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Category: Health

The Budget Words That Dare Not Speak Their Names

Officials at the Center for Disease Control and Protection (CDC) have been informed that certain terms must not, never, ever be used in their budget proposals.

“vulnerable”
“entitlement”
“diversity”
“transgender”
“fetus”
“evidence-based”
“science-based”

Budget item proposals that mention those terms in them are having them sent back for correction.

It’s not clear if it’s just that these words might upset people higher up the food chain (like the President), or whether by forbidding the words it might mean that CDC work can’t be done in those areas (which seems a bid feeble, to be honest), or whether it’s to keep GOP big donors from getting irked (which feels a bit of a stretch).

It’s just weird, in an odd quasi-Orwellian way. Which, I guess, shouldn’t be a surprise, but it just feels a little less blunt than the usual Trumpian surprise.




CDC gets list of forbidden words: fetus, transgender, diversity – The Washington Post
Agency analysts are told to avoid these 7 banned words and phrases in budget documents

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Cartoons about Cancer

This is a collection of XKCD cartoons by Randall Munroe during the several years when his girlfriend (and then wife) Megan was being treated for Stage 3 Breast Cancer. Funny, scary, poignant, neat.




An Incredibly Touching Comic About Looking Ahead in Time Seven Years After Being Treated for Cancer
In November 2010, Megan, then fiancée (now wife) of Randall Munroe, the illustrator behind the brilliant webcomic xkcd, received the devastating diagnosis

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On the Introduction of Diet Coke

While a bit self-congratulatory in places, this history of the development and roll-out of Diet Coke has some interesting trivia tidbits (the lower case “d” in the name was both a branding and legal decision) that make it worth a read.




The Extraordinary Story of How Diet Coke Came to Be
The original Diet Coke team tells the story of how they created, launched and marketed the number-one rated diet soda brand.

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So a tattooed DNR request isn’t considered valid?

Um, if someone gets “DO NOT RESUSCITATE” (and signature) tattooed on their chest in a drunken misjudgment, and doesn’t then the very next day either start tattoo removal or go in for a big “X” across the the “NOT” … I think they kind of deserve whatever happens to them.




Real wish or drunken regret? A “Do Not Resuscitate” tattoo throws doctors
Luckily, they dug up the paperwork in time to get the real answer.

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Comic books and dyslexia

Comic books are often recommended for dyslexics for training in reading, as the smaller chunks of text and illustrations can help make meaning clearer. There are typographic ways that comic book letterers could make that even more so, but aesthetics and tradition don’t necessarily make that the highest priority.




How Comic Books Can Get Even Better for Dyslexic Readers
While the medium is relatively accessible for people with reading difficulties, its lettering norms are still leaving some behind.

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Iron Lungs

Iron Lungs are breathing assistance devices that were used to enable polio victims to survive. As polio recedes into memory here in the US (enough so that a lot of people have stopped vaccinating their kids for it, which might mean a sudden epidemic could bring it back big time), the number of people using iron lungs here has dwindled to just a tiny handful.

Here are some of their stories.




The Last of the Iron Lungs
Martha Lillard spends half of every day with her body encapsulated in a half-century old machine that forces her to breathe. Only her head sticks out of the end of the antique iron lung. On the other side, a motorized lever pulls the leather bellows, creating negative pressure that induces her lungs to suck in air.

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Practicing medicine without … a computer?

So this initially heart-tugging tale of a rural doctor who’s been practicing medicine in Maine since 1968, has never bought (or learned how to use) a computer, now being forced out of medicine by the state … has a few more dimensions to it.

1. Not to go all ageist, but should an 84-year-old doctor consider retirement?

2. The state’s issue is that there’s supposed to be reporting from doctors into a database tracking opioid prescriptions. That’s not for nothing, and there’s likely related things a doctor might be asked to report in for public health reasons. If the physician cannot (and will not) do that — is it _un_reasonable for the state to prevent them from practicing?

3. If the doctor in question never touches computers, and has never bothered to learn, does that imply anything about the accessibility to up-to-date information and training that a doctor should be assumed to have? Are they actually keeping up with medical advances?

4. If the only “high tech” the doctor has is a landline phone, how are records for individuals sent to hospitals as needed? Hand-carried? Snail-mail? Is that a concern?

