Bee honey and exercise for improving physical performance, reducing fatigue, and promoting an active lifestyle during COVID-19

Effect of a honey-sweetened beverage on muscle soreness and recovery of performance after exercise-induced muscle damage in strength-trained females

Background

This study explores a novel approach to mitigating delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS), a common issue among strength-trained females. By investigating the potential of a honey-sweetened beverage, which contains anti-inflammatory properties, we aim to enhance muscle recovery after exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD).

Method

A randomized, cross-over, placebo-controlled, and double-blinded study was conducted with sixteen female strength athletes. Firstly, the baseline measurements were recorded, and participants were randomly divided into two conditions: honey-sweetened beverage (HSB; 70 g of honey in 250 mL water with a concentration of 28%) and placebo (PLA; 250 mL of water with 70 g of artificial sweetener). The HSB and PLA were consumed 90 min before the EIMD started (200 vertical jumps with 10% body-weighted vests). Recovery monitoring of performance indicators and DOMS was performed after EIMD. The results of wall-sit, V-Sit and reach flexibility test (VSFT), vertical jump height (VJH), pressure pain threshold (PPT), and one repetition maximum (IRM) tests were recorded 48 h after EIMD. Also, DOMS was recorded using the visual analog scale (VAS) before the start of the test and immediately, 12, 24, and 48 h after EIMD. A one-week interval was considered a washout period for each condition. The collected data were analyzed by repeated measures of ANOVA and Bonferroni post hoc test and dependent t-test at P ≤ 0.05 level.

Results

Compared to PLA, HSB ingestion improves wall-sit performance (p = 0.003), 1RM (p = 0.019), and RPE (p = 0.003) after EIMD. However, no significant differences were observed between BL, PLA, and HSB in VJH (p = 0.384), VSFT (p = 0.840), and PPT (p = 0.151) after EIMD. Furthermore, HSB, compared to PLA, considerably decreased the values of DOMS immediately, 12, 24, and 48 h after EIMD (p < 0.05).

Conclusion

Our findings illustrated that ingesting HSB in strength-trained females can be a helpful strategy for improving recovery indicators such as muscle strength, endurance, and muscle soreness after EIMD.

Effects of Hormonal Replacement Therapy and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on Climacteric Symptoms Following Risk-Reducing Salpingo-Oophorectomy

Breast Cancer Associated Susceptibility Proteins Type 1/2 (BRCA1/2) promote cellular functioning by modulating NRF2-mediated antioxidant signaling. Redox failure in women with BRCA1/2 insufficiency increases the risk for breast/ovarian/uterine cancers. Risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) is a prophylactic surgery of the reproductive organs, which is frequently conducted by the age of 40 to lower the occurrence of cancer in women with BRCA1/2 mutations. However, abrupt estrogen decline following RRSO causes ovarian failure, which implicates various cellular physiological processes, resulting in the increased release of free radicals and subsequent severe onset of menopausal symptoms. Comfort measures (e.g., hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)) may improve chronological menopause-related quality of life, but their specific effects are not clear in women with gene mutations. Aiming to fill the gap, this study used path analysis to examine the effects of HRT and MBSR on menopausal symptoms among RRSO patients (N = 199, mean age = 50.5 ± 6.7 years). HRT directly alleviated the levels of urogenital symptoms (β = -0.195, p = 0.005), which mediated its indirect significant effects on the somatic-vegetative and psychological symptoms of menopause (β = -0.046, -0.067; both p values = 0.004, respectively), especially in BRCA2 carriers and in women who were currently physically active, premenopausal at the time of RRSO, had a high BMI, and had no history of breast cancer. It increased the severity of urogenital symptoms in women with a history of cancer. MBSR, on the other hand, was associated with indirect increases in the intensity of the somatic-vegetative and psychological symptoms of menopause (β = 0.108, 0.029; p = 0.003, 0.033, respectively). It exerted positive direct effects on different menopausal symptoms in multigroup analysis. The results suggest that young women undergoing recent RRSO may benefit from HRT at an individual level, while their need for extensive measures to optimize their psychological wellbeing is ongoing. The adverse effects of MBSR, which are captured in the present study, imply that MBSR may interfere with redox sensitivity associated with estradiol fluctuations in BRCA1/2 carriers. Investigations are needed to test this hypothesis and elaborate on the underlying mechanisms in these women.

