Anxiety is seen as an obstacle to success. It is a thought that always lingers in your mind before you start to do something. If you are doing something new or trying to do something that you have already done it in your life and have bad memories with. This thought creeps in. This thought that sometimes sends chills down your spine, makes you shiver, or that makes you feel like you cannot breathe, as if someone has put a huge rock on your heart is what defines anxiety. However, emerging research suggests that it can in fact, serve as a valuable tool for focus, motivation and problem solving. Studies on performance and stress, including the widely known Yerkes-Dodson curve, indicate that moderate levels of anxiety can enhance productivity, while both excessive and insufficient anxiety can hinder it.

The Yerkes-Dodson curve demonstrates that when anxiety is too high, it can become paralyzing, preventing individuals from taking action. On the other hand, very low anxiety can lead to complacency, reducing motivation and attention to detail. The ideal state falls somewhere in the middle, where anxiety signals importance, sharpens focus, and encourages preparation.

This perspective challenges the common belief that anxiety should always be suppressed. Instead, researchers argue that learning to harness anxiety can be beneficial. Studies have shown that people experiencing moderate anxiety often generate more creative solutions to problems compared to those who remain entirely calm.

How Can You Use Anxiety To Your Benefit?

Anxiety can serve as a sort of increased awareness, motivating people to take action in critical situations. Medical decision-making research show that concerned people are more likely to follow up on health issues, stick to treatment plans, and aggressively seek medical help. For example, studies on heart transplant patients show that people with moderate levels of anxiety are more likely to seek adequate care, which leads to improved survival rates.

The same strategy is used to address everyday difficulties. Anxiety tells the brain that something is important and requires effort. Anxiety can encourage you to be prepared and attentive, whether you're preparing for a presentation, making a critical life decision, or dealing with an uncertain situation.

Is There A Thin Line Between Anxiety That Helps And That Harms?

Despite its potential benefits, anxiety can become debilitating when it causes what researchers term “functional impairment.” This occurs when excessive worry prevents individuals from fulfilling their daily responsibilities, whether in work, relationships, or personal well-being.

One method for distinguishing between helpful and harmful anxiety is cognitive reframing—shifting the perspective on stressors. Studies suggest that those who reframe anxiety as a performance-enhancing tool rather than a hindrance experience less distress and greater effectiveness in high-pressure situations. By viewing anxiety as a source of energy rather than a threat, individuals can improve their ability to navigate challenges.

Research on stress resilience indicates that experiencing a moderate amount of adversity in life can lead to stronger coping skills. Longitudinal studies on both humans and animals suggest that those who have faced and overcome moderate difficulties—such as personal loss or professional setbacks—tend to develop greater mental fortitude.

One study found that individuals who had endured a small number of adverse events exhibited better overall mental health than those who had either faced extreme hardship or had led relatively stress-free lives. This pattern aligns with the concept of "stress inoculation," where manageable levels of stress act as a form of psychological training, making individuals more resilient to future challenges.

So, What Can You Do?

Rather than attempting to eliminate anxiety, researchers suggest acknowledging it as a natural response that can be channeled productively. Psychological studies indicate that when people view their physiological responses—such as increased heart rate and adrenaline surges—as performance enhancers, their actual outcomes improve.

For instance, in high-stakes situations like public speaking or athletic competitions, individuals who interpret nervousness as a sign of readiness rather than fear tend to perform better. Physiologically, the body's response to excitement and fear is similar; the key difference lies in perception.

Research suggests that those who embrace a mindset of "anxiety as fuel" experience improved cognitive and physical performance. This approach aligns with studies showing that moderate stress prompts the release of hormones that enhance alertness and problem-solving ability, whereas overwhelming stress triggers a flood of cortisol, which can impair decision-making.

The current treatment course for high cholesterol is taking a daily tablet or regular injections over a long period. But instead, could a single treatment change the way high cholesterol is treated?

This possibility is being explored after a small first-in-human trial conducted by Cleveland Clinic found that one infusion of an experimental CRISPR gene-editing therapy lowered LDL, also called bad cholesterol, by about half and that the effect was still present a year later.

The treatment, called CTX310, is still experimental. The study involved just 15 people, so the findings are premature, not evidence that CRISPR can replace statins or other cholesterol medications.

