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Bird Flu Researchers Balance Science With Bioterrorism Risks
The World Health Organization (WHO) and others are debating what to do about recent research on bird flu in which mutated viruses were exchanged between ferrets. The research could help the search for a vaccine, but could also be used by terrorists to trigger a human flu pandemic.02.20.12
New Malaria Drug Could Save Millions
Malaria, a disease responsible for nearly a million deaths per year, may have met its match. Researchers have created a vaccine against the illness, which is spread by mosquitos. 11.04.11
HPV Vaccine Becomes a Hot Topic in Presidential Race
The fact that some states require middle school girls to get vaccinated against Human Papilloma Virus, known as HPV, became a heated issue at a recent Republican presidential debate. 09.26.11
Severe Food Allergies Becoming More Common
A survey of 40,000 U.S. families found that nearly 8 percent of children under the age of 18 have a food allergy, according to the journal "Pediatrics.” 07.12.11
HIV/AIDS Pandemic Turns 30
June 5, 2011 marks the 30th anniversary of the first documented case of the disease known as AIDS. What began as a fatal plague has become a treatable chronic illness in many parts of the world. 06.03.11
Latest Research Holds Clues to Causes of Autism
On the island nation of Haiti, where 1.3 million people are living in tent cities following a catastrophic earthquake almost a year ago, an outbreak of the deadly disease, cholera, has claimed the lives of over 1,000 Haitians with more than 18,000 cases reported in recent weeks. 11.19.10
Review Highlights Unethical Moments in Medical Research History
U.S. government doctors intentionally infected prisoners in Guatemala with syphilis, disabled people in Connecticut with hepatitis and hospital patients in New York with cancer cells, according to a review of medical journal reports from the 1930s to the 1970s. 03.01.11
Cholera Epidemic in Haiti Causes Havoc
On the island nation of Haiti, where 1.3 million people are living in tent cities following a catastrophic earthquake almost a year ago, an outbreak of the deadly disease, cholera, has claimed the lives of over 1,000 Haitians with more than 18,000 cases reported in recent weeks. 11.19.10
Graphic Warnings Proposed for Cigarette Packages, Ads
In a move that is the first of its kind in the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed new warning labels for cigarette packages that will feature visual images, such as a toe tag on a corpse, as a way to depict smoking’s harmful side effects. 10.26.10
Head Injuries Raise Questions About Safety of Football
The sport of football is at a crossroads after several recent tackles have resulted in concussions, raising the question of whether athletes are risking their lives for their sport. 10.26.10
Hungary's Toxic Eco-Disaster Seen As Warning Signal
Earlier this month, villages in the European country of Hungary were flooded with bright red toxic sludge from a nearby industrial facility, and environmentalists warned there are other lethal accidents waiting to happen across the region. 10.19.10
U-C Berkeley Forced to Abandon Genetic Testing for New Students
Instead of assigning the usual summer reading to new students, the University of California-Berkeley tried something different this year by asking each incoming freshman and transfer student to send in a DNA sample for genetic testing and subsequent discussion. The move sparked a contentious debate about the ethics behind genetic testing, leading the university to significantly modify the experiment. 08.18.10
The Human Genome Project, A Decade Later
Ten years ago, top scientists from around the world participating in the Human Genome Project declared that they had cracked almost the entire human genetic code (DNA), therefore essentially opening the “key of life”. 04.07.10.
Video: Small Towns Struggle With Food Deserts
In many areas around the country, the only places to get food are often fast food restaurants or small convenience stores that don't sell fresh produce. Places like this, known as "food deserts" because of the lack of places to get fresh food, contribute to the country's obesity epidemic and leave residents few choices of what to eat. 06.04.10.
Report Says Many Youths Are ‘Too Fat to Fight’
A panel of retired military leaders has joined the fight against childhood obesity, saying that unhealthy school lunches are making America's youth unfit for military service and therefore pose a threat to national security. Their report, titled "Too Fat to Fight," states that 27 percent of all young adults are too overweight to serve in the armed forces. 04.23.10.
