UP NEXT ON "CYCLE OF HEALTH."

>> TONIGHT'S TOPIC: OLD COVID, LONG COVID, NEW COVID, AND VACCINES" AS COVID CASES SURGE ONCE MORE, AND INDIVIDUALS GRAPPLE WITH LINGERING EFFECTS FROM PREVIOUS INFECTIONS, TONIGHT WE BRING YOU WE TALK WITH TWO EXPERTS TO TALK ABOUT LONG COVID AND THE RAPIDLY SPREADING NEW VIRAL STRAINS.

WHAT IS THE DANGER AND WHAT CAN WE DO?

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> HELLO AND WELCOME TO CYCLE OF HEALTH, I'M DR. RICH O'NEILL.

TONIGHT'S TOPIC: OLD COVID, LONG COVID, NEW COVID, AND VACCINES" ET CETERA.

AS COVID CASES SURGE ONCE MORE, AND INDIVIDUALS GRAPPLE WITH LINGERING EFFECTS FROM PREVIOUS INFECTIONS, TONIGHT WE BRING YOU AN IN-DEPTH CONVERSATION WITH TWO EXPERTS TO DISCUSS THE EMERGING PHENOMENON OF LONG COVID AND THE RAPIDLY SPREADING NEW VIRAL STRAINS.

LET'S MEET OUR GUESTS: DR. MIRIAM MUTAMBUDZI, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH IN THE FALK COLLEGE AT SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY DR. RUSSELL SILVERMAN, A CARDIOLOGIST AT ST. JOSEPH'S HEALTH A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE RON DeSANTIS SAID IF YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT COVID AND VACCINES, YOU ARE A PARANOID HYPOCONDRI AK.

ANOTHER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE ROBERT F. KENNEDY JUNIOR SAID VACCINES DON'T WORK.

WHAT IS THE SCIENCE AND THE NUMBERS, WHAT ARE THEY TELLING US?

>> WELL, WHAT WE FOE FROM THE RESEARCH THAT HAS BEEN DONE AND WHAT WE HAVE BEEN SEEING FROM THE LAST FEW YEARS IS THAT VACCINES WORK.

CASES HAVE GONE DOWN.

THERE HAS BEEN A STEADY DECLINE OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS; HOWEVER, IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, WE HAVE BEEN SEEING A BIT OF AN INCLINE IN CASES.

WE HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT EVEN THOUGH WE ARE SEEING THESE CASES, HIGHER INCIDENCES OF THESE CASES AT THE MOMENT, IT'S MUCH LOWER THAN WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR, WHICH MEANS THAT THE VACCINES ARE WORKING.

THE PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICES THAT WERE PUT IN PLACE ARE WORKING, RIGHT?

AND ALL THE EFFORTS THAT PEOPLE ARE MAKING HAVE BEEN EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE INCIDENTS OF CASES.

WE ALSO HAVE FAR LOWER RATES OF MORTALITY FROM COVID THAN WE DID A YEAR AGO.

SAME THING WITH SEVERITY.

THERE ARE FAR LESS CASES OF INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ENDING UP IN THE HOSPITAL THAN WE HAVE SEEN OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS AND THAT IS THANKS TO THE VACCINES THAT PEOPLE HAVE BEEN GETTING.

>> WELL, THAT'S GOOD REASSURING NEWS.

NOW, Dr. SILVERMAN, PEOPLE COME TO YOUR OFFICE, REFERRED TO YOU PERHAPS WITH SOMETHING THAT THEY THINK IS LONG COVID.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF LONG COVID.

>> FIRST, I THINK, RICH, WE NEED TO DEFINE COVID ILLNESSES.

>> YEAH.

>> MIRIAM'S PRESENTATION CLEARLY STATES, AND I AGREE WITH THAT, THAT THE VACCINE WORKS, AND THERE SHOULD BE VERY LITTLE HINDERANCE TO GET IT.

BUT WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT ACUTE COVID WHICH CAN LAST UPWARDS OF FOUR WEEKS AFTER THE INITIAL SYMPTOMS BEGIN.

>> THAT'S THE SORT OF DEFINING TIME BOUNDARY FOR IT, FOUR WEEKS IS ACUTE COVID?

>> BY DEFINITION, YES.

