Most parents of toddlers worry about sleep habits and sniffles, but heart failure isn’t usually a concern.

It certainly wasn’t on the Thomases’ radar when their 2-year-old son went into sudden cardiac arrest in the middle of the night at their Illinois home.

When the child woke up screaming, his parents ran into the room. 

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“Hearing him scream out was alarming, as he usually slept soundly, and it was a horrible cry,” Stephanie Thomas told Fox News Digital.

“When I went into his room, he continued to scream out and then face-plant into his crib.” 

At first, the Thomases thought their son was just having a night terror, so Stephanie — who is a clinical dietitian at OSF HealthCare Children’s Hospital of Illinois — sat next to his crib with her hand on his back, trying to calm him down.

“When he finally settled, I could feel his breathing slowly come to a stop,” she recalled. “I picked him up out of his crib and placed him on the floor. With him being unresponsive, I felt for a pulse and started CPR.”

“I was petrified and confused about how my seemingly healthy 2-year-old was in this situation.”

“I was petrified and confused about how my seemingly healthy 2-year-old was in this situation.”

As Stephanie performed CPR, her husband, Kris, called 911.

Emergency responders rushed the boy to OSF HealthCare. After 11 days of testing, he was diagnosed with Brugada syndrome, a very rare heart condition that can cause sudden cardiac arrest and death. 

After 11 days of testing, the 2-year-old was diagnosed with Brugada syndrome, a very rare heart condition that can cause sudden cardiac arrest and death. (Stephanie Thomas/OSF HealthCare)

Though there can be some signs of Brugada syndrome, such as fainting or passing out, the condition is often not discovered until cardiac arrest occurs. 

The Thomases’ son had a similar incident about a month before the cardiac arrest, which they now believe may have been his first episode. 

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“He woke up in the middle of the night with a horrible scream, had some gasping and was hard to calm,” Stephanie recalled. “It was only a short period, and once he calmed, he seemed ‘normal.’ We assumed it was a night terror.”

As Brugada syndrome is often inherited, the Thomases were both tested for genetic abnormalities, but it was determined that their son’s syndrome is a “mosaic defect,” which is when there are two or more genetically different sets of cells in the body.

“Our son acts and appears healthy more than 99% of the time, until his heart gets into an arrhythmia that his body and medication cannot manage on their own,” Stephanie Thomas told Fox News Digital.  (Stephanie Thomas/OSF HealthCare)

The OSF team implanted the young boy with an EV-ICD (extravascular implantable cardioverter-defibrillator), which is positioned outside the heart’s blood vessels. It is designed to detect and correct any abnormal heart rhythms. 

This was the first time the device was implanted in a child at such a young age, the hospital noted in a press release.

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Since the first episode, the Thomases’ son has been hospitalized six more times. Each time an abnormal heart rhythm is detected, the EV-ICD delivers a “life-saving shock” to the boy’s heart.

“Our son acts and appears healthy more than 99% of the time, until his heart gets into an arrhythmia that his body and medication cannot manage on their own,” Stephanie told Fox News Digital. “In these cases, he receives a shock from his ICD.”

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The boy has been readmitted to the hospital due to arrhythmias and medication titration seven times since his initial discharge, his mother added.

Sunita Ferns, M.D., a pediatric electrophysiologist at OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center who is treating the Thomases’ son, noted that her young patient is now “married to cardiology.”

The parents said it can be challenging to navigate the episodes with a 2-year-old who can’t understand what’s happening. (Stephanie Thomas/OSF HealthCare)

“We monitor these devices constantly. If we see any arrhythmia in the background, despite the medication he’s on, we can offer him other technologies,” Dr. Ferns said in the OSF press release. 

“Ablative technologies can help modify the substrate, which is the tissue that’s responsible for the bad rhythm.” 

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To help control his arrhythmias, the boy also takes a compounded oral medication every six hours, which he will take for the rest of his life.

The parents said it can be challenging to navigate the episodes with a 2-year-old who can’t understand what’s happening.

The Thomases now aim to raise awareness of the importance of having CPR training, being alert to warning signs and putting an emergency plan in place.  (Stephanie Thomas/OSF HealthCare)

“The hardest part is when he says things like, ‘I can’t use the elephant blankie because it shocked me,’” Stephanie said. “He makes these associations between being shocked and the objects or places around him.”

There are specific triggers for the boy’s arrhythmias, the Thomases have learned, such as low-grade fevers and even slight illnesses, like a cold. 

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“It is vital that we keep him as healthy as we can — which can be challenging with him being an active 2-year-old and having a 4-year-old,” Stephanie said.

“We make sure that he stays up to date on his and our whole family’s vaccines. We do our best to tightly regulate any temperatures.”

“It is vital that we keep him as healthy as we can.”

The Thomases now aim to raise awareness of the importance of having CPR training, being alert to warning signs and putting an emergency plan in place. 

As a healthcare employee, Stephanie has maintained her Basic Life Support (BLS) certification for over 10 years. 