Recent advances and opportunities related to the use of bee products in food processing

Nowadays, natural foods that can provide positive health effects are gaining more and more popularity. Bees and the products they produce are our common natural heritage that should be developed. In the article, we presented the characteristics of bee products and their use in industry. We described the development and importance of beekeeping in the modern world. Due to their high nutritional value and therapeutic properties, bee products are of great interest and their consumption is constantly growing. The basis for the use of bee products in human nutrition is their properties and unique chemical composition. The conducted research and opinions confirm the beneficial effect of bee products on health. The current consumer awareness of the positive impact of food having a pro-health effect on health and well-being affects the increase in interest and demand for this type of food among various social groups. Enriching the daily diet with bee products may support the functioning of the organism. New technologies have appeared on the market to improve the process of obtaining bee products. The use of bee products plays a large role in many industries; moreover, the consumption of bee products and promotion of their medicinal properties are very important in shaping proper eating habits.

The Association Between Depressive Symptoms and Sarcopenia Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose

To evaluate the relationship between depressive symptoms and sarcopenia among older adults.

Materials and Methods

This is a cross-sectional study. A total of 700 community-dwelling older persons enrolled in this study. Sarcopenia is defined according to the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 (AWGS 2019). The bioelectrical impedance analysis assessed muscle mass while a digital dynamometer quantified muscle strength. Furthermore, a 6-meter gait speed test measured physical performance. The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-30) screened for depressive symptoms. Data collected include those of socio-demographic, lifestyle, and comorbidity.

Results

The sample comprised 700 participants (455 women) with a mean age of 70.4±6.8 years. 21.5% had sarcopenia, among them, 5.6% at severe stage, while depressive symptoms were present in 8.1% (57/700). After adjusting for the potential confounders of age, sex, marital status, living status, hypertension, body mass index, and physical activity, the depressive symptoms that were found were not associated with sarcopenia but, instead, low gait speed. However, severe sarcopenia significantly impacted the risk of depressive symptoms, particularly in females.

Conclusion

Depressive symptoms are not associated with sarcopenia, but severe sarcopenia increases the risk of depressive symptoms in females, according to updated AWGS 2019 criteria. Gait speed is independently associated with depressive symptoms. The finding highlights that older people with sarcopenia should be screened for depressive symptoms, especially females. Future studies should evaluate the value of gait speed interventions for depressive symptoms among older adults.

COVID-19-Related Psychological Trauma and Psychological Distress Among Community-Dwelling Psychiatric Patients: People Struck by Depression and Sleep Disorders Endure the Greatest Burden

COVID-19 has created a general state of worry and distress, especially among vulnerable groups such as those with psychiatric diagnoses. Worldwide, psychiatric care provision has drastically suffered during the pandemic, with many patients unable to access proper care, which may have implications for increased mental health consequences in patients with psychiatric disorders (e.g., relapse and suicide). This cross-sectional study used structural equation modeling to investigate COVID-19-related trauma and distress among Arab psychiatric population during COVID-19 quarantine. Patients with pre-existing psychiatric disorders (N = 168) completed an online survey that comprised the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21 (DASS-21), the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and a questionnaire on COVID-19-related attitudes/perceptions, sources of information, used protective measures, and socio-demographic information. Respondents commonly reported feeling down-hearted/blue, trouble concentrating, along with symptoms of avoidance and rumination related to the pandemic. Patients with depression and sleep disorders expressed higher COVID-19-related trauma than patients with other disorders. Perceived physical health mediated the effect of co-morbid chronic physical disorders on COVID-19 trauma, psychological distress, perceived vulnerability to COVID-19, and perceived likelihood of recovery in case of contracting COVID-19. Perceived physical health and perceived vulnerability to COVID-19 were strong direct predictors of COVID-19-related trauma and psychological distress. Staying at home negatively predicted COVID-19 trauma and exerted an indirect negative effect on psychological distress via COVID-19 trauma. COVID-19 trauma, age, and marital status directly predicted psychological distress, with COVID-19 trauma being the strongest predictor. Educational level, income, having family members working in the medical field, keeping up to date with the news on deaths/infected cases or the development of COVID-19 drugs or vaccines, satisfaction with available information on COVID-19, and using different protective measures were not associated with significant differences in COVID-19 trauma and psychological distress scores. Immuno-psychiatric interventions should be designed to target COVID-19-trauma and distress among younger single patients with perceived poor physical health, especially those diagnosed with depression and sleep disorders.

The Six-Item Version of the Internet Addiction Test: Its Development, Psychometric Properties, and Measurement Invariance among Women with Eating Disorders and Healthy School and University Students

