There has been a second death of Legionnaires' Disease out of Harlem in NYC. there are a few new variants of Covid 19 coming out, will it affect us? Dr. Poland believes that because most of us have been vaccinated, we have a low risk of getting sick.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Boy, you've heard about what's happening in Harlem right with
the Legionnaire's disease. I was in Philadelphia in nineteen seventy
six when they first learned about this disease. The American
legion was having a convention at the Bellevue Stratford Hotel
and there were one hundred and eighty two people that
were there of the three hundred that came down with
(00:21):
Legionnaire's disease, and twenty nine of them died. And so
it's nothing to take lightly. And it's happening in Harlem
right now, so let's find out if we're in any danger.
Doctor Gregory Poland is health and medical expert who was
a leader in vaccines and infectious diseases at the Mayo
Clinic and president of the Atria Research Institute in New York.
(00:45):
Doctor Poland, thank you so much, just because I do
have some history in covering and knowing about Legionnaire's disease.
When I first heard about these cases in Harlem, its
set off some alarms, no.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Question, Larry, and you're exactly right about that history. In fact,
it's how it got the name Legionella for the bacteria
and Legionnaire's disease. So in Harlem right now, I think
we've got sixty seven people known to be ill. Three
have died. This is a bacterial illness where these bacteria,
(01:24):
when systems are not maintained properly, harbor in the cooling
towers in the water systems, and so they go through
the water pipes through the water system you inhale them
and you get ill. It's not contagious person to person.
Rather you have to inhale the bacteria yourself. And for
(01:46):
the most part, people don't recognize that this is anything different.
They get flu like symptoms, a cough, headache, and fever,
but it can get very rapidly worse. In fact, about
ten of people who get Legionnaire's disease die from it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Well, that is scary, but there's some good news in
that it's not contagious. However, what they must be trying
to find right now is what is the source of this.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Yeah, they I think they've narrowed it down to a
few of the cooling towers for air conditioning and water supply.
And the treatment is simple. You have to monitor for
it and you have to treat those water systems to
prevent those bacteria from developing and multiplying to the point
where you can transmit them through the water system and
(02:40):
inhale them. You know, this leads to about in the
US alone, about anywhere from eight thousand to sixteen thousand
cases a year. So this is not a rare condition. It's,
as you say, not one to take lightly, No, not
at all.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
So so if they have three suspected areas, they're just
going to treat them all and then that should eliminate it.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Correct done properly, that will handle the problem.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Wonderful. Now let's talk about COVID because there's apparently three
new variants, and I guess the good news and you
can verify this is every time there seems to be
a new variant, the COVID virus gets a little bit weaker.
Is that the case?
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Now, No, it's not that the virus is weaker, it's
that at this point, nearly all of us have either
been infected, received multiple doses of vaccine, or both, so
our immune systems are sort of prepped and ready to
diminish the effects of it. Now, you can still develop
(03:48):
long COVID, you can still develop complications, but that's the
reason for it. There are three, the NB one point eight,
the XFG, and the LP eight point one one variant
one they call nimbus. That's about forty three percent of
cases in the US right now. The popular lay person
(04:10):
description of it is razor blade throat. I've got a
couple of colleagues that are infected, and indeed they say
it's when I swallow, try to eat anything, it feels
like my throat is razor blades.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Well, that's fascinating.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
I'm sorry, kid. So we really are warning people because
there's a lot of you know, COVID fatigue, if you will.
Cases are up in forty US states already. This very
rapidly is climbing again and people need to be aware
and take precautions.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
That's fascinating that you say that that it's not getting weaker,
because I had heard that over and over again, that
these viruses want to survive and they don't want to
kill their host, and they get weaker just so they
can survive longer. But you're saying it's because now we
build up a little bit of an immunity to it.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Is that the case exactly, And if anything, these variants
are more and more transmissible you know, think about omicron.
When that came out, about ninety percent of the US
got infected by omicron, despite the number of people who
had previously been infected or gotten vaccines.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
All right, I love your next topic because I'm all
into simple Do you say you have four simple keys
to improve your health? How do we do that?
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yeah, Larry, this is you know, there's no rocket science.
