Be a better human being - every day in every way.
By Ariel Schwartz, Fast Company. Diet soda is not, it turns out, a panacea for overeating. But it’s not just because ordering a burger, fries, and a diet soda means you’re still consuming too many calories; it’s because diet soda itself may increase your waistline. The news comes from a University of Texas study that [...]
Scientists at a research center in Vladikavkaz, the capital of Russia’s North Ossetia Republic, have developed a unique vaccine, which neutralizes the radiation exposure on living organisms. Their Japanese colleagues are interested in the vaccine and plan to use it to reduce the level of radiation level of those who involved in clean-up operations after the disaster at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant are being exposed to.
According to Vyacheslav Maliyev, the head of the department of biotechnologies at the Vladikavkaz research center, the Russian scientists are now working in cooperation with the specialists of NASA and the work on the vaccine will soon be completed.
There is renewed controversy surrounding influenza vaccines, with some studies showing people immunised against the seasonal flu might have been at greater risk during the swine flu outbreak.
Infectious diseases expert Professor Peter Collignon has called for a review of Australia’s flu vaccine policy in light of the new research, but the Federal Government has defended its vaccination program.
Recent data presented to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Children’s Vaccines has revealed some shocking information about the effects of the H1N1 / swine flu vaccine on pregnant women. According to the report, the rate of miscarriage among pregnant women during the 2009 H1N1 / swine flu pandemic soared by over 700 percent compared to previous years, pointing directly to the vaccine as the culprit — but the CDC denies the truth and continues to insist nobody has been harmed.
According to the CDC, nearly 50 percent of all pregnant women were vaccinated with the H1N1 vaccine during the 2009 / 2010 influenza season. Those whose physicians instructed them to get a seasonal flu shot were three times more likely to get it, while those instructed specifically to get the H1N1 shot were ten times more likely to get it. And the numbers clearly show that along with the rise in vaccinations due to the H1N1 scare came the sharp increase in miscarriages, including a slew of actual reported adverse events.
A contingent of UN peacekeepers is the likely source of a cholera outbreak in Haiti that has killed at least 2,000 people, a French scientist said in a report obtained by The Associated Press.
Epidemiologist Renaud Piarroux concluded that the cholera originated in a tributary of Haiti’s Artibonite river, next to a UN base outside the town of Mirebalais.
He was sent by the French government to assist Haitian health officials in determining the source of the outbreak, a French Foreign Ministry official said.
“No other hypothesis could be found to explain the outbreak of a cholera epidemic in this village … not affected by the earthquake earlier this year and located dozens of kilometres from the coast and (tent) camps,” he wrote in a report that has not been publicly released.
Food giant Monsanto is so large that it can disrupt an entire food supply chain–the sweetest one there is. A court battle over genetically modified Monsanto sugar beets may lead to a drop in U.S. sugar production over the next two years, driving up prices for shoppers and food processors alike.
How can a single company shake up sugar production like that? In a nutshell: a judge recently ordered 256 acres of seed-producing Monsanto baby beet plants pulled out of the ground because the company didn’t go through the proper USDA approval process when the beets were approved for use in 2005. And now the sugar industry is in trouble–50 percent of the U.S. sugar supply comes from sugar beets, and more than 90 percent of sugar beets are genetically engineered.
Researchers from the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, the Natural History Museum, London, Nature Heritage and Conservation International discovered a new species of carnivore in Madagascar. This is the first discovery of a new carnivore in 24 years. The small creature weighs under 1 1/2 pounds and belongs to a family of carnivores only known to live in Madagascar.
Unfortunately Durrell’s vontsira (Salanoia durrelli), as it has been named, is one of the most threatened carnivores in the world.
With a 3-1 vote in favor of the measure, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors passed a sweeping ban on plastic grocery bags in unincorporated areas of the county.
The ban will affect nearly 1.1 million residents countywide and has been called one of the nation’s most aggressive environmental measures to date.
The official measure reads: “No store shall provide to any customer a plastic carryout bag.” Plastic bags that are used to hold fruit, vegetables or raw meat in order to prevent contamination with other grocery items will be exempt from the ban.
Grocers that continue to offer plastic bags will be required to charge customers 10 cents per bag, according to the ordinance. The revenue will be retained by the stores to purchase the paper bags and educate customers about the law.
In late August, heavy and costly lobbying by plastic bag manufacturers prevented the California state Senate from passing a state-wide plastic bag ban, despite the support of the state Assembly and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Once in a blue moon youI’ll hear some positive news on the healthy eating front and dark chocolate has time and time again come out on top. This along with the antioxidants in wine is enough to make you jump for joy. We know that this delectable sweet treat provides a wealth of health benefits, but how much is too much?
Recently, Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen, authors of YOU: On a Diet, answered some important questions on the specifics of dark chocolate consumption. According to the article in the Sun Setinel, you don’t need a whole bar to get a healthy dose of antioxidants. The flavonoids in dark chocolate are so powerful that a daily piece the size of a Hershey’s Kiss can lower your blood pressure.
Natural Flavors… The name sounds innocent enough, but these mild-sounding words are used by the food industry as an umbrella term for some pretty horrible stuff, including certain ingredients that come from extreme animal abuse.
The exact definition of natural flavors from the Code of Federal Regulations is as follows:
“The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.”
Subscribe to this site's RSS feed.
Counting since July 1st 2011.
