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CDC Urges Faster Testing for Bird Flu Amid Growing Outbreak
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is urging health care workers to accelerate bird flu testing for patients hospitalized with flu symptoms, as the H5N1 avian influenza outbreak continues to grow in the United States and Canada. The advisory, issued Jan. 16, recommends that health care providers perform a second test for… read on > read on >
Sewer Sludge Is Dangerous to Health, EPA Says of Biosolids and PFAS
Sewer sludge from wastewater treatment plants appears to expose farmers and nearby neighbors to toxic “forever” chemicals, a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) draft risk assessment says. This sludge — which is sometimes applied to farmland as fertilizer — can contain high levels of chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, the EPA… read on > read on >
FDA Proposes Nicotine Cap To Help Curb Cigarette Addiction
A rather historic U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposal aims to make cigarettes and other tobacco products far less addictive by reducing their nicotine content. The move could help millions of Americans quit smoking while preventing many more from becoming addicted. The proposed rule, published Wednesday in a 334-page report, would cap nicotine levels… read on > read on >
How To Handle Travel Stress
Traffic, delays, disruptions due to storms or wildfires, and other surprises may be part of your next business or pleasure trip. In short: Travel is more stressful (and more expensive) than ever. But you don’t have to submit to the anxiety and upset, Dr. Asim Shah, professor and executive vice chair in the Menninger Department… read on > read on >
Drug Lowers Fracture Risk in Early Postmenopausal Women
Women past menopause can protect themselves from future fractures through infrequent, cheap IV infusions of a bone-strengthening drug. Women 50 to 60 who got two IV infusions of zoledronate (Reclast) within five years had a 44% lower risk of spinal fractures, compared to women who received a placebo, according to results published Jan. 15 in… read on > read on >
