We asked people taking GLP-1s what happened when their expectations met reality
‘All my clothes are falling off me,’ one GLP-1 user told The Independent

© Zack Palomo/The Independent
‘All my clothes are falling off me,’ one GLP-1 user told The Independent

© Zack Palomo/The Independent
Paul George’s first night in green was memorable for all the right reasons, except for the final score. The nine-time All-Star delivered a record-setting performance during Tuesday's NBA opener, despite the Boston Celtics falling 121-113 to the Detroit Pistons.
George scored 38 points in 31 minutes during his Celtics debut, the most ever by a player in his first game with the franchise.
While the loss dampened George’s performance, it did give Boston an encouraging glimpse of what he can provide after injury-plagued stints with his previous teams.
BOSTON CELTICS' PAUL GEORGE HIT WITH FLOPPING FINE AFTER 38-POINT DEBUT ENDS IN COLLAPSE
George said the last time he felt this healthy was toward the end of his tenure with the Los Angeles Clippers, and admitted an injury lingered during his run with the 76ers.
"My stint in LA. I was pretty healthy to finish my last year there, and then, honestly, going to Philly, I just had a bad hyperextension that really set me back, and I couldn’t quite shake that one — it was an ongoing thing of my leg, my knee not feeling strong, and it was rough, right?" the 36-year-old said.
THE CRAIG CARTON SHOW–UNFILTERED, UNAPOLOGETIC AND UNMISSABLE. DOWNLOAD HIS DAILY PODCAST NOW!
LUKA DONČIĆ SAYS HE 'DEFINITELY' REGRETS PLAYING THROUGH HAMSTRING INJURY THAT ENDED HIS SEASON
"Because I was trying to rest, but I was also trying to be available for the team, and just couldn’t quite find the time to let it all come together."
Injury setbacks and load management arguably became a theme of George's stints with the Clippers and Sixers. He's managed to play at least 57 games during the regular season just once since taking the court for 77 contests in the 2018-19 campaign. That year also marked his last season with Oklahoma City.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The Celtics visit New York City on Friday night to face the defending champion Knicks. Both teams are seeking their first win of the 2026-27 season after losing their openers.

Frequent daytime napping among older adults has been linked to a higher risk of developing dementia, according to a study published in The Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences.
Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health tracked nearly 1,000 adults age 65 and older who showed no signs of memory or thinking problems when the study began in 2013.
A decade later, the researchers found that daily rest habits — like how often people nap, how long they sleep and whether they fall asleep by accident — are linked to long-term brain health.
ONE TYPE OF SLEEP LINKED TO DRAMATICALLY LOWER RISK OF DEMENTIA, PARKINSON'S AND 81 OTHER DISEASES
The study found that participants who napped frequently, defined as most days or every day, had a 48% higher risk of developing dementia compared to those who rarely or never napped.
IMAGE
Whether the naps were intentional also appeared to play a role. Seniors who fell asleep unintentionally had a 39% higher risk, while shorter naps were also linked to poorer outcomes.
Napping for 30 minutes or less was linked to a 40% increased risk of dementia, even after researchers adjusted for other health factors. For naps longer than 30 minutes, the association was less pronounced after researchers accounted for nighttime sleep patterns.
The research team stressed that looking at daytime napping habits gives a much clearer picture of overall health than looking at nighttime sleep alone.
THIS ONE QUESTION MAY REVEAL WHETHER YOUR BODY IS GETTING THE REST IT NEEDS, STUDY FINDS
"Our study highlights the importance of looking beyond just how long people nap and considering other napping characteristics, such as how frequently they nap and whether their naps are intentional," study authors Adam Spira, Ph.D., a professor at the Bloomberg School, and postdoctoral fellow Kening Jiang, Ph.D., told Fox News Digital.
CALLOUT:
"This study provides important longitudinal evidence that frequent and unintentional daytime napping were associated with a higher risk of developing dementia among older adults."
The findings held true even after accounting for nighttime sleep length, daytime drowsiness and indicators of sleep apnea.
"Nighttime sleep and daytime napping are closely related," Spira and Jiang went on. "Daytime napping may compensate for poor nighttime sleep, but it may also reduce the drive to sleep at night, potentially contributing to nighttime sleep disturbances, another important potential risk factor for dementia."
TEST YOURSELF WITH OUR LATEST LIFESTYLE QUIZ
Researchers pointed out that daytime resting does not necessarily cause brain changes. Rather, changing nap habits could be an early warning sign of underlying changes in the brain.
Brain regions that help regulate wakefulness can start to break down in the early stages of dementia, leading to more frequent daytime fatigue, they noted.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE HEALTH STORIES
To double-check this, the team re-analyzed the data after removing anyone who developed dementia during the first five years.
The link between frequent, accidental naps and dementia remained just as strong, suggesting that changes in napping habits can show up years before a formal diagnosis.
The researchers emphasized that this was an observational study with limitations.
"We did not directly intervene on participants’ napping behaviors to examine whether changing these behaviors would affect their dementia risk," Spira and Jiang told Fox News Digital.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER
"Although we don’t know whether napping causes dementia, our study findings suggest that daytime napping patterns may be useful indicators of future dementia risk," they added.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The findings suggest that daytime napping patterns in older adults may be worth monitoring, particularly when naps become frequent or happen unintentionally, according to the researchers.

