SPRINGFIELD, Ill.–(ENEWSPF)–May 19, 2011. An estimated 4.4 million Americans are living with chronic hepatitis, but most do not know they are infected. Viral hepatitis is an inflammation or infection of the liver and is the leading cause of liver cancer. Today, World Hepatitis Day, Illinois Department of Public Health Director[Read More…]
Science
FDA Clears First Test for Recent Infection With Cat Scratch Disease
Silver Spring, Maryland–(ENEWSPF)–May 19, 2011. Yesterday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the first test to help determine whether a pregnant woman or a person with swollen lymph nodes testing positive for toxoplasmosis, sometimes known as cat scratch disease, developed the infection within the past four months. Toxoplasmosis is[Read More…]
Free-Floating Planets May be More Common Than Stars
This artist’s conception illustrates a Jupiter-like planet alone in the dark of space, floating freely without a parent star. Astronomers recently uncovered evidence for 10 such lone worlds, thought to have been “booted,” or ejected, from developing solar systems. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech › Full image and caption | › See[Read More…]
Durbin Raises Concerns with FDA About Melatonin in Baked Goods
WASHINGTON, D.C.–(ENEWSPF)–May 18, 2011. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today raised concerns with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about baked goods containing neurohormone melatonin that, because they are marketed as dietary supplements, do not require approval by the FDA for use as additives in food. Durbin asked the FDA[Read More…]
Fish and Wildlife Service Unveils National Plan to Combat Deadly White-Nose Syndrome in Bats
WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–May 17, 2011. The Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today unveiled a national management plan to address the threat posed by white-nose syndrome, which has killed more than a million hibernating bats in eastern North America since it was discovered near Albany, New York in 2006. [Read More…]
NASA Mission Will Observe Earth’s Salty Seas For Climate Clues
WASHINGTON–(ENEWSPF)–May 17, 2011. Final preparations are under way for the June 9 launch of the international Aquarius/SAC-D observatory. The mission’s primary instrument, Aquarius, will study interactions between ocean circulation, the water cycle and climate by measuring ocean surface salinity. Engineers at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California are performing final[Read More…]
Prolonged Breastfeeding May Be Connected to Fewer Child Behaviour Problems
UNITED KINGDOM–(ENEWSPF)–17 May 2011. Breastfeeding for four months or more is associated with fewer behavioural problems in children at age 5, an Oxford University study suggests. The findings, published in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, add to the evidence base on the benefits of breastfeeding. ‘Our results provide[Read More…]
Spray Drift Education Network – Has Your Garden Been Affected By a Neighbor’s Use of Pesticides?
Evanston, IL–(ENEWSPF)–May 16, 2011. Spray Drift Education Network is a new grassroots organization whose mission is to educate people about the issue of chemical and pesticide drift and help them respond appropriately when chemical drift occurs. The website (spraydriftillinois.com) has complete information on how to file a claim, an important first step[Read More…]
Smoke-related Chemical Discovered In the Atmosphere Could Have Health Implications
Washington, D.C.–(ENEWSPF)–May 16, 2011. Cigarette smoking, forest fires and woodburning can release a chemical that may be at least partly responsible for human health problems related to smoke exposure, according to a new study by NOAA researchers and their colleagues. Using a custom mass spectrometer designed by the researchers, the[Read More…]
April Was Seventh Warmest on Record
Washington, D.C.–(ENEWSPF)–May 16, 2011. The Earth experienced the seventh warmest April since record keeping began in 1880, as the climate phenomenon La Niña continued to be a significant factor. April’s annual Arctic sea ice extent was the fifth smallest since record keeping began in 1979, while the Antarctic sea ice[Read More…]
