Public Health and Safety News

Reuters - The world risks a resurgence of the AIDS epidemic if countries let their guard down, United Nations officials cautioned on Tuesday.

AFP - The United Nations sharply reduced its estimate of HIV-AIDS sufferers in an annual report Tuesday, saying a revision of statistics from India meant there were seven million less than previously thought.

AP - To activists concerned about AIDS and prisoners' rights, it's an urgent, commonsense step that should already be nationwide policy — letting inmates have condoms to reduce the spread of sexually transmitted diseases behind bars.

HealthDay - FRIDAY, Nov. 16 (HealthDay News) -- Checking on fetal heart-rate patterns can offer insight into how a child's nervous system will develop through its toddler years, a U.S. study finds.

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Ultrasound exams are better than blood tests at identifying whether ovarian tumors are benign or malignant, a team of international researchers reports.

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- A diet that includes plenty of fish, omega-3 rich oils, fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, while high intake of omega-6 rich oils may boost the risk of developing memory problems, say French researchers.

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- A study of male twins who served in Vietnam has uncovered a strong link between asthma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- A study of male twins who served in Vietnam has uncovered a strong link between asthma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

AP - A troubling case in which a high-risk organ donor infected four patients with the AIDS virus and hepatitis has led medical ethicists to warn that patients need to know more about whose organs they're getting.

Reuters - The rates of three leading sexually transmitted diseases -- chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis -- rose again in the United States last year, worried public health officials said on Tuesday.

AP - China will relax a long-standing rule that bars foreigners with HIV from entering the country, a health official said.

AP - Many of the pills marketed as safe herbal alternatives to Viagra and other prescription sex medications pose a hidden danger: For men on common heart and blood-pressure drugs, popping one could lead to a stroke, or even death.

AP - America's obesity epidemic and global warming might not seem to have much in common. But public health experts suggest people can attack them both by cutting calories and carbon dioxide at the same time.

AFP - Installing a sewage system across a Brazilian city slashed prevalence of diarrhoea among children by more than a fifth, highlighting the importance of sanitation in tackling water-borne disease, a Lancet study says.

AP - A new report says the rate of substance abuse among Montana youth is much higher than the national average. The state is using that information to target federal money to change attitudes about drinking and driving and binge drinking.

HealthDay - THURSDAY, Nov. 8 (HealthDay News) -- Could country music be worse for kids than rock music? If you judge by the number of alcohol and drug references in songs, a new study suggests the answer could be yes.

Reuters - China is to scrap immigration laws that restrict people with HIV/AIDS traveling to the country, a health ministry official and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria said on Thursday.

Reuters - Being overweight may not kill you, but it could lead to obesity, U.S. health experts cautioned on Wednesday in response to research suggesting that being a bit heavy does not raise the risk of death.

Reuters - The number of U.S. girls taking diabetes drugs more than doubled between 2002 and 2005, almost certainly because of rising obesity, researchers reported on Wednesday.

AFP - A new drug therapy could help ease a terrible dilemma that has forced HIV-positive mothers to gamble with the well-being of their unborn children, a new study reported Wednesday.