Latest news with #chronicdisease
Gulf Business
8 hours ago
- Health
- Gulf Business
Future of weight loss: Inside Abu Dhabi's latest health programme
Image credit: WAM/ Website The Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH) and Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre (ADPHC) have announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind Personalised Weight Management Programme in the region. Combining digital monitoring, a unique reimbursement model, and tailored clinical support, the initiative promotes sustainable weight management and active living. It aims to significantly reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers—ultimately enhancing quality of life and health longevity. Innovative model for long-term health impact The programme is open to eligible Thiqa members aged 18 and above who are clinically identified as overweight or obese. It features an innovative reimbursement model designed to encourage sustained engagement, personal accountability, and continuous participation. Read- 'Our focus is on health—not just weight. This programme supports our vision of an active, health-conscious community by empowering individuals through personalised, science-driven solutions. Weight management requires customised approaches, not a 'one-size-fits-all' model, and this programme ensures that each participant receives the support they need to succeed,' said Dr. Noura Al Ghaithi, Undersecretary of DoH. Bridging gaps in preventive healthcare 'We know that even modest weight loss and small increases in physical activity can significantly lower the risk of chronic disease. Traditionally, healthcare systems have lacked clear pathways for doctors to support patients in becoming more physically active or in connecting them with relevant services. Our programme addresses this gap by providing structured guidance, personalised activity plans, and continuous monitoring through digital tools and clinical oversight—empowering our community to proactively manage their health and improve their quality of life,' said Dr. Rashid Obaid Al Suwaidi, Director-General of ADPHC.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Ottai Unveils Revolutionary AI-Powered Biosensor Set to Transform Chronic Disease Care
Groundbreaking Technology Empowers Patients to Take Control of Their Health HONG KONG, June 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Ottai, an Oxford-originated pioneer in AI digital health innovation, today announced the launch of its next-generation AI-powered wearable designed to revolutionize chronic disease management. This breakthrough device continuously monitors key biomarkers, leverages AI for real-time analysis and health log input, enhances patient-device interaction, and delivers personalized lifestyle recommendations. The Ottai biosensor disrupts the paradigm of traditional chronic disease monitoring—characterized by manual input, periodic lab tests, and reactive symptom management—by offering continuous monitoring paired with AI-driven automated and personalized inputs. It integrates deep learning algorithms to analyze vast amounts of real-time biomarker data and health logs, delivering actionable, tailored recommendations. The biosensor also supports intuitive voice-activated commands, allowing users to ask questions and add inputs while receiving real-time, personalized advice. "The Ottai biosensor represents a critical step toward scalable, patient-centric care," said Dr. Calvin Wang, Research Scientist at Ottai. "It represents a new era in healthcare—where we combine biosensing with AI to provide a dynamic and adaptive tool that evolves with patients' health needs and supports long-term disease management." The biosensor uses AI to power a smart health companion that supports users in real time: Real-Time Biomarker Analysis: Track critical health metrics like glucose and detect episodes of hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia continuously. The device is validated against medical gold standards and CE-approved for its accuracy and reliability. Personalized Recommendations: AI algorithms process data to suggest lifestyle, dietary, and activity adjustments, optimizing long-term health outcomes. Voice-Activated Health Logs and Lifestyle Inquiries: Interact with the biosensor via voice commands to effortlessly log health data, dietary and lifestyle habits, personalized questions, receiving real-time, actionable responses. AI-Driven Data Analysis: Advanced machine learning algorithms to analyze complex datasets, that offers users real-time insights into their health trends and risks. Seamless Integration with Other Health Apps: Syncs with other health-tracking platforms such as Apple Health and smartwatches for users' best convenience. About Ottai Ottai is a leader in empowering individuals with actionable insights to prevent and manage chronic conditions. With a mission to make chronic disease management more accessible, personalized, and proactive, Ottai aims to revolutionize the healthcare landscape with advanced, user-friendly solutions. For more information and pricing and availability of Ottai sensors, visit or contact info@ and connect with Ottai on Instagram, and Facebook. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Ottai Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Health Line
14 hours ago
- Health
- Health Line
Can Ulcerative Colitis Be Deadly?
