Medicine - Raising the Quality of Life
While chemistry and biology emerged as strong scientific disciplines in the 19th century, it wasn't until the 20th century that medicine, as a subdiscipline of biology, made great stides. This web page tries to highlight some of these and expand upon elements briefly touched on in A World Perspective.Microbiology, the Science that Saves
Koslowsky is currently drafting a retrospective paper that looks at the power of microbiology that emerged as a science in the nineteenth century and took off in the twentieth century. Microbiology enabled almost all types of ancient diseases to be successfully fought while allowing the process of its spread to be better understood, thus helping the public health departments better deal with illness. But the story doesn't end here. This retrospective looks at some of the heroes in the field and the idea that biological evolution gave humanity a superior advantage found in the recesses of our genetics - the machinery of a superior immune system.
Look for more details on this exciting new topic in the near future.
Koslowsky Fictional Short Story Just Released
Koslowsky's short story, Death Finds a Way: The Dangers of Whooping Cough, was written in November 2007. Inspiration was derived from research looking into vaccinations for an essay on microbiology as well as a television interview with actress Keri Russell talking about PKIDS. The story is centered on a doctor's office and a distraught mother bringing her child into the perdiatrician's office to treat a hacking cough. Enjoy the drama as an old disease confounds modern day medicine, in Death Finds a Way: The Dangers of Whooping Cough.
A magnified image of a pertussis toxin crystal that causes whooping cough is shown here, courtesy of the National Institute of health.
Combating Nature's Bioterrorist
The flu is nature’s bioterrorist. Influenza, from the Latin “influentia” for influence, is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. This disease is caused by the orthomyxovirus, which comes in three types, A, B, and C. The most troubling is Type A because of its ability to spread its deadly configuration. Like all flu viruses, the bacteria features hundreds of tentacles reaching out from its surface, most comprised of hemagglutinin, a viral protein. The tentacles reach out and grab onto healthy cells that the virus wants to infect. The other tentacles are an enzyme called neuraminidase that helps the virus spread, hence the designation applied to all flu viruses, such as the deadly strain H5N1.
The influenza A virus subtype H5N1 is a subtype of the Influenza A virus which can cause illness in humans and many other animal species.
When such a virus spreads rapidly and kills with great ferocity, a pandemic arises. In the twentieth century, the major pandemics include the Great Flu of 1918, which was an avian strain that killed fifty million people around the world, more than all of the wars during that century. The other pandemics occurred in 1957 and 1968, each killing millions and all of which had genes derived from animals. Pandemics appear in cycles. Many people ask what causes a pandemic. As Michael Specter wrote in “Nature’s Bioterrorist,” published in the New Yorker “A pandemic is the viral equivalent of a perfect storm.” And just like the movie of the same name, three conditions have to come together to create a pandemic:
1. An animal-based flu must appear that has not yet infected human beings such that no antibodies are present to fight the flu
2. Since most viruses do not make people sick, the invading virus must, and
3. The flu strain must be able to easily spread across the human population with a handshake or by sneezing.
Today, with the mobile human society that has emerged, viruses enjoy this new found mobility too. Whereas viruses had been predominantly locked up for 50 million years on a given continent, they can now travel with their human, animal, and even plant hosts. Transportation, travel, global warming and pollution, and nature’s penchant for change and disruption all provide a fertile ground for the next mutation of a virus to appear. The question is not IF another pandemic will occur, but WHEN. This time though, as long as people don’t put agricultural economics ahead of public health and safety, the medical community is ready to douse the flames of the next pandemic before it spreads around the globe. One fire drill for our disease fighters was the rapid containment of the SARS eruption in 2003. Lets hope the fire drills are few and far between.
Human Health and Evolving Stories
POPCORN LUNG AND MICROWAVE POPCORN
ConAgra Removes Diacetyl from Its Popcorn (December 2007 Update 2)
Eat Organic Popcorn (December 2007 Update 1)
Popcorn Lung Caused by Diacetyl (September 2007 Update)
DECEMBER 2007 UPDATE 2U.S. Equity News reported that on Dec 18, 2007 Conagra Foods Inc. has just reformulated its butter flavoring for microwave popcorn to remove an additive called diacetyl. It has been linked to a rare, irreversible lung disease. New versions of the Orville Redenbacher and ACT II popcorn brands that use ConAgra flavoring will have "No Added Diacetyl" printed on the box near the date code. The new products are arriving in stores now. Of course, there is always the choice to buy organic popcorn instead, as described below.
DECEMBER 2007 UPDATE 1
New insecticidal proteins have recently been added to corn. You may wish to consider switching to organic corn products to avoid not only diacetyl, but from eating insecticide with that next batch of popcorn!