Democrats Push Through Historic, Controversial Health Care Legislation
After months of bitter and divisive debate, President Barack Obama signed into law a bill that makes the most dramatic changes to the health care system in four decades. The new law will provide health insurance coverage for 32 million Americans who are currently uninsured and require everyone to buy insurance or face fines. 03.23.10
With Reconciliation Tactic, Democrats Forge Ahead on Health Care Reform
President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats launched a last-chance push for health care reform this week and will likely use a tactic called "reconciliation" to pass the controversial legislation this year. 03.05.10
President Obama Unveils New Plan Ahead of Health Care Summit
After months of bitter debate between Democrats and Republicans in Congress over how to fix the country’s health care system, President Barack Obama has offered a reform proposal to jumpstart a bipartisan health care summit at the White House this week. 02.23.10
New Study Supports Abstinence-focused Sexual Education
A new study shows that abstinence-focused sexual education programs encourage a significant number of people to delay sexual activity, perhaps preventing unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. The findings could influence President Obama's decision about how to spend money allotted for pregnancy-prevention programs. 02.04.10
Hot-Button Amendments Complicate Health Reform Bill
The Senate will vote on an amendment attached to the health care reform bill Tuesday that would restrict an individual's access to abortion and is expected to further complicate efforts to pass the legislation. 12.08.09
Hungry in America: New Food Insecurity Numbers Are A Wake Up Call
A new report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirms that almost 50 million Americans had a hard time putting food on the table in 2008 -- one in seven American households, an increase of 13 million people from the year before. 11.24.09
Health Care Reform is Tricky Balancing Act for Obama
Leaders in Congress and the White House are working together to craft a health care reform bill to fix the nation's health care system, one of the most expensive and complicated in the world. 10.15.09
HIV Vaccine Trial Shows Positive Gains Via Negative Results
Results released this week from an HIV vaccine trial in the Southeastern Asian country of Thailand suggest for the first time that a vaccine to prevent HIV infection may be possible. 09.25.09
H1N1 Heads Back to School
School districts around the nation are prepping for a possible H1N1 pandemic this fall by creating online curriculums, urging sick students to stay home and ordering extra hand sanitizer. 09.11.09
Dissent on Display as Congress Debates Health Reform
President Obama and his fellow Democrats in Congress are pushing for a major overhaul in how Americans obtain health insurance, and that effort is exposing a deep division between citizens who think reform is essential and those who think the government has too large a role in their lives. 08.18.09
Fixing Health Care Tops President’s Agenda
America is home to some of the best doctors and medical facilities in the world, but the high cost of care and the inequity of health insurance must be fixed, according to President Obama, if the nation is to return to economic health. 06.26.09
Swine Flu Sweeps Across Globe, Raising Fears of Flu Pandemic
A strain of the swine flu, a disease in pigs that sometimes infects humans, has spread from Mexico to Europe, Asia and the United States. 04.28.09
Gulf War Syndrome Is Real and Caused by Toxins, Report States
Seventeen years after the first Gulf War, a congressionally mandated panel released a report Nov. 17 that concluded an illness suffered by veterans exposed to certain toxins during the war is real. The government previously did not consider the illness a physical condition separate from shell shock or war stress. 11.21.08
One
in Four American Teenage Girls Has Sexually-Transmitted Infection
A
recent study of girls ages 14-19 showed that a large number had one of the four
most commonly transmitted infections: chlamydia, trichomoniasis, genital herpes,
and HPV-human papillomavirus. 05.22.08
Dozens
of Pharmaceuticals Detected in Drinking Water
Low concentrations
of a range of drugs, including antibiotics, birth control and anti-convulsants,
are present in the drinking water supplies of 24 major cities.
