A new analysis from clinical epidemiologist Dr. Richard Lilford of the U.K.’s University of Birmingham and critical care physician Dr. Peter Provonost of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine suggests that death rates are a poor measure of the quality of care at a hospital. Writing in the British Medical Journal Lilford and
…
Pedestrians are about twice as likely to get run over by hybrid cars than other types of automobiles, NPR points out, and, in part, this has been attributed to the fact that, when the cars are being powered by their electric engines, they are very quiet. Too quiet, in fact, according to researchers and even developers who have proposed
…
A new study combining DNA barcoding and mercury analysis finds that, mercury content in tuna sushi told in supermarkets and restaurants varies by species, and that, in some cases, exceeds recommended amounts. The study, published online today in the journal Biology Letters was based on 100 samples of both akami (lean red tuna) and toro
…
More than a quarter of all Americans between the ages of 17 to 24 are too overweight to join the military, according to a new report highlighted by the Associated Press. That many Americans are too tubby to meet the basic entry requirements for military service isn’t new—in 2008 roughly 12,000 would-be soldiers failed the initial
…
Public health researchers have been working to highlight the dangers of excessive salt consumption for decades, and in the last year alone studies have underscored just how big a salt habit Americans have: on average, we consume up to twice the recommended amount of sodium each day, significantly increasing our risk for hypertension and
…
Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Northern Ohio Poison Control Center argue that smokeless tobacco pellets manufactured by Camel look and taste so much like candy that their appeal to small children could put them at risk for poisoning. In a study released today by the
…
A study from researchers at Nottingham University published in the journal Biological Psychiatry and highlighted by the BBC suggests that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may benefit from immediate rewards in similar ways that they do from medications such as Ritalin. In the study, researchers set out to
…
Kimberly-Clark, the company that manufactures Kotex brand pads and tampons as well as Poise and Depend adult incontinence products, has decided to take a more straightforward approach in hawking its wares. Last month Whoopi Goldberg appeared in a TV ad for Poise during the Oscars portraying several famous historical women with the same
…
Though the World Health Organization released a report last spring suggesting that maternal mortality had not improved in the last 30 years, with roughly half a million mothers dying during pregnancy and childbirth each year, a new study published online earlier this week in the journal The Lancet found that the number of maternal deaths
…
Health insurance companies in the U.S., Canada and Europe hold nearly $1.9 billion in fast-food company stock, according to a new study from researchers at Harvard Medical School and the department of medicine at Cambridge Health Alliance. In the study, published this week in the American Journal of Public Health researchers examined
…
Not knowing where your food will come from, where you will live, or if there will be heat in your home day to day or week to week can certainly be stressful for anyone. But, according to new research published this week in the journal Pediatrics, the cumulative effect of these hardships can be detrimental to children’s health. The impact
…
Many urologists miss or misdiagnose Chlamydia in young, sexually active patients, according to a letter published online in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections. Chlamydia trachomatis infection can lead to a condition known as epididymo-orchitis, in which the testicles and a tube that stores sperm become inflamed. These symptoms
…
While applauding the First Lady’s efforts to combat childhood obesity through the Let’s Move initiative, researchers from the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco say that the campaign’s efforts focused primarily on behavioral and nutritional intervention—in school or at home—will yield “limited
…