BETWEEN FOUR WEEKS AND THREE MONTHS IS THE POST-COVID SYNDROME WHICH CAN BE COUGH, WHICH CAN BE SHORTNESS OF BREATH.

IT CAN BE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT SYMPTOMS.

SO WE DON'T CALL IT LONG COVID YET BECAUSE THAT IMPLIES A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT TYPE OF INTERVENTION.

AND THEN ANYTHING AFTER THREE MONTHS WE DEFINE AS LONG COVID AND LONG COVID IS THE MOST PART, FATIGUE, SHORTNESS OF BREATH, CHEST PAIN, CHRONIC COUGH, BUT ALSO PEOPLE HAVE A LOT OF WHAT WE CALL AUTONOMIC SYMPTOMS, PART OF THE NERVOUS SIS SYSTEM THAT CONTROLS THINGS WE DON'T CONTROL, HEART RATE, DIGESTION, DIZZINESS WHICH YOU STAND UP.

THE LONG COVID SYMPTOMS ARE DIFFERENT FOR THE MOST PART THAN THE POST-COVID SYNDROME SYMPTOMS.

>> SOS THE BODY JUST DOES THEM.

WE DON'T HAVE ANY CONSCIOUS CONTROL OVER THOSE.

HOW LONG DO THOSE THINGS LAST.

HOW LONG IS SOMEBODY, YOU KNOW, IF YOU GET POST-COVID INTO THAT UNFORTUNATE POST-THREE-MONTH PERIOD, HOW LONG CAN SOMEBODY EXPECT IT TO GO ON?

>> THAT'S AN INTERESTING QUESTION BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT LONG COVID CAN LAST SIX MONTHS, NINE MONTHS, EVEN A YEAR.

THIS WEEK ALONE, I'VE SEEN THREE CASES OF PATIENTS, NOT CASES BUT THREE PATIENTS WHO HAVE LONG COVID, AND THEIR COVID INFECTION WAS A YEAR AGO.

BUT SOME SYMPTOMS LINGER.

AND THE BEST TREATMENT REALLY, WE GIVE MEDICATIONS TO SUPPRESS SOME OF THE SYMPTOMS, BUT THE BEST UNDERSTANDING IS FOR THE PATIENT TO KNOW THAT THINGS ARE GOING TO IMPROVE, JUST HAVE TO BE VERY PATIENT.

AND WE'LL GET INTO IT LATER ABOUT THE VACCINES, BUT THE ISSUE OF COGNITIVE DYSFUNCTION, MEANING MEMORY LOSS, INABILITY TO THINK QUICKLY.

>> BRAIN FOG.

>> LASTS BUT IT DOES IMPROVE.

>> ALL THOSE THINGS TEND TO IMPROVE OVER TIME.

THEY CAN GO ON A LOT LONGER THAN YOU WOULD LIKE, OF COURSE, IF YOU ARE THE PERSON SUFFERING.

BUT THEY TEND TO IMPROVE OVER TIME.

AND ARE THERE TREATMENTS FOR LONG COVID?

WHAT DO YOU DO FOR THAT, DOC?

>> MOSTLY IT'S SYMPTOMATIC TREATMENT BECAUSE YOU ARE TREATING THE PATIENT'S SYMPTOMS UNTIL THEY GET BETTER.

AND SO USUALLY IT'S SUPPORTIVE TREATMENT WITH, IF THEIR HEARTRATE IS GOING TOO FAST, YOU GIVE THEM MEDICATION TO SLOW DOWN THE HEARTRATE.

IF THEIR BLOOD PRESSURE IS DROPPING, YOU GIVE THEM MEDICATION TO SUPPORT THE BLOOD PRESSURE AND OVER TIME, YOU SLOWLY WITHDRAW THE MEDS TO SEE HOW THEY'RE RESPONDING.

AND ALMOST TO A PERSON, I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO WITHDRAW THESE MEDICATIONS AND HAVE PATIENTS GET BACK TO THEIR NORMAL LIVES WHETHER IT'S ROCK CLIMBING, RUNNING, AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW ALSO, THAT THE SICKER YOU ARE THE MORE LIKELY YOU ARE TO HAVE SOME SORT OF POST-COVID SYNDROME OR LONG COVID AND IF YOU ARE IN AN ICU SETTING, WHICH HAS ITS OWN SET OF COMPLICATIONS AFTER HOSPITALIZATION, YOU ARE MORE LIKELY TO HAVE LONG COVID.

