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Walk down the baby food aisle in your supermarket, and you'll surely run into the “Toddler Milk” display. Every parent or grandparent wants the best for their child, and a product specially geared to a toddler's needs seems enticing. Don’t be fooled.

A recent survey of pharmacists found that 75% did not have “enough time and personnel to safely perform or meet duties.” This is due, in part, to pharmacists shouldering the extra burden of providing vaccinations. And because 94% of pharmacists work for large corporations, where productivity is measured in prescriptions completed hourly. The typical solution is to increase the number of pharmacists or to turn much of the pharmacy function over to pharmacist-extenders pharmacist technicians. However, there is a simpler solution.

Bioaerosols generated by infected patients constitute a significant source of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and other infectious agents. COVID-19 epidemiology has been limited to large populations in which varying behavior, living conditions, and life views may influence exposures. As a result, it's difficult to distinguish personal characteristics from concomitant levels of viral exposure.

The recent meeting between President Biden and China's President Xi Jinping delved into the U.S. fentanyl crisis, centering on the export of fentanyl chemical precursors from China to Mexico, where they are converted into fentanyl. However, there is an inherent challenge in restricting precursor chemicals. A minimally trained organic chemist can either make them or simply use a different, unrestricted chemical. Thus, any international agreement designed to minimize fentanyl by restricting precursors is likely to fail, defeated by organic chemistry.

John Batchelor and I discuss the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the emergence of the Omicron EG.5 sub-variant and its impact. Among the ongoing challenges are viral evolution, testing difficulties, and the effectiveness of masks. I am critical of irresponsible personal behaviors and legislative attempts to prohibit mask and vaccine mandates. Continued precautions are important.

In this radio interview with John Batchelor, our conversation includes (1) the approval of the latest COVID vaccines; and (2) the problem – especially for people in some occupations – with testing for the presence of marijuana and other drugs.

Plug-in electric vehicles (PEV) running solely on electricity are the cornerstone of the effort to reduce vehicular emissions. Prediction of electrical use and environmental benefit base their calculations on vehicle miles traveled (VMT), assuming that the number of miles driven with electrics is the same as those by conventional fossil-fueled vehicles (CV). A new study questions that assumption.

This is a bit of a rhetorical question. It's based on the simple fact that the percentage of the population wearing a mask in public in July 2022 was; 86% in Japan; 43% in the U.S.; 21% in the U.K., and 5% in Denmark. Japan was not alone among the Asian nations, all wearing masks in the 80% or greater range. Why might that be?

If you need further evidence that politicians don't understand the fentanyl crisis they helped to create, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has you covered. Meanwhile, we already sell some body fluids in select circumstances; will the day come when we sell body parts to the highest bidder?

Sleazy manufacturing and marketing practices are hardly news when it comes to the dietary supplements industry. But a company called Evig, which makes Balance of Nature supplements, seems to want to take it a step further. Actually, several steps …

A retired psychologist attacked an article of mine about deranged Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo's views of public health policies toward the COVID-19 pandemic. His assertions ranged from the preposterous to the merely inaccurate.

Politicians fail to understand that "gain of function" research on microorganisms can enhance public health preparedness.

In Part 1 of this series, we presented evidence that a not insignificant amount of published science and the “knowledge” resulting from it is wrong. There are many reasons, including experimental carelessness, differences in how researchers approach statistical analyses, journals’ bias against publishing negative results, and outright dishonesty by investigators. Part 2 describes how activist scientists can use meta-analyses to manipulate data to reach a predetermined, but flawed, conclusion.

Exa-cel, a new CRISPR-based treatment, modifies the genes of the patient's stem cells to induce them to produce fetal hemoglobin.

Anyone want to be smarter? Clearly, there's a need; otherwise, I wouldn't have written an article called "Drowning in Morons" in 2020. Perhaps there's a solution. A company is selling a dietary supplement called Smart Drops, which don't just make you smarter but also increase your libido, treat your arthritis, and improve your athletic performance. Believable? Not so much. And let's not forget a Bigfoot spotting - in an MRI facility.

The "wellness" industry has birthed yet another scam: health coaching. Usually lacking any medical or scientific training, these coaches will charge you a king's ransom for useless – and arguably harmful – advice. Buyer beware. Meanwhile, the CDC says everyone six months and older needs COVID boosters. Here's what the data show.

COVID-19 vaccination significantly lowers the risks of severe neonatal morbidity, neonatal death, and admission to the neonatal intensive care unit in infants during the first month after birth. Protection continues for six months after birth. 

A teenager died recently after taking the "One Chip Challenge," eating Paqui's uber-spicy tortilla chip and going as long as possible without eating or drinking anything else. The cause of death remains unclear, but there's an interesting lesson here about the uselessness of "non-GMO" food labels. Meanwhile, actress Jessica Biel sells all-natural Tylenol — which is identical to plain ole' Tylenol. Another case of dubious health marketing? Yep.

The following progression is not a coincidence. Drastic cuts in prescription opioids, then heroin – which provided the market for illegal fentanyl to take over – sent OD deaths off the charts. This was followed by monsters like skin-rotting Tranq and ultra-potent nitazines. Now Pink, aka U-47700 (another killer opioid, which is 7-8 times more potent than morphine) is showing up on the street. None of this is a coincidence. It started with the demonization of legal (and much safer) medications.

The weight loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic portend a massive impact on the “obesity epidemic.”  Users may even be able to get insurance coverage, as the FDA just approved a third drug specifically for weight loss treatment, signaling greater coverage for all drugs in the class. Sounds promising, right? But, alas, there are unintended consequences.

Anuses are like martinis. Some like 'em dry and some don't. And in the bathroom, a similar debate continues. Hardly a day goes by when the bidet vs. toilet paper war fails to rear its ugly head. This is only one more reason why ACSH – flush with newsworthy articles – is the place to go to learn about this and similarly vital issues. Buckle up.

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Photographing Art
The Legacy of Neutron Jack Welch

Once we became aware of our mortality, we wanted to know when death was upon us. While we have forsaken predictions by chicken bones or auguries, today we attempt the same predictive magic. That's at least at the population level, using new chicken bones like our co-morbidities or a frailty index. It should be no surprise that we have enlisted our latest oracle: A.I.

Those buildings we call supermarkets are laid out to encourage us to buy. It is not a coincidence that magazines and candy are displayed at the register, nor the fact that the food you really want is in the back, so you have to transverse the whole store to find it. Are our online purchases, without that physical organization, the same? Short answer: no.

What is our most important organ? Every time there was a new lecturer in medical school, they began by pointing out why their organ of interest was the most important. After all: