It’s near impossible to talk about public health right now, without discussing COVID-19, so for our annual Health and Wellness issue, Staff Writer Malea Martin writes about flu cases being lower than usual, and local public health experts say that COVID-19 precautions have helped. Staff Writer Kasey Bubnash speaks with a nutritionist about COVID-19 weight gain, diets, and the best way to lose weight and keep it off.
Local public health experts have a few theories as to why influenza hasn’t made much of a mark this year; COVID-19 precautions are one
BY MALEA MARTIN
Infectious diseases haven’t exactly been a source of good news over the past year, but officials say one annual virus is sickening an unusually low number of people this winter: influenza.
When someone comes into one of Santa Barbara County’s five hospitals with influenza-like symptoms, they are tested “for a whole set of viruses,” including COVID-19 and the flu, county Public Health Officer Dr. Henning Ansorg said at a Jan. 15 press conference.
According to the county’s Community Data Dashboard flu report, there have been zero positive rapid flu tests among Cottage Health, Marian, and Lompoc in-patients since October, which is considered the start of flu season. Hospitals have administered more than 700 rapid flu tests since the start of the season, all of which have come up negative, according to the data.
“As a physician in the hospital, I have not seen influenza this year,” Marian Regional Medical Center Chief Medical Officer and Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Trees Ritter told the Sun. “I saw one single case of influenza in Northern San Luis Obispo County in the fall, but that was the only positive flu test that I’ve seen this year.”
This isn’t to say there are no cases of flu in the community, as the county’s data just reflects in-patient hospital testing. But it does indicate a much smaller prevalence this year, public health officials said. In the 2019-20 flu season, for example, 27.8 percent of hospital lab rapid flu tests came up positive in the second week of January. During the 2018-19 flu season, 21.9 percent came up positive in the same week.
“I see a much, much lower trend across the prevalence and hospitalization as compared to other years,” Public Health Director Dr. Van Do-Reynoso said at the Jan. 15 press conference. “What I’m hearing is that it’s due to the social distancing, it’s due to people wearing their masks, so those are netting good results with regard to the spread of flu.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control, COVID-19 appears to spread more easily than the flu. But in other ways, Ansorg said, the flu virus is “similar to the coronaviruses, because it’s a respiratory virus that is spread through our exhalations with tiny droplets.”
“So if more people protect themselves with wearing masks, washing their hands more often, and keeping at least 6 feet distance from each other, it will protect from other viruses,” Ansorg explained. “We are also seeing that other normal cold viruses are much less prevalent so far this winter. The only explanation we have so far is that it’s really the protection that a lot of people are maintaining.”
Melissa DeBacker, chief of Quality Assurance Process Improvement, Risk Management, and Infection Control at Lompoc Valley Medical Center, told the Sun that it’s too early to say for certain what is causing the lower flu rates.
“There hasn’t been time for any real research to be put out on it, because we’re still in it. All it can really be is speculation,” DeBacker said. “But since influenza and COVID are transmitted similarly, it just makes sense that the source control, the distancing, and other mitigation measures put in place would also help squelch the flu.”
DeBacker theorized that other factors—such as schools being closed, teleworking, no large events, vaccination—could also influence the flu’s spread locally.
Before flu season started, the county pushed out strong and consistent messaging in both English and Spanish encouraging community members to get vaccinated. Throughout October, the county offered free drive-up clinics in Lompoc, Santa Barbara, and Santa Maria so residents could get their flu shots. Another free flu shot event was held in Guadalupe in November. And on Sept. 15, 2020, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department issued a Health Officer Order that mandated flu vaccinations for all health care workers. If a worker couldn’t provide documentation of a flu vaccine, they would be required to wear a mask while working in patient care during the flu season.
The Public Health Department’s flu clinics immunized nearly four times as many people this year compared to last year, according to Senior Epidemiologist Joy Kane.
“We’re in frequent calls with Public Health regularly, and there was a big concern months ago about the upcoming flu, and the possibility of co-infection with COVID and influenza,” DeBacker said. “So there was a big push by Public Health to really protect the public and get the flu vaccine out, ensure that as many people got vaccinated as possible.”
Despite the many scientific explanations and theories that public health officers have offered as to why flu numbers are low, some conspiracy theories have cropped up, particularly on social media.
In a Dec. 5 post made to the “Protect Five Cities” Facebook group with several hundred members, Facebook user Robert M Stone lamented that San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties were being lumped in with Southern California in the state’s regional reopening plan. User Rolfe Nelson commented, “Do those [COVID-19] numbers include the flu?” and another user replied sarcastically, “there is no flu anymore just like the elderly have not died from old age in 2020.”
Ansorg said the implication that flu cases are being counted as COVID-19 is a “completely unfounded claim” and “misinformation.”
“Unfortunately that spread [on] social media widely,” he said. “The urgent care centers, the emergency rooms are testing for a whole set of viruses when somebody comes in with these symptoms, and the test results don’t lie.”
Ritter said another reason we are seeing so little flu infection could be that “it’s not penetrated into the population.”
“When people get together they’re not going to be spreading it if it’s not there, whereas COVID is in the population at this point and the people are spreading that when they interact with each other,” he said.
Ritter added that the newfound attention people are paying to “respiratory etiquette” also plays a role, and could teach valuable lessons for future flu seasons.
“All cultures may have to reassess what they do in the wintertime, and I would think that there may be more acceptance of masking in the wintertime when there are a lot of circulating viruses,” he said. “I’ve talked to doctors who say, ‘Next winter, I might wear a mask even if I don’t have to,’ simply because we found that they’re so effective.”
Staff Writer Malea Martin can be reached at mmartin@santamariasun.com.
