Playing a musical instrument is great for kids’ developing brains — think it’s sheer coincidence that Tiger Mom placed so much emphasis on piano practice? — but a new study shows it could be bad for their health.
bacteria
You Know Your Blood Type. What About Your Gut Bug Type?
Consider this: of the trillions upon trillions of cells in the human body, only about 1 in 10 is actually human. The rest belong to microbes, which colonize every inch of you, from the inside of your mouth to the skin between …
Are Cavities Really Contagious?
So much can be communicated in just one kiss — including the bacteria Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus, which flourish on teeth and gums and cause cavities.
Hands-Free Faucets May Spread More Germs Than Manual Taps
We’ve become a rather germ-phobic society, what with our antibacterial soaps, hand sanitizers, automatic water faucets and self-flushing toilets — all of which are supposed to reduce our contact with potential disease-causing …
House Watch: How Lying Can Kill You
House Watcher was sick last week (final diagnosis: common cold), but I’m all better now, so let’s get right into the best procedural episode of the season, “Recession Proof,” which is about a central theme of the series: …
More Wisdom From a Long-Ago Plague
In its own deadly way, the 1918 flu pandemic is the gift that keeps on giving. It’s hard to say anything good about a global scourge that claimed 50 million lives, but a new article published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases …
Study: few correctly cover coughs, sneezes
Despite our best efforts to limit the spread of germs propelled into the air when we cough or sneeze, a new study from researchers in New Zealand suggests that many of us aren’t doing a great job. As the Associated Press reports, an observational study of people in public places in the New Zealand capital of Wellington suggests that
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Wash your reusable shopping bags
A new study from researchers at the University of Arizona and Loma Linda University finds that reusable shopping bags can harbor potentially harmful bacteria if they aren’t cleaned — and 97% of people surveyed said they’d never washed theirs. Yet the study, funded by the American Chemistry Council, also found that washing the reusable
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E. Coli in the fountain soda supply?
Soda fountains may dispense more than Diet Coke and Dr. Pepper, according to new research to be published this month in the International Journal of Food Microbiology. In an analysis of 90 soda and water samples taken from fountains in 30 different fast food restaurants in the Roanoke Valley region of Virginia, researchers from Hollins
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In hospitals, can disinfectant create super bugs?
In hospital settings, disinfectants are regularly used to prevent the spread of bacteria and prevent infection, but a new study published in the January issue of the journal Microbiology, suggests that too much exposure to a disinfectant may actually cause harm by creating bacteria that can not only resist the cleaning product, but some
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