5. If we say, “Well, the doctor works in some poor rural community that desperately needs a doctor, and doesn’t need someone with all the latest-greatest information and databases and toys,” are we also saying that rural communities should have second-rate medical care, or that we’re happy if patients just get the treatment they need 80% of the time, or that our only societal choices for that community are to either have no doctor or have one that doesn’t measure up?

6. People (esp. tax-sensitive people) tend to pooh-pooh the idea of broadband access as a human right. If that’s a (legal, if not also medical) necessity for a doctor to practice in a community … that begins to sound like a human right, or at least societal obligation, to provide such service.

It’s a more interesting story in its implications than at first blush.




Elderly doctor: I lost my license because I don’t know how to use a computer | Ars Technica
Doc says her paper records are just fine—state medical board disagrees.

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The one Obama legacy that Trump hasn’t tried to get rid of (yet)

Melania Trump is continuing the White House South Lawn vegetable garden that Michelle Obama planted, and the harvest is both being used by the White House kitchen and donated to local charities.

It’s a small thing, and a lot of the other substantive food health policy that the Obamas promulgated has been put on hold or eliminated by Donald. But at least it’s something.

(The article begins, “The first lady, more at home in Manhattan than among rows of crops, hosted local schoolchildren at the White House on Friday …” which suddenly conjured images of Eva Gabor and Green Acres. Hmm. Melania even sounds a bit like Gabor; they were born only about 250 miles (and 50 years) apart.)




Melania Trump embraces Michelle Obama’s vegetable garden – POLITICO

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Weight, weight, don’t tell me

So I’m now about 20 lbs. down from where I was when I started dieting, though the slope of the curve has been plateauing some this past week. I’m as low as I’ve been since late 2015, so that sort of feels good.

Again, not doing anything special, just:

  1. Counting calories (using MyNetDiary to record and set goals)
  2. Drinking water. Lots of water. (Mostly to avoid drinking things with calories in them.)
  3. Snacking on vegies rather than chips and crackers (again, calorie avoidance).
  4. Making sure I walk get out for my walk at lunch.

Everything else is business as usual. Same meals as everyone else (just eschewing seconds). An occasional treat (some ice cream or an extra cocktail) if I’ve been extra good during the day. Accepting that I’ll go above the daily target on occasion, just making sure those occasions are exceptions, not the rule.

That’s what’s working for me. Your mileage will almost certainly vary, though, regardless, I don’t recommend taking up smoking to lose weight.

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So maybe it's time to switch back to Regular Soda

Yeah, people have been kvetching about Aspartame (the only artificial sweetener that I can stand) since it was first introduced, but I've always thought, "It's better than the calories. It's better than the calories. It's better than the …"

Turns out, just from a weight loss/gain perspective … it's not. Various trials continue to show that Aspartame in diets, vs. sugar, does't reduce weight. And scientists are beginning to understand why.

'Dr Hodin and his team found that the artificial sweetener inhibits intestinal alkaline phosphatase (IAP), which is a gut enzyme that researchers believe prevents obesity. So even though there's no sugar in your diet beverage, it might not aid you in your weight loss journey.'

And, in more detail:

'At the end of the study period, while there was little difference between the weights of the two groups fed a normal diet, mice on a high-fat diet that received aspartame gained more weight than did those on the same diet that received plain water. Aspartame-receiving mice in both diet groups had higher blood sugar levels than did those fed the same diets without aspartame, which indicates glucose intolerance, and both aspartame-receiving groups had higher levels of the inflammatory protein TNF-alpha in their blood, which suggests the kind of systemic inflammation associated with metabolic syndrome.'

I used to joke that my body is a temple, so I only consume pure sugar. I got away from that in an attempt to still drink sodas and yet not be guzzling hundreds of calories in glucose and fructose.

This still doesn't mean that those high calorie sugary drinks are good for you (esp. if they are made with high fructose corn syrup), just that thinking you're avoiding weight gain by drinking Aspartame diet sodas isn't true, either. So time for me to re-evaluate, maybe.

More here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/11/161122193100.htm




Scientists Discover Why Diet Coke Is Probably Undermining You
Aspartame — the artificial sweetener found in drinks like Diet Coke — is probably not good for you. If you believe otherwise, I admire your commitment…

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Getting enough sleep is good for you in more ways than one

Not enough REM sleep means "I crave bad food!" Which … yeah, that's not surprising.