This is not molecular biology. Four keys nutrition, exercise, adequate sleep,
and taking care of your mental health. Those map to
what the American Heart Association calls Life's Essential eight. Manage
(05:57):
your blood pressure, nutrition, excercis size, no tobacco, sleep, work well,
maintain your weight, cholesterol, and blood sugar. You do those things.
You do those four things, or Life's essential eight, you
are solving for something like seventy percent or more of
lifestyle induced diseases, which is what causes so much of
(06:21):
premature death and disability in the US.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Well, I'll tell you what. Everybody in morning radio is
screwed then, because you went through those four and I
thought to myself, I don't do any of them. And
Chris is over here, Chris Weitzer is in for Natalie today,
and he's laughing as well, you're the same boat. You
don't do any of that.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Not not really. I'll tell you. I'll tell you who's
screwed is it's not the morning radio. It's the people
that work the third shift. Third shift workers really do
suffer in terms of their sleep, cardio, metabolic health, exercise.
So for the rest of us, you know, just get
(07:02):
adequate nutrition, exercise, sleep.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
And yeah we heard the first time. We heard it
the first time.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Coffee in the morning.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
If you can't do any of that, now, let's get
back to sleep. I'm looking for a lifeline here a
little bit. Let's get back to sleep. I do. I
don't get enough sleep at night. There's no question I
don't get enough sleep at night. But I do take
a nap. Is does that help?
Speaker 2 (07:25):
It does, Larry. In fact, good data supports that we
are a nation of sleep deprived individuals, and it exacts
a real toll in physical health and mental health. One
way to help make up for that deficit in sleep
is a nap, but a short nap. The data shows
(07:48):
that long naps may actually increase sleep problems and increase
health problems. So a fifteen to twenty minute nap, nap
no problem. A cup of coffee, no problem. But stop
that coffee around no later than two three in the
afternoon so that you're not having problems sleeping that night.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
Now, did you cut your coffee?
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I did. I only drink decaf. Now.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Oh, I was kind of hoping I was going to
catch you, so didn't. Thanks a lot, Doctor Gregory paul
in health and medical expert, a leader in vaccines and
infectious diseases at the Mayo Clinic, and he's also president
of the Atria Research Institute in New York. Thank you
so much.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
Doctor.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Talk to you again next week.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Pleasure.
Boy, you've heard about what's happening in Harlem right with
the Legionnaire's disease. I was in Philadelphia in nineteen seventy
six when they first learned about this disease. The American
legion was having a convention at the Bellevue Stratford Hotel
and there were one hundred and eighty two people that
were there of the three hundred that came down with
(00:21):
Legionnaire's disease, and twenty nine of them died. And so
it's nothing to take lightly. And it's happening in Harlem
right now, so let's find out if we're in any danger.
Doctor Gregory Poland is health and medical expert who was
a leader in vaccines and infectious diseases at the Mayo
Clinic and president of the Atria Research Institute in New York.
(00:45):
Doctor Poland, thank you so much, just because I do
have some history in covering and knowing about Legionnaire's disease.
When I first heard about these cases in Harlem, its
set off some alarms, no.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Question, Larry, and you're exactly right about that history. In fact,
it's how it got the name Legionella for the bacteria
and Legionnaire's disease. So in Harlem right now, I think
we've got sixty seven people known to be ill. Three
have died. This is a bacterial illness where these bacteria,
(01:24):
when systems are not maintained properly, harbor in the cooling
towers in the water systems, and so they go through
the water pipes through the water system you inhale them
and you get ill. It's not contagious person to person.
Rather you have to inhale the bacteria yourself. And for
(01:46):
the most part, people don't recognize that this is anything different.
They get flu like symptoms, a cough, headache, and fever,
but it can get very rapidly worse. In fact, about
ten of people who get Legionnaire's disease die from it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Well, that is scary, but there's some good news in
that it's not contagious. However, what they must be trying
to find right now is what is the source of this.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Yeah, they I think they've narrowed it down to a
few of the cooling towers for air conditioning and water supply.
