(http://translate.google.com)Deadly Medicines and Organised Crime, a new book written by Peter Gotzsche, the Director of The Nordic Cochrane Centre, exposes the pharmaceutical industries and their charade of fraudulent behavior. In the book, Gotzsche examines the ten largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and finds that their business models meet the same criteria for organized crime. He shows numerous examples of cases, particularly in the United States, where pharmaceutical companies have been convicted of wrongdoing or have reached a settlement of up to several billion dollars. He draws close comparisons between the pharmaceutical and tobacco industries: both industries operate on a business model that knowingly deceives the public and causes harm to consumers for the sake of generating profits.
Gotzsche says that Big Pharma's criminal activity includes deceptive use of public funds, the theft of taxpayers' money, illegal marketing and the bribery of doctors.
The book also criticizes the approval process for new medications. According to Gotzsche, pharmaceutical companies design their tests to get specific results and manipulate data to support their conclusions. If they still don't get the results they want, then they simply refuse to publish the tests.
Gotzsche further claims that the companies he examines often try to hide the lethal "side" effects of their drugs and attempt to have patients use them for treatments they were never approved for.
According to Gotzsche, pharmaceutical medicine is the third leading cause of death in the Western world. He hopes that his book will help effect change and put an end to the ongoing epidemic of crime in the healthcare system.
(http://www.stltoday.com)Farmers in two Illinois counties have reported that the western corn rootworm, a potentially devastating pest, is showing up in their fields despite rotating fields and planting Monsanto's GM corn.
On Monday, two entomologists from the University of Illinois went to Livingston and Kankakee counties where they spotted severe corn rootworm damage in two fields planted with Bt corn. Bt corn was engineered to protect crops from this very situation by producing an insecticidal protein derived from Bacillus thuringiensis.
Illinois corn farmers practice rotation farming to help minimize the damage caused by pests, but the corn rootworm is rotation-resistant and now seems to be Bt resistant as well.
Joe Spencer and Michael Gray, the two entomologists, will run tests to confirm that these rootworms have acquired a resistance to the poison-producing corn.
The entomologists also collected corn rootworms from adjacent soybean fields. "The density of the western corn rootworm adults in both crops ... was additional evidence that the Bt hybrids had failed to offer the necessary root protection," Gray said in a statement.
Spencer and Gray say that this rootworm is found in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Iowa, in addition to Illinois, meaning that the problem could become more widespread in the coming years.
Gray and Spencer claim that farmers will have to switch to a less natural, more heavily genetically modified product that has "multiple modes of action," such as Monsanto's Genuity SmartStax line, to kill the corn rootworm. Otherwise, more insecticide would have to be used, which is allegedly the opposite of what GMOs were supposed to achieve. Of course though, calling for increased GMO usage to cover up the issues created by GMOs will only exacerbate the problem further.
(http://www.sciencedaily.com)According to a case study published in General Dentistry, soda consumption can be just as damaging to your teeth as illegal drugs like crack cocaine and methamphetamine.
The case study involved three subjects including a methamphetamine user, a previous longtime cocaine user and an excessive diet soda drinker, all of whom had poor oral hygiene and did not visit a dentist regularly. The researchers performing the study compared the tooth damage in each individual's mouth and found that each participant suffered from the same type and severity of damage from tooth erosion.
Tooth erosion occurs when acid wears away a tooth's glossy, protective layer of enamel. Without a layer of enamel to protect them, teeth are at greater risk of suffering from further damage such as developing cavities, oversensitivity, cracks or discolorations.
"Each person experienced severe tooth erosion caused by the high acid levels present in their 'drug' of choice -- meth, crack, or soda," says Mohamed A. Bassiouny, DMD, MSc, PhD, lead author of the study.
"The citric acid present in both regular and diet soda is known to have a high potential for causing tooth erosion," Dr. Bassiouny says.
Methamphetamine often contains acidic ingredients such as battery acid, lantern fuel and drain cleaner. Crack cocaine is also highly acidic.
Dr. Bassiouny states, "The striking similarities found in this study should be a wake-up call to consumers who think that soda -- even diet soda -- is not harmful to their oral health."