SO THE SICKER YOU ARE, THE WORSE YOU ARE GOING TO DO LONG-TERM IN TERMS OF COVID SYMPTOMS BUT THINGS ARE GOING TO IMPROVE, JUST HAVE TO BE VERY PATIENT.

>> SO THAT, GIVEN THAT THE VACCINES ARE WORKING TO REDUCE THE SEVERITY OF DISEASE, THAT WOULD BE A VERY GOOD IDEA, IF YOU WANT TO AVOID LONG COVID, TO GET VACCINES.

IS THAT WHAT THE NUMBERS ARE SHOWING US IN A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE?

>> ABSOLUTELY.

SO AS Dr. SILVERMAN SAID, THOSE WHO ARE AT GREATER RISK FOR LONG COVID ARE THOSE WHO HAVE MORE SEVERE DISEASE.

VACCINES ARE HELPING US REDUCE THAT RISK OF SEVERITY, RIGHT, THEN IT DOES DO ITS JOB IN REDUCING THE RISK OF LONG COVID.

>> ARE THERE OTHER DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS, DIFFERENT AGES OR RACES OR GENDERS OR WHATEVER, THAT PREDICT THE DEVELOPMENT OF LONG COVID?

ARE THERE ANY OTHER FACTORS?

>> SO, AS WE KNOW, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MORE VULNERABLE TO COVID, COVID SEVERITY, COVID MORTALITY ARE OLDER ADULTS WITH MULTIPLE MORBIDITIES.

WE ALSO SEE HIGHER CASES IN THOSE WHO ARE IMMUNOCOMPROMISED.

BUT WE ALSO SEE, YOU KNOW, SOME RACIAL DISPARITIES THERE.

BLACKS AND HISPANICS RELATIVE TO WHITES ARE AT GREATER RISK FOR DISEASE SEVERITY.

SO FROM THE RESEARCH, WE SEE THAT THESE SAME GROUPS THAT ARE MORE VULNERABLE, DO END UP HAVING HIGHER RATES OF LONG COVID.

>> WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR THAT RACIAL DISPARITY?

>> THERE ARE A NUMBER OF THINGS GOING ON.

I THINK THAT ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS-- SO WHEN THE SHUTDOWN HAPPENED IN 2020, A LOT OF PEOPLE HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF WORKING FROM HOME.

BUT THERE WERE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO HAD JOBS THAT JUST DID NOT ALLOW FOR THAT, RIGHT?

AND WE KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, IN NEW YORK CITY, THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAD PUBLIC FACING JOBS WERE MINORITIES, BLACKS AND HISPANICS WHO HAD TO GET UP EVERY DAY AND, YOU KNOW, WORK THE TRANSIT SYSTEM, WORK IN, YOU KNOW, RESTAURANTS AND OTHER PLACES.

>> AND MORE LIKELY TO GET INFECTED.

>> RIGHT, ABSOLUTELY.

SO, BECAUSE OF THAT, WE SAW MUCH HIGHER RATES IN THOSE MINORITY GROUPS.

WE SAW HIGHER RATES, HIGHER MORTALITY RATES FROM COVID AS WELL FROM THOSE GROUPS.

AND WE ARE SEEING, YOU KNOW, THE SAME WITH LONG COVID.

IT'S NOT-- I DON'T BELIEVE-- THERE IS NO RESEARCH TO SAY IT'S ANYTHING GENETIC.

IT'S JUST MORE EXPOSURE AND SO FORTH.

AND JUST ON THAT TOPIC, TOO, THERE IS ALSO, FROM WHAT WE'VE SEEN, JUST A LOT OF SUSPICIOUS SUSPICION WITHIN THE BLACK COMMUNITY ABOUT VACCINES.

>> FROM HISTORICAL BAD TREATMENT IN THE MEDICAL SYSTEM.

>> RIGHT.

ABSOLUTELY.

IN MY HEALTH DISPARITIES COURSE, I TALK ABOUT THAT BEING A VERY HEALTHY SUSPICIOUS-- A HEALTHY SUSPICION GIVEN WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST.

BUT WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE IS THAT THE VACCINE IS WORKING LIKE IT SHOULD.

IT WORKS.