About The Study

The Phase 1 trial included people with lipid disorders who had not responded adequately to existing medications.

Participants received a single infusion of CTX310, at different doses, and researchers followed them for 12 months.

At the highest dose, LDL cholesterol was reduced by 52.5% after one year, while triglycerides fell by 47.8%. The reductions seen earlier in the trial therefore persisted for at least 12 months.

Additionally, no serious adverse side effects related to the treatment were reported during the one-year follow-up. However, the researchers plan to continue monitoring participants for 15 years, as recommended for gene-editing therapies.

Also read: Inflammation May Be Quietly Changing Your Heart: Study Finds 43% Higher Risk Of Heart Attack & Stroke

How Does The CRISPR Treatment Work?

CTX310 operates differently compared to conventional cholesterol medicines. The treatment uses CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to target ANGPTL3, a gene involved in regulating fats circulating in the blood.

The therapy delivers the gene-editing machinery to the liver, where it switches off ANGPTL3. Lower activity of this gene can reduce levels of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides.

The idea is that instead of using daily medicines to keep cholesterol in check, doctors could make a long-lasting genetic change.

Also read: Preeclampsia May End With Pregnancy. Your Heart Risk May Not

What Does It Mean For Statins?

Statins remain a reliable treatment approach for lowering LDL cholesterol and reducing cardiovascular risk. CTX310 has only been tested in a very small Phase 1 trial. Also, the study was primarily designed to examine the safety and explore whether the gene-editing treatment could produce a meaningful effect.

The fact that LDL remained lower after one year is promising and encouraging, but researchers still need to determine whether the treatment can safely maintain its effects over many years and, crucially, whether it reduces heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular events.

There is also a fundamental difference between cholesterol tablets and permanently altering a person’s DNA.

Promising Cholesterol Treatment Approach

High cholesterol is often a long-term condition. Depending on their risk, patients may need cholesterol-lowering treatment for many years.

If CRISPR becomes a reality, people may no longer have to stick to a chronic treatment strategy for managing cholesterol.

"Building upon the initial data presented in November 2025, the durability of the lipid-lowering effect was impressive," said Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Luke Laffin, M.D., first author of the study. "It is encouraging that there were no serious safety events related to CTX310 in the trial and in the year following treatment. We look forward to continuing to investigate this therapy in a larger number of patients."

At 22, the young woman had little reason to think she would soon be facing a major cardiac surgery. Newly married and otherwise healthy, she suddenly lost movement in her right arm and leg. Her family was devastated and struggled to understand how a young, healthy woman could have suffered a stroke.

Investigations revealed an unusual cause: a tumour in her heart, with a small piece believed to have broken away and travelled into the blood vessels supplying her brain. She was advised to undergo immediate open-heart surgery to remove the tumour.

But the prospect of open-heart surgery frightened her. Despite repeated counselling, she refused the procedure. Two months later, she suffered a second stroke. This time, she lost much of her ability to speak and eat, while her heart function had also fallen to 35%. Once again, open-heart surgery was advised. Once again, she refused.

Her Condition Worsened As Treatment Was Delayed

Over the next three months, her condition continued to deteriorate. She weighed only 35 kg, was weak and withdrawn, and required feeding through a Ryle's tube. Her husband continued looking for another option.

A neighbour eventually suggested that the family consult a doctor in Kolkata who performed robotic heart surgery. The family approached Dr Soumya Guha, Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeon, BM Birla Heart Hospital, initially through an online consultation, as the young woman was unwilling to visit a hospital.

This was an extremely high-risk case. She had already suffered two strokes, her heart function had come down to 35%, she was severely underweight at 35 kg and was physically very weak. The tumour was also large. Given her condition and the complexity of the surgery, I was initially reluctant to take up the case for robotic heart surgery. But the family was desperate, and we felt that if we could first improve her physical condition and prepare her psychologically, we could give her a chance. She needed to be built up before we could think of taking her safely through such a major procedure.

The team therefore spent time preparing her for surgery, working to improve her nutritional and physical condition while counselling her repeatedly to help her overcome her fear of surgery. Once she was considered ready, she was brought to Kolkata.

