HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

April 10, 2022 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• COVID-19 infection increases your risk for diabetes, a new study says (NPR)

• I’m eligible for a second COVID-19 booster shot. Should I get it? (San Diego Union-Tribune)

• Zoos across North America are moving birds indoors to protect them from avian flu (NPR)

• A worrisome new bird flu is spreading in American birds and may be here to stay (NPR)

• Patients with Covid and flu double the risk of dying, say scientists (Guardian)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Climate change: Wind and solar reach milestone as demand surges (BBC)

• Facebook users angry after accounts locked for no reason (BBC)

• Amazon workers at New York warehouse vote to form company's first US union (CNN)

• Stunning images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope (Washington Post)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

COVID-19 infection increases your risk for diabetes, a new study says (NPR)

People who suffered from even mild cases of COVID-19 face an increased risk of being diagnosed with diabetes within a year of recovering from the illness, a new study reports. Researchers found that people who had COVID-19 were about 40% more likely to develop diabetes within a year after recovering, compared to participants in a control group. The likelihood of developing diabetes grew if the patient suffered from a serious infection that led to hospitalization or a stay in intensive care. "What's surprising is that it is happening in people with no prior risk factors for diabetes" before becoming infected with COVID-19, said Ziyad Al-Aly, the lead author of the study.

I’m eligible for a second COVID-19 booster shot. Should I get it? (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Now, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a second booster for people 50 and older, and for anyone younger than 50 whose immune system is very impaired by disease or medications.

Zoos across North America are moving birds indoors to protect them from avian flu (NPR)

Zoos across North America are moving their birds indoors and away from people and wildlife as they try to protect them from the highly contagious and potentially deadly avian influenza. Penguins may be the only birds visitors to many zoos can see right now, because they already are kept inside and usually protected behind glass in their exhibits, making it harder for the bird flu to reach them.

A worrisome new bird flu is spreading in American birds and may be here to stay (NPR)

A newly arrived bird flu is sweeping through wild bird populations in the United States, and that may mean trouble for poultry farmers … 24 million poultry birds like chicken and turkeys have already been lost, either because they died from the virus or were killed to prevent its spread. … this particular flu virus seems capable of hanging around in populations of wild birds, which can pass the virus on to poultry farms. While chickens and turkeys with the virus quickly sicken and die, some waterfowl can remain healthy with the virus and carry it long distances. Scientists believe that wild migratory birds brought this virus to North America a few months ago. Since then, more than 40 wild bird species in more than 30 states have tested positive. This strain of bird flu virus has turned up in everything from crows to pelicans to bald eagles.

Patients with Covid and flu double the risk of dying, say scientists (Guardian)

Covid-19 patients who have been hospitalised should also be routinely tested for flu, researchers have said. The call was made after the publication of a paper in the medical journal the Lancet that revealed having both conditions more than doubles the risk of a patient dying. Scientists also discovered that individuals who had contracted both Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, and influenza viruses were more than four times more likely to require ventilation support and 2.4 times more likely to die than if they just had Covid-19.

SCIENCE AND TECH

Climate change: Wind and solar reach milestone as demand surges (BBC)

Wind and solar generated 10% of global electricity for the first time in 2021, a new analysis shows.

Facebook users angry after accounts locked for no reason (BBC)

Facebook users around the world have been waking up to find themselves locked out of their accounts for no apparent reason…Parent firm Meta said it was investigating.

Amazon workers at New York warehouse vote to form company's first US union (CNN)

Amazon (AMZN) warehouse workers at a facility in New York City have voted to form the first US union in the tech giant's 27-year history, marking a stunning victory for a bootstrapped effort led by a fired employee.

Stunning images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope (Washington Post)

The iconic space telescope may be worn from wear and tear after 30 years, but it remains the most dominant tool in its field.