Morning Medical Update: Heart attack odds higher after flu; Anti-addiction meds for prisoners; Global rise in type 2 diabetes

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Heart attack odds higher after flu

Those with the flu are six times more likely to have a heart attack within the first week than in the year before getting diagnosed, a new study shows. "[This study] raises more awareness about the seriousness and consequences of influenza," Sherif Mossad, MD, with the Department of Infectious Disease at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohiosaid in a news release. "It could precipitate serious, life-threatening problems." Influenza can also worsen underlying conditions such as live disease and multiple sclerosis.

Anti-addiction meds for prisoners

Most prisoners are cut off from their opioid use disorder medications when they enter prison. As a result, they experience dangerous withdrawal symptoms while incarcerated and are more likely to overdose when they get out. Research shows that making these drugs available to prisoners could lead to fewer deaths after they are released.

Global rise in type 2 diabetes

A 2018 study revealed that 7 out of 10 cases of type 2 diabetes worldwide were a result of poor food choices. The following habits were some of the biggest contributors: eating too much-refined rice, too many processed and unprocessed red meats, and drinking too many sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice.