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U.S. drug policies are just plain nuts. Pain patients can't get opioids because they're "bad." But your miniature poodle could walk into ... pretty much any store and waltz out with vaping solutions of CBD oil or maybe even THC because they're "good." But now fentanyl -- the real cause of most overdose deaths -- is showing up in vaping solutions. Can't make this up.

Dr. Pinker is an excellent writer and thinker. Perhaps his greatest contribution to our national dialogue is his insistence, backed up by considerable research, that life keeps getting better and better. However, he seems to miss the mark in a recent essay titled "Why We Are Not Living in a Post‑Truth Era."

Some chemicals are so dangerous that even experienced chemists hate to use them. Here's a real doozy. Diazomethane is an explosive, highly toxic gas, which is a carcinogen. It is made from another toxic carcinogen and the chemical that makes Drano work. Aside from that, it's just fine.

Dr. David Shlaes, an expert in microbiology and infectious diseases, argues that the numbers of patients today in the developed world with highly-resistant infections are insufficient to drive an adequate market for antibacterial drugs to fight against these resistant pathogens.

From what may have been the first fake science news to the actual road between farm and table (with a stop to admire the writing of NY Times restaurant critic). It's autumn in New York.

We're now nearly two years into taxing sugar-sweetened beverages. The current data on individual household purchases shows that these taxes are slimming wallets more than waistlines. And of the four cities considered, only Philadelphia showed a persistent decline in consumption, reaping all the "benefit."

Bancroft, a popular author, claims that "soft-spoken, gentle, and supportive" men are actually emotionally manipulative abusers of women. Perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise that an author who spreads destructive, evidence-free psychobabble is also an anti-vaxxer.

ACSH advisor Dr. Wolfgang Vogel was not pleased about how the 1998 settlement money between the tobacco industry and state governments was spent. Little of the $246 billion actually went to smoking cessation programs. Will we see the same irresponsible use of funds obtained from lawsuits against opioid makers?

Human physiology is complex. Homeostasis tells us that our physiologic responses maintain us within a specific range. Fractal physiology tells us that, over time, our responses become less responsive. And those changes can be seen years before clinical disease is apparent.

Perhaps we finally have an answer to what's causing serious lung damage and death to vapers. The CDC says the culprit is THC and/or an additive, something we explained last month. Here's why we think those officials are correct.

Why do microbes kill some people but not others? This is one of the hardest questions to answer in medical microbiology. Here's what we know about the senator's tragic death from the rare tickborne virus.

When medicine is practiced as a team, who gets to be the quarterback? For diabetes and heart disease cardiologists believe they are the logical choice. Primary care physicians, oddly enough, disagree.

A new study shows how an artificial intelligence algorithm is biased against black patients. Specifically, denying them care designed to make their outcomes and quality of life better. Why is there so little concern? And who is responsible for algorithmic healthcare?

It's no secret that the CDC's 2016 Advice on opioid prescribing, by any measure, has been an unmitigated disaster. Dr. Red Lawhern, ACSH advisor and pain patient advocate, spares no one in his discussion of the egregious mistakes that the CDC made -- and continues to make.

This week marks the 37th anniversary of the approval of human insulin – the first biotech drug ever. Almost as revolutionary as the drug was its five-month approval by the FDA, which was two years less than average. Dr. Henry Miller celebrates the dawn of biotechnology. He should know. At that time he was in charge of the FDA team that reviewed it.

Here's this week's lineup: A physician and leading researcher weighs in on how the media may be damaging science's credibility. ... A NY Times opinion piece chastises both sides of the political aisle. ... With Halloween a few days away, it's time to look at the history of scaring parents about poisoned candy and razor blades. ... And finally, car accidents are killing more pedestrians and fewer car occupants, so do we need safer cars or heightened awareness from pedestrians and cyclists?

All the tricks pulled by anti-science activists should be permanently relegated to the make-believe haunted house. Meanwhile, ACSH is here to provide a pro-science treat. Here's where we appeared in recent days.

Big Data can find patterns in our behavior that may be too subtle or occur over too long a period for us to notice. Those patterns are used every day to encourage more consumption, but it seems they might also help us identify dementia before it comes to our family's or medical attention.

Despite our efforts, healthcare spending is often like Whack-A-Mole: hammer down the costs here and they pop up there. For instance, Medicare’s payment for some forms of diagnostic testing show that regulations designed to lower costs instead make them steadily rise.

The DEA, which has been merciless to pain patients in its misdirected war on opioids, just stepped it up even further. Thanks to an Oregon Representative, we now have SORS (yet another way to restrict prescription painkillers) and SUPPORT, the law that created it. Just plain (and pain) awful.

The 1956 American classic musical tells the story of Eliza Doolittle and Professor Henry Higgins, in which he tries to elevate her station in life by improving her speech. It may be worth re-examining the premise, in contemporary America, specifically: Does our speech give away our social status?

The Centers for Disease Control says that the “American food supply is among the safest in the world.” But a read of some recent news reports about toxic metals in baby food may have you feeling somewhat concerned. So what's really the state of the supermarket aisle? Let's take a closer look.

In nutrition, bashing sugar is all the rage. Over roughly the last 20 years, many researchers and health commentators have moved beyond implicating sugar as a cause of life-threatening disease, to blaming it for more mild concerns, even acne. Is it true? Let's find out.

Paradoxically, for scientists, the more you express your uncertainty, the more likely you are to be trusted ... that is, to a point.

Well, it's official. Scientific American, the once-reputable publication, will publish absolutely anything. Just like The Huffington Post or InfoWars.