03.12.08
Autism
Diagnosis Rates Rise, But Understanding Lags
New estimates suggest
one in 150 eight-year-olds have some form of autism, adding fuel to the debate
over the causes of autism and its effect on home, school and workplace environments. 03.10.08
Schools
Fighting Deadly "Superbug"
Schools in the northeastern U.S. are
using Lysol and better hygiene to combat outbreaks of a bacteria known as the
MRSA "superbug." 10.22.09 Doping
Scandal Tests Cycling's Mettle
Performance-enhancing drug scandals
at this year's Tour de France bike race. 08.01.07 Dogs
Give Researchers Clues on Cancer
Researchers are finding that purebred
dogs may help provide answers about the genetic basis of cancer -- in dogs and
humans. 04.04.07 College
Players Struggle to Make the Grade
Despite excelling on the court,
student athletes on many of the nation's top college basketball teams have an
alarmingly low graduation rate. 04.02.07 HIV
Tests Become Part of Regular Checkups
Your next doctor's visit may
include an HIV test due to new recommendations to increase early diagnosis and
help stop the spread of AIDS. 11.20.06 California
Debates Use of Lethal Injection
A judge in California will soon decide
if lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment, making it a violation of
the US Constitution. 10.02.06 Insecticide
DDT Now Weapon for Malaria
The World Health Organization has fully
endorsed the controversial insecticide DDT to fight malaria, a deadly disease
carried by mosquitoes. 09.18.06 Vaccine
for Girls Prevents Cervical Cancer
A new vaccine approved for girls
aged 11 to 26 can prevent a sexually transmitted disease that sometimes causes
cervical cancer. 07.03.06 Motorcycle
Accident Revs Helmet Debate
Football star Ben Roethlisberger's motorcycle
accident ignites new debate about laws that require riders to wear helmets. 06.19.06 Schools
Shop Locally for Better Food
School districts across the country are
trying to fight obesity and support local businesses by purchasing food from local
farmers. 5.30.06 Rare
Disease Spreads in Midwest Colleges
More than 1,500 cases of mumps
have been reported in eight states, the largest outbreak in 20 years that shows
no signs of slowing. 04.26.06 Massachusetts
Tries to Insure All Residents
Massachusetts is the first state to
address the growing national health care crisis by making health insurance mandatory
for all residents. 04.17.06 Doctors
Assess Risks of ADHD Medications
A government panel recommends "black
box" safety warnings for attention-deficit disorder medications taken by many
teens. 03.13.06 New
Jersey to Test Athletes for Steroids
New Jersey plans to test student
athletes for steroids, an idea supported by many students, but opposed by privacy
rights advocates. 01.04.06 At-Home
AIDS Test Raises Health Issues
Some believe an at-home AIDS test will
improve detection of the disease while critics say testers need counseling too.
11.30.05 Bird
Flu Spreads from Asia to Eastern Europe
Health officials fear a deadly
strain of bird flu that has infected humans in Asia could spread to the rest of
the world, infecting millions. 10.12.05 Teen
Gambling Addiction on the Rise
With more teens gambling, according
to a new study, experts warn of an increase in addiction, health and legal problems.
04.25.05 College
Athletes Face New Academic Rules
Top student-athletes like Chris Hill
will be in greater demand as the NCAA attempts to improve graduation rates with
new standards. 03.14.05 Abstinence-Only
Education Under Attack
12.13.04 Hunger
Costing Millions of Lives and Dollars
12.08.04 Supreme
Court Examines Medical Marijuana
12.01.04 Mannequins
Reflect Changing Body Images
11.22.04 Contamination
Causes Flu Vaccine Shortage
10.11.04 Tobacco
Industry Faces Federal Lawsuit
09.20.04 Antidepressants
Considered Unsafe in Teens
04.26.04 Eating
Ourselves to Death?
03.15.04 Who
Pays for Health Care?
01.19.04 College
Stress on the Rise
12.22.03 Steroid
Scandal Rocks Athletic World
11.05.03 FDA
May OK Controversial Breast Implants
10.22.03 Health
Officials Respond to Mysterious Illness
04.09.03 Is
Ephedra Dangerous?
03.05.03 Fast
Food Nation
04.03.01 Cloning:
Me, Myself and I
03.28.01 The
War on Drugs
05.10.01 Protect Your Hearing: It's
a Loud World
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