On Thursday, Uganda confirmed an outbreak of the Ebola virus in its capital city Kampala, with the first confirmed patient dying from it a day before. As per the new developments, the officials are now preparing to deploy a trial vaccine to put an end to this outbreak.

Groups of scientists are working on the vaccine and deployment of more than 2,000 doses of a candidate vaccine against the Sudan strain of Ebola has been planned and confirmed by the Uganda Virus Research Institute. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), Uganda has access to 2,169 doses of trial vaccine. For now, however, there are no approved vaccines for the strain and officials are still investigating the source of the outbreak.

The WHO had also allocated $1 million from its contingency fund for emergencies to support quick action and contain the outbreak in the country.

Confirmed Case

On Wednesday, the Sudan strain of Ebola killed a nurse employed at Kampala's main referral hospital. It is after his death that Ebola was declared an outbreak in the country. Post-mortem samples too have confirmed the Sudan Ebola Virus Disease and at least 44 contacts of the deceased man have been listed for tracing. 30 of these are health workers.

Ebola is a highly infectious hemorrhagic fever, which is transmitted through contact with bodily fluids and tissue. Symptoms include headache, vomiting of blood, muscle pains and bleeding.

it was in the late 2022, when Uganda had last suffered an Ebola outbreak. It killed 55 of the 143 people who were infected and was declared over on January 11, 2023.

What Is Ebola Virus Disease?

As per the WHO, Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a rare but severe illness in humans and is often fatal. People can get infected with the virus if they touch an infected animal when preparing food, or touch body fluids of an infected person such as saliva, urine, faeces or semen, or things that have body fluids of an infected person like clothes or sheets.

How Does Transmission Work?

Ebola enters the body through cuts in the skin or when one is touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Early symptoms include fever, fatigue and headache.

It was first discovered in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreak, when in Nzara, South Sudan and other in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. The latter occurred near a village near the Ebola River, which is where it gets its name from.

It is highly infectious and transmissible disease, in fact, there have been cases of health-care workers who have frequently been infected while treating patients with suspected or confirmed Ebola. This occurs through close contact with patients when infection control precautions are not practiced strictly.

Cases of people conducted burial ceremonies, involving direct contact with the body of the deceased too can lead to the transmission of Ebola. Even after the long suffering and recovery, there is a possibility of sexual transmission. Pregnant women who get acute Ebola and recover may still carry the virus in their breastmilk, or in pregnancy related fluids and tissues.

Symptoms:

• feeling tired
• headache
• muscle and joint pain
• eye pain and vision problems
• weight gain
• belly pain and loss of appetite
• hair loss and skin problems
• trouble sleeping
• memory loss
• hearing loss
• depression and anxiety

American host Oprah Winfrey, who told her fans she was taking GLP-1 weight loss medication in 2023, has revealed that she stopped taking injections for a short period of time last year and ended up gaining significant weight.

During an episode of the TODAY show with Jenna & Sheinelle, Winfrey, 71, said: "I was off the (weight loss medications) all last year and I gained 20lbs because I wanted to test it.

"Because everyone was saying 'you're going to gain the weight' (and) I'm going to show them that I'm not going to gain the weight. I'm going to hike."

However, the media mogul ended up gaining most of her weight back, citing that once she was off the medications, she would stand in front of the refrigerator thinking "what can I eat".

Is This Scientifically True?

Researchers have found that those who lose weight using blockbuster GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic could regain about 0.4kg every month after quitting these treatments. In contrast, those who lost weight through exercise, diet and other factors only gained 0.1kg.

Ozempic (semaglutide) is a prescription injectable GLP-1 medication primarily approved for adults with Type 2 diabetes to manage blood sugar levels. However, the drug has gained immense popularity among those trying to lose weight as it can reduce hunger and help people feel full for longer, which forces the body to burn fat deposits to stay functional.

In clinical trials, people with obesity using semaglutide have shown to lose an average of about 15% of their body weight over 68 weeks. Most people begin to see noticeable results within 8 to 12 weeks of taking the drug.

The official price in India for a once-weekly Ozempic injection pen ranges from approximately ₹8,800 for the 0.25 mg dose to around ₹11,175 for the 1 mg dose per month. Insurance coverage is generally inconsistent for weight loss indications.

Have Weight Loss Impacted Winfrey's Diet?

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, the OWN founder noted that in the last two years, her relationship with food and exercise has changed drastically, in addition to erasing her taste for alcohol.

'The fact that I no longer even have a desire for it is pretty amazing,' Winfrey said.

The talk show legend once admitted she was able to :outdrink everyone at the table" and "was a big fan of tequila". "I literally had 17 shots one night," she said, "I haven't had a drink in years. The fact that I no longer even have a desire for it is pretty amazing."