Key takeaways While ulcerative colitis itself is not fatal, it's a chronic disease that needs to be properly managed to prevent serious health complications. Potentially serious health complications that can result from UC include toxic megacolon, a perforation in your bowel, primary sclerosing cholangitis, colorectal cancer, and heart disease. UC is a chronic condition that, for most people, requires lifelong treatment, and the only way to cure the condition is by having surgery to remove your colon and rectum. Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a lifelong condition that you need to manage. It's not deadly on its own, but it is a serious disease that can cause some dangerous and potentially life threatening complications, especially if you don't get the right treatment. UC is one form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). It causes inflammation in the inner lining of your rectum and your large intestine (also known as your colon). The other type of IBD, Crohn's disease, can affect any part of your digestive tract. When you have UC, your immune system mistakenly attacks your intestines, and these attacks lead to inflammation and sores, or ulcers, in your intestines. Treatments are available for UC. Most people with UC have a full life expectancy. However, according to one 2003 Danish study, complications can increase the risk of an early death. Ulcerative colitis complications While UC itself usually isn't fatal, some of its complications can be. Potentially serious health complications that can result from UC include: toxic megacolon a perforation (hole) in your bowel primary sclerosing cholangitis colorectal cancer heart disease Toxic megacolon The most serious possible complication related to UC is toxic megacolon, which is swelling of your colon that can cause it to rupture. This condition affects up to 10% of people with UC. Some studies show that the death rate among people hospitalized with toxic megacolon is around 6.5%. However, the death rate drops to less than 2% in people with IBD who receive an early diagnosis and prompt medical care. Bowel perforation A hole in your bowel is also dangerous. Bacteria from your intestine can get into your abdomen and cause a potentially life threatening infection called peritonitis. Primary sclerosing cholangitis Primary sclerosing cholangitis is another rare but serious complication of UC. It causes swelling and damage around your liver and in your bile ducts, which carry digestive fluid from your liver to your intestines. Scars can form and narrow your bile ducts, and this can eventually cause severe liver damage. In time, you can develop serious infections and liver failure. These conditions can be life threatening. Colorectal cancer According to a 2001 research review, people with UC have up to an 8% chance of developing colorectal cancer within 20 years of their UC diagnosis. In comparison, the review noted that the risk among the larger population was 3% to 6%. More recently, a 2023 review article noted that rates of colorectal cancer among people with UC are decreasing but are still higher than the rates in the larger population. Colorectal cancer can be fatal if it spreads to other parts of your body. Heart conditions According to a 2022 study, UC is associated with a greater risk of heart conditions, including coronary artery disease, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. And a 2023 study suggests that people with IBD are at a higher risk of death from these types of heart conditions.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Health
- New York Times
A Cutting-Edge Cancer Therapy Offers Hope for Patients With Lupus
Jennifer Le's doctor ticked through a long checklist of head-to-toe symptoms as she examined Ms. Le in a Boston clinic last month. Was she experiencing brain fog? Headaches? What about hair loss, rashes or joint pain? Ms. Le, 36, was diagnosed with lupus in 2016, just after she got married. She tried all the standard treatments, hoping that her symptoms would stabilize and she could one day get pregnant. Pregnancy wasn't possible on the medications she needed to tamp down the inflammation causing her arthritis and anemia. And it was too dangerous to try for a baby with uncontrolled lupus, a chronic disease that causes the body to attack its own healthy tissue. By last fall, Ms. Le had run out of conventional treatment options. That's when Dr. Meghan Sise, her physician, offered her a chance to participate in a clinical trial that was testing a new therapy, borrowed from the field of cancer research. 'Let's try it,' Ms. Le told Dr. Sise, who is a principal investigator on the trial. 'I have nothing to lose.' CAR T-cell therapy, a kind of 'living drug' that modifies patients' immune cells to help them attack misbehaving ones, has been used with significant success to treat some cancers, particularly of the blood. A growing body of evidence has suggested that the therapy can also treat a severe form of lupus that, at best, can be managed as a lifelong condition and, at worst, resists treatment and can lead to organ failure and death. 'It's really promising, and honestly the first therapy that we've talked about as a cure,' said Dr. Lisa Sammaritano, a rheumatologist at the Hospital for Special Surgery — Weill Cornell Medicine and the lead author on a set of recently updated guidelines for lupus treatment. Until now, she said, 'we haven't had a cure — we've had control.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Fast Company
3 days ago
- Health
- Fast Company
How MAHA and AI can transform public health
The Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement represents a transformative opportunity to reshape the landscape of public health in the United States. With chronic disease now widely recognized as a pressing public health crisis, there is an urgent need for innovative solutions that go beyond traditional approaches. The MAHA Commission has set the stage for a new era in health policy, and artificial intelligence can serve as a pivotal force in accelerating its impact. By integrating AI and centralized health data, MAHA can drive meaningful progress in nutrition and metabolic health, offering personalized and scientifically-backed solutions to combat chronic disease. Recent developments surrounding the regulation of synthetic food dyes signal a major milestone in American health policy. We are witnessing the first serious crack in the armor of the U.S. food industry. For decades, tens of millions of Americans have unknowingly consumed potentially harmful chemicals such as Yellow 5 and Red 40, dyes already restricted in Europe. The FDA's decision to phase out these additives represents a meaningful shift toward a safer, more transparent food system. This is a critical and positive step forward: Food should nourish, not harm. As someone deeply committed to advancing health outcomes, I view this as a welcome and necessary correction. Don't politicize health While MAHA and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (RFK) have drawn both support and criticism, my focus remains clear: How do we improve health? On that front, I support any movement taking tangible steps to make our food supply healthier and more accountable. Historically, public health recommendations have been one-size-fits-all, often failing to address the individual metabolic and lifestyle factors that shape personal health outcomes. MAHA has the potential to change this paradigm by embracing AI-driven personalized medicine. AI can analyze vast datasets spanning dietary habits, genetic predispositions, and environmental exposures to generate tailored health recommendations that empower individuals to make optimal nutritional choices. I am opposed to the politicization of American health. It disproportionately harms the most vulnerable, particularly low-income communities, who already face significant barriers to accessing nutritious food. My focus is metabolic health, and our most urgent challenge is what's on our plates. The fact that more than 10,000 chemicals are permitted in the U.S. food supply, while only about 400 are allowed in Europe, is indefensible. This is not just a regulatory gap; it is a public health failure that must be addressed. No one has successfully challenged the U.S. food industry until now. Some states are proposing or adopting changes aligned with MAHA such as soda bans, dye eliminations, and ultra-processed food limits in schools, and some corporations like PepsiCo are eliminating food dyes from its products. Over half of U.S. states are introducing legislation to address synthetic dyes. With MAHA's clear intentions, any company that wants its food served in America's largest restaurant chain (i.e. American school cafeterias), is asking themselves how they can realistically get dyes out of their foods. AI can help It is now widely acknowledged that diet plays a fundamental role in chronic conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity, which affect 133 million Americans. Despite this awareness, progress in addressing these issues has been slow. In addition to the important steps of improving school lunches and banning potentially harmful chemicals from foods, AI-powered tools can also be incorporated into preventive care in programs like Medicare wellness visits, SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), school health education, and veteran services. AI tools can provide real-time insights into the metabolic effects of foods before consumption, enabling individuals to make healthier choices based on their unique health profiles. They can also create highly personalized plans and virtual coaches to help individuals reach their health goals. For AI to fulfill its potential, it must be fueled by centralized, comprehensive health data. A unified data repository that aggregates nutritional information, health metrics, and environmental factors across diverse communities is essential. This centralized approach enhances the accuracy and responsiveness of AI algorithms, ensuring that health recommendations evolve in tandem with emerging scientific research. Realizing this vision will require close collaboration between government agencies, private-sector innovators, and healthcare and technology experts. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, especially under leaders like Michael Kratsios, can partner with Silicon Valley's AI leaders to set new standards for data-driven health policy. Together, we can ensure AI-driven insights are accessible to all Americans. We are living through a rare window of possibility. As RFK Jr. and MAHA work to improve our food system and as AI becomes a force multiplier for health equity, we have the tools to take real action. The removal of food dyes is only the beginning. The real test for all of us, including MAHA, is whether we can also address the larger crises of ultra-processed food, excess sugar, and nutritional inequality. The future of public health depends not on ideological battles, but on constructive action. Let's focus on what matters: addressing the root cause, rather than just treating chronic disease, and improving the health span of all Americans.
