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Epoch Health Profile picture
@epochhealth
May 31 • 16 tweets • 7 min read • Read on X
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The FDA just approved Moderna's brand-new mRNA vaccine for COVID-19.

This time, it’s not a booster. It’s a completely redesigned shot.

But most don’t know what’s actually in it—or how it works.

Moderna’s new COVID-19 vaccine skips the full spike protein—and something else too: published data.

So what exactly did the FDA approve?

🧵 THREADImage
The Food and Drug Administration has approved Moderna’s next-generation COVID-19 vaccine.

The FDA licensed the vaccine for adults aged 65 and up as well as people aged 12 to 64 who have at least one condition that puts them at higher risk for severe COVID-19, the agency said on May 31.

The vaccine is meant for “active immunization to prevent” COVID-19 for people who have been previously vaccinated with any COVID-19 vaccine.Image
“The FDA approval of our third product, mNEXSPIKE, adds an important new tool to help protect people at high risk of severe disease from COVID-19,” Stéphane Bancel, Moderna’s CEO, said in a statement.

People who suffered a severe allergic reaction after receiving any Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, or after receiving any ingredient of mNEXSPIKE, should not get the new vaccine, the FDA said in a package insert.Image
The vaccine, also known as mRNA-1283, utilizes messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), just like Moderna’s already-available COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax. But it contains just 10 micrograms of mRNA per dose, compared to 50 micrograms in the available vaccine.

Moderna scientists have said that the new vaccine encodes epitopes, or portions of the COVID-19 spike protein, rather than the full-length spike protein.

In a clinical trial of 11,417 people, about half of whom received mNEXSPIKE, the immunogenicity triggered by the new vaccine was the same or better than that prompted by Spikevax, the company told a government advisory panel in April. A lower percentage of mNEXSPIKE recipients contracted COVID-19, and severe COVID-19, the company said.

Other clinical and nonclinical data support the new vaccine, Moderna told a government advisory panel in April.Image
“What remains consistent throughout all those investigations is this consistent pattern that mRNA 1283 outperforms Spikevax in terms of its ability to induce higher neutralizing antibodies,” Bishoy Rizkalla, a Moderna official, told the committee.

Moderna has not yet published the results in a journal, according to ClinicalTrials.gov, a government database.

theepochtimes.com/health/fda-app…
A little about us: We’re a team of journalists and researchers on a mission to give you REAL and honest information about your health.

Side effects of reading our posts may include: critical thinking.

Follow us for more daily threads—backed by hard data.

—> @EpochHealth Image
FDA officials announced earlier in May that the regulator would only approve COVID-19 vaccines if companies provided clinical trial data showing the shots provided protection against symptomatic COVID-19 and other clinical endpoints.

theepochtimes.com/health/fda-say…
The exceptions were for elderly adults and people with underlying risk conditions putting them at higher risk of severe COVID-19 outcomes, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Those conditions include diabetes and obesity.

For those groups, immunogenicity data would be sufficient, the officials said.Image
More recently, FDA officials encouraged Moderna, Pfizer, and Novavax to update their COVID-19 vaccines to target LP.8.1, a subvariant of the JN.1 strain.

theepochtimes.com/health/fda-adv…
Moderna on May 23 said it had filed for clearance for an updated version of Spikevax that targets LP.8.1.

On Saturday Moderna said it expects to have mNEXSPIKE available later this year, alongside Spikevax.

Pfizer’s vaccine also uses mRNA technology. Novavax’s vaccine is protein-based.

As part of the approval process, the FDA is requiring Moderna to carry out two post-approval studies, including an observational study of outcomes in women and infants following receipt of the shot in pregnancy, the FDA said in an approval letter.Image
The CDC, as of this week, no longer recommends pregnant women receive any COVID-19 vaccine.

theepochtimes.com/health/cdc-upd…
The Department of Health and Human Services, the FDA’s parent agency, has expressed doubt about the mRNA platform. Image
In a statement about canceling funding for Moderna’s vaccine candidate against bird flu, a spokesperson told The Epoch Times that “mRNA technology remains under-tested” and has been linked to “legitimate safety concerns,” including heart inflammation.

theepochtimes.com/health/health-…
None of the mNEXSPIKE recipients in the trial for the vaccine experienced heart inflammation or died, according to Moderna.

Adverse events were similar among the trial’s two arms, the company said. Image
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More from @epochhealth

Epoch Health Profile picture
Jun 2
Quarantine Notice in China Attracts Widespread Attention as COVID Cases Surge

People in China are getting sick again—and it’s not just a cold.

Schools are shutting down. Quarantine orders are quietly creeping back. Yet the CCP insists everything is “under control.”

The numbers don’t match the fear.
And censorship is back in full force.

What’s really happening behind China's firewall?

🧵 THREADImage
Doctors and residents across China continue to report more infections and deaths as the latest wave of COVID-19 continues, portraying a far more severe situation than the Chinese regime is letting on.

theepochtimes.com/article/school…
Schools in various provinces are reportedly suspending classes and placing students in quarantine, leading to growing concerns among the public of a return of lockdowns, according to information provided to the Chinese language version of The Epoch Times and on social media.

