If you were vaccinated for measles in the 1970s or ’80s, there’s a chance the protection has worn off by now, some doctors are warning.

Amid the current measles outbreak in Florida, USF College of Public Health associate professor Jill Roberts spoke to FOX 13 in Tampa about the possibility of legacy vaccines becoming less effective over time.

The measles vaccine was first introduced in 1968.

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Three years later, in 1971, the MMR vaccine made its debut. 

This combination vaccine provides a trifecta of protection against measles, mumps and rubella.

A couple of decades after the release of the MMR vaccine, measles was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. 

For those who received measles vaccinations in the ‘70s and ’80s — mainly people currently in their 40s and 50s — Roberts recommends checking with a health care provider about their status.

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“There’s absolutely no risk in getting another MMR, so if you don’t know, just go get another shot,” she advised. “They’re inexpensive and widely available.”

Measles is a highly contagious virus for those who have not previously been infected or vaccinated, Roberts warned — with up to a 90% chance of transmission.

For those who received measles vaccinations in the ‘70s and ’80s — mainly people who are currently in their 40s and 50s — Roberts recommends checking with a health care provider about immune status. (George Frey/Getty Images)

Dr. Jacob Glanville, a virology expert and founder of Centivax, a San Francisco pharmaceutical company, warned about recent outbreaks in under-vaccinated communities. 

“If you have ever received the MMR vaccine, you likely still have immunity, although talk to your doctor about a measles titer test if you have concerns,” he told Fox News Digital.

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The titer test measures an individual’s level of immunity to the virus.

Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, emphasized the importance of measles vaccinations — “particularly with the amount of circulating measles virus and underimmunized people coming into the U.S. at a time when there is a big measles surge around the world.”

As of Feb. 29, a total of 41 measles cases had been reported by 16 U.S. jurisdictions. (iStock)

“This is not yet an official suggestion anywhere, but I do check measles titers in many of my patients, and if they are low, I may give a booster as a precaution,” he told Fox News Digital.  

“The protection from the original vaccines may wear off over time.”

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As of Feb. 29, a total of 41 measles cases had been reported by 16 jurisdictions: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York City, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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It is no longer necessary to isolate for five days after testing positive for COVID-19, according to a Friday statement from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The new guidance tells people to stay home if they are sick, but when they are feeling better and have been fever-free for 24 hours, they can return to school or work.

This is the same guidance given for flu and other respiratory illnesses.

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“Our goal here is to protect those at risk for severe illness while also reassuring folks that these recommendations are simple, clear, easy-to-understand and can be followed,” said CDC Director Mandy Cohen in a statement to media on Friday. 

The updated guidance “reflects the progress we’ve made in protecting against severe illness from COVID,” she added.

Prior to today’s update, the CDC called for people who test positive for the virus to “stay home for at least five days and isolate from others in your home,” a recommendation that was implemented in late 2021. 

At the start of the pandemic, the agency had recommended a 10-day isolation period for people who tested positive for the virus.

The announcement comes two weeks after reports began circulating that the agency was considering dropping the quarantine recommendation.

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Some states had already relaxed their own guidelines prior to the CDC’s official update.

In both Oregon and California, people with COVID have not had to isolate at all — as long as they have been fever-free for 24 hours without using fever-reducing medicines and their other COVID symptoms are improving, according to each state’s health department.

At the start of the pandemic, the agency had recommended a 10-day isolation after testing positive for the virus. (iStock)

Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, interviewed Dr. Mandy Cohen, head of the CDC, earlier this month.

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“She told me that they are shifting their focus more toward putting doctors and their patients in charge in general, acknowledging individual differences,” he told Fox News Digital.

Prior to the March 1 update, the CDC called for people who test positive for the virus to “stay home for at least five days and isolate from others in your home,” a recommendation that was implemented in late 2021.  (iStock)

Siegel said he is in agreement with removing the five-day isolation period.

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“The pandemic has been over for several months, and though there was an uptick this winter, with over 20,000 hospitalizations and 1,500 deaths per week at one point, it is now diminishing,” the doctor said.

COVID numbers continue downward trend

As of the most recently reported week ending Feb. 24, 2024, the share of administered COVID tests with positive results was 7.4%, a 0.6% decrease from the prior week, per CDC data.

Out of all emergency department visits, 1.8% of them were diagnosed with COVID, a 0.9% week-over-week decline.

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COVID-related hospitalizations decreased 10.3% from the prior week.

The share of all U.S. deaths due to COVID was 2.1%, which reflected an 8.7% decrease.

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Coffee in the morning is a ritual for many people — but is it ever too early in the a.m. to indulge?

Brewing a cup or a pot of coffee as soon as you wake up might not give you the biggest energy boost throughout the day, according to sleep experts. 

Dr. Deborah Lee, a U.K.-based doctor, said in a statement to Fox News Digital that drinking coffee first thing in the morning might not be the best bet. 

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“When you wake up, your stress hormone cortisol level, which is a hormone that enhances alertness and focus, as well as regulates your metabolism and immune system response, is at its peak,” said Lee, who works with bed manufacturer Get Laid Beds.

