey has been outstanding, and he has received several awards. He has also been selected as a fourth-generation member of the Masason Foundation created by SoftBank Group Representative Masayoshi Son.

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JOURNAL

International Journal of Biological Macromolecules

DOI

10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127928 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Low-adhesion and low-swelling hydrogel based on alginate and carbonated water to prevent temporary dilation of wound sites

 

Third Pole environment researchers study the risk of glacial lake Outbursts in the Third Pole

Numerical modeling results with updated datasets reveal that hundreds of thousands of people may be in the path of potential outburst floods

Peer-Reviewed Publication

CACTUS COMMUNICATIONS

 

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APPROXIMATELY 190,000 PEOPLE LIVE IN AREAS THAT ARE AT A RISK OF BEING FLOODED DUE TO OUTBURSTS FROM THE GLACIAL LAKES IN THE THIRD POLE REGION OF THE EARTH. IN THE ABOVE MAP, THE YELLOW SECTIONS IN PIE CHARTS INDICATE THE PERCENTAGE OF GLACIAL LAKES POSING VERY HIGH AND HIGH RISKS. THE BOX PLOTS ILLUSTRATE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN GLACIAL LAKES AND THE NEAREST DOWNSTREAM HUMAN SETTLEMENTS EXPOSED TO GLACIAL LAKE OUTBURST FLOODS (GLOFS) AND THE BASIC EARLY WARNING TIMES FOR GLOFS, GROUPED BY REGION.     

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CREDIT: WEICAI WANG FROM THE TIBETAN PLATEAU EARTH SYSTEM, CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

The Third Pole, which spans the Tibetan Plateau and the surrounding Himalayas, Hindu Kush, and Tianshan Mountain ranges, is extremely vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Warming temperatures and altered rainfall patterns have caused over 10,000 glaciers in the region to retreat over the past three decades, facilitating the formation of thousands of glacial lakes.

Though they appear harmless, these water bodies have a tremendous destructive potential, particularly due to their ability to cause glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). When triggered by events like glacier collapse, snow avalanches, landslides, or the collapse of natural dams, glacial lakes can release vast volumes of water swiftly, leading to destructive GLOFs.

Since GLOFs pose an immense threat to communities and industries located near glacial lakes at the Third Pole, efforts have been made to understand their triggers and assess their risks with the intention of facilitating preventive decision-making. Unfortunately, the methods used for assessing these risks have been significantly varied across these studies. For example, the number of glacial lakes reported varied in number from 10,000 to 30,000 in the 2015–2020 period, depending on the definition used. These inconsistencies make it difficult to create a reliable dataset for further data analysis and GLOF risk assessment.

Against this backdrop, a research team headed by Associate Professor Weicai Wang from the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China, decided to carry out a more detailed analysis of GLOF risks in the Third Pole. The study, published in Nature Communications journal on December 12, 2023, underscores the need for urgent action and regional cooperation for the economically disadvantaged and highly vulnerable regions in the Third Pole.

To this end, the researchers first obtained satellite images from the Sentinel-2A and Sentinel-2B missions between 2018 and 2022. Then, they identified and classified all glacial lakes based on their position and topological characteristics in relation to their source glacier. This updated inventory of glacial lakes, coupled with earlier datasets, enabled them to analyze the changes in this region over the past decades, revealing a worrisome continuous expansion of glacial lakes.

Further, they analyzed changes in GLOF activity by consolidating datasets of GLOF events in the Third Pole, tracing back as far as 1900. Their findings, in contrast to previous studies, revealed a worrisome trend, indicating an increase in GLOF occurrences from an average of 1.5 events annually during 1981–1990 to 2.7 events during 2011–2020. The researchers noted that the expansion of glacial lakes and the appearance of new ones will likely lead to an increase in the number of GLOFs per year in the future, underscoring the need for developing better analytical methods and datasets to stay one step ahead of potential disasters.

Finally, the team analyzed the susceptibility to GLOFs in 5,535 glacial lakes and identified 1,499 of those with a high potential for outburst floods. The researchers also investigated the ‘potential disaster volume’ based on GLOF simulations of these high-risk lakes. The results were concerning, to say the least. “Approximately 55,808 buildings, 105 existing or planned hydropower projects, 194 km2 of farmland, 5,005 km of roads, and 4,038 bridges are threatened by the potential GLOFs,” states Dr. Wang. “Moreover, by utilizing regional population distribution data, we estimated that roughly 190,000 lives are directly exposed within the GLOF paths,” he explains.

