Two years ago, the Centers for Disease Control launched a series of ads featuring horror stories from former smokers who got cancer, lost organs, teeth, and whose children suffered from the ill effects of being exposed to cigarette smoke. Some of these ads have been viewed millions of times online and the CDC claims they are helping to get people to quit or to never start smoking; that’s why a new series of TV spots will soon start hitting the TV airwaves in July. [More]
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Current Measles Outbreak The Worst U.S. Has Seen In 14 Years
By 5.30.14
When I was a young cheese-fed sprout growing up, the measles sounded like one of those awfully scary diseases that only people in history books ever came down with. Because I knew enough to know that getting vaccinated against it meant I likely wouldn’t get it. But measles are all the rage again now, or at least cases are climbing to record highs since the disease was eliminated 14 years ago in the U.S. [More]
Another Cruise Returns To Port Early With More Than 170 Ill Passengers
By 1.31.14
Days after Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas had to return to port early after hundreds of passengers fell ill, Carnival’s Caribbean Princess returned home to Houston last night, a day ahead of schedule, with at least 170 sick people on board. [More]
FDA Politely Asks Drug Companies To Voluntarily Stop Providing Antibiotics For Animal Feed
By 12.11.13
In the face of numerous reports indicating that the practice of using medically unnecessary antibiotics to bulk up farm animals is leading to millions of people getting sick each year from drug-resistant pathogens, the Food & Drug Administration drew a line in the sand today and put an end to the practi– oh wait, I meant that the FDA has politely asked drug companies to voluntarily phase out sales of these drugs to farmers. [More]
What Can ‘The Walking Dead’ Teach Us About Public Health Crises?
By 11.1.13
There are many things fans of The Walking Dead can learn about a potential zombie apocalypse: Crossbows are awesome when Daryl is wielding one, never trust someone who just goes by “The Governor” and zombies are always snacking. But more perhaps important than studying the way Rick tenses his eyes just so, there are vital lessons about public health to be had from the popular post-apocalyptic show. [More]
We Are In The Era Of “Nightmare” Bacteria And Nobody Seems To Care
By 10.22.13 — Updated: 7.17.14
On March 5, 2013, the Centers for Disease Control issued a press released titled “Lethal, Drug Resistant Bacteria Spreading in U.S. Healthcare Facilities.” The warning that followed was dire. Drug-resistant organisms called carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, were not only spreading more rapidly through U.S. hospitals, they were becoming more resistant to so-called “last-resort” antibiotics. “CRE are nightmare bacteria,” said CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden. How nightmarish? According to data from the CDC, 1 in 2 patients who contract a bloodstream CRE infection will die. That’s an ominous statistic, but it might not even be the scariest fact about CRE. [More]
Health Officials Ask Stores To Yank Fat-Burning Supplement Linked To Liver Failure
By 10.9.13
Hawaii health officials are asking stores to stop selling the fat-burning supplment OxyElite Pro after an investigation linked it to cases of liver failure and acute hepatitis in 29 people. Two of those people had to undergo liver transplants and one has died, says the Hawaii State Department of Health. [More]
CDC Calls Back Some Furloughed Staff To Tackle Multi-State Salmonella Outbreak
By 10.9.13
On the heels of a multi-state outbreak of salmonella that has sickened hundreds, some were wondering what would happen with most of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s food-borne illness staff on furlough during the government shutdown. The CDC is now reassuring the public that it has called back many of its workers to handle the outbreak. [More]
CDC: 2 Million Americans Get Sick From Antibiotic-Resistant Infections Every Year
By 9.16.13
While livestock farmers around the country continue to feed medically unnecessary antibiotics to their animals for the sole purpose of encouraging growth, millions of Americans are falling ill — and thousands dying — every year from bacterial and fungal infections that are resistant to current medication, claims a new report from the Centers for Disease Control. [More]
Is Climate Change Making Oyster-Eaters Sick?
By 9.11.13
Climate change and global warming have been blamed for a lot of things, but one possible link between warming sea water and food-borne illnesses could be awfully depressing to folks who enjoy chowing down on raw oysters. [More]
Costco Offering Free Hepatitis Vaccines To Customers Who Purchased Recalled Berries
By 6.7.13
We told you earlier this week about a hepatitis A outbreak in several states that authorities had linked to a berry mix sold at Costco stores. Now comes news that the warehouse chain is offering free vaccines to those who have eaten the recalled berries. [More]
Health Officials Link Hepatitis Outbreak In 5 States To Costco Frozen Berry Mix
By 6.3.13
Although there’s no official recall announcement yet, if you’re currently chomping on a Costco frozen berry blend called The Townsend Farms Organic Anti-oxidant Blend, you should know that health officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say a five-state outbreak of hepatitis could be linked to the product. [More]
CDC Confirms What We All Suspected But Didn’t Want To Acknowledge About Poop In The Pool Water
By 5.16.13
Memorial Day is almost here, bringing with it a summer of bad 3-D movies, sunburn, mosquitoes, vacation rentals that smell oddly of grandma, people in shorts, and of course, trips to the local swimming poo. [More]
Yes, We Want Fries With That: Americans Get 11% Of Their Calories From Fast Food
By 2.21.13
A new study from the Centers for Disease Control is pointing a greasy finger at Americans’ eating habits, finding that on average we get 11% of our calories in a day from fast food. But hey, that’s down from 13% since the last time the government poked around in our fast food eating habits. [More]
Majority Of U.S. Households Either Don’t Have Or Don’t Use Landline Phones
By 12.27.12
There are kids and teens out there that have never used anything other than a wireless phone (though these youngsters only seem to text). And many of us who can still remember their first cellphone call — “I’m calling… from the street!” — can’t remember the last time we used a landline at home. [More]
CPSC Issues Safety Alert On Detergent Pods
By 11.20.12
A month after the Centers for Disease Control issued a report showing that nearly 500 kids had been exposed to the lovely cleansing chemicals by playing with or chewing on colorful, shiny detergent pods, the folks at the Consumer Product Safety Commission have issued a safety alert declaring them harmful to children. [More]
CDC: Kids Sure Do Love Chewing On, Getting Sick From Detergent Pods
By 10.18.12
It’s no secret that little kids like bright, shiny colorful things, and that curiosity compels them to place these objects in their mouths. But since most children under the age of five are not yet versed in the possible harms of household chemicals, lots of them are popping bright, shiny colorful detergent pods into their waiting maws. [More]
CDC Says Kids Are Just Like Their Parents And Are Eating Way Too Much Salt Every Day
By 9.17.12
We can see it now — no more salt shakers in New York City. That probably won’t happen (right, Mayor Bloomberg?) but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says in a new study that American kids are eating way too much salt, just like their grown-up counterparts. Children are ingesting around 1,000 milligrams of salt more than they should be, which is the sodium equivalent of a Big Mac. [More]