It is recommended that people minimize soda intake and increase the amount of water they drink. This not only protects your teeth but also lowers your risk for diabetes and obesity, among other health problems. Furthermore, Eugene Antenucci, DDS, FAGD, advises his patients to either chew sugar-free gum or rinse out their mouth after drinking soda. "Both tactics increase saliva flow, which naturally helps to return the acidity levels in the mouth to normal," he says.
http://www.cityam.comTHE WALKIE Talkie skyscraper in the City has caused extensive damage to a Jaguar parked on a nearby street - as other drivers come forward to say it has also melted parts of their vehicles.
As revealed in City A.M. last week, the building's unusual shape is reflecting an ultra bright light onto Eastcheap, with those unlucky enough to park below finding the beam is causing serious damage.
Martin Lindsay, director of a tiling company, said he was distraught to see the warped panels along the side of his high-spec Jaguar XJ...
http://www.autisminvestigated.com/(From AutismInvestigated.com) Forbes Magazine has shamelessly given a platform to vaccine industry talking heads such as Emily Willingham and "Science"Blogger Peter Lispon. Its senior editor - Matt Herper - routinely writes articles pushing pharma talking points, while censoring the science CDC has tried to bury that utterly contradicts its party line. Ironically, when Herper first entered the debate, he seemed to hold promise as an inquisitive reporter. That, however, did not last long. So what influenced him? The probable answer: The New York Times' ethically bankrupt reporter Gardiner Harris...
http://benswann.com(From BenSwann.com) On Saturday, thousands of citizens throughout the nation protested military strikes against Syria. A group of activists assembled at the busiest intersection in Spartanburg, S.C. to wave signs and bring awareness to the ongoing push to strike Syria by the Obama administration. A local police officer told them that if someone complained they would have to leave because they did not have a city permit. He also said that activists who continue to protest on the crosswalk would go to jail.
Many of the protestors considered this to be a violation of their 1st Amendment right and challenged the officer by asking him if they committed any crime. They also reminded the officer that they had a right to assemble on public property such as a sidewalk and did not need a permit to do so. Evan Mulch the organizer of the protest told the officer that in the future he would not apply for a permit but would let the police department know when they plan to do the next event.
One protester asked the officer, "what about our right to assembly?" The officer said, "like I said, you have to fill out a form."
(http://www.theguardian.com)A recently published study shows that nearly 20 million people in China live in areas at high risk of arsenic contamination in their water supplies.
The Chinese government has labeled arsenic contamination as one of the country's "most important endemic diseases," due to its chronic side effects, which includes cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. China has been in the process of testing wells for arsenic contamination, but this has taken longer than expected and could take decades to complete. To remedy this issue, researchers developed a computer model capable of predicting which areas have the greatest risk of contamination.
The model found 14.7 million people at risk of water contaminated with levels higher than the World Health Organization's recommended limit of 10 micrograms per liter. Almost 6 million people are at risk of water contaminated with five times the recommended limit.
The researchers used publicly-available information, population data and tests performed by the Chinese government, as well as their own testing data, to create the model.
Luis Rodriguez-Lado of University Santiago de Compostela in Spain and the lead author of the work, said: "The foundation of our model was based on arsenic measures in 2,600 villages in six provinces in China."
Another researcher, China Medical University dean Dr. Guifan Sun, says that without his team's work, this information could have taken more than 20 years to become available. "This was the reason for the urgency. We will give advice to the government on how to test these predicted areas."
(http://abcnews.go.com)The University of Toledo Medical Center in Ohio is facing allegations of medical negligence after a perfectly good kidney meant for a transplant patient was thrown away.
On August 10, 2012, surgeons removed Paul Fudacz Jr.'s kidney to give it to his sister, Sarah, who was suffering from end-stage renal disease. Unfortunately, Paul's kidney never made it to his sister, because a nurse, Judith Moore, mistakenly threw away the organ with the contents of a chilled, protective slush before the operation was over.
After the accident was discovered, doctors unsuccessfully tried to resuscitate the kidney for two hours.
When the patient and donor awoke, they were obviously confused about what had happened. It's hard to believe that someone would callously throw away one sibling's gift of life to another. To make up for it, the hospital found another compatible donor in Colorado and paid the family a sum of money which included the cost of travel.
