For The San Diego Union-Tribune Liver and let’s go Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH, is a kind of chronic liver inflammation and scarring caused by excessive fat cells in the organ. It is quite common — approximately 22 million Americans have it. Untreated, it can progress to liver cancer and organ failure. Like diabetes, intensive lifestyle and diet interventions are the first line of treatment. A new study confirms that diet and exercise not only improve liver health but actually accelerate recovery. In one study, patients with MASH underwent a rigorous regimen of exercise and a restricted diet. Over 10 months, they lost 13 to 22 pounds, compared with 0 to 9 pounds for a control group, and increased muscle mass. Various imaging and diagnostic technologies showed improved cardiovascular health, insulin management and reversed damage in the liver. (Adobe Stock) You can pick food, but not genes Picky eating may be genetic. In a U.K. study, scientists polled parents of identical and fraternal twins about their eating habits at 16 months, then at 3, 5, 7 and 13 years old. Fraternal twins were more likely to be different in their fussy eating habits than identical twins, indicating a large genetic influence, reported STAT. “The identical twin pairs increasingly diverged in their picky eating habits as they got older, suggesting environmental factors, such as having different experiences and friends, is a bigger factor in eating habits as children age.” (Adobe Stock) Body of knowledge The average human body temperature is not 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. As a species, we run a bit cooler: 97.9 degrees. That’s the conclusion of a new study (and others) that assessed the temperatures of more than 126,000 people between 2008 and 2017. The old standby of 98.6 degrees is the work of a German physician named Carl Wunderlich, who reportedly took more than a million measurements from 25,000 people more than 150 years ago. However, he used multiple methods — oral, armpits, skin, rectal — under widely varying circumstances. Temperature-taking technologies are much better now. We may also be cooler because we are generally healthier. Some scientists speculate that more people in Wunderlich’s time were likely fighting low-grade infections and inflammation, just part of 19th century life, and their usual body temperature reflected it. Of course, normal individual temperatures range. Some people simply run hotter or cooler. The normal range is considered between 97 and 99 degrees. Anything over 100.4 degrees is considered a fever caused by infection or illness. (Adobe Stock) Get me that. Stat! Roughly 48 million Americans face some level of hearing loss linked to exposure to excessive noise, according to the Apple Hearing Study. One in three Americans is regularly exposed to excessive noise levels, categorized as sound above 70 decibels. Seventy decibels is comparable to a washing machine or vacuum cleaner. However, the Environmental Protection Agency says exposure to levels of 55 to 60 decibels can be disturbing or annoying, and extended exposure to levels over 70 decibels can lead to measurable hearing loss. Mark your calendar November is awareness month for diabetes (and diabetic eye disease), bladder health, three types of cancer (lung, pancreatic and stomach), Alzheimer’s, epilepsy, healthy skin and healthy bladders, prematurity and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. Phobia of the week Dentophobia — fear of dentists; odontophobia is the fear of what they do Best medicine “Mr. Phelps, Dr. Wynsczkrepskyvich will see you now.” “Which doctor?” “No, he’s an M.D. like all of the others.” Hypochondriac’s guide In 1657, a Dutch physician named Jakob van Meekren recorded the case of a Spanish patient who could stretch the skin of his left breast to his left ear and pull the skin at the base of his neck over his chin. The patient suffered from dematolysis, a rare condition that causes the skin and subcutaneous connective tissues to loosen and lose elasticity, with a tendency to hang in folds. It is caused by inherited gene mutations, and variations are often considered to be autoimmune disorders. There is no cure, but symptoms and complications can be managed with medications and surgery. (Adobe Stock) Observation “My therapist told me the way to achieve true inner peace is to finish what I start. So far, I’ve finished two bags of M&Ms and a chocolate cake. I feel better already.” — Humorist Dave Barry (Adobe Stock) Sum body Question: How many of each of these body parts do you have? 1. Baby teeth 2. Adult teeth 3. Neck vertebrae 4. Bones in the hand 5. Bones in the middle ear a) 3 b) 20 c) 27 d) 32 e) 7 Answers: 1b; 2d; 3e; 4c; 5a. LaFee is vice president of communications for the Sanford Burnham Prebys research institute.