On February 23, 1954 the first mass trials of the Salk Polio Vaccine began in Pittsburgh. The results, evaluated over the next year, showed how remarkably safe and effective it was, eventually relegating the much-feared scourge of polio into the dustbin of history, at least in America.
vaccines
An outbreak of pertussis, otherwise known as whooping cough, in a Florida pre-school affected children who had been vaccinated almost a frequently as those who were not. The reason: our current vaccine's protection wanes. Therefore, a booster shot is needed.
With no topic beyond reach of his scorn, Donald Trump takes a shot at the NFL, calling the game "too soft" for its attempts to protect players with rule changes. Meanwhile, a big thumbs up to another mogul, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg for publicizing the vaccination of his infant daughter; and a sad, early goodbye to legendary rocker David Bowie, a one-time heavy smoker, who died at the age of 69.
A new pro-vaccine ad campaign in Australia targets the secret anti-science demographic known as "Whole Foods shoppers."
A new study in the journal Pediatrics shows that the Back-to-Sleep campaign, designed to reduce Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, is working. And as it turns out, the effort is also producing even more evidence that vaccines are safe.
Science wins a major victory in Australia! The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has levied a six-figure fine against a company for pushing a homeopathic vaccine for whooping cough. It is also a good reminder of how important this vaccine is.
While the U.S. Court of Appeals for the NY region threw out a lawsuit by parents seeking to allow religious exemptions for their kids, the matter remained unsettled. Until now. The U.S. Supreme Court has decided not to review the decision, which now puts an end to this debate -- with a welcome outcome.
A round-up of important stories from the American Council on Science and Health.
In a recent column, internist Dr. Peter Lipson, called for doctors who fail to adhere to the recommended vaccination schedule to lose their licenses. Responding with a bold complaint was Dr. Bob Sears, whose arguments against that proposal were exposed as blatant sophistry and quackery.
Good news abounds in 2015 on the vaccine front and the CDC announced some more this week. Vaccine coverage rates among American kindergardeners is very high in most of the country. However, keep that "mission Accomplished" banner at bay. There's still advocacy work to be done.
Well this isn t surprising at all. Since the chickenpox vaccine became available in the US in 1995, there has been a significant reduction in chickenpox cases, according to a new study
How can we those committed to science and rely on empirical data convert those who are religiously opposed to genetically modified crops despite an overwhelming consensus among independent sciences and global science?