Overall, these findings are concerning, especially for countries exposed to GLOFs in the Third Pole, especially China, Kazakhstan, Nepal, India, and Pakistan. “Our findings underscore the significant challenges posed by the substantial potential disaster volumes in these economically disadvantaged and highly vulnerable regions,” says Dr. Wang. Explaining further, he says, “Considering the projected extension of GLOF threats under future climate change scenarios, it is crucial for the relevant nations surrounding the Third Pole to recognize the urgency of addressing GLOF threats and to promote regional cooperation.”

Going ahead, this work will hopefully lead to better risk management strategies for GLOFs and foster cooperation between countries in the Third Pole. In addition, and perhaps most importantly, these findings should also raise awareness of the many ways in which climate change threatens our lives.

 

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Reference

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-44123-z

 

 

Authors: Taigang Zhang1,2,3, Weicai Wang1, Baosheng An1,4, and Lele Wei1,2,3

 

Affiliations:

1State Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Earth System, Environment and Resources (TPESER), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences

2College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University

3Center for the Pan-Third Pole Environment, Lanzhou University

4School of Science, Tibet University

 

About Associate Professor Weicai Wang
Dr. Weicai Wang is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. Dr. Wang obtained his Ph.D. in Physical Geography from the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITPR) in 2013, as well as M.S. and B.S. degrees in Environmental Engineering from the China University of Petroleum in 2008 and 2005, respectively. He became an Assistant Professor at ITPR in 2013 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2016. His research focuses on glacial lake mapping, glacial lake outburst flood risk assessment, glacial lake monitoring, and early warning systems. He has published over 40 research papers on these topics. 

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JOURNAL

Nature Communications

DOI

10.1038/s41467-023-44123-z 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Computational simulation/modeling

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Enhanced glacial lake activity threatens numerous communities and infrastructure in the Third Pole

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

12-Dec-2023

 

How IQWiG assesses medical interventions: Version 7.0 of the methods paper becomes effective – English translation now available

Fundamental revision of the chapter on health economic evaluation and addition of the concept for routine practice data collection

Reports and Proceedings

INSTITUTE FOR QUALITY AND EFFICIENCY IN HEALTH CARE

The German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) completed the update of its methods paper to Version 7.0 and published the currently valid version of its "General Methods" on www.iqwig.de. An English translation is now available.

In its General Methods, IQWiG provides a detailed and transparent description of the criteria it uses to assess the benefits and harms of medical interventions for patients. In order to account for the further developments in standards in the scientific disciplines and to meet extended legal obligations, this compendium is regularly updated – sometimes in smaller steps, sometimes by a fundamental revision of entire chapters, which is then reflected in a new version number, as is now the case with Version 7.0.

Revision of the chapter on health economic evaluation

The Institute has completely revised Chapter 4 of the General Methods, which describes the health economic evaluation of medical interventions. As part of this revision, the superordinate Section 1.4 on health economics has also been completely revised.

Since 2011, the health economic evaluation of new drugs can be used to inform pricing if an early benefit assessment according to the German Act on the Reform of the Market for Medicinal Products (AMNOG) has been completed and price negotiations between health insurance funds and drug manufacturers have failed. So far, however, neither party has initiated such an evaluation, which is probably also due to the complexity of the procedure. Against this background, the Institute has adapted its methodological principles for health economic evaluations and made them less complex overall. For example, the previous methods required all treatment options in a given therapeutic indication to be considered; now fewer comparator therapies can be used. In addition, IQWiG no longer derives a price recommendation. Instead, it determines the incremental (i.e. calculated in steps) cost-benefit ratio in relation to the comparator therapy.

New type of commission: Concept for routine practice data collection

In its methods paper, IQWiG has newly included a description of its approach to develop an RPDC concept (RPDC = routine practice data collection) after commissioning by the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA).