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“I have always said that I work with doctors and nurses, so felt that this was something I would never use — but the doctors and nurses were not in my house the night my son went into cardiac arrest, so it was left to me.”

Fox News’ Health newsletter brings you stories on the latest developments in healthcare, wellness, diseases, mental health and more.

TOP 3:

– Is Ozempic ruining your teeth? Here’s what to know

– Common daily vitamin could slow biological aging, study suggests

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Hoda Kotb, longtime host of NBC’s “The Today Show,” is speaking out about the deeper reasons she decided to leave her post.

Kotb returned as a guest on Wednesday for the first time since her departure from “Today” in January.

During the appearance, she revealed that her younger daughter, Hope, 6, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

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Kotb, 60, noted that spending more time with both her daughters, including Haley, 8, was one of her motivations for leaving.

She told TODAY.com that Hope’s condition “definitely weighed in.”

“As anyone with a child who has type 1, especially a little kid, you’re constantly watching, you’re constantly monitoring, you’re constantly checking, which is what I did all the time when I was [at ‘Today’],” she said. “You’re distracted.”

“You’re constantly watching, you’re constantly monitoring, you’re constantly checking.”

“You just get a priority check in your life,” Kotb expressed to co-anchors Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin during the segment. “I can be here and sweating what’s happening to Hope in the morning and in the night, or I can be there and feel relief.”

Kotb stressed that she tries not to “put her worry” on Hope, adding that her daughter is “fine for most of the day.”

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“There are just moments where you have to watch her,” Kotb said. “I was totaling it up — five minutes at breakfast, five minutes at lunch, five minutes at dinner, sometimes overnight.”

“Add that up, that’s a half-hour. So, for 23 ½ hours, she’s every other kid. So, I try to remember that.”

Hoda Kotb is pictured with daughters Hope and Haley Joy on her last day at “The Today Show” on Jan. 10, 2025. (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)

The Cleveland Clinic defines type 1 diabetes as a chronic autoimmune disease that prevents the pancreas from producing insulin.

This requires daily management with insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring.

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Type 1 vs. type 2 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the immune system “mistakenly attacks and destroys cells” in the pancreas, which can happen over months or years, the above source stated.

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes can include excessive thirst and hunger, frequent urination, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, blurred vision and slow healing of cuts and sores.

Type 1 diabetes requires daily management with insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring. (iStock)

In comparison, type 2 diabetes involves insulin resistance. This can cause the pancreas to not produce enough insulin and the body to not use the insulin as it should.

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Obesity and lack of exercise, among other lifestyle and genetic factors, can contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes, according to experts.

Type 2 diabetes is more common than type 1 and is more likely to occur in older adults, while type 1 is most prevalent in children and young adults.

Hoda Kotb is pictured on “The Today Show” on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)

Kotb shared with TODAY.com that Hope’s early symptoms mimicked the flu and were so severe that she had to be “raced” to the hospital.

“Let them be kids and give them what they need when they need it.”

Now that Kotb knows how to handle Hope’s condition, she’s offering her space to be a regular kid, she said.

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“Don’t put your worry on your kid,” she advised fellow parents. 

“Watch them, but don’t put your worry on them. Let them be kids and give them what they need when they need it.”

Despite their widely touted benefits — primarily weight loss and diabetes control, among others — GLP-1 medications have also been linked to some unwelcome side effects.

In addition to the main complaints of gastrointestinal issues, some lesser-known side effects have emerged, including mood changes, hair loss and “Ozempic face.”

Now, there are rumblings on social media from patients and doctors suggesting that weight-loss drugs could be linked to tooth decay and gum issues like irritation and bleeding. 

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What is ‘Ozempic teeth?’

Ozempic teeth, much like Ozempic face, is a term coined online to describe a characteristic that some believe could be related to their use of weight-loss and diabetes drugs.

The characteristic in question is an increase in dental problems when using GLP-1s, although there is not yet any scientific evidence that the two are linked.

Dry mouth, nausea, vomiting and acid reflux are all widely reported side effects of Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs.

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“Patients have reported dry mouth while on Ozempic in both dental practices I work in,” Dr. Ricky Marshall, owner of Stratland Dental in Glendale, Arizona, and dentist at Wolff Family Dentistry & Orthodontics in Queen Creek, Arizona, told Fox News Digital.

While Ozempic itself may not be triggering the increased tooth decay, side effects like dry mouth are “likely the main cause” of some of the dental problems people are experiencing, according to Marshall.

Dry mouth, nausea, vomiting and acid reflux are all widely reported side effects of Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs. (iStock)

Additionally, he noted, Ozempic is reported to increase stomach acid because the medication works by slowing down digestion.

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When increased stomach acid leads to acid reflux, heartburn or vomiting, the acid’s contact with the teeth “will absolutely contribute” to increased decay, Marshall said.

Dr. Whitney White of Aspen Dental in Las Vegas said she hasn’t personally seen any patients experiencing oral health issues linked to GLP-1s.

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“I do encourage all of my patients to be open about what medications they are taking, as they can contribute to issues like dry mouth,” she told Fox News Digital. 