A LOT OF PEOPLE, BOTH WITHIN MINORITY SUBGROUPS AND OUTSIDE OF THEM, HAVE REALLY BENEFITED FROM IT.

SO IT'S REALLY SOMETHING THAT, I THINK, EVEN IF THERE IS A BIT OF DISCOMFORT ABOUT IT, SPEAKING TO , YOU KNOW, A PRIMARY CAREGIVER WHO IS, YOU KNOW, BLACK OR HISPANIC, I THINK IT WOULD REALLY HELP IN ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO GO OUT AND GET THIS VACCINE.

>> LIKE YOU.

YOU ARE A BLACK WOMAN WHO IS GIVING THE GOOD NEWS... >> ABSOLUTELY.

I GOT THE VACCINE AND.

>> ME, TOO.

AND THREE BOOSTERS NOW, I THINK.

>> I GOT THE BOOSTERS AS WELL.

AND I'LL TELL YOU, EARLIER THIS YEAR, MY HUSBAND AND I WERE GOING TO A WEDDING IN CALIFORNIA.

HE HAD GOTTEN THE BIVARIANT BOOSTER.

I HAD NOT.

AND SO AS I DO MOST OF THE TIME IN PUBLIC SPACES, I WORE MY MASK AND HE DECIDED TO NOT WEAR HIS MASK.

AND I WAS NOT HAPPY ABOUT THIS, BUT, YOU KNOW... >> SOMETIMES YOU JUST CAN'T TELL 'EM, RIGHT?

THE SPOUSE, THEY WON'T LISTEN.

>> THEY WON'T LISTEN, RIGHT.

HE IS USUALLY GOOD ABOUT IT, BUT FOR SOME REASON HE WAS JUST LIKE I'M FINE.

AND SO WE GOT ON THE FLIGHT.

WE WENT TO CALIFORNIA.

WE WENT THOUGH WEDDING-- WE WENT TO THIS WEDDING.

IT WAS LOVELY.

I GOT BACK TO NEW YORK AND I STARTED HAVING SYMPTOMS WHICH INITIALLY I THOUGHTER, I PROBABLY HAD...

IT WAS A BIT NIP NECESSITY CALIFORNIA.

THE WEDDING WAS OUTSIDE SO I JUST THOUGHT THIS IS WHAT IT IS.

A FEW DAYS-- A DAY OR TWO LATER, I THOUGHT I MUST TEST.

I DID.

I HAD TESTED POSITIVE.

MY HUSBAND DID NOT.

>> SO HE DIDN'T WEAR THE MASK AND YOU DID BUT YOU DIDN'T HAVE THE BIVARIANT VACCINE DESIGNED FOR BOTH... >> RIGHT.

AND HE ENDED UP.

AND TO BE HONEST, I WAS A BIT RESENTFUL OF THE FACT THAT I WAS THE ONE WHO GOT SICK WHEN I, YOU KNOW, HAD WORN A MASK BUT AGAIN IT JUST GOES BACK TO THE VACCINES WORK AND ARE REALLY QUITE VALUABLE IN REDUCING SEVERITY OF DISEASE WITHIN THE BLACK COMMUNITY AND FOR EVERYBODY ELSE.

>> SO, Dr. SILVERMAN, YOU ARE A CARDIOLOGIST.

I'M IMAGINING THAT IF PEOPLE GET LONG COVID, THEY WOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR HEART.

AND I THINK I'VE SEEN SOME ARTICLES ABOUT THAT.

DOES THE HEART GET INVOLVED?

IS IT COMPROMISED IN SOME WAY WITH LONG COVID?

>> ACUTELY, ACUTE COVID, YES.

MUCH LESS ACTUALLY THAN WE INITIALLY THOUGHT.

NOT EVERYBODY GETS MAYO CARDITIS, THE TELL TERM FOR INFLAMMATION OF THE HEART MUSSEL.

-- MUSCLE WHASM WE SEE IN THE LONG-TERM IS LONG COVID IS AN INAPPROPRIATE RESPONSE TO ACTIVITY WHERE THE HEART RATE GOES TOO FAST WHICH WE CALL INAPPROPRIATE SINUS TACHYCARDIA.

THAT MEANS THE HEART BEAT IS ORIGINATING IN THE RIGHT PLACE BUT IT'S OVERREACTING TO THE AMOUNT OF EXERTION THAT IS BEING ASKED OF IT.