Also read: From 365 Shots To 52: How Could Lilly’s Newly-Approved Weekly Insulin Injection Change Diabetes Care

Two Tumours Found During Robotic Heart Surgery

The surgery presented another unexpected finding. What had been thought to be a single cardiac tumour turned out to be two tumours in the heart. Both were removed using robotic heart surgery.

Given her small body size, weakness and small blood vessels, the procedure required additional precautions during cardiopulmonary bypass. The team used artificial conduits to establish bypass and employed NIRS monitoring along with multiple filtration modes to support her during the procedure.

Rehabilitation Helps Her Regain Movement, Speech And Swallowing

Her recovery was also a major part of the treatment. Following surgery, she underwent extensive physical rehabilitation along with speech and swallowing therapy. Nursing, intensive care, physiotherapy, dietary support and ward care were all part of the recovery process, with the hospital administration also providing financial assistance to the family.

Today, the young woman is able to stand and walk on her own. She has begun speaking a few words and has progressed from Ryle's tube feeding to eating small amounts of mashed food.

For her family, the change has been remarkable: from watching a young woman suffer two strokes and gradually lose her ability to speak and eat, to seeing her prepare to return home on her own feet.

The surgery was only one part of this patient's journey. Given how weak she was, getting her through the operation safely was important, but helping her regain movement, speech and swallowing afterwards was equally important. This required the efforts of the surgical and anaesthesia teams, perfusionists, nursing staff, ICU and ward teams, physiotherapists, speech and swallowing rehabilitation and the dietician. The support from the hospital administration also made a difference to the family. Every one of these teams had a role to play in getting her to where she is today.

While dementia is generally associated with older age, its onset can begin much earlier, including in middle age. A new study led by an international team of researchers found that muscle loss as people age may be an important warning sign for dementia risk.

The study, published in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, also found a surprising difference in how obesity was linked to dementia depending on a person’s age.

What Did The Study Find?

Researchers analyzed more than 80 studies examining the links between body weight, body fat, muscle health and dementia.

They found that people with sarcopenia — the loss of muscle mass and strength — had a 42 per cent higher risk of dementia.

People with obesity in middle age, or before 65, had a nine per cent higher risk of dementia. In contrast, obesity in people aged 65 and over was linked to a 17 per cent lower risk.

The findings showed that body weight alone did not tell the full story when it came to dementia risk.

“It’s not just about how much you weigh – maintaining muscle strength and function also appears to be important as we age,” said lead researcher Dr Uraiporn Booranasuksakul from Burapha University, Thailand.

“Our findings suggest losing muscle could be an important warning sign for dementia risk.”

Why Muscle Health Matters

Sarcopenia is a condition where people lose a greater amount of muscle mass, strength and physical function, often as they get older.

Dr Booranasuksakul said the findings highlighted the importance of looking after muscle health throughout life.

“Maintaining muscle is an important part of healthy ageing, and regular physical activity and good nutrition can help support muscle strength and function,” she said.

Obesity And Dementia Risk Change With Age

Corresponding author Professor Mario Siervo from Curtin University’s School of Population Health said the findings also challenged the idea that dementia risk could be understood simply by looking at a person’s weight.

“We found that obesity in middle age was linked to a higher risk of dementia, but this relationship changed in later life,” Professor Siervo said.

“This does not mean people should gain weight as they get older. Rather, it shows us that the relationship between body weight, ageing and dementia is complex.”

What About Sarcopenic Obesity?

The researchers also looked at sarcopenic obesity, where a person has both low muscle mass or function and excess body fat.

Only four studies met the criteria for this part of the analysis, and researchers found no statistically significant link between sarcopenic obesity and dementia.

Professor Siervo said more research was needed to understand whether the combination of muscle loss and excess body fat affected dementia risk.

“There is still a lot we don’t know about how changes in muscle and body fat interact over time,” Professor Siervo said.

“More long-term research is needed to understand whether having both low muscle mass and excess body fat increases dementia risk.”

A Lifelong Approach To Healthy Ageing

The researchers said the findings reinforced the importance of taking a lifelong approach to maintaining healthy body composition, including preventing unhealthy weight gain during middle age and maintaining muscle strength and function as people get older.