A “home quarantine notice”—issued by a primary school in Guangzhou and circulated by Chinese netizens on China’s TikTok equivalent, Douyin, before it was posted to social media platform X on May 26 before CCP censors could delete it—has attracted widespread attention.

The notice said that a third grade student was ordered to undergo quarantine for seven days after being diagnosed with COVID-19. After the quarantine period, health certificates from a clinic and community health service agency were required for the student to return to school.

Schools in Shaanxi and Jiangsu also suspended classes after some students exhibited fevers, which were suspected to be COVID-19 infections.Image
Read 15 tweets
Epoch Health Profile picture
May 30
Not all eggs are what they seem.

Cage-free? Free-range? Organic?

These labels sound reassuring—but most people have no idea what they really mean. The egg industry is counting on that.

Once you see the truth, you can’t unsee it.

🧵 THREAD Image
Michael Jimenez is the founder and CEO of JMZ Farms in Texas, where he raises approximately 500 chickens and produces organic, pasture-raised eggs.

“I feed my hens a certified organic feed, and they are pasture raised—meaning that I have them on pasture 24/7,” he told The Epoch Times.

Jimenez says he chose organic, pasture-raised methods to provide customers with the highest quality eggs—completely natural and free of chemicals. His approach was inspired by regenerative farming advocate Joel Salatin, whom Jimenez discovered through videos at age 12.

“Starting with that one chicken I had—it really inspired me to want to build my home farm,” said Jimenez.

With egg prices soaring and avian flu concerns on the rise, consumers are paying closer attention to what egg labels actually mean.

Marc Dresner of The American Egg Board noted that eggs remain safe to eat.

“The USDA and FDA say consumers can be confident in the safety of eggs. There is no evidence that bird flu can be transmitted to humans through properly handled and cooked food, including eggs,” he told The Epoch Times via email.

He added that farmers and their families eat the same eggs they sell and work daily to ensure quality and safety.Image
What Egg Carton Labels Mean

Egg labels provide key details about:

• How hens were raised: Cage systems, cage-free, free-range, or pasture-raised

• What hens ate: Organic feed, grains, or forage like bugs

• Egg quality and size: Based on USDA grading (AA, A, B)

• Safety: Storage and transport standards to prevent foodborne illness

Some labels are regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); others come from third-party certifiers with their own criteria. Some claims are unregulated and used primarily as marketing terms.Image
Read 17 tweets
Epoch Health Profile picture
May 30
Ergothioneine might be the most important nutrient you’ve never heard of.

This potent antioxidant is essential for brain health and longevity.

But thanks to changes in our food supply, it’s quietly disappearing from the modern diet.

The good news? It’s easy to get it back—once you know where to look.

🧵 THREADImage
Ergothioneine (ERGO), a potent antioxidant made by fungi and soil microbes, is making waves in the world of nutrition. However, many may wonder what it actually is.

Research shows ERGO is important for brain health. When animals are deprived of ERGO, it harms both brain cell growth and cognitive function. People with dementia also tend to have lower levels of ERGO in their blood compared with healthy people of the same age.

Fungi that typically grow in the rich, healthy soil of forests are a vital source of ERGO.

However, as farming practices deplete the soil, we lose its vitality and the nutrients that nourish our food—leaving us reliant on forest-grown mushrooms and improved soil care to help restore healthy ERGO levels.Image
‘Longevity Vitamin’

ERGO is primarily produced by soil-borne microbes and fungi. Humans cannot produce it, so it must be obtained through diet. Researchers discovered that mammals have a specific transporter protein for ERGO, enabling its absorption from food into red blood cells.

These cells then distribute it to tissues throughout the body, where it has powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects—emphasizing its biological importance.

In 2018, Bruce Ames, a renowned biochemist, proposed that ERGO could be classified as a longevity vitamin. These vitamins are essential for the function of longevity proteins that support long-term health and aging. Ames suggested that a deficiency in ERGO could harm long-term health.

Robert Beelman, a professor of food science and director of the Center for Plant and Mushroom Foods for Health at Penn State University, has advanced the understanding of ERGO.

“ERGO is actually an amino acid, but not one that’s found in proteins,” Beelman told The Epoch Times. Unlike other amino acids that build proteins, ERGO acts as an antioxidant with special benefits for brain and organ health. This is one reason why ERGO is linked to aging and cognitive health, and why it stands apart from other amino acids.

“It appears to mitigate many of the chronic diseases associated with aging,” he said.Image
Read 11 tweets
Epoch Health Profile picture
May 30
The 3,000-Year-Old Secret Weapon for Anxiety, Inflammation, and Modern Mayhem

You’ve smelled it at church. Maybe even at yoga.

Now scientists are studying it for cancer, anxiety, arthritis, asthma, and irritable bowel—which, let’s be honest, covers most of the Western world over 35.

Turns out, frankincense isn’t just incense. It’s medicine.

🧵 THREADImage
If you’ve never heard of Boswellia, don’t worry, you’ve definitely sniffed it. Or wafted it. Or had a minor spiritual epiphany while someone burned it at a yoga class that you regretted taking halfway through.