Fitness trainer and media personality Jillian Michaels is urging parents to "keep the pressure on" social media companies, warning about the platforms' allegedly "addictive" algorithms and content.
Michaels made the comments during an appearance on "The Faulkner Focus" while promoting her new Fox Nation documentary, "Toxic 2: A Generation on the Brink." Michaels advised parents to limit their children's access to online activities.
"You have to do everything you can," Michaels said. "And that means putting parental controls on your kid's phone, period. Take the phone away at night, limit the sites that they can access, have communications with them regularly about the content that they're seeing online. But you also have to be realistic about what they're going to do when they're not with you."
CHRIS HANSEN URGES PARENTS TO TEACH CHILDREN ABOUT ONLINE PREDATORS BEFORE ALLOWING INTERNET ACCESS
"This is the part where we also have to continue putting pressure on the social media companies to make their algorithms safer for kids," she said. "They created an addictive product, they know it, and we need to keep the pressure on."
In the documentary, Michaels examines the risks she says children face in the modern age, including excessive screen time, mental health issues and over-medicalization.
"The truth is, a lot of parents probably don't realize the scale of what kids are dealing with today," she said. "From day one, the fragile little bodies and brains of the tiniest and most vulnerable among us are being targeted, treated and toxified from all angles."
NATION'S SECOND-LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICT MOVES TO LIMIT KIDS' SCREEN TIME
Michaels is joined by several experts in "Toxic 2: A Generation on the Brink," including psychology researcher Jean Twenge, who argues that individuals who begin using smartphones at an early age are more likely to experience mental health issues later in life.
"In some of the best design studies, the heaviest users of social media are about twice as likely to be depressed as lighter non-users," Twenge said. "Even in other studies, you see at least often a 40% or a 50% increase in depression from not using social media to being a heavy user of social media."
"Gen Z and Gen Alpha know how bad these technologies can be for them," Twenge added. "They're the ones who came up with phrases like 'chronically online,' which make it sound like a disease, 'brain rot,' that it's bad for your attention span and your focus."
FRANCE BECOMES FIRST EU NATION TO BAN SOCIAL MEDIA FOR CHILDREN UNDER 15
Social media companies have faced increasing pressure to be regulated and be held accountable for the potential effects of their platforms. In August, Meta agreed to pay as much as $17.1 billion and implement restrictions on teen accounts to settle claims that it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children and misled the public about the platforms' safety. Meta denied the allegations.
For more on the potential risks personal tech and other issues pose to young children, make sure to watch "Toxic 2: A Generation on the Brink," now streaming on Fox Nation.
CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO FOX NATION
Fox Nation programs are viewable on demand and from your mobile device app but only for FOX Nation subscribers. Go to Fox Nation to start a free trial and watch the extensive library of your favorite FOX Nation personalities.


