Health & Wellness
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Typical appearance of B. anthracis on agar
Typical appearance of B. anthracis on agar
In the past 24 hours alone, the IEDCR has reported 4 new cases in the Meherpur and Narayangonj districts.
Since the anthrax cases have occurred in 12 of the 64 districts in the country, the Bangladeshi government had announced a red alert in the country as is trying to coordinate anthrax prevention and treatment in all 64 districts.
Anthrax is caused by the bacterium, Bacillus anthracis. This spore forming bacteria can survive in the environment for years because of its ability to resist heat, cold, drying, etc. this is usually the infectious stage of anthrax.
Anthrax is a pathogen in livestock and wild animals. Some of the more common herbivores are cattle, sheep, goats, horses, camels and deers.
It infects humans primarily through occupational or incidental exposure with infected animals or their skins.
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That recall, though voluntary, was essential: Salmonella can make you very sick, though if treated on time, it is rarely fatal.
But that's not the case for MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), or drug-resistant staff infection. In 2005, U.S. hospitals treated more than 278,000 MRSA cases. Nearly 100,000 people faced life threatening illness and 18,650 died: 50 percent more than the number of AIDS death that year.
This evolving superbug sprang from the overuse of antibiotics - not only in hospital settings, but also in animal agriculture, which consumes an estimated 70 percent of all antibiotics sold in this country. Most of those drugs are given at low dose to promote animal growth and prevent disease, a practice that encourages the emergence of multi-drug resistant bacteria.
Americans are likely to be exposed at higher levels than previously thought to bisphenol A, a compound that mimics hormones important to human development and is found in more than 90 percent of people in the United States, according to new research.
U.S. EPA says it is OK for humans to take in up to 50 micrograms of BPA per kilogram of body weight each day. The new study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, suggests that we are exposed to at least eight times that amount every day.
"Our data raise grave concern that regulatory agencies have grossly underestimated current human exposure levels," states the study.
The study also gives the first experimental support that some BPA is likely cleared at similar rates in mice, monkeys and humans, making it possible to extrapolate health studies in mice to humans.
U.S. EPA says it is OK for humans to take in up to 50 micrograms of BPA per kilogram of body weight each day. The new study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, suggests that we are exposed to at least eight times that amount every day.
"Our data raise grave concern that regulatory agencies have grossly underestimated current human exposure levels," states the study.
The study also gives the first experimental support that some BPA is likely cleared at similar rates in mice, monkeys and humans, making it possible to extrapolate health studies in mice to humans.
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A crate of salmon. U.S. health officials are set to rule on whether a faster-growing, genetically engineered fish is safe to eat. Their decision could put the first genetically altered animal food on American consumers' dinner plates.
A crate of salmon. U.S. health officials are set to rule on whether a faster-growing, genetically engineered fish is safe to eat. Their decision could put the first genetically altered animal food on American consumers' dinner plates.
After two days of hearings, several members of an 11-member advisory panel of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found that there are not yet sufficient data to determine that a genetic modification that enables salmon to grow twice as quickly is safe for the affected fish or for consumers.
The panel, made up of outside experts, did not vote or make a recommendation on whether to approve these fish for human consumption, after holding today's public hearing to determine whether genetic engineering is safe for the fish; whether the fish are safe to eat; whether the fish actually do grow faster; and the potential environmental impacts the production of these fish could pose.
AquaBounty Technologies, the company that hoped to get the modification approved, faced considerable criticism from a number of consumer and scientific advocacy organizations at the hearings.
The genetically altered salmon eggs include a growth hormone gene that cause them to reach full size in about half the time it takes regular salmon to reach the same size.
Not getting enough vitamin D in your system may be linked to chronic pain.
Over the past 10 years, several researchers have found an association between extremely low vitamin D levels and chronic, general pain that doesn't respond to treatment.
Many Americans are running low on vitamin D. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 2009 showed that vitamin D levels have plummeted among all U.S. ages, races, and ethnic groups over the past two decades.
But does not having enough vitamin D cause pain? That's not yet clear. But here's what you need to know about vitamin D and chronic pain.
Over the past 10 years, several researchers have found an association between extremely low vitamin D levels and chronic, general pain that doesn't respond to treatment.
Many Americans are running low on vitamin D. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 2009 showed that vitamin D levels have plummeted among all U.S. ages, races, and ethnic groups over the past two decades.
But does not having enough vitamin D cause pain? That's not yet clear. But here's what you need to know about vitamin D and chronic pain.
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The phenomenon is called "Foreign Accent Syndrome," and it's gotten a lot of attention recently.
There are only believed to be about 60 people in the world with foreign accent syndrome. It happens when brain injuries such as stroke lead a patient's speech pattern to change.
One woman with the condition is Kay Russell from Bishops Cleeve, England. The BBC reported that in January, Kay Russell woke up with a French-sounding accent after a severe migraine.
The idea that eating more saturated fat will increases our risk of heart disease is claimed to be 'well-established' according to most nutritional commentators. The fact is, as I disclosed here, there really isn't any good evidence to support this assertion. Three major reviews in recent times have failed to find evidence demonstrating that saturated fat causes heart disease. Getting doctors, dieticians and governments to release their grasp on this concept has not been easy. I sympathise - there was a time I believed with all my heart that saturated fat caused heart disease. Note, I write 'with all my heart'. My head knew no such thing, and the reason was simple: at that time I'd never thought to check the facts. Such was the certainty with which I had been told the 'saturated fat causes heart disease story', it didn't even occur to me to look at the evidence. When I did, I was truly aghast at what I discovered.
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A woman with Alzheimer's. The global cost of dementia this year, £388bn, includes social care, unpaid care and medical bills.
A woman with Alzheimer's. The global cost of dementia this year, £388bn, includes social care, unpaid care and medical bills.
The global cost of dementia this year will be £388bn - more than 1% of GDP - and governments are unprepared to meet the challenge, according to a report released today.
The cost of social care, unpaid care by relatives and the medical bills for treating dementia was calculated in the World Alzheimer's Report 2010. Experts from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and King's College London examined the cost of dementia care and found that, if it was a country, it would be the world's 18th biggest economy.
If it was a company, it would be the world's biggest by annual revenue, higher than Wal-Mart (£265.6bn) and Exxon Mobil (£200bn).
Campaigners have already warned that the costs of caring for people with dementia are on the rise, mostly due to people living longer. The number of people with dementia, currently 35.6 million, will almost double by 2030 to 65.7 million, and more than triple by 2050, when it is estimated there will be 115.4 million people with the disease.
The study said the costs will rise even faster than the prevalence of dementia - there could be an 85% increase in worldwide costs by 2030. In the UK, the Alzheimer's Society estimated dementia currently costs the country £20bn a year.
© IStockPhoto/Jo Ann Snover
Stopping your bottled water habits requires change. To end reliance on bottled water when we are out and about, we have to think reusable. For you, this could mean bottles made of glass, plastics, aluminum or steel. There are endless options.
Comment: For more information on counteracting dementia, see these Sott links:
Read, Eat Well and Keep Spirits High to Avoid Dementia
Stress in Middle Age Could Contribute to Late-Life Dementia
Educated people cope better with dementia