And the treatment is simple. You have to monitor for
it and you have to treat those water systems to
prevent those bacteria from developing and multiplying to the point
where you can transmit them through the water system and
(02:40):
inhale them. You know, this leads to about in the
US alone, about anywhere from eight thousand to sixteen thousand
cases a year. So this is not a rare condition. It's,
as you say, not one to take lightly, No, not
at all.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
So so if they have three suspected areas, they're just
going to treat them all and then that should eliminate it.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Correct done properly, that will handle the problem.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Wonderful. Now let's talk about COVID because there's apparently three
new variants, and I guess the good news and you
can verify this is every time there seems to be
a new variant, the COVID virus gets a little bit weaker.
Is that the case?
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Now, No, it's not that the virus is weaker, it's
that at this point, nearly all of us have either
been infected, received multiple doses of vaccine, or both, so
our immune systems are sort of prepped and ready to
diminish the effects of it. Now, you can still develop
(03:48):
long COVID, you can still develop complications, but that's the
reason for it. There are three, the NB one point eight,
the XFG, and the LP eight point one one variant
one they call nimbus. That's about forty three percent of
cases in the US right now. The popular lay person
(04:10):
description of it is razor blade throat. I've got a
couple of colleagues that are infected, and indeed they say
it's when I swallow, try to eat anything, it feels
like my throat is razor blades.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
Well, that's fascinating.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
I'm sorry, kid. So we really are warning people because
there's a lot of you know, COVID fatigue, if you will.
Cases are up in forty US states already. This very
rapidly is climbing again and people need to be aware
and take precautions.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
That's fascinating that you say that that it's not getting weaker,
because I had heard that over and over again, that
these viruses want to survive and they don't want to
kill their host, and they get weaker just so they
can survive longer. But you're saying it's because now we
build up a little bit of an immunity to it.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Is that the case exactly, And if anything, these variants
are more and more transmissible you know, think about omicron.
When that came out, about ninety percent of the US
got infected by omicron, despite the number of people who
had previously been infected or gotten vaccines.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
All right, I love your next topic because I'm all
into simple Do you say you have four simple keys
to improve your health? How do we do that?
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yeah, Larry, this is you know, there's no rocket science.
This is not molecular biology. Four keys nutrition, exercise, adequate sleep,
and taking care of your mental health. Those map to
what the American Heart Association calls Life's Essential eight. Manage
(05:57):
your blood pressure, nutrition, excercis size, no tobacco, sleep, work well,
maintain your weight, cholesterol, and blood sugar. You do those things.
You do those four things, or Life's essential eight, you
are solving for something like seventy percent or more of
lifestyle induced diseases, which is what causes so much of
(06:21):
premature death and disability in the US.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Well, I'll tell you what. Everybody in morning radio is
screwed then, because you went through those four and I
thought to myself, I don't do any of them. And
Chris is over here, Chris Weitzer is in for Natalie today,
and he's laughing as well, you're the same boat. You
don't do any of that.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
Not not really. I'll tell you. I'll tell you who's
screwed is it's not the morning radio. It's the people
that work the third shift. Third shift workers really do
suffer in terms of their sleep, cardio, metabolic health, exercise.
So for the rest of us, you know, just get
(07:02):
adequate nutrition, exercise, sleep.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
And yeah we heard the first time. We heard it
the first time.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Coffee in the morning.
Speaker 1 (07:11):
If you can't do any of that, now, let's get
back to sleep. I'm looking for a lifeline here a
little bit. Let's get back to sleep. I do. I
don't get enough sleep at night. There's no question I
don't get enough sleep at night. But I do take
a nap. Is does that help?
Speaker 2 (07:25):
It does, Larry. In fact, good data supports that we
are a nation of sleep deprived individuals, and it exacts
a real toll in physical health and mental health. One
way to help make up for that deficit in sleep
is a nap, but a short nap. The data shows
(07:48):
that long naps may actually increase sleep problems and increase
health problems. So a fifteen to twenty minute nap, nap
no problem. A cup of coffee, no problem. But stop
that coffee around no later than two three in the
afternoon so that you're not having problems sleeping that night.
Speaker 1 (08:10):
Now, did you cut your coffee?
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I did. I only drink decaf. Now.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Oh, I was kind of hoping I was going to
catch you, so didn't. Thanks a lot, Doctor Gregory paul
in health and medical expert, a leader in vaccines and
infectious diseases at the Mayo Clinic, and he's also president
of the Atria Research Institute in New York. Thank you
so much.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
Doctor.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
Talk to you again next week.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Pleasure.
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