All of today's domestic turkeys -- even the ones labeled organic -- are actually of the GMO variety. Years of artificial selection by optimizing genetic traits have made the genome of the turkey we eat significantly different than the genome of those found in the wild. Therefore, unless you shot yours in the woods, the turkey heading to your table is not "natural."
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The battle of medicine vs. bacteria has been going quite poorly for more than two decades, primarily due to antibiotic resistance. The last thing we need is giving these bugs another edge. But in China, a newly-discovered gene can spread to many types of bacteria, and render useless some antibiotics that are our last line of defense against unresponsive infections.
Roughly 200 million people contract the malarial parasite annually, and in 2013 malaria was the cause of 500,000 deaths worldwide. According to a recent study, a new genetic engineering technique is showing great promise in eliminating the mosquitos that carry the deadly disease.
More and more women are choosing to give birth at home, or in birthing centers, rather than in hospitals. The important question is whether these alternatives are safe for mothers and/or babies. A new report sheds light on this important question, and mostly appears to support the choice.
Hormonal contraception has traditionally been available only with a doctor's prescription. That is changing in both Oregon and California, where only a pharmacist's approval will be necessary. But, is this a good development?
About 20 percent of cancer clinical trials recruit less than half of the target number of participants. Knowing what factors contribute to this ongoing dilemma in cancer clinical trials could shift resources in the right direction.
It's holiday time, and time for holiday drinks, too. But should we be concerned about the alcohol consumption that seems to proliferate at this time of year? Recent research is reassuring, as long as you consume moderate amounts and don't overdo it.
Sexual dysfunction occurs in about 40 percent of women, yet it frequently goes underreported. Depending on the etiology, various treatment options exist that can help women who may be too shy to ask.
Counterfeit drugs are readily available online. Indeed, a nonprofit group has found that 94 percent of drugs bought over the web were fake, substandard or toxic. So do yourself a favor: Don't buy drugs online, period.
America's huge addiction problem stems from the use of opioid narcotics, such as oxycodone (Percocet) and hydrocodone (Vicodin). But attempts to limit access to these drugs have had unintended consequences. And as the pills become harder to get and more expensive, heroin use is growing. Here an overview of a big mess.
It s been a banner year here at The American Council on Science and Health. From fighting out of control activist to promoting important public health policies we have been very busy promoting healthy living and fighting junk science.
Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of death in the U.S. from a gynecological malignancy. A recent study of the disease, the third and largest randomized, controlled trial ever with up to a 15-year follow-up, shows that screening for this type of cancer improves mortality rates by an estimated 20 percent.
A new study in Nature used mathematical/analytical tools to show that three quarters of cancers are likely caused by environmental exposures, rather than chance or bad luck. Avoiding known causes of cancer, especially smoking, can reduce your risk significantly.
With the issue of drug pricing currently in the news, The New York Times ran an editorial decrying prices that are "too high," while failing to truly address the real issues. Instead, the paper took the easy way out by linking Turing's price gouging to pricing methods of established pharmaceutical makers.
A new report finds that few entities administering clinical trials governmental agencies, nonprofits and academic institutions and private companies are reporting data to the government, as is required. The most common reason given for failure to do so on time (or at all) was that it's too much work.
Hypothesis: A tiny dose of a chemical causes a greater biological response than a small or moderate dose. Sound ridiculous? Sure does. But that idea, known as hormesis, sounds just as wacky as when Einstein outlined quantum mechanics and Wegener proposed continental drift (and we know how those turned out).
Want to advocate for a food you want to sell or criticize a competitor? There's a study for that.
If you want doom and gloom, go visit Natural Resources Defense Council. In the world outside merchant of doubt brochures, things are better than ever.
Eating too red much meat is not only a public health concern, but according to some it's also contributing to the climate change crisis. Thats's the take-home message from a published report saying that the livestock sector contributes almost 15 percent of annual greenhouse gas emissions towards the global total.
Engineers at MIT in Boston are attempting to create the so-called Band-Aid of the future. The product is able to stretch and remain adherent, ideal for use on flexural surfaces of the body, like the elbow or knee.
It s been a banner year here at The American Council on Science and Health. From covering the CRISPR revolution in biotechnology to helping thousands of people quit smoking to fighting chemophobia, we have been very busy promoting healthy living and fighting junk science.
As the year winds down, we share with you some of our notable videos of the year; some made us laugh, some made us cringe, and some made us better advocates for sound science.
Dame Sally Davies, Britain's chief medical officer, has written to pharmacies and GPs warning them to use correct medical practices when treating the sexually transmitted bacterial infection gonorrhea, but too late Somehow, the UK ended up getting three years behind us in treating the infection properly. This is no laughing matter. Thanks to bacterial resistance, we are now down to one drug that still cures the infection. Misusing it, as was done in the UK, will accelerate the resistance problem, and could leave us with no options to cure a very common STD.
A discussion in Rolling Stone magazine of vaping, and the hysteria and fearmongering about it, is a breath of fresh air.
Metastatic cancer that is unresponsive to chemotherapy is considered incurable. But those days may be numbered, as scientists at the University of North Carolina may have uncovered the perfect system for delivering chemotherapy directly to the site of the cancer -- using a fraction of the conventional dose.
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