New laws to ensure corn's profitability for ethanol crops mean that conventional corn and corn products like popcorn and high fructose corn syrup used in most foods are actually allowed to have insecticidal proteins engineered into them. Also, by law, organic corn can not contain such insecticidal proteins.
These new insecticidal proteins were recently introduced even though no human trials were ever conducted to test their safety.
Given that the Europeans don’t even allow their cattle and livestock to eat this new corn, we probably shouldn’t be feeding it to our little ones either, let alone ourselves!
Source: allergykids.com
SEPTEMBER 2007 UPDATE
Popcorn lung, a debilitating disease called bronchiolitis obliterans by the medical community, can be contracted by excessive exposure to microwavable popcorn. Patients have contracted the lung disease from diacetyl fumes that came from making popcorn in their microwave ovens. Diacetyl, or butanedione,* is commonly used as an artificial butter flavoring in microwave popcorn and other foods. ConAgra Foods, maker of both Orville Redenbacher and Act II microwave popcorn brands, said in September 2007 that "it will drop diacetyl from its butter-flavored microwave popcorn in the near future."
* Diacetyl at low levels in alcoholic beverages contributes a slipperiness to the feel of the beer or wine in the mouth. It has a history of being used in California chardonnays known as "Butter Bombs" too.
SOFT DRINK DANGERS
Coke Responds Regarding A Banned Sweetener (September 2007 Update)
Coke Using Banned Sweetener (August 2007 Update)
Pesticides Found in Coke and Pepsi (August 2006 Update)
Benzene in Your Sodas (May 2006 Update)
SEPTEMBER 2007 UPDATEA quick response was received from Coca-Cola defending the use of a sweetener that was previously banned. The cost savings for them must be huge if they are petitioning the FDA to allow this sugar substitute to be used in its diet products. Their response is as follows:
Thank you for contacting The Coca-Cola Company, Mr. Koslowsky. We appreciate your interest in our brands.
Cyclamate is a non-caloric sweetener that is 30 times more potent than sugar. It is used as a tabletop sweetener, in diet beverages, and in other low-calorie foods. Discovered in 1937, cyclamate is approved for use in foods and beverages in more than 50 countries worldwide, including Canada, Australia and Mexico.
A petition for the re-approval of cyclamate is currently under review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The petition reviews new scientific evidence, including some 75 new studies, that demonstrates the safety of cyclamate for human use.
The FDA has been called upon to reassess the statistical and scientific principles that formed the basis for its 1980 decision, not to re-approve cyclamate.
The World Health Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO.WHO) and the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) has, over the past 10 years, reviewed the scientific literature related to cyclamates and consistently determined cyclamate use is safe for humans.
If you would like to learn more about cyclamate, we encourage you to contact the following organizations via the Internet:
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
www.fda.gov
phone (888) INFO FDA [(800) 463-6332]
International Food Information Council
www.ific.org
phone (202) 296-6540
American Beverage Association
www.ameribev.org
phone (202) 463-6732
Grocery Manufacturers of America
www.gmabrands.com
American Cancer Society
www.cancer.org
(800) ACS 2345
American Dietetic Association
www.eatright.org
We sincerely appreciate hearing from our consumers. If you have any additional comments or questions, please feel free to contact us again.
Bonnie
Industry and Consumer Affairs
The Coca-Cola Company
Rob has stopped drinking soft drinks, diet Coke in particular, after reading that the Washington-based nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, a frequent critic of Coke, warns people to avoid the sweetener because it can "increase the potency of other carcinogens and harm the testes."
Talk about a kick in the groin!
AUGUST 2007 UPDATE
Doing the right thing no longer seems to be the culture at Coca-Cola. If a banned substance can be used in a food product it will. For example, where a sweetener has been banned in the U.S for 38 years but not so in Mexico, Coca-Cola has decided to use this outlawed additive in its Coke products there. The sweetener, sodium cyclamate, has been linked to cancer. However, it may not cause cancer if consumed in small doses. So if you want to drink a Coca-Cola Zero in Mexico or on a flight to/from Mexico, maybe consider Apple Juice instead.
Just a thought...
AUGUST 2006 UPDATE
Pesticides have been found in 11 brands of Coke and Pepsi beverages, according to India's Center for Science and Environment.
This latest study confirms results found three years ago when the same brands were initially found to contain pesticides.
All of the tested beverages contained various combinations of 3 to 5 different pesticides with violations 24 times greater than the standards issued by the Bureau of Indian Standards. 57 samples of eleven different Coke and Pepsi products were tested at 25 bottlers across India.
MAY 2006 UPDATE
Timing is everything.
