Copper isn't just a pretty metal. It plays a part in minting coins (although in ways you wouldn't expect), can substitute for iron in the blood of some creatures, and is responsible for the changing color of the Statue of Liberty. And some artists pee on it. Seriously.
Disease
Vaccines against the bacteria that cause middle ear infections in young children have been very effective in preventing some of them. A new report found that decreasing the probability that one type of bacteria will grow, can provide an opportunity for others. To keep up with this change (to say nothing of evolving bacterial resistance), it's important to track what happens when a vaccine has an impact on one type of infection.
A phylogenetic and epidemiological analysis suggests that people who died from Ebola possibly spread the virus to more people than those who survived.
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy is being more widely discussed following a high-profile research study on the brains of deceased football players, including 111 from the NFL. But what is CTE and how does it differ from other brain diseases?
Sometimes health advice is just too good to be true, like these beauties: "Eat pomegranates to prevent cancer" ... and "Organic food will make your kids smarter." But as for "Use sunscreen to treat an autoimmune disease" ... what? That's not possible, right? Well, the truth is that last one, as crazy as it sounds, just might be real.
Here's some advice for you ambitious urban cowboys out there: Wash your hands after you touch your chickens. Cook your eggs thoroughly. And be on the lookout for predators.
The headlines all imply that nearly all football players who make it to the NFL will develop CTE. That couldn't be further from the truth. Here are four major reasons why.
Does your blood type – specifically, your Rh factor (positive or negative) – matter in your daily life? Not in the slightest. But when pregnant your Rh status can matter, especially if it's negative.
Conventional wisdom suggests that occupations associated with low socioeconomic status – such as construction, extraction and maintenance jobs – would be linked to the greatest number of ALS and Parkinson's deaths because of workers' environmental exposures to chemicals. But the CDC found the opposite to be true.
Some medical diagnoses are like fad diets. Everyone you know has chronic Lyme disease or gluten intolerance, if not out-and-out celiac disease (whether a medical test confirms it or not). But many are just junk medicine, just as many fad diets are junk nutrition.
A new report supposedly gives credence to the idea that "endocrine disrupting chemicals" found in house dust can cause obesity. But the results weren't even found in animals, let alone humans.
One very sure means of contraception is vasectomy — a minor surgical operation that blocks the transfer of sperm from a man's testes to his urethra (and thus to his partner) by interrupting the tube leading from the testis. One concern has been that somehow this procedure might increase the risk of prostate cancer. But now a meta analysis has found that the risk is virtually non-existent.