“Elevated levels of cortisol may impact your immune system, and if they’re already at their peak when waking up, drinking coffee as soon as your eyes open may do more harm than good, and may even make you immune to caffeine over a long period of time,” Lee added.

Cortisol follows a rhythm “specific to your own sleeping cycle,” the expert said, peaking within 30 to 45 minutes of waking up and slowly declining throughout the day.

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“That explains why you may peak in the morning and get more tired at night,” she noted.

Taking this rhythm into consideration, Lee suggested that the best time to have caffeine would be at least 45 minutes after waking up, when “your cortisol rhythm starts to dip.”

Coffee consumption and energy levels are dependent on a person’s caffeine tolerance, said a sleep expert. (iStock)

“The best time to drink coffee would typically be mid-to-late morning, when your cortisol is a lot lower and you start to feel that energy slump,” she said. 

“But of course, not too late in the afternoon — as it could affect your sleep.”

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Someone who wakes up at around 7 a.m., for example, might wait until around 10 a.m. or noon to have the first cup of coffee, “when your body and mind will appreciate it the most, and you’ll get the most benefits from the caffeine,” Lee said.

A different take 

Dr. Wendy Troxel, a Utah-based sleep expert and senior behavioral scientist at the RAND Corporation, had a different take on the matter. Delaying caffeine might not actually make a difference, she told Fox News Digital.

“There really is no scientific evidence that having caffeine first thing in the morning versus delaying it for a couple of hours after awakening has any differential effects on alertness,” she said. 

Dr. Wendy Troxel, senior behavioral scientist of the RAND Corporation and author of “Sharing the Covers: Every Couple’s Guide to Better Sleep,” offered her input on the timing of coffee consumption. (Diane Baldwin)

Troxel suggested that coffee drinkers should experiment with what works best for them.

“For some people, waking up and having a glass of water to rehydrate and then having coffee works well — but for others, the morning ritual of having a cup of coffee first thing upon awakening is just too good to give up,” she said. 

“So, I think it’s mostly a matter of personal preference.”

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Since caffeine works by “blocking sleep-promoting receptors in your brain called adenosine receptors,” Lee said that people who drink coffee too late in the day may struggle to sleep at night.

“However, this is different for different people, and only you know your own caffeine tolerance,” she said.

The average half-life of caffeine is around six hours, according to Troxel, but it can remain in the body for up to 10 hours.

Drinking coffee too late in the day can lead to sleep disruptions, experts warned. (iStock)

“Given that caffeine is a stimulant, it can powerfully disrupt sleep if consumed too late in the day,” she said. 

To reduce the likelihood of disrupted sleep, Lee recommended avoiding it within eight hours of bedtime. 

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“That means if your bedtime is 10 p.m., you should consume caffeine no later than 2 p.m. — but if you’re someone who is strongly affected by caffeine, you want to back that time up even earlier,” she said.

Coffee in moderation can help with increased alertness, energy and better concentration, according to experts. (iStock)

“Try switching to herbal teas if you need a hot drink to stay warm, or decaf to trick yourself into thinking you’re getting your caffeine fix,” she suggested.

Troxel mentioned that there is “substantial evidence” that drinking coffee earlier in the day and in moderation — about one to two cups per day — is associated with “increased alertness and energy, better concentration, better performance and reduced risk of certain chronic diseases.”

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“However, excessive amounts of coffee, or coffee (and other caffeinated products) consumed later in the day can lead to negative side effects, including anxiety, jitters, rapid heart rate and insomnia,” Troxel added.

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Older adults in the U.S. should get another COVID-19 booster even if they received one in the fall, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The guidance was released on Wednesday from Mandy Cohen, CDC director, and the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP).

The agency recommended that adults ages 65 years and older receive “an additional updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine dose” due to an “increased risk of severe disease from COVID-19 in older adults,” as stated in the announcement.

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Those who are immunocompromised are also eligible for an additional booster, as announced in October 2023.

“Today’s recommendation allows older adults to receive an additional dose of this season’s COVID-19 vaccine to provide added protection,” said Cohen in a press release.

“Most COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations last year were among people 65 years and older,” she added. 

“An additional vaccine dose can provide added protection that may have decreased over time for those at highest risk.”

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Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, said the decision about whether to get an additional dose depends on the patient and the prevalence of the virus.

“I am certainly keeping an eye on my older patients in high-risk groups, especially those with chronic illnesses like diabetes, cancer, COPD and obesity — but this is not ‘one size fits all,’” he told Fox News Digital. 

“Most COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations last year were among people 65 years and older,” said the CDC director in a statement. (iStock)

“The vaccine is a useful tool and it appears to be effective against the prevailing strains,” he added. 

“I would not be giving it routinely to all unless new evidence emerges that it is wearing off.”

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Dr. Jacob Glanville, a virology expert and founder of Centivax, a San Francisco pharmaceutical company, said the CDC’s advice is based on the much higher risk of death by COVID-19 in this age category, combined with the relatively low 51% efficacy of the vaccines against current mismatched circulating strains. 