SO THAT'S ONE OF THE LONG COVID SYMPTOMS THAT WE HAVE TO CRETE-- THAT WE HAVE TO TREAT.

AND EVEN THE SLIGHTEST ACTIVITY, THE HEART RATE GOES UP TO 150 TO 160 AND PS NOT GOOD FOR PATIENTS, AS YOU MIGHT EXPECT.

LONG-TERM WE SEE OTHER RHYTHM DISTURBANCES AS WELL.

BUT IT'S THE ACUTE PHASE OF THE COVID INFECTION REALLY THAT CAN INJURE THE HEART MUSCLE.

>> AND THAT WOULD BE PRETTY SCARY SUDDENLY YOUR HEART RATE GOES UP TO 150, YOU WOULD PROBABLY REALLY FEEL THAT IN YOUR CHEST, YOU KNOW, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP.

ARE THERE OTHER SPECIALTIES THAT GET LOVED IN LONG COVID, PARTICULAR SPECIALTIES THAT ARE INVOLVED?

>> LONG COVID CAN BE THE RESULT OF FAILURE OF YOUR SENSE OF SMELL AND TASTE TO RETURN TO NORMAL AND EAR, NOSE AND THROAT FREQUENTLY GET INVOLVED BECAUSE SOME OF THESE PATIENTS REQUIRE ACTUALLY RETRAINING OF THEIR SENSE OF SMELL BY USING ESSENTIAL OILS AND HAVING TO LEARN WHAT THEY SMELL LIKE AND EXPERIENCE THAT AND THEN IT HELPS ALSO IN REGENERATION OF THE NERVES.

TASTE IS ALSO ANOTHER ISSUE.

SO THAT'S EAR, NOSE AND THROAT AS WELL.

PULMONARY SPECIALISTS, LUNG SPECIALISTS GET INVOLVED BECAUSE SOME PATIENTS WHO HAVE HAD A PARTICULARLY ROCKY ACUTE PHASE, CAN END UP WITH SIGNIFICANT LUNG PROBLEMS, SCARRING OF THE LUNG THAT DOES NOT HEEL AND THEY END UP-- DOES NOT HEAL AND THEY END UP SHORT OF BREATH FOR THE REMAINDER OF THEIR LIVES, EVEN ON OXYGEN.

I HAVE A NUMBER OF PATIENTS THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THAT, UNFORTUNATELY.

SOMETIMES WE GET ENDOCRINOLOGISTS, DOCTORS INVOLVED IN HORMONES BECAUSE THERE ARE HORMONAL THINGS THAT CAN OCCUR.

IT'S ACROSS THE SPECTRUM OF MEDICINE, NOT JUST CARDIOLOGISTS BUT WE TEND TO SEE THAT PATIENT FIRST AND THEN SEND THEM OFF OR MAKE THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT THEY SEE OTHER SPECIALTIES AS NEEDED.

>> SO, AS I'M LISTENING TO IT, I'M THINKING, BOY, I REALLY DON'T WANT TO GET LONG COVID.

WHAT ABOUT PREVENTION?

WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO PREVENT GETTING LONG COVID?

IS IT VACCINES?

>> IT IS VACCINES.

I THINK MIRIAM WILL AGREE WITH THAT.

I DON'T WANT TO STEP ON HER TOES.

SHE CAN CERTAINLY SPEAK TO THAT.

BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT EVERYTHING YOU WERE TOLD THREE YEARS AGO OR TWO YEARS AGO STANDS.

THE VACCINE, HANDWASHING, MASKS, SOCIAL DISTANCING.

SHOWS ARE THE MAJOR WAYS WE PREVENT AN ACUTE COVID INFECTION THAT COULD LEAD TO POST COVID CONDITION OR LONG COVID.

SO REALLY IT IS HYGIENE THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE, KEEPING CLEAN.

AND WITHOUT QUESTION, THE VACCINE IS WHAT REALLY HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE.

THE ONE OTHER THING THAT I WANT TO SAY ABOUT THE VACCINE IS THAT IF YOU HAVE LONG COVID, GETTING THE VACCINE POTENTIALLY CAN REVERSE A LOT OF THE LONG COVID SYMPTOMS.

IT'S BEEN SHOWN IN A NUMBER OF STUDIES THAT THE VACCINE IS NOT HARMFUL, AND IN FACT CAN IMPROVE YOUR LONG COVID SYMPTOMS.

SO I WOULD, WITHOUT QUESTION, I WOULD BE THE FIRST IN LINE TO GET THE NEW COVID VACCINE AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO, IF THEY HAVEN'T, OR ARE NOT UP TO DATE ON THEIR BOOSTERS, PROBABLY TO GET THE MOST RECENT BOOSTER AND THEN WAIT THE TWO MONTHS AND GET A NEW VACCINE WOULD BE, WHAT I'M RECOMMENDING TO YOUR PATIENT.

>> YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO GET IN LINE AFTER ME, I HAVE TO SAY.

I'M ALREADY IN LINE.

YEAH, SO THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GREAT ADVICE.

IS THERE A WAY TO TEST SOMEBODY TO KNOW?

IS THERE A TEST LIKE THE AT-HOME TEST FOR COVID TO KNOW YOU'VE GOT LONG COVID.

>> NO.

THAT TEST, AS FAR AS I KNOW, THERE ISN'T A BLOOD TEST TO LOOK FOR THAT.

BUT IT'S REALLY A SYMPTOMATIC-- WELL, THERE ARE TESTS THAT WE DO TO PROVE THERE IS AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM ISSUE.

THERE ARE TESTS THAT WE DO FOR THAT, YES, BUT IS THERE A DIRECT TEST LIKE A BLOOD TEST, I'M NOT AWARE OF THAT.

AND.

>> AND SO YOU ARE SAYING PEOPLE WITH LONG COVID SHOULD GET THE VACCINES.

WHAT ABOUT PREGNANT PEOPLE?

ARE THERE ANY CONTRAINDICATIONS FOR PREGNANT PEOPLE GETTING VACCINATED?

>> I'M NOT AWARE OF THAT.

HAVE YOU TO ASK YOUR OBSTETRICIAN.

BUT I KNOW A LOT OF MY PATIENTS WHO ARE OR WERE PREGNANT AT THE TIME WERE ENCOURAGED TO GET THE VACCINE.

>> AND, YOU KNOW, WE ARE COMING UP ON FLU SEASON AND WE SEE IN THE PAPER RSV, I DON'T EVEN KNOW,000 SAY THAT, RES-- I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SAY THAT.

>> RESPIRATORY SENTITIAL... >> IF WE ARE GOING TO GET VACCINATED FOR COVID, SHOULD WE GET THE FLU VACCINE AND THE RSV VACCINE AT THE SAME TIME?

>> MIRIAM, ARE YOU ABLE TO DISCUSS THAT?

>> ABSOLUTELY.

SO THE FLU VACCINE AND THE COVID VACCINE, I THINK, EVERYBODY SHOULD MAKE SURE THAT THEY GET IN LINE TO GET THOSE VACCINES THIS FALL.

THE RSV, I THINK THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WOULD YOU SPEAK WITH YOUR PRIMARY CARE TO SEE IF YOU NEED TO GET IT.

I DO KNOW THAT THEY ARE RECOMMENDING IT FOR OLDER ADULTS FOR 65 AND OLDER, WHO HAVE CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS.

IF YOU ARE UNDER THAT AGE, IF YOU ARE YOUNG ERR,-- IF YOU ARE YOUNGER AND WOULD LIKE TO GET IT, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH YOUR PRIMARY CARE.

>> WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

THAT'S ALMOST ALL THE TIME WE HAVE.

I WANT TO THANK OUR GUESTS DR. MIRIAM MUTAMBUDZI, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH IN THE FALK COLLEGE AT SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY DR. DR. RUSSELL SILVERMAN, A CARDIOLOGIST AT ST. JOSEPH'S HEALTH NOW, IT'S TIME TO TAKE A BREAK FOR A MOMENT OF LEVITY.

LAUGHTER IS NOT ONLY ENJOYABLE BUT ALSO COMES WITH PROVEN HEALTH ADVANTAGES >> MIRIAM, WHY WAS THE DERMATOLOGIST FIRED?

>> WHY?

>> BECAUSE HE MADE TOO MANY RASH DECISIONS AND RUSTY, WHAT IS THE BEST CAR FOR A CARDIOLOGIST TO OWN?