After the incident, Moore resigned, Melanie Lemay, another nurse, was fired and Edwin Hall, the administrator of surgical services, was placed on administrative leave. Dr. Michael Rees, who performed the surgery, remains employed at the hospital. Lemay has filed a lawsuit against the medical center for wrongful discharge, defamation, slander and libel and seeks compensation for damages greater than $25,000.
The Fudacz family is suing the hospital, citing medical negligence and loss of consortium. The lawsuit was filed by eight of the family members, each of whom is seeking at least $25,000 for damages.
"Paul Jr.'s kidney was considered a 'perfect match' for Sarah. Sarah seeks damages she has suffered and will continue to suffer due to the loss of Paul Jr.'s perfect kidney. Paul Jr. seeks damages he has suffered and will continue to suffer for having to undergo a painful and risky surgery, and for having to live the rest of his life with only one kidney, all in vain," the suit reads.
(http://www.bangladeshnewsnow.com)A study by the American Chemical Society (ACS) ranked Bangladesh at the top of a list of 12 countries where high concentrations of cadmium were found in rice.
The researchers said that the presence of cadmium seems to be confined to certain regions and is not a country-wide phenomenon. Furthermore, they said that the source of the cadmium is industrial waste polluting paddy fields and the use of low-quality fertilizers.
The ACS reported finding .01 to .3 ppm cadmium per kg in Bangladesh rice. Cadmium can cause such health conditions as cancer, heart disease and kidney disease.
An official for Bangladesh's Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI), Humayun Kabir Siraji, said, "Low-quality TSP fertilizers, and untreated wastes of garment factories, drug factories, textiles and tanneries which mixes with sources of water is causing high incidence of cadmium in our rice."
Last year, Siraji collected fertilizer samples from dealers across the country for SRDI. The institute tested the fertilizers and found that they contained many toxic metals, including zinc sulfate, gypsum and cadmium.
Professor Abdullahil Baque from the Sher-e-Bangla Agriculture University has insisted that the government take immediate steps to reduce the levels of cadmium found in the regions' water and soil. He also recommends that fertilizers be tested for the presence of cadmium before being applied.
(http://www.sciencerecorder.com)New research shows that the radioactive ocean plume from the Fukushima nuclear power plant will reach the United States' west coast in 2014.
The study was performed by researchers from Australia's Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science and others, who published their findings in the journal, Deep-Sea Research 1. The researchers used a range of ocean simulations to track the path of the radiation from the Fukushima incident to identify where it would likely travel through the oceans over the next 10 years.
The researchers claim that the radiation will be considerably diluted, so it will have minimal effects and is not a cause for concern. They also said that most radioactive material will stay in the North Pacific, and Australia and countries in the Southern Hemisphere should expect to see very little radiation.
"Observers on the west coast of the United States will be able to see a measurable increase in radioactive material three years after the event," one of the paper's authors, Dr Erik van Sebille, said. "However, people on those coastlines should not be concerned as the concentration of radioactive material quickly drops below World Health Organisation safety levels as soon as it leaves Japanese waters."
The researchers also developed a website, adrift.org.au, to help those interested in tracking the radiation.
(http://www.healthcentral.com)According to a study recently published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, females who have one alcoholic drink per day between the time of their first menstrual cycle and their first child increase their risk of breast cancer by 13 percent and benign breast disease by 15 percent.
The study was performed by researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine who analyzed 91,005 health records of mothers enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study II from 1989 to 2009. The researchers found that breast tissue is more susceptible to cancer-causing substances during and after adolescence, as they undergo rapid growth during this time.
It is clear from this study that young women should reduce or refrain from alcohol consumption during their formative years to decrease their risk of developing breast disease. The increasing amount of time between puberty and a woman's first pregnancy also adds to the risk. One of the study's authors, Graham Colditz, MD, said, "Reducing drinking to less than one drink per day, especially during this time period, is a key strategy to reducing lifetime risk of breast cancer."
(http://abcnews.go.com)After Sarah Hershberger was diagnosed with leukemia, her Amish parents agreed to have her undergo chemotherapy at Akron Children's Hospital in Ohio. The 10-year-old Amish girl had tumors on her neck, chest and kidneys, which shrunk after a month of chemotherapy. However, in June, once her parents saw that the side effects were too terrible for her to handle, they decided to discontinue the treatment and begin using natural remedies.