“Dry mouth leads to plaque buildup, which in turn leads to cavities and sensitivity.”

Treating side effects

Antacids are one solution to acid reflux, according to Cleveland Clinic. 

These over-the-counter medicines neutralize stomach acid so that when reflux happens, it isn’t as corrosive to the esophagus.

“Dry mouth leads to plaque buildup, which in turn leads to cavities and sensitivity,” a dentist warned. (iStock)

Although these medications can be effective for occasional acid reflux, Cleveland Clinic warned that they can have side effects if taken too often, so they likely “aren’t a good long-term solution.”

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To alleviate dry mouth, the above source recommends chewing sugarless gum to promote saliva production and drinking plenty of water, among other remedies.

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The clinic also recommends that individuals “take medications that cause dry mouth in the morning, not at night,” because dry mouth at night is more likely to cause cavities and other dental issues.

Fox News Digital reached out to Novo Nordisk (maker of Ozempic and Wegovy) and Eli Lilly (maker of Mounjaro and Zepbound) for comment. Neither company includes mention of dental-related side effects in the drugs’ prescribing information.

Many factors lead to the frustrating cycle of weight gain and weight loss — but the driving force may be fat cells keeping a memory of obesity.

That’s according to a recent study that was first published in the journal Nature last fall.

Researchers say that fat cells influence abnormal metabolic pathways in the body long after pounds are shed, which could make it more likely for people to regain weight.

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Study findings

The team of Swiss scientists were curious whether regaining weight after slimming down is due to “metabolic memory,” where the body remembers and strives to return to its former state of obesity.

They analyzed chemical markers on fat cells in mice who were fed a high-fat diet. Next, when the mice were fed only a standard meal, the researchers analyzed their fatty tissue after they had lost weight, according to the study write-up.

The team then compared these samples to a lean mice group that was fed a standard meal to see if the chemical markers on the fat cells were associated with unhealthy changes in the body.

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The mice on the high-fat diet continued to have unhealthy changes in their metabolism after losing weight, including more difficulty in regulating sugar metabolism, more inflammation and abnormal fat storage.

Mice who were previously obese gained weight faster compared to the control group after they ate a high-fat diet — suggesting a continued impairment in metabolism after losing weight, the researchers found.

Mice who were previously obese gained weight faster compared to the control group after they ate a high-fat diet — suggesting a continued impairment in metabolism after losing weight. (iStock)

The study also looked at human samples, analyzing how the genes in fat cells can lead to unhealthy changes in the body as they did in mice. 

The researchers analyzed the fatty tissues of participants before and after they underwent bariatric surgery, comparing them to the fatty cells of lean individuals who did not have a history of obesity.

“This recent research suggests that after someone loses weight, their fat cells don’t fully go back to ‘normal.’”

In obese individuals, the genes from fat cells continued to function abnormally in the body, leading to more inflammation and metabolic problems two years after losing weight.

One limitation of the study is that it only looked at one type of cell – fat cells. More research is needed to determine whether other cells or tissues in the body also keep a memory of being overweight, the researchers acknowledged.

‘Complex mix’ of factors

Fat cells indeed have a memory of being obese, which can make it easier to regain weight and stay in a state that promotes inflammation and metabolic issues, confirmed Gretchen Zimmermann, registered dietitian and vice president of clinical strategy at Vida Health, a virtual obesity care provider. (She was not part of the study.)

“This recent research suggests that after someone loses weight, their fat cells don’t fully go back to ‘normal,’” Zimmermann told Fox News Digital. 

The researchers analyzed the fatty tissues of participants before and after they underwent bariatric surgery, comparing them to the fatty cells of lean individuals who did not have a history of obesity. (iStock)

But while biology plays a critical role in obesity, it’s not everything, she cautioned.

“A complex mix of genetics, biology, environment, psychology, medications and social determinants all shape obesity,” Zimmermann said.

“Keep moving, eating real food and building muscle.”

Healthy habits can counteract the genetics that promote weight gain.

Ideally, the expert said, this entails getting a combination of physical activity (including strength training), a sufficient amount of protein and fiber, and phytonutrients from plants that counter oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, according to Zimmermann. 

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“Keep moving, eating real food and building muscle,” she said.

“These behaviors reduce inflammation, improve blood sugar control, contribute to a healthy microbiome and protect metabolism — even if weight doesn’t drop much or stays the same.”

Healthy habits can counteract the genetics that promote weight gain, researchers say. (iStock)

For some, however, the underlying issue may lie in epigenetics, which involves how a person’s behaviors and surrounding environment influence how genes work in the body, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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“Obesity is a chronic relapsing condition that has an epigenetic cause,” Dr. Caroline Apovian, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and co-director of the Center for Weight Management and Wellness at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told Fox News Digital.

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People who are more prone to storing calories may have a harder time losing weight and keeping it off through diet and exercise, compared to those who may have an easier time, according to Apovian, who was not involved in the study.

Fox News Digital reached out to the study authors for comment.