Since 2019, the G-BA can require an RPDC, including an analysis, from the manufacturers of drugs for rare diseases (orphan drugs) to generate additional data for the quantification of the added benefit. IQWiG then provides the necessary methodological input: it develops a concept describing the methodological requirements for conducting the data collection. It also searches for suitable registries in the therapeutic indication (“disease registries”) to decide whether the planned RPDC is in principle feasible and appropriate.

Like the AMNOG dossier assessments for the early benefit assessment of new drugs, the new types of commission "RPDC concept" and "search for disease registries" are regulated in §35a of the German Social Code Book V (SGB V). IQWiG now clearly presents this extended range of products for assessments according to §35a SGB V in Chapter 2 of its General Methods Version 7.0.

Consequences of the commenting procedure

IQWiG presented the draft of its updated methods paper in December 2022 and invited comments. The Institute then received 38 comments, some of which were very detailed. After the end of the commenting period, a hearing was held in March 2023 with the commenters to resolve outstanding issues.

As a result of the commenting procedure, IQWiG has reworded several parts of the text and added explanations. For example, the section on "Consequences of incomplete data availability" has been revised again: In the draft of Version 7.0, the methodological approach to dealing with missing data had been greatly streamlined, which led to questions. In the current version, the approach is now explained in more detail again. The (German-language) General Methods 7.0 and the English translation were published on 22 September 2023 and 15 December 2023, respectively. As usual, IQWiG will provide information on the next stage of its work on the methods paper as soon as possible.

 

EMA gives positive opinion to Fexinidazole Winthrop as first oral treatment of acute form of sleeping sickness (rhodesiense) found in East and Southern Africa

Business Announcement

DRUGS FOR NEGLECTED DISEASES INITIATIVE

Paris/Geneva/Nairobi - 15 December 2023 - Sanofi, DNDi and the HAT-r-ACC consortium announced the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has adopted a positive scientific opinion of Fexinidazole Winthrop as first oral treatment of acute form of sleeping sickness (rhodesiense). This positive opinion is for the treatment in adults and children six years of age or older and weighing at least 20 kg, of both first-stage (haemo-lymphatic) and second-stage (meningo-encephalitic) Trypanosoma brucei (T.b.) rhodesiense sleeping sickness, an acute and lethal form of this parasitic disease found in Eastern and Southern Africa.

This CHMP opinion follows an application by Sanofi under Article 58 and clinical trials in Malawi and Uganda led by the non-profit medical research organization Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi). The CHMP first adopted in 2018, a positive opinion of Fexinidazole Winthrop as the first all-oral treatment , in adults and children six years of age or older and weighing at least 20 kg, of both first-stage (haemo-lymphatic) and second-stage (meningo-encephalitic) of the more common T.b. gambiense form of sleeping sickness found in West and Central Africa.

Sleeping sickness, or human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), is usually fatal without treatment. Both forms of sleeping sickness are transmitted by the bite of infected tsetse flies, which are found in 36 African countries. It causes neuropsychiatric symptoms, including aggressiveness, psychosis, a debilitating disruption of sleep patterns that have given this neglected disease its name, and ultimately, death.

‘The CHMP’s positive opinion is another step forward in Sanofi’s commitment to help deliver innovative treatments to vulnerable patient communities impacted by sleeping sickness, a deadly neglected tropical disease. By working with WHO and DNDi, we have made tremendous progress in improving treatment outcomes and simplifying treatment delivery. This partnership and our donation of Fexinidazole Winthrop through Foundation S, reflect our mission to provide innovative treatments to patients, no matter where they live,’ said Dietmar Berger, MD, PhD, Head of Development and Chief Medical Officer at Sanofi.

For the T.b. rhodesiense variant, Fexinidazole Winthrop is indicated as a 10-day, once-daily oral treatment. Data from DNDi’s Phase 2/3 clinical trial were recently presented at the European Congress of Tropical Medicine and International Health and showed that Fexinidazole Winthrop was highly effective in treating the T.b. rhodesiense form of sleeping sickness and is a safe alternative to the existing drugs. In periodic follow-up evaluations that continued for 12 months after treatment, only one patient (2.94%) with the advanced form of the disease had relapsed and required treatment with the arsenic derivative that is the standard of care for patients with the most severe stage of the disease. 