As of Feb. 23, the share of adults 65 and over that have received the updated COVID vaccine was 41.8%, according to CDC data. (iStock)

“A boost can serve to increase the proportion of antibodies and T-cells that can still respond to a mismatch strain, and thus provide additional protection,” Glanville told Fox News Digital.

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As of Feb. 23, the share of adults 65 and over that have received the updated COVID vaccine was 41.8%, according to CDC data.

The compliance rate was 22.3% for adults 18 and over and 13.1% for children.

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A drug that has long been used to treat two common men’s health conditions could have some unexpected benefits.

Finasteride — more commonly known as Propecia or Proscar — has treated male pattern baldness and enlarged prostate in millions of men.

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have also linked the “miracle drug” to cholesterol-lowering effects and reduced heart disease risk.

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The findings, published in the Journal of Lipid Research, showed lower cholesterol levels among men who took the drug — on average, 30 points less than men who were not on the medication.

The data was initially collected as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2009 and 2016. 

Then, in a study of mice, use of the drug for 12 weeks — along with a high-fat, high-cholesterol “Western” diet — was linked to reduced cholesterol, slower buildup of plaque in the arteries, and reduced liver inflammation, among other benefits. 

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“The most surprising finding was the human data,” lead study author Jaume Amengual, assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition and the Division of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Illinois, told Fox News Digital. 

“When we observed the association with finasteride and plasma lipids, we decided to do our mouse study.”

Drug’s benefits and side effects

As a hair loss treatment, finasteride works by blocking a protein found in hair follicles — and as an enlarged prostate treatment, the drug blocks the prostate gland that activates testosterone.

Atherosclerosis, which occurs when cholesterol plaques build up in the arteries and increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, is most prevalent among men.

As a hair loss treatment, Finasteride works by blocking a protein found in hair follicles. (iStock)

Some experts have linked the male hormone testosterone to the heart condition.

The potential hormonal effect prompted the researchers to explore whether the medication could also reduce heart disease risk, Amengual said.

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Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, was not involved in the study but commented on the implications of finasteride.

“It stops testosterone from turning into dihydrotestosterone and thereby stops hair loss and also shrinks the prostate by 25%,” he said.

Side effects can include depression, anxiety and impotence, the doctor added.

In response to the drug being found to lower cholesterol and decrease heart disease risk, a doctor called for more research to confirm the findings. (iStock)

Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurologist and longevity expert who was also not involved in the study, offered his insights on the uses and risks associated with the drug.

“Finasteride in normal dosages – 1 to 5 mg daily, depending upon the indication – has intolerable side effects in many,” he said.

“Finasteride in normal dosages has intolerable side effects in many.”

The drug works by lowering levels of DHT (dihydrotestosterone) in order to have the desired effect on the prostate gland and hair follicles, he said, “but it can also strip a man of his energy, virility, libido and motivation.”

Study limitations and next steps

The study did have some limitations, the researchers noted.

Out of nearly 4,800 total participants, only 155 were finasteride users, all of whom were men over 50. The survey also did not determine the duration or amount of the doses.

as an enlarged prostate treatment, finasteride blocks the prostate gland that activates testosterone. (iStock)

“We also did not examine the effects of finasteride in women or female mice,” Amengual said. 

“However, this drug is not prescribed for women, as it could be dangerous during pregnancy.”

“This drug could be another tool in the fight against cardiovascular diseases.”

The next step is to track cholesterol levels of patients taking finasteride or to launch a clinical trial to confirm the link.

“There is still so much to discover on how finasteride works in our body,” Amengual noted. “But based on our findings, this drug could be another tool in the fight against cardiovascular diseases.”

The drug works by lowering levels of DHT (dihydrotestosterone) in order to have the desired effect on the prostate gland and hair follicles, which can cause side effects in some men, a doctor noted. (iStock)

In response to the drug being found to lower cholesterol and decrease heart disease risk, Siegel also called for more research.

“Much larger studies are needed in humans to confirm these findings before you would ever consider using this drug for cardioprevention,” he said.

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“It may end up being useful for this purpose in the elderly, who are at higher risk of heart attacks and strokes, as an add-on statin therapy.”

In addition to the study’s small size, Osborn noted that it was performed retrospectively — “meaning there was no control group(s), and that random effects, unbeknownst to the researchers, may have swayed the results in one direction,” he told Fox News Digital. 

Dr. Marc Siegel (left) and Dr. Brett Osborn (right) both shared insights on finasteride’s uses and side effects. (Dr. Marc Siegel/Dr. Brett Osborn)

“That said, the authors’ observations are interesting and demand further investigation,” Osborn went on. 

“After all, lipid-lowering agents are one of the mainstays of cardiovascular risk reduction — and most Americans die vascular deaths.”

This study doesn’t mean that every male should start taking finasteride, Osborn cautioned.

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Instead, he recommends getting regular exercise, increasing daily fiber intake to 25 grams and taking high doses of omega-3 fatty acids to reduce cardiovascular risk.

“For now, skip the finasteride as a lipid-lowering agent,” he advised. “As it stands now, the juice isn’t worth the squeeze.”

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