Like most of American healthcare, kidney care has for decades been plagued by red tape. The Trump administration says it wants to change that. On Tuesday, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced his department's Kidney Care National Plan, which promises to introduce more competition, reduce regulatory barriers, expand patient choice, and overhaul America's kidney transplant system.
Much of the plan focuses on barriers to entry in dialysis care, which treats nearly 558,000 Americans. While dialysis can be performed at home, most patients receive treatment at specialized facilities, which must comply with federal certification requirements governing equipment, staffing, water quality, and patient safety in order to participate in Medicare.
Kennedy argues that regulatory barriers have discouraged competition and innovation, leaving patients with fewer dialysis treatment options. "Dialysis technology is an extraordinary technology," said Kennedy at the press conference, but "because of monopolies in the system and the barriers to new entrants, we have not seen any real improvements in that technology."
Of course, the existence of large or even monopolistic companies is not in itself evidence of a problem, but government regulation can often entrench those companies' positions in the market. "I like the fact that they're recognizing that a lot of regulatory…barriers are contributing to the problem, and that's refreshing to hear," says Jeffrey Singer, a practicing general surgeon and senior fellow at Reason Foundation, the nonprofit that publishes Reason. Singer says that removing barriers that prevent new companies from competing with established providers could not only increase choice but also drive down prices.
HHS says that two companies, DaVita and Fresenius Medical Care, control approximately 74 percent of the American dialysis market. As of 2019, roughly a third of Americans lived in areas where the only available dialysis provider was one of those two companies, according to the agency. The administration argues that government regulation has helped entrench this dominance by making it difficult for new providers to enter the market.
To address this, the Kidney Care National Plan suggests a number of reforms, including simplifying certification requirements. HHS also plans to investigate whether dominant dialysis providers have used payment arrangements and legal strategies to secure higher reimbursements without delivering better care.
The 17-page report calls for a review of existing requirements, but it does not specify which regulations will be repealed, nor does it establish a timeline for doing so. It also does not propose any significant reduction in the government's role in financing the distorted market. Instead, the plan largely seeks to make existing government-financed systems such as Medicare more competitive and efficient.
Kennedy has also correctly identified the need for reform regarding kidney donations. Nearly 90,000 people are waiting for a kidney transplant at any given time in America, and 11 people die every day waiting for a kidney. The transplant process is currently managed by Organ Procurement Organizations (OPOs), which are federally certified nonprofits responsible for recovering organs from donors and coordinating their transfer. There are currently just 55 federally designated OPOs operating in the United States, and HHS argues that they behave as "regional monopolies." Since no new OPOs have been approved in the last year, the Kidney Care National Plan suggests fast-tracking certification.
The plan also seeks to make living kidney donation easier by reducing financial barriers. Following the passage of the Honor Our Living Donors Act in February, HHS revised federal reimbursement rules so that a donor's eligibility for financial assistance is no longer determined by the transplant recipient's income. Eligible donors can receive up to $6,000 to cover expenses, including travel, lost wages, and childcare.
However, the reforms proposed stop short of allowing kidney donors to receive direct compensation for the organs themselves, which remains prohibited under federal law. "I can sell my blood. Why can't I sell my kidney?" Singer asks.
Peter Jaworski, director of the Georgetown Blood and Plasma Research Group, feels similarly, arguing that financial incentives are available to nearly everyone involved in kidney transplantation except the donors themselves. "According to this plan, it's OK to use incentives to encourage them to be more productive, to actually do a better job," Jaworski tells Reason, referring to transplant surgeons, hospitals, and organ procurement organizations. "The only exception, once again, is the donor who is offering a kidney."
Better solutions exist, according to Jaworski, who points to the proposed End Kidney Deaths Act. The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R–N.Y.) last year, would offer living kidney donors a $50,000 refundable tax credit, distributed over five years. "We have those systems in order to make sure that we can treat patients. That's the point of blood donation. That's the point of plasma donation. That's the point of kidney donation too."
America's plasma market is an excellent example of financial incentives encouraging donation. Unlike many other countries, the U.S. allows plasma donors to be compensated, and despite accounting for just over 4 percent of the world's population, it supplies approximately 68 percent of the plasma collected globally for manufacturing medicines.