Additionally, Winfrey said she no longer obsesses over food and has embraced exercise for the first time in her life. However, once she understood that she began to gain weight when she stopped taking injections, Winfrey realized that the medication will likely be "a lifetime thing".

"It's going to be a lifetime thing. I'm on high blood pressure medication, and if I go off the high blood pressure medication, my blood pressure is going to go up. The same thing is true now, I realize, with these medications. I’ve proven to myself I need it," she told the publication.

Winfrey now typically takes the shots weekly, but sometimes stretches them to 10 or 12 days. "You need to start slow and gradual,' she advised. 'If you start by taking too much at one time, you have more of a chance of messing yourself up

Apart form this, the media star also now works out for about two hours a day, six days a week, hiking, doing cardio or strength training.

A new British study has discovered that social media use or video gaming is not causing mental health problems in young teenagers.

For decades, experts across industries have warned that time spent on social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram or gaming platforms could be driving a rise in anxiety and depression among teenagers.

However, researchers from the University of Manchester claim to have found little to no evidence over links of such claims.

Lead author Dr Qiqi Cheng said: "We know families are worried, but our results do not support the idea that simply spending time on social media or gaming leads to mental health problems, the story is far more complex than that."

Who Did The Scientists Analyze?

The researchers tracked pupils’ self-reported social media habits, gaming frequency and emotional difficulties over three school years to find out whether technology use genuinely predicted later mental health difficulties.

What Did They Find?

The researchers found no proof that heavy social media use or more frequent gaming caused increases in symptoms of anxiety or depression over the following year - for both boys or girls.

Girls who gamed more often went on to spend slightly less time on social media the following yea and boys who reported more emotional difficulties were more likely to cut back on gaming in the future. This suggested links between losing interest in hobbies when feeling low or parents limiting screen time when they notice their child is struggling.

The research team also explored whether actively chatting on social media or just passively scrolling made a difference but results stayed the same

The authors emphasize that this does not mean online experiences are harmless. Hurtful messages, online pressures and extreme content can still impact wellbeing but they argue that focusing simply blaming screen time is not enough and more attention needs to be paid.

Why are Teenagers More Prone To Mental Health Issues?

Constant comparison on social media, cyberbullying and pressure to fit in online or offline significantly impact self-esteem and increase anxiety. Apart from this, exposure to violence, neglect, abuse or poverty during these formative years is a major risk factor for developing mental illnesses like PTSD, depression and anxiety.

Additionally, some adolescents are also genetically more susceptible to mental health conditions, which can be triggered by environmental stressors.

Flu has now reached California, officials at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) confirmed on Tuesday. The mutated influenza strain, which is dubbed as the 'super flu' is now spreading in California.

The CDPH confirmed a second pediatric death related to flu since the season of this respiratory virus had started. The 'super flu' strain is the mutation of seasonal influenza A H3N2 virus, called the subclade K. While the cases are on the rise, with some record breaking ER visits and hospitalizations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that the season has not peaked yet, and that there might be more cases in the coming week.

What Are The Symptoms Of Super Flu?

Dr Monica Gandhi, who is an infectious disease expert at UC San Francisco told SFGATE that people infected with the mutated strain will likely get common flu symptoms, such as body aches, fever, cough and headache. "I think this particular strain makes people feel pretty horrible," Gandhi said, and further added, "And the reason that subclade K is important is it may not be covered by the current flu vaccine."

However, experts are still asking people to get vaccinated. In fact, the CDC has also noted that vaccination "has been shown to reduce the risk of flu and its potentially serious complications". However, only 130 million doses of vaccine have been distributed, which covers less than 40% of the US population. "The vaccine remains the most effective means to prevent disease. We still want to encourage people to get the vaccine," said Professor Antonia Ho, Professor and Honorary Consultant in Infectious Diseases at the University of Glasgow. Experts have stressed enough on the immunity that one can receive from the vaccine that that these flu jab remain the best defense against the flu, even though the current strain circulated may have drifted away from the strain included in this year's jab.

Data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) also show that vaccines is performing as expect, despite the emergence of subclade K.

K variant causes more intense flu symptoms, they include:

• Fever
• Chills
• Headache
• Fatigue
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny nose

This year's flu came after the flu vaccination was made, which means the current vaccination does not align with the mutation, however, experts have pointed out that it still continues to offer protection against the illness.

Update On Flu Activity

Flu activity in the state has shown a downtick from the season high at the end of the December. 15% of flu tests have come back positive by January 3, which is down from 17% rate seen during the week ending with December 27. However, the CDC noted that this downtick does not mean the end of flu season, it could rather mean that less cases were reported due to the holiday season. As the agency has warned more such cases to show up in the coming week.

In fact, hospitalization have been on the rise and hit a season high with 3.8 admissions per 100,000 in the state as of January 3.