Learn some practical tips from a pro about living a healthier pandemic lifestyle
BY KASEY BUBNASH
Pandemic pounds, the quarantine 15, the COVID 19. You know what I’m talking about.
The COVID-19 pandemic completely disrupted most of our lives and routines; led to spikes in stress, anxiety, and uncertainty; and left many of us with little else to do but sit around. With gyms closed and millions of jobs lost, it’s only natural that many of us dropped our healthy habits and traded them in for comfort food.
An October 2020 survey conducted by researchers at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana found that sedentary time increased among nearly 8,000 respondents during the pandemic, while time spent in physical activity decreased. The result, in about 28 percent of cases, was weight gain.
Weight fluctuation is normal, natural, and human. Gaining weight isn’t always a bad thing, and fat certainly isn’t always a sign of an unhealthy lifestyle.
But for those of you who feel like your COVID-19 weight gain is the result of some bad habits, Stephanie Killen, a certified nutritional therapy practitioner at Sound Body Nutrition in San Luis Obispo, can help. Killen works with her clients to address digestive, hormonal, and weight issues through holistic nutrition and lifestyle remedies.
Sun: Have you heard from a lot of clients who have gained weight during the pandemic?
Killen: I actually have not. I’ve heard it throughout just people in general, you know, as I mingle about. “Oh, you know, I’ve put on weight because I’m just eating at home,” and that kind of thing. So it’s definitely circulating and I have heard it. But my clients in particular, the ones that come to me for weight loss, it’s been an issue since before the pandemic. So I’m not sure if it’s actually made it worse for them or not.
Sun: So we had the pandemic on top of the holiday season. I personally always gain weight during the holiday season because there’re so many cookies. And then now with the new year I’m seeing lots of posts on social media about resolutions to lose weight and fad diets. So what do you think of fad diets like keto and stuff like that? Do they work?
Killen: Even the word “diet” is something that we try to stay away from when I work with my clients because it’s more of a lifestyle change than a diet—because diets fail. And it’s a mindset around the word “diet” that kind of is restrictive and freaks people out, and a lot of people aren’t successful with it. I mean, there are certain health issues that could benefit from certain specialty diets, like keto, like paleo, like Whole30. Those are definitely warranted in some situations. Then there’re also detoxes—you’ll see that in the beginning of the year, and I think it could be a good kick-start into the year if it’s truly a goal of yours to kind of clean out and lose weight and start again. I do think that those programs can be helpful in kick-starting that, but in all reality, most people don’t even make it through and go back to what they’re doing, either during or right after any of those programs.
Sun: What do you think it is about diets in general that leads people to not be successful?
Killen: I think a lot of it is meal planning, whether it’s too time consuming, whether they don’t know what to eat, whether they don’t know what to eat that tastes good is a big one. A lot of people dislike cooking, or they just want something quick and easy and convenient. And when it comes to actually cooking meals, they don’t know what to cook and how to make it tasty and how to make it quick. So I think that that’s probably the biggest hiccup for diets. And then another thing is the mentality that, “Oh, well I screwed up. So I’ll just start again, like, next Monday.” So it’s like they screw up once and then it’s out the door until they feel like this is a good starting point again, instead of just realizing that progress over perfection. Then you have words like “cheat” and “cheat days” and “I cheated.” And I think there’s just this really restrictive, almost negative connotation with dieting. And I think that gets old for people, real quick.
Sun: As a nutritionist, what kinds of tips do you give to people typically who want to lose weight in a healthy, long-term sort of way?
Killen: Honestly I tell them first and foremost we are not counting calories. This isn’t a counting calorie game. I also tell them that it’s about nourishing your body. It’s about bringing your body back into balance. … But I say throw your timeline out the door, because if you put a timeline on this, all that’s going to do is create pressure and that’s not in the recipe for success. Because weight loss is kind of like layers, and it’s mindset and it’s body and it’s soul. There’s an emotional aspect to eating and emotional eating, and there’s obviously the physical part of exercising and being active, and then there’s also the mental part with staying motivated. So it’s a multi-layered issue, and you need time to address each layer and build on each layer. … Carving out a time to meal prep is one. So meal prepping for the week includes making your shopping list, going grocery shopping, and preparing the things that you can do ahead of time to make your week easier. I think clearing the crap out of your house is another. So that you don’t have things that are tempting you when you open the cupboard and you open the fridge. If you replace those things with healthier options or healthier versions of those items, you’re going to grab those when you’re hungry instead of going for the Cheetos that are hidden in the corner. I think that’s a big one. Staying hydrated is another one. Water is going to be your best friend, and trying to stay hydrated throughout your day so that your body functions properly is another good one. And taking the time to really go to a health food store and peruse the aisles and see what kinds of snacks they have and what kind of alternative things that would be healthier for you. So I think healthy substitutes for things you would go for during a snack time or mealtime are really important.
Sun: Do you have any motivational words for people who are struggling with staying healthy right now or are just coming out of the pandemic and the holiday season feeling bad about themselves?
Killen: I think this is actually a really good time for resources right now. A lot of businesses, as far as like fitness things go, mindset things go, nutrition goes, a lot of a lot of those experts are offering free advice online. They’re offering free programs, they’re offering paid programs. And, you know, to get someone’s support so that you can be successful is one of the things that I think would be the best advice. It’s hard to always hold yourself accountable, but if you have somebody like a health coach or nutritionist or a fitness expert, who’s going to support you and motivate you, I think that’s one of the best things that you could do for your body.
Staff Writer Kasey Bubnash can be reached at kbubnash@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Jan 28 – Feb 4, 2021.
