Search results

Bone broth is promoted as a “super-soup," rich in collagen and minerals. But in reality, this eye-watering expensive broth is a poor source of nutrition and it can’t boost your skin or help your joints, as claimed.

In 1997, the BMJ reported that GlaxoSmithKline had withheld data in a clinical trial, specifically, that Paxil was ineffective in adolescents and often caused suicidal thoughts. From the subsequent justifiable uproar rose ClinicalTrials.gov, a registry for clinical trials requiring the posting of their results when the study was completed. A new study shows that this regulation is routinely ignored. And like a labradoodle, is all bark and no bite. 

Heroin is like a box of chocolates. And it wasn't invented in Germany. And it's (technically) harmless. To make sense of all this gibberish you better read the article. A bunch of stuff you might not know about H.

It is becoming increasingly apparent that men and women have significant differences in their physiology, and subsequent manifestation of disease phenotypes. At the same time, scientists increasingly view physiology as it changes, rather than as static points in time. Those trends come together in a new paper in JAMA Cardiology, which looks at the most ubiquitous of cardiovascular diseases: high blood pressure.

There is a naturally-occurring chemical called skatole. Its claim to fame is that it is named after, and smells like, fecal matter. It's "synthetic" but also "man-made" and there's a revolting distinction in this case. It's also an additive used in cigarettes and strawberry ice cream (??). Do your "duty" and read this article.

High-tech medical advances make for sexy headlines, but the use of common-sense low-tech checklists can provide more than an ounce of prevention. ACSH advisor Dr. Henry Miller explains.

The World Health Organization does a tremendous job advancing the cause of global public health. But two recent, major screw-ups show that the institution is far from perfect. In one instance, a group of UK scientists accused the WHO of spreading "blatant misinformation."

The most deadly tree in the world, the Manchineel, can only be found in one place in the United States: South Florida, mainly the Everglades. We should all be thankful for this because the Manchineel is so dangerous that you can't even touch any part of it. And eating it is an especially bad idea.

The Fox News host says cell phones cause cancer and the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) might have escaped from a biological weapons lab. Both claims are ridiculous.

When last I looked, J&J had $325 million in judgments against them in lawsuits over talc baby powder and its presumed role as a cause of ovarian cancer in several women. Even the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the people that believe hot beverages are probably carcinogenic, "… has since concluded there is only 'possible' evidence that perineal use of talc-based body powder may be carcinogenic." A new study in JAMA looks at four cohort studies with long-term information on talc use and subsequent self-reported ovarian cancer. It seems that possible may be too strong; they found no linkage.

In these sensitive times, stereotypes are a big no-no. Hopefully, this doesn't apply to chemicals, because there is one group of them called esters. They smell really nice, even though the two components that combine to form esters can smell like foot odor or vomit. A stinky chemistry lesson. Hold your nose and read.

As is the case every year, 2019 was full of junk science, bogus health claims, misinformation, and outright lies. We debunked scores of them this year, but the following list is what we consider the top 10.

How I went from PhD microbiologist to founding editor of RealClearScience to the Vice President of Scientific Communications at the American Council on Science and Health.

The feats of the athletes in a Netflix documentary cannot be considered to be proof of the benefits of a vegan diet for athletic performance. For every vegan “star,” one can find numerous top-level athletes who gorge on meat.

As the horror known as the coronavirus tightens its grip on the world, and a vaccine is years away, our best hope is an antiviral drug that minimizes the damage caused by coronavirus replication. New data on favipiravir, a repurposed drug originally discovered in Japan, looks promising in trials in China. But nothing is ever straightforward in drug discovery -- and that is no different here. Here's a summary of the new findings.

One way in which COVID-19 is not novel is that the disease follows a set pattern: first onset, then the body’s response, followed (hopefully) by recovery. To get a better sense of how this pandemic might play out, we should consider what we know about COVID-19’s timeline. 

Chloroquine, the old malaria drug, is making news as a potential therapy for coronavirus. Does it belong in the headlines for its antiviral properties, or is it just hype and bluster? Will it become a drug? Let's find out.

The internet is brimming with nutritional nonsense. A new book teaches us how to spot the myths.

The purpose of the Facebook page "I Fu**ing Love Science" is to popularize science while remaining scientifically accurate. However, one of its posts was recently flagged as "fake news" by Facebook fact-checkers.

To err is human, but unfortunately, so is coping with mistakes and errors. A controversial paper on vaping, which has been retracted, demonstrates the more subjective, human side of science.

Surgery is bad enough, but postoperative nausea and vomiting make it far worse. There's a "new" drug that has been shown to help prevent PONV. But how well does it work? Plus TWO quizzes for all you masochists out there.

Q: Where do you go to find overpaid, under-sane professors, talking about chemistry when they know nothing about it?
A: MIT, the home of Dr. Stephanie Seneff, who has spent a career making up nonsense about glyphosate. And she's outdone herself this time: Glyphosate causes COVID. Nope, not kidding.

The biology of the virus will help us learn how to fight it.

No, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is not a biological weapon. But that doesn't mean the virus didn't escape from a laboratory. A growing body of circumstantial evidence indicates that very well may be what happened.

As the Wuhan coronavirus relentlessly engulfs the world, scientists are relentlessly looking for a way to treat the infection. A vaccine is more than a year away, but an antiviral drug called remdesivir is being evaluated in clinical trials by Gilead Science, the world's premier antiviral drug company. Keep your fingers crossed.