True to form, the E.U. continues down the path of hyper-caution and decided Monday to ban the use of X-ray body scanners in all European airports in order not to risk jeopardizing citizens health and safety, the European Commission stated.
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Some scientists are expressing concern that a widely used variety of genetically modified corn plant, known as Bt corn, has grown vulnerable to the very pests it was designed to resist. Bt corn, which accounts for 65 percent of all U.S. corn acreage, was developed by Monsanto Co. and introduced in 2003. This biotech strain is created by incorporating a gene from a common soil bacterium into the plant so that it produces a toxin to ward off rootworms a pest that is particularly destructive to corn crops.
Need to find the nearest emergency room or medical center? Well, as we just learned, there s an app for that too. The Emergency Medical Center Locator (EMCL) is a free application available to iPhone users that will pinpoint the medical centers nearest to a user s location. Since the difference between life and death could come down to just a few precious minutes, we re inclined to think that the new app is worth downloading.
Because of the fresh start afforded by the new year, it s a good bet that more than a few of the 70 percent of American smokers who would like to quit will give it a go. However, according to a recent CDC study, only one in 10 of those would-be quitters will actually succeed.
Health care providers can serve as a critical link between smokers and the resources and motivation they need to quit. But many opportunities to encourage smokers to kick the habit are missed, reports a new survey, because more than one in 10 smokers do not tell their doctors that they smoke.
In ACSH s recent publication, The Top Ten Unfounded Health Scares of 2011, hydraulic fracturing (better known as fracking) made the list. Alhough our report debunked the various unfounded accusations that this method of natural gas extraction has received, it seems as though The New York Times failed to get the message.
Feeding the World: Why Pesticides are a Critical Part of the Solution
Environmental Toxicologist Featured Speaker at Capitol Hill Briefing
Women with normal bone density at age 65 can safely wait as long as 15 years before having another bone density scan, researchers report in a study just published in The New England Journal of Medicine. The finding runs counter to the common practice of testing bone density in older women every two years, which happens to b
In a reversal of a longstanding trend, childhood obesity rates in the city of New York have finally declined, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Rates of obesity among children in kindergarten through eighth grade decreased in 2010-2011 as compared with 2006-2007.
Stopping just short of declaring lipstick the kiss of death, an activist group devoted to scaring us about cosmetics is claiming that minuscule levels of lead found in lipsticks may cause lead poisoning.
Is disclosure of conflict of interest always a good thing? A new analysis suggests that the answer is more complex than a simple yes or no. The 2010 health care reform legislation contains a provision requiring drug and medical device manufacturers to publicly report gifts and payments made to physicians and teaching hospitals. Poised to go into effect this year, the provision will subject manufacturers to penalties ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 for each violation.
When many people see a label that says organic, they tend to interpret this as a clear sign that the food is both safer and more nutritious than a conventional product. But an organic label doesn t guarantee safety or greater nutritional value, as the results of a new Dartmouth study emphasize. The study focused on organic brown rice syrup a sweetener found in some foods, including certain infant formulas, cereal and energy bars, and high-energy foods consumed by athletes.
Defensive medicine, the practice of ordering tests and referrals more out of concern for liability than for the benefit of patients health, is an expensive convention. According to a recent survey of orthopedic surgeons, 30 percent of the tests and referrals ordered in this specialty are unnecessary, resulting in an estimated cost of greater than $2 billion in the U.S. each year. The survey was conducted by Vanderbilt University s Dr. A.
Some doctors may soon be forced to give parents of leukemia patients some devastating news that a critical, life-saving leukemia drug is not available. The nation s supply of injectable methotrexate, which is standard treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients, is dwindling.
While we at ACSH have long been working to promote increased immunization rates, lawmakers in many states are contemplating a move in the opposite direction. Seven states are currently considering bills that would make it easier for parents to have their kids skip important childhood vaccinations.
A plethora of age-related health conditions might, in fact, be a question of declining vision, Laurie Tarkin reports in this week s health and science section of The New York Times. Tarkin looks specifically at groundbreaking research by two ophthalmologists at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, as well as a researcher at Brown University.
Oropharyngeal cancer, which affects the throat, tongue, soft palate, and tonsils, has become increasingly common among men in the U.S. Because a distinct form of it is caused primarily by HPV (human papillomavirus), a recent study set out to determine the prevalence of oral HPV infection.
While much of the recent media surrounding cancer screening has focused on new research and guidelines suggesting that less frequent screening may be beneficial, a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that too many Americans are not getting screened at all.
For nursing home residents, a trip to the emergency room may actually worsen their health rather than improve it. According to the results of a study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, the rate of new acute respiratory or GI infections within a week of an ER visit among residents of long-term care facilities was 5 percent, compared to just 2 percent in those who stayed at the nursing home.
Here may be another reason to lose weight: Recent research has found evidence linking obesity to acne. The latest study, published in The Archives of Dermatology, looked at the relationship between weight and skin condition among 3,600 teens. After accounting for age, puberty, and diet, researchers found that overweight and obese adolescents, particularly females, were significantly more likely to develop acne.
The U.S. teenage birth rate remains the highest in the developed world, a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports: 400,000 girls aged 15 to 19 years gave birth each year, on average, between 2004 and 2008.
What s the largest source of salt in our diets? Is it potato chips? French fries? Neither of these, says a recent report form the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Actually, bread and rolls provide us with the greatest amount of salt in our diets.
Though soda has received much flak for its high sugar content and alleged adverse health effects, a new study is targeting diet soda too, claiming that consuming too much can lead to vascular events.
When we talk about vaccinations, we usually focus on children. However, a new report by the CDC shows that too many adults are shirking the immunizations that they need. As the CDC report notes, about 45,000 Americans die every year from vaccine-preventable illnesses. The authors suggest that a lack of information, as well as infrequent visits to a doctor, are most likely responsible for the low rates of important adult immunizations.
[E]xclusive use of DTPs [dissolvable tobacco products] would greatly reduce risk for smoking caused disease compared with regular use of cigarettes. While we at ACSH make this point on a regular basis, this time, this statement actually comes from an FDA advisory panel.
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