Loss of REM Sleep Linked to Desire For Fatty and Sugary Foods
Summary: A lack of REM sleep may lead to an increased desire to consume unhealthy foods, a new study reports.Source: University of Tsukuba.It is not well understood what role sleep loss plays

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Nestle announces a sweet discovery

They say they've found a way to restructure sugar that releases the same amount in the mouth, but doesn't send the same amount down to the stomach.

Alas, the tweak doesn't work for sodas or for sugar in your coffee, but it could reduce sugar / calories in your candy.

See also: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/30/business/nestle-reformulates-sugar-so-it-can-use-less.html




Nestlé Creates A New Sugar: Use Less, Get The Same Taste
For years, food and beverage companies like Pepsi Co. have tweaked their use of sugar and sweetener substitutes to find just the right mixture that aligns with consumers’ tastes and perception of a…

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Kill your headache … and your empathy

That's overstating things (on both counts), but this the study in this story is a bit … disturbing. It appears that taking acetominophen (Tylenol) actually reduces empathy for pain others may be feeling. That's not a good thing.




This popular painkiller also kills kindness
Acetaminophen, the most common drug ingredient in the United States, reduces empathy as well as physical pain.

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Thanks, anti-vaxxers! You've revived measles in the US!

Glad to see your paranoid fantasies of dark conspiracies leading to children being harmed by fiends who pursue ideology over scientific evidence are … well, actually coming true.




Six cases of measles confirmed in Tennessee outbreak. Measles was eradicated in the U.S. in 2000.
Public Health officials in Shelby County, Tennessee today confirmed six cases of measles in the county, up from two last Friday. Victims of the measles outbreak are “widely diverse” in …

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The dark side of genetic testing

Cheap, easy, and presumably accurate genetic testing could help millions be aware of potential future health issues, work to forestall them, etc. It could and will make lots of lives better.

It could also lead to discriminatory practices, as in the case described here.




DNA Got a Kid Kicked Out of School—And It’ll Happen Again
The genetic discrimination future is here.

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Life is messy — and sometimes that's a good thing

Researchers have found some indications that C-section babies are healthier (develop a more natural skin microbiome) if smeared with vaginal fluids from their moms after delivery. Which makes a lot of sense, once one thinks about it, but isn't the sort of thing one normally thinks about.




Birth of a microbiome: Researchers smear babies with vaginal fluid | Ars Technica
C-section newborns slathered with moms’ secretions may dodge lifelong health problems.

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Who's behind the international public health emergency over Zika?

Have the conspiracy theories started yet? Is this part of Obama's last-ditch effort to suspend the elections? Or a way of defeating the noble anti-vaccination movement by scaring them into getting vaccinations? Is it ISIS, trying to sneak Muslim Terror Mosquitoes over our unguarded border? Or a conspiracy by Monsanto to re-legalize DDT? Or a false flag operation to put America under United Nations / World Health Organization control?

Whatever it is, it's surely about taking away our guns and our freedoms and our churches in favor of Muslim / Atheist / Socialist / Pro-Vaccination forces. At least, I expect to read articles on that in 3 … 2 … 1 …




WHO declares international public health emergency over Zika outbreaks | Ars Technica
In Monday meeting, experts called for coordinated boost in surveillance and vaccine.

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Wisdom Teeth and the removal thereof

If you told me that the expansion of dental coverage has led to an expansion of dental operations, including wisdom teeth removal, I wouldn't be surprised.

My daughter just had her wisdom teeth removed a week ago, and it's a non-trivial operation (both financially and physically). That said, there are some dividing lines between "medically necessary" and "orthodontally necessary" and "unnecessary" that the article sort of elides over.




Why You Might Want to Think Twice About Getting Your Wisdom Teeth Removed
It is well known that this is now an epidemic: By one count, Americans waste $750 billion a year on unproductive care.

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It's not just about calories

Dagnabbit, calorie counting is simple and straightforward for dieting. It's highly irksome that the world doesn't operate that way.

On the bright side, apparently my preference for rare meat is a good thing.




Why the calorie is broken
Calories consumed minus calories burned: it’s the simple formula for weight loss or gain. But dieters often find that it doesn’t work. Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley of Gastropod investigate.

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Beards … for SCIENCE!

Could the next big breakthrough in antibiotics come from beards? Is wearing a beard a sign of healthiness? Is all this an example of Betteridge's Law?




Are beards good for your health? – BBC News
Do beards hold the key to a new generation of disease-fighting antibiotics?

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