"Why do you think America does it? Is it because in America there's way more altruism than in France or Italy or Belgium? No, it's because in the United States you can be paid to donate plasma," argues Jaworski.
The Trump administration appears to recognize that government overreach has stifled competition and restricted patient choice. It also recognizes that living adults donating kidneys will be part of the solution to the long, deadly waiting lists. But its plan leaves the government's outsize role in kidney care largely untouched. For patients facing years on dialysis or waiting for a lifesaving transplant, recognizing the problem is not enough.
The post RFK Jr. Wants To Cut Red Tape in Kidney Care. He Should Go Further. appeared first on Reason Magazine.
Courtesy of May Lee
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with May Lee, a 60-year-old broadcast engineer with GreyHawk Global at McMurdo Station in Antarctica. She previously worked there as a supply technician for Amentum after spending decades at HP, most recently as a marketing and communications manager. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
I was laid off from HP after 30 years, so I decided to look beyond tech jobs and pursue something different at 60.
I had visited Antarctica twice for vacation and fell in love with it. At the time, I didn't know that you could work there. When I looked into it, I knew I had to apply.
It's so hard to describe how amazing it is to work at McMurdo Station. If you ever get a chance to experience it, I highly recommend it.
Here's what the job application process was like.
The US National Science Foundation manages the US Antarctic Program. The body contracts out operational support to several companies, each with a specific focus. For example, Gana A'Yoo is responsible for areas like food services and waste management.
In mid-April, I applied for three roles: rooms coordinator at Gana A'Yoo, service desk support technician at Grey Hawk Global, and a supply assistant supervisor at Amentum.
I applied using my HP résumé, which lists my various roles at the company.
Courtesy of May Lee
I was turned down for the rooms coordinator role within a week or two, with an email stating that I did "not meet the minimum requirements."
This came as a surprise to me. So, I started researching more about working in Antarctica — something I should have done beforehand — and learned that it's very competitive to get a job there. I read on blogs that if you don't make your résumé match the job description exactly, you get weeded out. So, I think that's what happened.
I then kind of wrote off my pursuit of a job in Antarctica. I thought maybe this just wasn't meant to be.
Courtesy of May Lee
Then, in May, a recruiter from Amentum, which offers roles in logistics and skilled trades, reached out to me, saying that my résumé appeared to be a match for what they were looking for. The job I got was a supply technician at Amentum.
When asked to send my résumé by email, I updated it to make sure it matched the job description.
I also received a pre-screening questionnaire about my availability, credentials, and whether I could work in the US without sponsorship.
A week later, I had a 30-minute video call with the recruiter about what the hiring process entails and more details about the job environment.
This was followed a few days later by an 80-minute phone call with the hiring manager, during which they asked behavioral, situational, and competency-based questions.
Courtesy of May Lee
I received an offer contract for an alternate position. An alternate is the backup for a primary who can't go for whatever reason. I was told that the quicker I get through the background and physical qualification (PQ) checks, the quicker I could get to the top of the alternate list.
Because Antarctica is so remote, they want to make sure that you're healthy. Because if you go down there and something happens, there are no medical facilities that can take care of you.
In June, I received a 17-page PQ form that requested comprehensive medical and dental information.
There were eight required blood tests, a physical exam, vision screening, and a dental exam, among others. Depending on your age, sex, and deployment location and term, there may be additional tests. The costs of these were reimbursable by the company.
In addition to the PQ, I underwent a comprehensive government background check.
I was cleared to onboard in June and was notified that I was changed to a primary in July.
Often, this is because a primary has dropped out; they might've failed the PQ, even if they passed it the year before, or something in their life might've happened that requires them to stay home.
Courtesy of May Lee
There was some back-and-forth with my PQ, which I had to resubmit after getting an updated Tdap vaccine.
In September, I received the current-season influenza vaccine, and my PQ was approved.
I flew from San Francisco to Auckland, New Zealand, and then to Christchurch. There were a couple of days of training, and I also got outfitted with extreme-cold-weather gear.
Then, after seven months of preparation, I was finally deployed to McMurdo on a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III.
The metallic, orange-eyed parasite uses mouth hooks to burrow into the flesh of mammals