>> I DON'T KNOW, RICH.

>> A BEATER.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP.

GET IT?

AN OLD GRUNGY CAR... ALL RIGHT.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO SUBMIT A JOKE TO BE SHARED DURING OUR "LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE" SEGMENT OR TO SEE MORE OF OUR PROGRAM, VISIT WCNY.ORG/CYCLEOFHEALTH.

TO HEAR OUR NEW COMPANION COMMUNITY FM RADIO SHOW, CHECK UP FROM THE NECK UP, VISIT WCNY.ORG/COMMUNITYFM FOR 'CYCLE OF HEALTH,' I'M PSYCHOLOGIST DR. RICH O'NEILL.

AND NOW STAY TUNED TO ENJOY THIS WEEK'S MINI CHECKUP FROM THE NECK UP.

THANKS FOR CHECKING IN.

♪ ♪ >> HI, I'M PSYCHOLOGIST Dr. RICH O'NEILL WITH THIS WEEK'S CHECKUP FROM OUR NECK UP.

HOW TO GET YOUR WEIGHT UNDER CONTROL OR BE YOUR OWN ALARM CLOCK.

WELL, FOLKS, 100 YEARS AGO, BEFORE ELECTRIC LIGHTS, THE TUBE AND THE WEB, WE AVERAGED NINE HOURS OF SHUT EYE A NIGHT.

NOW, SEVEN.

AND WE WERE A LOT SKINNIER BACK THEN.

EVEN THOUGH WE ARE DIETING ALL THE TIME NOW, WHAT'S UP?

WELL, IN 2010, A STUDY GAVE US PART OF THE ANSWER.

OVERWEIGHT SEDENTARY MEN AND WOMEN SPENT TWO WEEKS IN A SLEEP LAB.

HALF GOT EIGHT AND A HALF HOURS IN BED EVERY NIGHT.

THE OTHER HALF FIVE AND A HALF.

THEY ALL ATE 10% FEWER CALORIES THAN USUAL.

AFTER TWO WEEKS, BOTH GROUPS OF DIETERS HAD LOST ABOUT THE SAME AMOUNT.

6.6 POUNDS BUT THE SLEEP DEPRIVED FOLKS LOST ONLY 1 AND ONE THIRD POUNDS OF FAT AND THE REST MUSCLE, WHILE THE LONGER SLEEPERS, THREE POUNDS OF FAT AND MUCH LESS MUSCLE.

AND THE SLEEPY FOLKS WERE MUCH HUNGRIER THAN THE RESTED FOLKS ALL DAY EVERY DAY.

BUT YOU MIGHT BE SAYING I DON'T LIVE IN A SLEEP LAB!

WHAT ABOUT IN THE REAL WORLD!

WELL, A NEW STUDY JUST SHOWED THAT CHUBBY PEOPLE WHO WERE NUDGED TO SLEEP MORE DID.

ATE ABOUT 270 CALORIES LESS A DAY AND LOST WEIGHT OVER SIX YEARS WHILE PEOPLE WHO KEPT SLEEP DEPRIVING THEMSELVES ATE MORE AND GAINED WEIGHT.

HOW DO YOU GET ENOUGH SLEEP?

CHECK OUT SLEEP HYGIENE ON THE CDC'S WEBSITE AND DO WHAT IT SAYS, INCLUDING SKIPPING THE ALARM CLOCK AND LETTING YOUR BODY WAKE UP NATURALLY SOMETIMES.

YOU WILL BE LESS HUNGRY, EAT LESS AND FEEL BETTER ALL AROUND.

I'M Dr. NECK-UP SAND MAN O'NEILL, SEE YOU IN DREAM LAND.

NEXT WEEK ON "CYCLE OF HEALTH..." >> TONIGHT'S TOPIC, LYME DISEASE AND TICK BORN ILLNESSES.

ON THIS EPISODE, WE'LL EXPLORE THE SCIENCE BEHIND THESE ILLNESSES FROM THE LIFE CYCLE OF TICKS TO THE PATHOGENS THEY CARRY.

WE'LL EXAMINE THE TELL TALE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS AND PROVIDE YOU WITH THE TOOLS AND KNOWLEDGE NEEDED TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR LOVED ONES WHILE ENJOYING THE GREAT OUTDOORS.