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What do Monkeypox, the opioid crisis, New Mexico fires, Kentucky flooding, and COVID-19 have in common? All have been declared public health emergencies. [1] So what exactly does a declaration of a public health emergency mean?

The Clean Air Act of 1970 and subsequent Amendments have long been interpreted as applying only to outdoor air. But most of us spend up to 85% of our time indoors – especially the very young and old- more susceptible to air pollution’s health effects. Should we care about this?

Last week, the media notified us that airplane seats were being downsized. This is at a time when, for a variety of reasons, we are all upsizing. Here are a few fun facts, including a few the media left out.

Today is Veteran's Day. Although the thoroughly misguided "War on Painkillers," has done more than enough to the American public veterans who are injured suffer even worse. Yet they are told to try "non-pharmacologic" methods before trying even Advil let alone Vicodin. This disgusting practice is hardly the way to honor our veterans.

The American Council on Science and Health recently held its fall meeting of the Board of Trustees, which oversees ACSH’s governance and provides me with great counsel. It is quite a distinguished group. I want to take a moment to introduce our newest trustees, Drs. Nan Hayworth and Mike (Mick) Hitchcock.

What’s the deal with near-death experiences
Giving back “tainted” money can be more complex than it seems
In the rush to make medical records transparent, have we only succeeded in making them more opaque?

I almost drove off the road listening to an ad from a law firm urging parents with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to be part of a lawsuit suing baby food manufacturers for causing their child’s condition. According to the ad, the question of what causes ASD has been settled and what remains is for parents to get what is owed them from baby food manufacturers that have been hiding the truth from the public for years.   

Illicit fentanyl continues to kill tens of thousands of people annually in the U.S. In fact, this number may very well be increasing as the "fentanyl epidemic" continues unabated. But now a fentanyl vaccine – which could be of some use in mitigating damage – appears to protect mice from the drug. Will it succeed in humans and, if so, how might it be used?

Banning menthol heats up.
Is it a conspiracy? A ten-point checklist
Debunking pumpkins – say it ain’t so!
The Decline and Fall of Eating together

Due to consumer concerns about the impact of commercial animal production on climate change, sustainable development, and animal welfare, biotech companies are racing to produce meat outside the realm of animal husbandry.  Cultured meat (CM), produced artificially in a bioreactor for human or pet consumption, is both the new commercial food frontier and the darling of venture capitalists. Can biotech companies deliver as promised, or are they blowing smoke at their investors and misleading the public? 

Leave aside the social awkwardness of those junior high school dances. What got you up on the dance floor? A friend, a possibility, the tune? A new study identifies one of music’s dance drivers.

The New York Times has again attacked an upstanding scientist based on claims made by duplicitous activist groups. This episode illustrates why the public's trust in media is plummeting.

For the reduction and eventual elimination of animal testing, change is in the air. And it could occur faster than many previously believed. It appears that more powerful voices are joining the choir.   

Carbon offsets seem like an ideal corporate solution. Trade your excess carbon for some organization producing "too little" carbon and balance the books. If only nature used double-entry book-keeping. As this reprint from The Conversation points out, "Satellites detect no real climate benefit from 10 years of forest carbon offsets in California."

What does the word "healthy" mean to you? Do you consider yourself a healthy eater?  The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is updating the definition as a claim on food labeling. Will it amount to a hill of beans?

After many years of sensational reporting about the cancer risks from Bayer’s Roundup weedkiller, with the main ingredient of glyphosate, it appears that the tide may be finally turning in the courtroom. When presented with complex science, juries understand it and get it right.

Yet another study shows that Neurontin is a poor substitute for prescription opioids, so why do physicians continue to prescribe it? Twitter recently put a warning on an ACSH obesity story. Is social-media censorship here to stay?

“How does what we eat affect our healthspan and longevity? The answer to this relatively concise question is unavoidably complex.”
How refreshing! A study examines the entanglement of our eating and aging metabolism. What may be good for a teen is not so good for a senior.

Many activists and reporters claim we should eat little or no meat to prevent climate change. But instead of presenting arguments, proponents of this radical proposal seek to disqualify their critics with personal attacks.

Recent headlines have suggested that air pollution may contribute to growing obesity rates. It's a speculative hypothesis based on bad science.

While urban dwellers' thoughts turn to pumpkin spice lattes, many in our rural communities begin to plan traditional fall hunts. In the United States, game meats are not required to be inspected by a state or federal agency when the hunters consume the meat. In most states, wild game species that may be legally hunted may be harvested only for personal consumption. With no third-party oversight, hunters and trappers must take personal responsibility in handling, processing, storing, and transporting game meats to guarantee wholesomeness and safety.

The National Park Service issued a warning against licking the Sonoran desert toad - an act that most people would intuitively avoid. But the frog contains a powerful hallucinogen, which produces LSD-like effects that can dangerous. So if you’re traveling around the southwestern US better watch your tongue.

2022- A year when law and public health got really tangled. We had the Supreme Court deal with abortion, gun control, and mandatory vaccination. Internationally, euthanasia laws burgeoned.  Some states enacted laws to protect the rights of children born by fraudulent misuse of IVF, and courts addressed the question of proving causation in toxic tort cases.

The EPA's intransigent regulation of genetically engineered bacteria that could mitigate frost damage to crops prevented their commercialization. Especially when inflation is boosting food prices, the last thing we need is the continuation of an irresponsible, unscientific government policy that lowers crop yields, increases prices to consumers, and threatens farmers’ profits.

What does formaldehyde in baby shampoo have to do with a recent recall of a specialized laundry detergent? The failure to appreciate the need for preservatives in consumer products.