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N.Y.C. Council speaker calls on Mayor Eric Adams to resign; KY could do more to protect kids from accidental drug ingestion, shootings; OH food banks face fed funding uncertainty, DeWine budget cuts; Protesters say Trump administration actions 'cast aside democracy.'

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On a Middle East visit, Sen. Richard Blumenthal rejects a Gaza takeover. President's Day protests erupt around the country against White House moves, and another aviation accident draws attention to recent FAA cuts.

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Rural America struggles with opioids and homelessness in unexpected ways, Colorado's Lariat Ditch could help spur local recreation, and book deliveries revive rural communities hit by Hurricane Helene.

New relief for Arkansans suffering from long COVID

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Tuesday, December 3, 2024   

The aftermath of COVID-19 infections has left many with unexplainable fatigue or memory loss.

A new study revealed a prescription drug used for another chronic illness shows promising results in reducing COVID aftereffects. Metformin is what doctors often prescribe for managing Type 2 diabetes.

Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum, internist and fibromyalgia specialist at Washington University in St. Louis, said the result of studies on 9 million people, with and without diabetes, revealed how the medication works.

"It turns out that Metformin acts like 'birth control' for COVID," Teitelbaum explained. "It suppresses the viral replication, keeps it from getting in cells, and basically, it's like the virus hits a red light."

A new map from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the regions of the U.S. where COVID-19 cases are on the rise. According to the most recent figures, 6.3% of COVID tests in Arkansas are coming back positive.

A review published in Nature Medicine looks at the economics of using Metformin. It notes "long COVID" has affected more than 400 million people globally, costing $1 trillion a year, and suggests more than half of cases were preventable had Metformin been administered.

Teitelbaum pointed out the drug is inexpensive and he wants patients to take a more proactive role in their health.

"Doctors are just learning about it," Teitelbaum acknowledged. "There's nobody paying to get this information to physicians, which means that you're going to have to be the one as a patient to get this research to your doctor and to ask them. This is how doctors will hear about studies."

The CDC has found American Indians and Alaska Natives are about 3.5 times more likely to experience long COVID. The likelihood for people who identify as Hispanic or Black is 2.5 times.


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