Boswellia is the tree behind frankincense, which is surprisingly relevant to your inflamed joints, anxious brain, or slightly dodgy bowel.

This squat little tree is found in dry, dramatic places like Oman, Ethiopia, and Somalia. The tree oozes a resin when cut, like sap.

People have been scraping, sniffing, and slathering this stuff on everything from bruises to bad moods for thousands of years. And I do mean everything.

The ancient Egyptians called it the “tears of Horus” (emotional much?) and used it in embalming and in incense burned during religious rituals. The Greeks burned it in temples. The Romans traded it like it was sandalwood-scented Bitcoin.

By the time the Wise Men were loading it onto a camel for a celestial baby shower, Boswellia resin was worth more than gold.

But here’s where it gets juicy.Image
It wasn’t just for incense and embalming and vaguely spiritual vibes. Boswellia was medicine.

theepochtimes.com/health/the-300…
Read 11 tweets
Epoch Health Profile picture
May 29
One woman found a $7 weight loss secret hiding in plain sight at the grocery store.

Donna lost 74 pounds—and says she never feels hungry anymore.

It works on the same pathway as Ozempic, without the side effects… or the $1,000/month price tag.

This rare sugar could be the best-kept secret in metabolic health.

🧵 THREADImage
Donna began using allulose as she had once used sugar, including in treats such as brownies and pumpkin muffins. Looking back, she said, finding allulose was key.

“It’s the main thing I’ve done differently compared to other low-carb diets,” she told The Epoch Times.

Semaglutide and other new GLP-1 medications have been dominating the weight loss industry, offering appetite suppression and improved blood sugar control. At roughly $1,000 per month before insurance, they are beyond reach for many people. For others, it’s the side effects of these drugs that have them searching for natural alternatives.

Enter allulose—a zero-calorie, rare sugar that stimulates the same GLP-1 hormone, although to a more modest extent than the drugs, and provides mild metabolic benefits.Image
Allulose Mimics GLP-1 Hormones to Reduce Cravings and Balance Blood Sugar

This rare sugar may support satiety, blunt blood sugar spikes, and fit seamlessly into everyday meals.

theepochtimes.com/health/could-a…
Read 11 tweets
Epoch Health Profile picture
May 29
New Study Reveals Overlooked Cancer Risk Tied to Routine CT Scans

CT scans are fast, common, and often life-saving.

But new research reveals a hidden danger most patients are never warned about.

Scans performed in just the past year could trigger over 100,000 future cancer cases—and that may just be the tip of the iceberg.

🧵 THREADImage
CT scans are essential to modern medicine, quickly diagnosing conditions from strokes to cancer. However, new research suggests that the very tool used to save lives could, in some cases, contribute to future cancer cases.

A University of California–San Francisco study estimates that CT scans performed in 2023 could lead to more than 100,000 future cancer cases—about 5 percent of annual U.S. diagnoses. That level of risk is comparable with other known factors such as alcohol and obesity.

Published in JAMA Internal Medicine, the study concludes that while CT scans remain essential, they should be used more cautiously, especially for children and patients who undergo repeated imaging.

“CT can save lives, but its potential harms are often overlooked,” Dr. Rebecca Smith-Bindman, lead author of the study and UC–San Francisco radiologist, said in a statement. “Reducing the number of scans and reducing doses per scan would save lives.”

Some experts worry that the message lacks balance and may scare patients from necessary care by emphasizing long-term cancer risks without proper context.

“It is frightening to see these numbers,” Dr. Donald Frush, pediatric radiologist at Duke University, told The Epoch Times. “But without putting them in the context of how valuable CT can be, we risk eroding public trust in a tool that saves lives every day.”Image
Study Scans Deeper

To estimate long-term cancer risk from CT scans, UC–San Francisco researchers analyzed a national sample of 121,212 real-world exams drawn from 143 hospitals in 20 states. The data included detailed information on scan type, radiation dose, and patient demographics.

They then used radiation risk models from the National Cancer Institute to project the number of cancers that could result from the 93 million CT scans estimated to have been performed in the United States in 2023. Their projection: about 103,000 future cancer cases—a significant increase from a 2009 estimate of 29,000.

While children face the highest risk per scan, adults account for most projected cases because of the sheer volume of imaging they receive. Abdominal and pelvic scans were the largest contributors, followed by chest, spine, and head imaging. Among children, those younger than age 1 faced the greatest individual risk—up to 20 cancers per 1,000 scans. Among adults, those aged 50 to 69 are expected to carry the largest share of future CT-related cancers.

Researchers excluded scans from patients’ final year of life, when long-term cancer risk is less clinically relevant. They also ran multiple “what-if” scenarios, with the lowest estimate at 80,000 cancers and the highest at 127,000.

According to study author Diana L. Miglioretti, the increase reflects rising CT use and more precise data on radiation exposure.

“Our projections are higher than previously reported because CT utilization has increased by 30 percent since the earlier study,” she told The Epoch Times via email.Image
Read 14 tweets

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