Remember Frances Kelsey? Jonas Salk? Everett Koop? They inspired us – they invigorated trust. Who leads the public health march now? And why don’t they inspire us?

The National Park Service issued a warning against licking the Sonoran desert toad - an act that most people would intuitively avoid. But the frog contains a powerful hallucinogen, which produces LSD-like effects that can dangerous. So if you’re traveling around the southwestern US better watch your tongue.

Obesity is complex!
Disregarding competence for more diverse views
Disneyland’s E-tickets
Are our cars spying on us?

Not-so-recent data from the National Firearms Survey garnered headlines when it showed that the number of individuals carrying a handgun in public places doubled between 2015 and 2018. And that was before the Supreme Court's decision on New York’s carry law.

Animal research’s benefits are clear – but public awareness of what it involves is not.

Swearing – defined as speaking “specific, negatively charged, and often emotionally loaded terms” – violates our norms of both the sacred and profane. While polite society often reflects on swearing’s negatives, it turns out that there are some health benefits for the sender (but not the receiver).

I almost drove off the road listening to an ad from a law firm urging parents with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to be part of a lawsuit suing baby food manufacturers for causing their child’s condition. According to the ad, the question of what causes ASD has been settled and what remains is for parents to get what is owed them from baby food manufacturers that have been hiding the truth from the public for years.   

Thirty years ago, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) launched a PR campaign against a plant-growth regulator called Alar, effectively eliminating the use of the chemical in agriculture. What's the legacy of this infamous anti-chemical scare? The New York Times continues to attack good scientists on the say-so of environmental groups. The paper is trashing its credibility.

Medice, cura te ipsum. Physician, heal thyself. That is just what the CDC is beginning to do based on a recently published in-house structural review. Leave aside the shame and blame game of amnesty. What does the CDC believe it did wrong and could do better?

The American Council on Science and Health recently held its fall meeting of the Board of Trustees, which oversees ACSH’s governance and provides me with great counsel. It is quite a distinguished group. I want to take a moment to introduce our newest trustees, Drs. Nan Hayworth and Mike (Mick) Hitchcock.