Today s New York Times reports that Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to ban smoking in City parks and beaches. Among the goals he hopes to achieve with such a ban is reducing health risks associated with second hand smoke. His health commissioner, Dr. Thomas Farley, cites a New York City-funded study claiming that 57 percent of non-smoking New York City adults, compared to 45 percent nationally, tested positive for the presence of cotinine in their blood.

The results of a recent small clinical trial indicate that the popular supplement glucosamine is only as effective as a sugar pill for treating lower back pain. While limited studies have only shown its promise as a pain reliever for arthritic knee pain, many patients also attempt to alleviate lower back pain with glucosamine.

More older Americans are opting for colon cancer screenings, while the screening rate for breast cancer though higher than for colon cancer has reached a plateau, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control (CDC) phone survey. The American Cancer Society estimates 51,000 Americans will die this year from colon cancer, the second leading cause of cancer death, and 40,000 from breast cancer.

The Huffington Post decided not to sugarcoat the issue of artificial sweeteners when they ran Dr. Joseph Mercola s heated post on the marketing tactics of Ajinomotos AminoSweet, a rebranded version of aspartame. Dr. Mercola goes on to allege that aspartame is a toxic substance that wreaks havoc on your health.

Professor of developmental neuropsychology at the University of Oxford Dorothy Bishop has a novel idea distribute awards to recognize, or rather disrepute, research misrepresentations in the media. In her blog earlier this month, she announced the launch of the Orwellian Prize for Journalistic Misrepresentation, which will be awarded every January.

Talk about an explosive Fourth of July celebration! Unfortunately, for Eric Smith, a 36-year-old from Islip Terrace, NY, Independence Day will forever be marred by memories of rushing to Nassau University Medical Center after blowing his arm off when he set fire to makeshift fireworks. Following the accident, his friends packed his severed left arm in a cooler with ice, but unfortunately surgeons were unable to reattach his lost limb.

Doctors working for the WTC Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program are investigating the relationship between 9/11 rescue and recovery work and thyroid cancer. In a February 2009 court report, 51 cases of the cancer were claimed among the 10,000 cops, firefighters, hard hats and other plaintiffs suing the city.

An alarming new trend shows that a steady rise in exemption rates from childhood vaccinations in the Greater New York area is largely granted for religious reasons according to today s Wall Street Journal. The increase in the number of exemptions has grown eightfold since the 2005-06 school year and compromises the health of the child as well as other kids in the school.

ACSH s Dr. Elizabeth Whelan was interviewed by Voice of America television last week about the FDA s legal jurisdiction over cigarettes. The show airs in markets around the globe.
She expressed the ACSH position that while "regulation of cigarettes" may be a concept that appeals to many, the fact is that the details of the legislation giving the FDA regulatory power over cigarettes suggests that such legislation may threaten, not improve public health.

On a “lighter” note, MSNBC.com ran a column about the debut of a new TV series called Huge, quoting some as calling it an “advance for fat acceptance on TV.” The show revolves around a group of overweight teenagers whose parents sent them to fat camp in order to lose weight.