Health & WellnessS


Arrow Down

As Oil Spill Grows, So Does Need For Data on Health Effects

Image
© NASANASA's Aqua satellite captured this image of the Gulf of Mexico on April 25, 2010 using its Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument.
Since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded on April 20, spewing untold millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, cleanup crews have been working feverishly to mop up oil at sea and prevent the slick from reaching Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida shores. It's hot, dirty, heroic work, but toxicologists and health professionals say it's not the only work that needs to be done.

This week, dozens of experts in public health and environmental medicine gathered in New Orleans at a symposium hosted by the Institute of Medicine to discuss how to mitigate the human health effects from the Gulf oil spill. As the clean-up effort stretches from weeks into months with no end in sight, experts at the conference warned that little is known about how long-term exposure to oil and fumes can affect human health.

"The current scientific literature is inconclusive with regards to the potential hazards resulting from this spill," said U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin during her opening remarks at the conference. "Some scientists predict little or no toxic effects while others express serious concerns about the potential for short and long-term health impacts," she said.

Comment: At this time, there's a hurricane threat that would most likely brings a huge amount of oil to contact with humans, not just on beaches, but in nearby cities. A long-term study on health effects will not be relevant for them as they will be experiencing immediate serious consequences.

The Coming Gulf Coast Firestorm: How the BP Oil Catastrophe Could Destroy a Major U.S. City


Bad Guys

U.S. Government Panel Now Pushing "Vaccinations for All!" No Exceptions...

An advisory panel to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that every person be vaccinated for the seasonal flu yearly, except in a few cases where the vaccine is known to be unsafe.

"Now no one should say 'Should I or shouldn't I?'" said CDC flu specialist Anthony Fiore.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 11-0 with one abstention to recommend yearly flu vaccination for everyone except for children under the age of six months, whose immune systems have not yet developed enough for vaccination to be safe, and people with egg allergies or other health conditions that are known to make flu vaccines hazardous. If accepted by the CDC, this recommendation will then be publicized to doctors and other health workers.

The CDC nearly always accepts the advisory committee's recommendations.

Fish

Genetically Altered Salmon Get Closer to the Table

The Food and Drug Administration is seriously considering whether to approve the first genetically engineered animal that people would eat - salmon that can grow at twice the normal rate.

The developer of the salmon has been trying to get approval for a decade. But the company now seems to have submitted most or all of the data the F.D.A. needs to analyze whether the salmon are safe to eat, nutritionally equivalent to other salmon and safe for the environment, according to government and biotechnology industry officials. A public meeting to discuss the salmon may be held as early as this fall.

Some consumer and environmental groups are likely to raise objections to approval. Even within the F.D.A., there has been a debate about whether the salmon should be labeled as genetically engineered (genetically engineered crops are not labeled).

Comment: Notice how the New York Times is trying to sell frankenfoods to the public by suggesting that genetically engineered animals are healthier and resistant to disease. In actuality, several animal studies have indicated serious health risks associated with GM food, including immune problems, infertility, and accelerated aging.
The only published human feeding study revealed that even after you stop eating GMOs, harmful GM proteins may be produced continuously inside of you; genes inserted into GM soy transfer into bacteria inside your intestines and continue to function.[22]

If Bt genes also transfer, eating corn chips might transform your intestinal bacteria into a living pesticide factory.
Link


Health

Natural Ways to Remove Heavy Metals

Toxic heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and uranium are pervasive in much of the environment. While it may not be possible to completely avoid exposure there are many safe, organic and affordable products that help detoxify and eliminate these toxins from the body. This article will provide ten such examples.

Comment: For more more information about the importance of detoxing the body of heavy metals read the following forum threads:

Detoxification: Heavy Metals, Mercury and how to get rid of them

Anti-Candida, Inflammation, Heavy Metals Detox and Diet

DMSA for heavy metal detox


Info

Insufficient Vitamin D Tied to Severe Asthma Attacks

Asthmatic children with relatively low vitamin D levels in their blood may have a greater risk of suffering severe asthma attacks than those with higher levels of the vitamin, a new study suggests.

The study, which followed more than 1,000 children with asthma for four years, found those with vitamin-D "insufficiency" at the outset were more likely to have an asthma attack that required a trip to the hospital.

Over the four-year study, 38 percent of children with insufficient vitamin D levels went to the emergency room or were hospitalized for an asthma exacerbation. The same was true of 32 percent of children with sufficient levels of the vitamin.

X

Kellogg recalls 4 cereals for odd odor, flavor

Kellogs
© Gene J. Puskar, Associated PressKellogg Co. is voluntarily recalling about 28 million boxes of Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, Froot Loops and Honey Smacks cereals because a "waxy" smell and flavor coming from the package liners could make people sick
Kellogg Co. is voluntarily recalling about 28 million boxes of Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, Froot Loops and Honey Smacks cereals because an unusual smell and flavor from the packages' liners could make people ill, the company said Friday.

Kellogg said about 20 people complained about the cereals, including five who reported nausea and vomiting. The company said the potential for serious health problems is low.

Consumers reported the cereal smelled or tasted waxy or like metal or soap. Company spokeswoman J. Adaire Putnam said some described it as tasting stale.

Magic Wand

Breathe in: Exercises may help sleep apnea

The claim: Throat exercises can relieve sleep apnea.

The facts: For people suffering from sleep apnea, specialized breathing machines are the standard treatment.

The machines employ a method called continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, which keeps the airway open and relieves potentially dangerous pauses in breathing during the night. But the machines are expensive, and some people complain that the mask and headgear cause uncomfortable side effects, like congestion.

One free and fairly simple alternative may be exercises that strengthen the throat. While they aren't as established or as well studied as breathing machines, some research suggests they may reduce the severity of sleep apnea by building up muscles around the airway, making them less likely to collapse at night.

Ambulance

100,000 Americans Die Each Year from Prescription Drugs, While Pharma Companies Get Rich

Image
Prescription drugs taken as directed kill 100,000 Americans a year. That's one person every five minutes. How did we get here?

How many people do you know who regularly use a prescription medication? If your social group is like most Americans', the answer is most. Sixty-five percent of the country takes a prescription drug these days. In 2005 alone, we spent $250 billion on them.

I recently caught up with Melody Petersen, author of Our Daily Meds, an in-depth look at the pharmaceutical companies that have taken the reins of our faltering health care system by cleverly hawking every kind of drug imaginable. We discussed how this powerful industry has our health in its hands.

Health

Mystery of the Appendix

Appendix
© KVOA
Tucson - Appendicitis is the most common reason for emergency general surgery, but what causes the appendix to inflame is a medical mystery.

For more than a hundred years, it's been the routine medical treatment: the appendix gets inflamed, remove it. That practice has never been challenged until now. Research at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas questions whether emergency surgery is really necessary.

"We have no idea what causes appendicitis. We have no idea why one morning, you might wake up and get appendicitis or not," said Dr. Edward Livingston.

The surgeon got curious about this common disease after operating on a patient with a ruptured appendix. "He almost died from the disease and that really struck me because he was a young healthy person who shouldn't be ill at all."

Life Preserver

Ignoring stress leads recovering addicts to more cravings

Recovering addicts who avoid coping with stress succumb easily to substance use cravings, making them more likely to relapse during recovery, according to behavioral researchers.

"Cravings are a strong predictor of relapse," said H. Harrington Cleveland, associate professor of human development, Penn State. "The goal of this study is to predict the variation in substance craving in a person on a within-day basis. Because recovery must be maintained 'one day at a time,' researchers have to understand it on the same daily level."