"We've seen how sick it makes her," Andy Hershberger, the girl's father, said. "Our belief is the natural stuff will do just as much as that stuff if it's God's will."
In July, the hospital made a case in court to seek temporary guardianship over Sarah in order to continue chemotherapy against her parents' wishes. The Medina County, Ohio, judge ruled that there is no evidence that Sarah's parents are unfit, thus they have the right to make medical decisions for her.
On Tuesday though, an Ohio appeals court sided with the hospital and ruled that a juvenile court judge must reconsider giving guardianship of Sarah to Maria Schimer, a registered nurse who is also the hospital's attorney.
As the family waits for the court's final decision, they plan to stay away from the hospital and trust their daughter's health to God and natural medicine.
(http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org)A new study performed by researchers in California and published in Environmental Science and Technology shows that fetuses are now universally exposed to bisphenol A.
Bisphenol A, commonly known as BPA, is an estrogen-like substance found in polycarbonate plastic, food can liners and other commonplace consumer products.
To conduct this study, the scientists obtained samples of umbilical cord blood from 85 women who had undergone abortions at a San Francisco clinic that serves North and Central California. The scientists tested the samples and found that every single one of them had detectable levels of BPA. Three of the samples had BPA levels higher than ever reported in umbilical cord blood, and 36% had levels comparable to or higher than those associated with developmental effects.
This is disturbing news, as fetal exposure to BPA was previously thought to be much lower, and the harmful effects could be devastating for many. This study calls the safety of BPA into question and highlights the fact that regulations need serious improvement.
"Overall our findings point to the importance of fetal exposure to BPA during development and the need to accurately assess the full range of human exposure during pregnancy," the authors of the study wrote.
A YouTube video posted on August 20, 2013, "#MarchAgainstCorruption November 2nd Everywhere," details the disturbing pervasiveness of corruption in the U.S. government. The video itself was composed mostly of various clips from informative videos and different media organizations, all of which attempt to educate viewers on the ubiquitous nature of corruption in the political system.
The March Against Corruption is an international campaign to raise awareness about the corrupting influence of money and special interests in governance and public policy making; to provide a forum for people, to organize and speak out against corruption; and to educate the public about the consequences of corruption.
The video gives numerous facts and statistics to back up its claims, such as lists of big business executives serving public office while still being "bribed" with money from their former companies or that relevant funding to politicians comes from only .05% (one percent of one percent) of Americans.
The video makes a call for much needed change, suggesting that an impermeable "firewall" should be set up between the market and the government to restrict the flow of money between the two and limit corruption. One speaker in the video says that a law to spread the influence of campaign funding to all Americans instead of just the filthy rich would be the best way to fix the system.
Announced in the title and at the close of the video is the March Against Corruption, which is planned to take place "everywhere" on November 2nd. If you want to make a change and give your children a brighter future with a better government they can truly take part in, then you should get involved in the March Against Corruption. You can check out their Facebook page here. If you want to join or start a March Against Corruption near you, click here.
(http://www.usatoday.com)In an experiment at the University of Washington, a person's involuntary motion was remotely triggered by a researcher through a signal sent by thought.
The experiment was performed on August 12, 2013, by Rajesh Rao and Andrea Stocco to demonstrate human-to-human brain signaling, following the rapid technological advancement of brain-computer interfaces, devices that read and translate brain signals. Using these devices, amputees and paralyzed patients have been able to exert control over robotic prostheses.
In the experiment, Rao wore an electrical brain signal reading cap while observing a cannon-firing video game. By imagining his finger flicking during the game, a signal was sent to Stocco, who sat on the other side of the campus and wore a cap designed to send magnetic stimulation signals to his brain. When the thought signal reached Stocco, it caused his finger to move similarly to an involuntary twitch.
"The Internet was a way to connect computers, and now it can be a way to connect brains," Stocco said, in a statement. "We want to take the knowledge of a brain and transmit it directly from brain to brain."
The researchers plan to publish their results in a scientific journal.
(http://www.independent.ie)New technology invented by Irish scientists could lead to more productive crop yields, lower water and pesticide usage and make GMOs obsolete.
The technology, radio wave energized water, massively increases the output of vegetables and fruits by up to 30 percent. Plants that are watered using this technology are said to grow bigger and have increased resistance to disease.
