NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — It has been a while since we’ve seen a new COVID omicron variant, but the World Health Organization is calling the new XB1.16 variant something they need to keep a good eye out on.

“It has spread here to the United States. The good news is that compared to the current type of COVID that we have here in the U.S., this variant doesn’t seem to cause disease that’s any more severe. So that’s good news. But of course, the question is, is this going to cause a spike and should we be worried?” Yale Internal Medicine Specialist Dr. Nate Wood said.

New research shows that Americans snack more than ever since the pandemic, even replacing meals sometimes. Doctor Wood says the problem is the quality of the snacks.

“These ultra-processed foods have been associated with heart disease, type two diabetes, dementia, obesity and even some types of cancer, though. So this is probably not a great thing. So I know this is hard. I’m speaking from experience, but as much as possible, if you can put down the snacks that’s better for your health,” Wood said.

And a link between asthma and obesity has been found. It shows that both conditions can actually lead to one another.

“We’ve known for a long time that obesity can increase your risk of developing asthma. And researchers think that’s because the fat cells increase or release inflammatory substances that can impact our lungs. But this new finding is that maybe the reverse is also true, that having asthma can increase our risk of developing obesity,” Wood said.