Search results

Another chemical scare group has a brilliant message: Don't eat at restaurants. The phthalates from plastic wrap and gloves will get you. If you eat at home they still will, just not as fast mega-stupid.

Despite widespread national attention, there's no sign that the ongoing drug overdose epidemic is getting better. Meanwhile, the CDC just released two reports, the first of which gave an overview of drug-related mortality rates.

This year's theme for this nonsense culture is "Homeopathy for Pregnancy and Childbirth." With no shortage of stories where kids have been hurt or killed at homeopathy's hand, it seems wholly appropriate to point out specific instances showing how dangerous this foolish practice really is.

New research from The Scripps Research Institute in San Diego found that protective IgG antibodies, one of five major classes of antibodies, may not be the most important ones when it comes to fighting off a flu infection. This insight may help make future flu vaccines and other treatments much more effective.

Supporting prior studies, investigative work published in the Journal of the American Medical Association underscores the disparities of disease burden within states. When will our policies reflect that?

Sugary beverage taxes are designed to improve health. Yet, despite their increasing popularity with city government, there's no actual evidence of a health benefit. (That is, unless you call increased tax revenue a measure of health.) 

It's a drive to end tobacco smoking. New nicotine delivery systems from the FDA's "low to no" nicotine cigarettes, as well as JUUL's nicotine vaporizers, are getting a lot of media attention. As a physician, I use the scientific evidence and my experience in counseling my patients. Here's what you should consider. 

The CDC's message is clear: Do not eat any romaine lettuce. And if you have any in your kitchen, get rid of it. Romaine from Arizona is contaminated with E. coli, which can lead to diarrhea, vomiting and in some cases, hospitalization and death. So since you can't know where your lettuce was grown, take no chances and skip the Caesar salad until this blows over. 

The quality of your sleep is directly related to how you feel and function the next day, and in general. However, a recent study found that sleep-deprived adults know what they should be doing to get essential rest time – but they simply pay little attention to do what's necessary to achieve it.

A hot rock massage and herbal tea might make you feel nice, but they don't actually cure anything. Pointing that out in China, however, might land a person in jail.

The diagnostic criteria for high blood pressure are evolving. Should patients who are fine in the office, but hypertensive all the rest of the day, be considered as having high blood pressure? Should they be treated? Let's take a closer look.
 

Normally, CRISPR is synonymous with gene editing to correct mistakes in the genome. But this new CRISPR-based tool uses it to detect the presence of a specific DNA or RNA. In doing so, this tool may help millions determine if they have been infected with an infectious disease, such as Zika or a Dengue virus. 

The narrative that honeybees – which aren't actually native to North America, Europe or Australia – face mortal danger and will take us down with them has, for years, been advanced by environmental groups and repeated in the media. The only problem is that it isn’t true. According to the USDA, the U.S. honeybee population hit a 22-year high in 2016 before dipping slightly last year.
 
 

The foundation was started by Henry A. Wallace, whose fortune was derived from starting pro-science endeavors. Given that legacy, it's hard to imagine Wallace not turning over in his grave given that his descendants are using money to smear science. But that is actually what's happened. 

Only 15% of new homes utilized solar panels. The California Energy Commission now requires all homes to have them because they're good for the environment and they "save you money." But as you may have guessed, there's more to the decision than that.

The proverbial searching for "the needle in a haystack" can help us understand science's problem with p-values, and why so many studies find contrary things.  

With my old friend  Dr. Oz squarely within the virtual anus of the intestinal machinations of some most recent news cycles, I just can't resist focusing on him again. Here's some really terrible art I've created over the years.

As if the government and media haven't screwed up the story of the so-called "opioid crisis" thoroughly enough, why not add some meaningless and confusing terms to the mix? That way, absolutely no one can know what the hell is going on. Let's take a look at the confusion. There's plenty of it.

Instead of treating our energy policy like salad toppings at a buffet, let's just go full steam ahead on the one thing that could meet all of the world's energy needs right now: Nuclear power.

The link between the bacteria in our bodies, or microbiome, and diseases of the immune system has been established for some time. However, the role bacteria play is not well understood. A new paper takes that linkage to the next level, showing how one bacterium may play a big role in autoimmune diseases, such as lupus.  

Here's a quick review of the fraud allegations issued by the Department of Justice, levied against CVS Caremark, one of the largest providers of prescription services in the United States. But spoiler alert: It's going to cost us no matter how the case is decided.

Patients, now plaintiffs, are contending that eye drop manufacturers deliberately make eye drops too large, resulting in expensive, wasted drugs running down their cheeks. Four of these suits have been dismissed, but there's one that is moving forward in the courts.

Does Geisinger Health System's latest pitch, to offer DNA sequencing as part of routine testing at the primary care visit, promise more than it can deliver?

In a lawsuit against the FDA, eight activist environmental groups are being represented by a bunch of lawyers from a group called Earth(in)justice. What do they want? To force the FDA to remove seven food chemicals from its "permitted" artificial flavor list. But there are the same chemicals that are naturally found in all kinds of foods. We use Nanogodzilla to demonstrate pure foolishness. 

Baby powder causes cancer in California but not in South Carolina. That makes sense, right? Because as everybody knows, when you cross into the Golden State your risk of cancer immediately quadruples.