Miscellaneous News

RSS

Review rubbishing homeopathy discredited

A review published in The Lancet which claimed that homeopathy is just a placebo, has been slammed as seriously flawed in two separate studies.

4 Nov 2008

Peck on the leg from a magpie leads to amputation

A new study has revealed that a peck on the leg from a pet magpie resulted in an elderly Australian woman losing her lower leg.

4 Nov 2008

Beer is the beverage of choice for US Hispanics

Despite the considerable and growing numbers of Hispanics living in the United States, little is known about their alcohol-beverage preferences.

4 Nov 2008

Snakebites pose an important yet neglected threat to public health

Snakebites cause considerable death and injury worldwide and pose an important yet neglected threat to public health, says new research published in this week's PLoS Medicine.

4 Nov 2008

Death from anthrax in Britain

A musician and drum maker has died in Britain from anthrax after handling animal skins thought to have been imported from Africa.

3 Nov 2008

FDA gets slap on the wrist over chemical BPA

The conclusion by the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) that the widely used chemical bisphenol-A, or BPA, is safe has been slammed by a panel of experts.

29 Oct 2008

British legal system challenged in euthanasia case

A British woman suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) has challenged the British legal system by demanding clarification on assisted suicide.

29 Oct 2008

FDA statement on release of Bisphenol A (BPA) subcommittee report

We appreciate the hard work and long hours the subcommittee has invested in scientific peer review of the FDA's draft safety assessment of the use of BPA in food contact applications.

29 Oct 2008

Female American veterans suffer sexual trauma after Iraq and Afghanistan

According to preliminary research results from a new study, almost 15% of female American veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have experienced sexual trauma during their military service.

29 Oct 2008

32% of Americans nicotine dependent

Nicotine dependence has reached a 15-year high, with nearly 75 percent of people currently seeking tobacco-dependence treatment categorized as highly nicotine dependent. New research, presented at CHEST 2008, the 74th annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), reports that nicotine dependence severity has increased 12 percent between 1989 and 2006, while the proportion of people classified as highly nicotine dependent has increased 32 percent.

28 Oct 2008

Re-regulating global finance with the poor in mind

For the poor, finance is always about much more than economics. In practical as well as philosophical terms it is a matter of basic human rights. As the dust begins to settle on the global financial crisis it is certain that all economies will suffer. For the rich, OECD states, stagnation or recessionary losses are predicted, and for the emerging (BRIC) economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China, growth will significantly slow. But it is in the poorest, least developed states that we will likely see the most dramatic effects, simply because they have less to lose.

27 Oct 2008

Cigarette drink to beat smoking bans

A drink is being launched in Britain which apparently delivers the same fix as a cigarette.

27 Oct 2008

HSE launch campaign on asbestos awareness - 20 tradesmen die per week

Figures issued by the Health and Safety Executive revealed that every week 20 tradesmen die from asbestos-related diseases, and this number is set to increase.

23 Oct 2008

The most effective anti-smoking ads scare or disgust

According to researchers in the United States, in order for anti-smoking adverts to be effective they must either scare or disgust the audience.

23 Oct 2008

Horlicks and Maggi noodle ads banned in Britain

An advert claiming that the bedtime malt drink Horlicks makes children "taller, stronger and sharper" has been banned after it was unintentionally screened on British television.

22 Oct 2008

Scouts to 'be prepared' with condoms and trips to sexual health clinics

The Scout Association in Britain will in future offer sex advice to their scouts in an attempt to prepare them for life.

20 Oct 2008

New atlas maps geographical pattern of mortality in Great Britain

Researchers from the Universities of Bristol and Sheffield have created an 'atlas of death' which charts the geographical pattern of mortality in Great Britain. The full-colour atlas shows the wide variation in death rates from a variety of different causes, from heart attacks and cancer to suicide and murder, for over 1,000 neighbourhoods.

20 Oct 2008