Parkinson’s Disease is one of several degenerative diseases in our neurologic system. It has a celebrity patient, Michael J. Fox. Still, with a million patients living with the disease in the US and sixty thousand new diagnoses annually, it lacks a biomarker to aid in early detection. An artificial intelligence program looking at nocturnal breathing may change that and, ultimately, how we care for these patients.
Search
Paxlovid, the “Tamiflu” of COVID-19, the oral medication shown to reduce hospitalizations, also is known for its “rebound” – a recurrence of COVID-19 a few days after completing the entire course of treatment. The New England Journal of Medicine reports on why – it’s the viral load.
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.
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?
Who would have thought that in today’s litigious America, someone could negligently harm another– and the law doesn’t recognize a claim? One generally unrecognized claim is called wrongful life. It arises when a doctor botches an abortion or fails to timely diagnose a pregnant mother’s German measles or when an IVF facility in some way negligently causes a baby to be born with severe injuries. Judges, lawyers, and ethicists are in conflict on what the law should be.
Forming Lines
The real Pinocchio
Breeding a happier chicken
Shhh!
Wanna hear something sickening? Neurontin, a drug developed for epilepsy and used off-label for neuropathic pain, had its sales grow 250% between 2004 and 2019. Why? We don't have 250% more epileptics. No, it's because the drug is being forced down the throats of people who can no longer get sufficient pain relief. The result? Abuse and also more overdose deaths. Just another chapter in our psychotic war against legitimate opioid drugs and the people who need them.
Having Covid is a good excuse to bitch about...whatever. I chose digital thermometers. Hateful monstrosities.
“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.
Last week Dophin Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was thrown to the ground and suffered a concussion and clear neurologic event on national television. Quarterbacks are somewhere near the middle of the pack when it comes to concussions by position. A new study looks at concussions among the Nittany Lions.
Here is the narrative: if we reduce manmade greenhouse gases and their companion aerosols, like PM2.5, we will reduce global warming and improve our health. Unfortunately, the climate is a bit more complex. Our best plans come with unintended consequences. A new study shows that reducing those manmade aerosols also increases the “climate forcing” bringing about global warming.
A Modern History of Bail
Streetlights illuminating the Street, and some unwarranted (?) surveillance
Calling people names stifles understanding.
Presentism - wokeness reinterprets history
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.
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.
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.
A new meta-analysis upends the belief that red meat is bad and vegetables are good. How can that be? It begins by reassessing how researchers “weigh” the impact and uncertainty of the studies they consider.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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?
What’s Science got to do with it? - Science and policy
Luxury surveillance - we willing put on "ankle monitors" and often pay a premium
Pagination
ACSH relies on donors like you. If you enjoy our work, please contribute.
Make your tax-deductible gift today!