‘T.b. rhodesiense sleeping sickness is a terrifying disease that progresses more rapidly than T.b. gambiense, killing quickly if untreated. Until now, due to the lack of innovation for this strain of sleeping sickness, old and toxic treatment options have to be administered in a hospital under strict surveillance. Having a simple and safer oral pill to treat this frightening disease will allow doctors to rapidly save lives. It will also help patients to trust the new treatment,’ said Dr Westain Nyirenda, Principal Investigator and physician at Rumphi Hospital in Malawi.

While humans are the main host of T.b. gambiense, T.b. rhodesiense is a zoonotic disease, meaning that the infection can spread from animals to humans. Cattle and wild animals such as bushbucks and zebras are the most common reservoirs for this disease. Movements of these animals – potentially sparked by droughts or changes in climate – could put new populations at risk of T.b. rhodesiense sleeping sickness. In some cases, tourists visiting game reserves have been infected with T.b. rhodesiense.

‘We are already seeing how an all-oral treatment for T.b. gambiense sleeping sickness has simplified the treatment of this variant in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo. Although there are comparatively few cases of T.b. rhodesiense, last year Ethiopia recorded its first cases since the 1970s. The drought at the time of the infections brought humans and cattle in closer proximity to tsetse flies’ habitat. Environmental changes could be one of the reasons behind this resurgence,’ said Dr Olaf Valverde Mordt, Clinical Project Leader for sleeping sickness at DNDi.

The CHMP opinion today paves the way for the update of WHO guidelines on treatment for sleeping sickness, and distribution by WHO of Fexinidazole Winthrop in African countries where T.b. rhodesiense is prevalent. Fexinidazole Winthrop will be donated to WHO by Foundation S, Sanofi’s philanthropic organization.

‘The impact of climate change extends to the shifting geographical spread of vector-borne diseases such as sleeping sickness, heightening the likelihood of spillover events where diseases transfer from animals to humans. These shifts disproportionately affect the most vulnerable communities, underscoring the urgency of sustained investment in programs addressing NTDs. This includes the development of innovative tools and improved treatment methods. We extend our gratitude to our partners DNDi for their research for the most neglected and Sanofi for their ongoing support and contribution to these vital efforts,’ said Dr Ibrahima Socé Fall, Director of Neglected Tropical Diseases at WHO.

Fexinidazole Winthrop has already been registered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda as a treatment for T.b. gambiense and is recommended for use in a further 10 African countries: (Angola, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, and South Sudan).

‘We congratulate the HAT-r-ACC consortium on developing a better treatment option for this truly neglected disease and are thrilled with the positive opinion by CHMP,’ said Dr Michelle Helinski, Senior Project Officer for Neglected Infectious Diseases at the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership Association (EDCTP).

The DNDi clinical trial for T.b. rhodesiense was conducted by the HAT-r-ACC Consortium, with funding from the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership Association (EDCTP2) programme supported by the European Union; Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia from Portugal; Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), from Switzerland; Médecins Sans Frontières International; and UK International Development, United Kingdom; and other private foundations and individuals.

 

 

 

About Sanofi

We are an innovative global healthcare company, driven by one purpose: we chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. Our team, across some 100 countries, is dedicated to transforming the practice of medicine by working to turn the impossible into the possible. We provide potentially life-changing treatment options and life-saving vaccine protection to millions of people globally, while putting sustainability and social responsibility at the center of our ambitions. Sanofi is listed on EURONEXT: SAN and NASDAQ: SNY

 

About DNDi

The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is a not-for-profit medical research organization that discovers, develops, and delivers safe, effective, and affordable treatments for neglected people. DNDi is developing medicines for sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, river blindness, mycetoma, dengue, paediatric HIV, advanced HIV disease, cryptococcal meningitis, and hepatitis C. Its research priorities include children’s health, gender equity and gender-responsive R&D, and diseases impacted by climate change. Since its creation in 2003, DNDi has joined with public and private partners across the globe to deliver 13 new treatments, saving millions of lives. dndi.org

 

About HAT-r-ACC

The HAT-r-ACC consortium brings together a broad range of partners with expertise in sleeping sickness and capacity building in remote health settings. This research, training, and community engagement experience is essential to run the clinical trial in remote settings with a very small target population. The consortium partners include the Malawi Ministry of Health (MMoH), the Uganda National Health Research Organisation (UNHRO), the Makerere University in Uganda, Epicentre (MSF) in France, the Lisbon Institute of Hygiene and Tropical medicine (IHMT) in Portugal, the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) in France, the WHO, and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH).

 

US adults eat a meal’s worth of calories of snacks in a day

Study finds noshing provides little nutritional value

Peer-Reviewed Publication

OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Snacks constitute almost a quarter of a day’s calories in U.S. adults and account for about one-third of daily added sugar, a new study suggests.

Researchers analyzing data from surveys of over 20,000 people found that Americans averaged about 400 to 500 calories in snacks a day – often more than what they consumed at breakfast – that offered little nutritional value.

Though dietitians are very aware of Americans’ propensity to snack, “the magnitude of the impact isn’t realized until you actually look at it,” said senior study author Christopher Taylor, professor of medical dietetics in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at The Ohio State University.

“Snacks are contributing a meal’s worth of intake to what we eat without it actually being a meal,” Taylor said. “You know what dinner is going to be: a protein, a side dish or two. But if you eat a meal of what you eat for snacks, it becomes a completely different scenario of, generally, carbohydrates, sugars, not much protein, not much fruit, not a vegetable. So it’s not a fully well-rounded meal.”

Survey participants who were controlling their type 2 diabetes ate fewer sugary foods and snacked less overall than participants without diabetes and those whose blood sugar levels indicated they were prediabetic.

“Diabetes education looks like it’s working, but we might need to bump education back to people who are at risk for diabetes and even to people with normal blood glucose levels to start improving dietary behaviors before people develop chronic disease,” Taylor said.

The study was published recently in PLOS Global Public Health.

Researchers analyzed data from 23,708 U.S. adults over 30 years of age who had participated from 2005 to 2016 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The survey collects 24-hour dietary recalls from each participant – detailing not just what, but when, all food was consumed.

Respondents were categorized according to their HbA1c level, a measure of glucose control, into four groups: nondiabetes, prediabetes, controlled diabetes and poorly controlled diabetes.

Among the whole survey sample, snacks accounted for between 19.5% and 22.4% of total energy intake – while contributing very little nutritional quality.

In descending order of proportion, snacks consisted of convenience foods high in carbohydrates and fats, sweets, alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic drinks that include sugar-sweetened beverages, protein, milk and dairy, fruits, grains and, lagging far behind, vegetables.

Noting that capturing 24 hours of food consumption doesn’t necessary reflect how people usually eat, “it gives us a really good snapshot of a large number of people,” Taylor said. “And that can help us understand what’s going on, where nutritional gaps might be and the education we can provide.”

Finding that people with diabetes had healthier snacking habits was an indicator that dietary education is beneficial to people with the disease. But it’s information that just about everyone can use, Taylor said – and it’s about more than just cutting back on sugar and carbs.

“We need to go from just less added sugar to healthier snacking patterns,” he said. “We’ve gotten to a point of demonizing individual foods, but we have to look at the total picture. Removing added sugars won’t automatically make the vitamin C, vitamin D, phosphorus and iron better. And if we take out refined grains, we lose nutrients that come with fortification.

“When you take something out, you have to put something back in, and the substitution becomes just as important as the removal.”

And so, rather than offering tips on what foods to snack on, Taylor emphasizes looking at a day’s total dietary picture and seeing whether snacks will fulfill our nutritional needs.

“Especially during the holidays, it’s all about the environment and what you have available, and planning accordingly. And it’s about shopping behavior: What do we have in the home?” he said.

“We think about what we’re going to pack for lunch and cook for dinner. But we don’t plan that way for our snacks. So then you’re at the mercy of what’s available in your environment.”

This work was supported by Abbott Nutrition and Ohio State. Co-authors included Kristen Heitman, Owen Kelly, Stephanie Fanelli and Jessica Krok-Schoen of Ohio State and Sara Thomas and Menghua Luo of Abbott Nutrition.

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Contact: Christopher Taylor, Chris.Taylor@osumc.edu

Written by Emily Caldwell, Caldwell.151@osu.edu; 614-292-8152

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JOURNAL

PLOS Global Public Health

DOI

10.1371/journal.pgph.0000802 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Snacks contribute considerably to total dietary intakes among adults stratified by glycemia in the United States