CEU San Pablo University

Children born in October are more likely to be vaccinated against flu during that month and less likely to be diagnosed with the disease than those born in other months, according to a study published in BMJ. The research involved more than 800,000 US children aged two to five years who were vaccinated against the flu between 1 August and 31 January in the period from 2011 to 2018. The results suggest that the month of birth is related to both the timing of flu vaccination and the likelihood of flu diagnosis, and that October is the best month for flu vaccination.

A meta-analysis analyzing the results of 18 clinical trials concludes that influenza vaccination may produce more adverse reactions in women than in men. According to the authors, whose research is published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, "the data suggest that most reactions are mild, self-limited, and rarely serious." "Transparent communication about the increased risk for women could help maintain long-term confidence in health authorities and vaccines," they add.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) have published a health impact assessment of the sweetener aspartame. Citing "limited evidence" of carcinogenicity in humans, IARC has classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B). For its part, JECFA has not changed the acceptable daily intake of this sweetener, which is set at 40 mg/kg body weight. According to these bodies, with one can of diet soft drink containing 200-300 mg aspartame, a 70 kg adult would need to consume more than 9-14 cans per day to exceed the acceptable daily intake - assuming no other intake from other dietary sources.

Parkinson's disease is usually diagnosed when there is already extensive neuronal damage and symptoms are evident. Now, researchers at Cardiff University in the UK have used movement and sleep quality data from wearable accelerometers and concluded that they can help identify the disease early, years before clinical diagnosis. Although there is no effective preventive treatment, the authors propose that the tool can determine people at risk of developing Parkinson's disease and identify participants for clinical trials of neuroprotective treatments. The results are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

Reuters has reported that aspartame, one of the most common artificial sweeteners, will be listed as "possibly carcinogenic to humans" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), an agency of the World Health Organisation, in July.

A study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine shows the results of a phase 1 trial of a new broad-spectrum influenza vaccine. Prepared in the form of nanoparticles containing the H1 hemagglutinin stem-a region that is often conserved in different subtypes of the virus-the vaccine was generally well tolerated by participants, who showed only mild side effects such as tenderness and headaches. The prototype generated an antibody response to group 1 influenza viruses in all age groups.

A study in mice has found that high doses of the sweetener sucralose can reduce the immune response and, under certain laboratory conditions, alter its action against infections or tumours. The results are published in the journal Nature.

A study has associated the consumption of the sweetener erythritol with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, specifically myocardial infarction and stroke. The data are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

A study published in the journal Science reports preclinical results of a new vaccine model that is intended to work against all types of influenza. The prototype, which uses mRNA-based technology, includes antigens from all 20 known influenza subtypes.