The "wellness" industry has birthed yet another scam: health coaching. Usually lacking any medical or scientific training, these coaches will charge you a king's ransom for useless – and arguably harmful – advice. Buyer beware. Meanwhile, the CDC says everyone six months and older needs COVID boosters. Here's what the data show.
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Some indicators suggest that we're in for a potentially serious fall COVID surge. How fearful should we be? On a lighter note, are you risking your health every time you eat raw oysters? Maybe not, but at least one scientist thinks this particular seafood is "gross."
In order to prepare for the emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 "variants of concern" or other epidemic coronaviruses, researchers are taking a variety of approaches to creating vaccines that will protect against not only known viruses but also against variants that have not yet appeared.
Environmental Working Group claims that "obesogenic" chemicals are helping to make everybody fat. Is EWG correct? Next, do we need a COVID booster shot that specifically targets Omicron sub-variants?
The evidence is in: genetic engineering promotes sustainable farming, vaccines save lives, and nuclear energy is our best hope of powering society in a changing climate. But the question remains, how do you convince a generally skittish public to embrace the science behind these technologies? Our answer: make a movie.
Disparities in COVID-19 outcomes by race or ethnicity have often been reported, deplored, and attributed to socioeconomic factors. It’s clear that vaccination is the main tool for slowing the spreading of the virus; here we examine disparate vaccination rates by race and ethnicity. However, among such disparities, there is an important distinction between equality (sameness) and equity (fairness).
Recent coverage in the Washington Post illustrates how the media (and even some in the scientific community) have exaggerated the risk COVID-19 poses to the elderly and downplayed the efficacy of vaccination in this age group.
On Episode 2 of the ACSH Science Dispatch Podcast, we examine New York City's now-defunct COVID vaccine mandate. Did it work, why or why not? We then dive into recent research showing that diet soda can help you safely lose weight, despite popular claims to the contrary.
The World Health Organization is poised to reject emergency approval for Medicago's COVID vaccine because one of its ingredients is grown in tobacco plants. There's absolutely no justification for this decision.
Social media platforms, fringe websites and activist groups are well-known sources of unscientific nonsense. Less discussed is the fact that ideological activism masquerading as research often finds a home in prestigious academic journals. One journal in particular has a long history of publishing such dubious content—The Lancet.
Canada has approved Medicago's plant-based COVID-19 vaccine. The new shot itself is an impressive development, but the technology it's built on suggests that we may be growing more drugs in greenhouses in the coming years.
An unexpected delay in the FDA's authorization of COVID shots for children under age 5 could amplify parents' existing concerns about vaccinating their kids. Here's what we know about the situation.