From the sustainable scale project. The current population of 6.4 billion people is almost eight and one half times larger than the population of 760 million at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. At current growth rates, the world population could double in as little as 58 years. This rapid increase in population parallels that [...]
Archive | October, 2008
Hospital trial shows copper reduces contamination
October 30, 2008
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Research conducted at the University of Southampton has paved the way for a hospital trial that has shown that surfaces made with materials that contain copper kill a wide range of potentially harmful micro-organisms – significantly reducing the number of these organisms that can come into contact with patients, visitors and staff. Comment: This is [...]
Vaccinating Family Members Offers Important Flu Protection to Newborns
October 30, 2008
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Vaccinating new mothers and other family members against influenza before their newborns leave the hospital creates a “cocooning effect” that may shelter unprotected children from the flu, a virus that can be life-threatening to infants, according to researchers at Duke Children’s Hospital. “Newborns have the highest rate of hospitalizations due to influenza when compared to [...]
http://www.emory.edu/home/news/releases/2008/10/vaccine-could-save-lives-costs-in-flu-pandemic.html
October 30, 2008
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A new predictive model shows that vaccinating infants with 7 valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) — the current recommendation — not only saves lives and money during a normal flu season by preventing related bacterial infections; it also would prevent more than 357,000 deaths during an influenza pandemic, while saving $7 billion in costs. Bacterial [...]
Removal Of ‘Super-polluters’ Could Reduce Pollution From Nanoparticles By 25%
October 29, 2008
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ScienceDaily (Oct. 28, 2008) — A study undertaken by researchers from the University of Alcalá (UAH) shows that if the “super-polluters”, the high-polluting vehicles, such as certain buses and lorries in a poor condition, were removed, pollution from nanoparticles could be reduced by up to 25% and 48%, depending on the parameter analysed. These minute [...]
FDA Statement on Release of Bisphenol A (BPA) Subcommittee Report.
October 29, 2008
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The subcommittee report to the Science Board raises important questions regarding the draft safety assessment, and the FDA looks forward to the review of the subcommittee’s report by the Science Board on Oct. 31. The FDA agrees that, due to the uncertainties raised in some studies relating to the potential effects of low dose exposure [...]
Review of Prostate Cancer Prevention Study Shows No Benefit for Use of Selenium and Vitamin E Supplements.
October 29, 2008
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Initial, independent review of study data from the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT), funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and other institutes that comprise the National Institutes of Health shows that selenium and vitamin E supplements, taken either alone or together, did not prevent prostate cancer. The data also showed two [...]
Doorknobs and TV remotes are germ hotbeds
October 29, 2008
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Someone in your house have the sniffles? Watch out for the refrigerator door handle. The TV remote, too. A new study finds that cold sufferers often leave their germs there, where they can live for two days or longer. Scientists at the University of Virginia, long known for its virology research, tested [...]
National Trends in Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.
October 28, 2008
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In a study published this week in the Archives of Internal Medicine we find Diabetes mellitus is common, costly, and increasingly prevalent. Despite innovations in therapy, little is known about patterns and costs of drug treatment. Further, increasingly complex and costly diabetes treatments are being applied to an increasing population. The magnitude of these rapid [...]
10 facts on the global burden of disease.
October 28, 2008
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Collecting and comparing health data from across the globe is a way to describe health problems, identify trends and help decision-makers set priorities. A recent study describes the state of global health by measuring the burden of disease – the loss of health from all causes of illness and deaths worldwide. It details the leading [...]

October 31, 2008
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