Today is the first day of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, during which 68 teams will face off. Equally as important, though, is Starch Madness hosted by our friends at Serious Eats. No potato is safe.
 |  | By Anisa Arsenault, Associate Editorial Director | | | Welcome to March Madness! Today is the first day of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, during which 68 teams will face off. Equally as important, though, is Starch Madness hosted by our friends at Serious Eats. No potato is safe. | | | Today's Top Story | | How College Athletes Dodge COVID-19 Outbreaks |  | The March Madness college basketball tournament will look a lot like it did pre-pandemic. Arenas across the country have eliminated capacity restrictions. Many fans no longer face vaccine mandates. And the tournament will be longer than it was last year.
The problem? COVID-19 isn't over.
After last year's tournament, which took place before vaccines were widely available, researchers linked viewing parties and post-game celebrations to an increase in COVID-19 cases.
However, college athletes themselves seem to have fared better than non-athletes during the 2020-2021 school year. A JAMA study published last month shows participation in collegiate athletics was not tied to higher COVID-19 test positivity.
Experts think repercussions like missing competition or being quarantined away from friends may motivate student athletes to closely follow NCAA COVID mitigation measures, even outside of practice or games. | | Know More | | The NCAA has released new COVID-19 guidance for this year's tournament. There's no vaccine mandate for players or team staff, and onsite testing for asymptomatic individuals is not required. However, strict testing requirements remain in place for anyone who is not fully vaccinated and boosted, as well as for anyone potentially exposed to the virus. Indoor masking is highly encouraged outside of competition, practice, individual hotel rooms, and meal times. | | Feel Better | | The JAMA study authors believe the findings can be applied to athletic programs beyond the 12 schools they highlighted. As long as protocols like testing and masking remain in place—which they may not—tournaments shouldn't become superspreader events. | | |  | | Hailey Bieber's Health Scare Shows Young Adults Can Have Strokes | | Over the weekend, model Hailey Bieber shared she had been hospitalized after experiencing stroke-like symptoms from a small blood clot in her brain. The 25-year-old fully recovered within a few hours. Bieber hasn't shared further information, like whether her diagnosis was a stroke versus a transient ischemic stroke (TIA), which is more commonly associated with small blood clots and a quicker recovery. Regardless, Bieber's experience is an important reminder that young people are not immune to strokes; about 10-15% of strokes occur in people under the age of 50. | | | | Even Mild COVID Changes the Brain | | The first-ever study featuring brain scans before and after a COVID-19 infection shows that even a mild COVID-19 infection can change the structure of the brain. Changes included a loss of gray matter and abnormalities in areas associated with smell, taste, and episodic memory. But these changes weren't massive. Study participants ranged from 51 to 81 years old—an age group that normally experiences slight gray matter loss each year. Researchers say the findings aren't enough to warrant a consultation with a neurologist if you had COVID, unless you notice you're experiencing neurological issues. | | | | | | | In Other News | | | ■ | NASA Finds Each State Has Its Own Climatic Threshold for Flu Outbreaks. NASA | | | | | ■ | The Surgeon General Wants to Hear Your COVID Misinformation Stories. HSS | | | | | ■ | These Are the Best, Totally Non-Sports-Related March Madness Brackets. Vogue | | | | | | | |  |     | You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the Verywell Health newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here.
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