© USDA via CDC
The metallic, orange-eyed parasite uses mouth hooks to burrow into the flesh of mammals

© USDA via CDC
The metallic, orange-eyed parasite uses mouth hooks to burrow into the flesh of mammals

© USDA via CDC
Investigations under way to determine whether virus normally found in livestock contributed to man’s death
A man in France has become the first human known to have contracted Shamonda virus, with investigations under way to explore whether it contributed to his death.
Shamonda virus is a type of bunyavirus and is spread by bites from infected midges. According to the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety, in animals such as cattle, sheep and goats it can cause diarrhoea, lack of appetite and a decline in milk yield, “as well as abortions and congenital abnormalities in newborn calves, lambs and kids”.
Continue reading...
© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS

© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS

© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS
Investigations under way to determine whether virus normally found in livestock contributed to man’s death
A man in France has become the first human known to have contracted Shamonda virus, with investigations under way to explore whether it contributed to his death.
Shamonda virus is a type of bunyavirus and is spread by bites from infected midges. According to the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety, in animals such as cattle, sheep and goats it can cause diarrhoea, lack of appetite and a decline in milk yield, “as well as abortions and congenital abnormalities in newborn calves, lambs and kids”.
Continue reading...
© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS

© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS

© Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/REUTERS
The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to let the Trump administration gradually end transgender-related medical services for prison inmates who want to be treated as members of the opposite sex.
The post Supreme Court Refuses to Let Trump Cut Transgender Inmate Care appeared first on Breitbart.
What is the Shamonda virus and is it dangerous to humans?

© PA

Portugal’s planned 15% subsidy for obesity medicines will leave treatment beyond the reach of many patients, their national association has warned, accusing the government of introducing restrictions that will further
The post “We’ll be the laughing stock of Europe” appeared first on Portugal Resident.

Courtesy of Renate Flanagan.
How soon is too soon to invite a new romantic partner to go on vacation? I asked myself that when I had been dating a guy for a month and had an upcoming vacation that I had planned before I met him.
During the height of the pandemic lockdown in the spring of 2020, I was going stir-crazy not being able to travel freely. In those early days before vaccines or access to testing, air travel felt risky, and there were even restrictions on interstate travel. As an avid traveler who always has a next destination in mind, I needed something to look forward to during those dark days when I was afraid to hug my parents because of social distancing guidelines.
I didn't know it yet, but a solo adventure to cure my cabin fever would turn into a litmus test for a budding relationship during those unprecedented times.
I loved hiking and the outdoors before the pandemic. While many places were closed due to social distancing mandates, the national parks were mostly still open. I had never been to Acadia National Park in Maine, even though I lived in New England until I was 10. Maine is within a day's drive from my home in the Washington, DC area, so Acadia seemed like a feasible destination.
I was single at the time. I had taken solo trips before and planned to go to Maine on my own. In June, I scheduled my time off from work for the last week of August. I didn't have any accommodations picked out or much of a plan other than driving up to Maine and visiting Acadia.
In July, I met a guy from a dating app. We hit it off, and soon we were seeing each other multiple times a week. About a month after we first met, we were hanging out, and I said offhand, "I'm going to miss spending time with you when I'm in Maine." He said he was going to miss me too. Then an idea, that seemed crazy, popped into my head. "Well, you could come with me," I blurted out.
Courtesy of Renate Flanagan.
As soon as I asked him to join me, I wondered if I had crossed a line. We weren't even in official "boyfriend-girlfriend" territory. We had known each other for a month, and my trip was planned for a month later. Without hesitation, he accepted my invitation to go to Maine.
I was excited my new love interest wanted to join me on vacation, but I couldn't help but consider the potential for disaster. What if we stopped seeing each other before it was time to go on vacation? How would we handle a 9-hour car ride together? What if four days of nonstop togetherness was too much too soon?
As he helped me plan the trip, I got early signals that things would go well. We collaborated on finding a place to stay. We were aligned that while we didn't need a 5-star hotel, we also didn't want a bargain rustic cabin where the only bathroom was an outhouse. The night before we left, he humored my meticulous packing list and impressed me with his ability to load the car as if he were playing Tetris.
Courtesy of Renate Flanagan.
The 9-hour drive showed we were a great team, taking turns as the driver or the copilot who assisted with navigation and music selection. We discovered that, as angsty teenagers, we had nearly identical tastes in early 2000s rock music, despite growing up on opposite sides of the Atlantic. Staying together in the cabin ended up being a micro-experiment in living together, which felt effortless.
The trip itself was a blast. We admired the Atlantic Ocean from the top of Cadillac Mountain and skipped rocks on Jordan Pond in Acadia. We went kayaking at the lake by our rented cabin and ate fresh lobster. Inviting someone you're dating on vacation so soon might have been unconventional, but it turned out great. Six years later, we're still together, and the trip remains a fond memory from the early days of our relationship.