Internet addiction (IA) is widespread, comorbid with other conditions, and commonly undetected, which may impede recovery. The Internet Addiction Test (IAT) is widely used to evaluate IA among healthy respondents, with less agreement on its dimensional structure. This study investigated the factor structure, invariance, predictive validity, criterion validity, and reliability of the IAT among Spanish women with eating disorders (EDs, N = 123), Chinese school children (N = 1072), and Malay/Chinese university students (N = 1119). In school children, four factors with eigen values > 1 explained 50.2% of the variance, with several items cross-loading on more than two factors and three items failing to load on any factor. Among 19 tested models, CFA revealed excellent fit of a unidimensional six-item IAT among ED women and university students (χ2(7) = 8.695, 35.038; p = 0.275, 0.001; CFI = 0.998, 981; TLI = 0.996, 0.960; RMSEA = 0.045, 0.060; SRMR = 0.0096, 0.0241). It was perfectly invariant across genders, academic grades, majors, internet use activities, nationalities (Malay vs. Chinese), and Malay/Chinese female university students vs. Spanish women with anorexia nervosa, albeit it was variant at the scalar level in tests involving other EDs, signifying increased tendency for IA in pathological overeating. The six-item IAT correlated with the effects of internet use on academic performance at a greater level than the original IAT (r = -0.106, p < 0.01 vs. r = -0.78, p < 0.05), indicating superior criterion validity. The six-item IAT is a robust and brief measure of IA in healthy and diseased individuals from different cultures.

The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21: Development and Validation of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 8-Item in Psychiatric Patients and the General Public for Easier Mental Health Measurement in a Post COVID-19 World

Despite extensive investigations of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21) since its development in 1995, its factor structure and other psychometric properties still need to be firmly established, with several calls for revising its item structure. Employing confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), this study examined the factor structure of the DASS-21 and five shortened versions of the DASS-21 among psychiatric patients (N = 168) and the general public (N = 992) during the COVID-19 confinement period in Saudi Arabia. Multigroup CFA, Mann Whitney W test, Spearman's correlation, and coefficient alpha were used to examine the shortened versions of the DASS-21 (DASS-13, DASS-12, DASS-9 (two versions), and DASS-8) for invariance across age and gender groups, discriminant validity, predictive validity, item coverage, and internal consistency, respectively. Compared with the DASS-21, all three-factor structures of the shortened versions expressed good fit, with the DASS-8 demonstrating the best fit and highest item loadings on the corresponding factors in both samples (χ2(16, 15) = 16.5, 67.0; p = 0.420, 0.001; CFI = 1.000, 0.998; TLI = 0.999, 0.997; RMSEA = 0.013, 0.059, SRMR = 0.0186, 0.0203). The DASS-8 expressed configural, metric, and scalar invariance across age and gender groups. Its internal consistency was comparable to other versions (α = 0.94). Strong positive correlations of the DASS-8 and its subscales with the DASS-21 and its subscales (r = 0.97 to 0.81) suggest adequate item coverage and good predictive validity of this version. The DASS-8 and its subscales distinguished the clinical sample from the general public at the same level of significance expressed by the DASS-21 and other shortened versions, supporting its discriminant validity. Neither the DASS-21 nor the shortened versions distinguished patients diagnosed with depression and anxiety from each other or from other psychiatric conditions. The DASS-8 represents a valid short version of the DASS-21, which may be useful in research and clinical practice for quick identification of individuals with potential psychopathologies. Diagnosing depression/anxiety disorders may be further confirmed in a next step by clinician-facilitated examinations. Brevity of the DASS-21 would save time and effort used for filling the questionnaire and support comprehensive assessments by allowing the inclusion of more measures on test batteries.

Vitamin K in COVID-19—Potential Anti-COVID-19 Properties of Fermented Milk Fortified with Bee Honey as a Natural Source of Vitamin K and Probiotics

Vitamin K deficiency is evident in severe and fatal COVID-19 patients. It is associated with the cytokine storm, thrombotic complications, multiple organ damage, and high mortality, suggesting a key role of vitamin K in the pathology of COVID-19. To support this view, we summarized findings reported from machine learning studies, molecular simulation, and human studies on the association between vitamin K and SARS-CoV-2. We also investigated the literature for the association between vitamin K antagonists (VKA) and the prognosis of COVID-19. In addition, we speculated that fermented milk fortified with bee honey as a natural source of vitamin K and probiotics may protect against COVID-19 and its severity. The results reported by several studies emphasize vitamin K deficiency in COVID-19 and related complications. However, the literature on the role of VKA and other oral anticoagulants in COVID-19 is controversial: some studies report reductions in (intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation, and mortality), others report no effect on mortality, while some studies report higher mortality among patients on chronic oral anticoagulants, including VKA. Supplementing fermented milk with honey increases milk peptides, bacterial vitamin K production, and compounds that act as potent antioxidants: phenols, sulforaphane, and metabolites of lactobacilli. Lactobacilli are probiotic bacteria that are suggested to interfere with various aspects of COVID-19 infection ranging from receptor binding to metabolic pathways involved in disease prognosis. Thus, fermented milk that contains natural honey may be a dietary manipulation capable of correcting nutritional and immune deficiencies that predispose to and aggravate COVID-19. Empirical studies are warranted to investigate the benefits of these compounds.