Professor Austin Darragh and Dr. JJ Leahy of Limerick Chemistry and Environmental Science developed this technology. The pair of scientists invented a device, called Vi-Aqua, which converts 24 volts of electricity into a radio signal, which charges the water via an antenna. Attached to a hose, this device can charge thousands of gallons of water in less than 10 minutes at the cost of mere pennies.
According to independent.ie, the technology has been successfully tested in many countries in Europe and in India.
Explaining the technology, Darragh said, "Vi-Aqua makes water wetter and introduces atmospheric nitrogen into the water in the form of nitrates - so it is free fertiliser. It also produces the miracle of rejuvenating the soil by invigorating soil-based micro-organisms."
He then went on to say, "We can also make water savings of at least 30 per cent. When the water is treated it becomes a better solvent, which means it can carry more nutrients to the leaves and stem and percolate better down into the soil to nourish the roots, which in turn produces a better root system. Hence the reason you need less water and why you end up with larger and hardier crops."
The Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew, London, were so impressed by the technology that they granted Darragh and his team the right to use their official coat of arms on the device, the first time anyone has received such an honor.
(http://online.wsj.com)The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says that a virus is what is probably causing the hundreds of bottlenose dolphin deaths along the U.S. East Coast.
According to NOAA, More than 40 dolphins have been stranded between New York and North Carolina since July 1, more than nine times the average for that area and time of year. Because of this, the NOAA has declared the region and time period, from early July to present, as an Unusual Mortality Event (UME).
NOAA posted on its website, "The tentative cause of the UME is being attributed to cetacean morbillivirus, based upon preliminary diagnostic testing and discussion with disease experts." The investigation is still under way as the administration considers additional contributory factors.
(http://www.theguardian.com)An analysis of more than 1,000 psychiatry and genetics research papers has shown that scientists who study human behavior are more likely to report exaggerated or eye-catching results if they are based in the United States. According to the researchers who performed the analysis, one explanation of this phenomenon could be that the research culture in the US tends to reward scientists based on the novelty and immediate impact of their work rather than the quality or its long-term contribution to the field. They have thus called this trend the "US effect."
"We don't know what causes the US effect but we think the most likely explanation is that it's about the research environment in the US," Daniele Fanelli, one of the authors of the analysis from the University of Edinburgh, said. "Somehow the researchers there are subtly more pressured than elsewhere in the world to make strong discoveries. This very idea that you do science to make strong discoveries is natural but it's a problem to science itself. Science should be about doing good, precise studies. Not necessarily about getting exciting new results every time."
According to Fanelli, working in a research environment where careers depend on publishing the most exciting and strongest results might unconsciously draw researchers to exaggerate their findings. He adds that the US "should re-think the way they are rewarding researchers. They shouldn't reward researchers only because they get a lot of papers in a lot of high-ranking journals. They should reward research that is methodologically highly accurate."
The US effect isn't significantly huge though. Studies on the efficacy of drugs, for example, when performed with a US-based lead author, tend to have results that indicate effects 5% stronger than in other countries. The scientists who performed the study are worried that the "US effect" is likely to spread to other countries, particularly in Europe. Fanelli says that it is up to research funders to correct this problem and hopes the National Institutes of Health and other US funding agencies consider his research carefully.
(http://www.huffingtonpost.com)New research published in the Journal of Nutrition shows that eating yellow-orange vegetables could decrease a woman's risk of bladder cancer.
The study, performed by researchers from the University of Hawaii Cancer Center, included 185,885 older adults who were all part of the Multiethnic Cohort Study, which started in 1993. Over a 12.5 year period, 429 men and 152 women developed invasive bladder cancer. The researchers took into account known bladder cancer risk factors, such as age, and still found an association between produce consumption and bladder risk; women who consumed the most yellow-orange vegetables had a 52% lower risk of developing bladder cancer over the course of the study. Furthermore, bladder cancer risk was lowest for women who generally consumed the most vitamins A, C and E, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin and folate. However, no associations were found between vegetable or nutrient intake and bladder cancer in men.
"Our study supports the fruit and vegetable recommendation for cancer prevention," study researcher Song-Yi Park, Ph.D., said in a statement. "However, further investigation is needed to understand and explain why the reduced cancer risk with higher consumption of fruits and vegetables was confined to only women."