On May 18, 2006 I received a reply from Dianne Feinstein on the high levels of benzene, a known carcinogen, found in soft drinks. She cited an April 13, 2006 FDA document stating that “the majority of sampled soft drinks did not contain benzene or contained low levels that were well below current water standards.” However, the public does not have access to the test results. I remain concerned, since the FDA also states that they “are working to determine the source of the differences” with other reported results. Simply questioning others testing methods does not give me confidence in the FDA’s 16-year effort on understanding the benzene-in-soda issue. To gain access to the FDA data, I have sought the support of my congressional representative. This is a work in progress.
Then on May 20th, as the Senator’s reply was most likely in the snail mail flow, another press report stated that the FDA, on May 19th, acknowledged that in their analysis of more than 100 beverages, five were found to violate federal standards. The drinks having high levels of cancer-causing benzene were Safeway Select Diet Orange, Crush Pineapple, AquaCal Strawberry Flavored Water, Crystal Light Sunrise Classic Orange, and Giant Light Cranberry Juice Cocktail.
While federal guidelines limit benzene to 5 parts per billion (ppb) in water, benzene levels as high as 79 ppb were found in Safeway’s orange soda.
More to follow.
HUMAN HEALTH AND TOXIC MERCURY
Toxic Mercury and a Sunken Submarine (February 2007 Update)
Where Does Mercury Come From? (November 2006 Update)
Senator John Kerry on Mercury Poisoning (August 2006 Update)
Mercury Poisoning and Lack of FDA Action (May 2006 Update)
Canned Tuna High in Toxic Mercury (January 2006 Update)
FEBRUARY UPDATEAt the end of World War II the British Navy sunk a German U-boat, U-864, off the coast of Norway. Today, the Norwegian government plans to entomb the submarine in special sand to protect its coastline from the sub’s cargo of toxic mercury. The Royal Norwegian Navy found the U-boat in March 2003 in 500-foot deep water. The submarine is believed to have about 70 tons of mercury on board and experts feel it is safer to bury the sub in sand rather than raising it and risking a leak and spread of he toxic mercury.
 The U-864 was sunk in 500-foot deep water off the Norwegian coast. |  70 tons of mercury are believed to be entombed in the submarine in 1,900 canisters like the one pictured here. |
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NOVEMBER 2006 UPDATE
Mercury is a substance found naturally on earth, held safely within the earth’s crust. It becomes dangerous when released into the atmosphere and subsequently finding a home in bodies of water through precipitation. Microorganisms transform the mercury into methyl mercury, a more toxic form consumed by fish. Humans then ingest fish and absorb excessive amounts of mercury over time.
Image courtesy of Amethyst Galleries.
Mercury comes from both natural sources and human sources. Volcanic eruptions and forest fires represent typical sources from nature while gold mining, old chlorine plant emissions, and, in particular, coal-fired power plants are humanity’s contribution to mercury emissions. Coal is a terrible source of electricity due to both its mercury emissions and greenhouse gases that cause global warming. It is estimated by the USGS that the amount of mercury in the atmosphere has tripled since the start of the industrial revolution.
AUGUST UPDATE
"Still, year after year strong mercury rules fail in Washington under pressure from corporate interests. Why? Not because the risks of mercury poisoning aren't real. No, lobbyists for the big industries just say they can't afford to make changes."
- Senator John Kerry on why the federal government continues to put public health at risk from mercury pollution
In spite of John Kerry's forceful comments, they were all but absent during his presidential election bid, likely because he needed the Ohio votes to win (he didn't get them and lost anyway). Ohio and other states that provide the coal for big utilities like AEP and Cinergy generate "about a third of the mercury that gets into the air...about 50 tons annually..." per William Sweet.
MAY UPDATE
Minnesota, Idaho, Illinois, and Michigan passed stricter mercury emission standards than are required by federal law. Idaho was even more aggressive in its legislation in 2006 as it passed a two-year moratorium on building new mercury-emitting coal-fired power plants. Since mercury from coal-burning power plants ends up in lakes, streams, rivers, and oceans, it can become lethal to those consuming fish and shellfish as mercury levels build up in the body. Many in society view these laws as an excellent step in the right direction to rid the biosphere of toxic mercury.
JANUARY UPDATE
One of America's favorite seafoods, light tuna, has high levels of the toxic metal mercury. The FDA recently found that six percent of tested canned light tuna has large amounts of mercury, a toxin that can cause nuerological damage in unborn babies, children, and even adults. Cans are not labelled with warnings and no follow-up action is planned for a study conducted over the five-year period from 2001 to 2005. Buyer beware.
Featured Book on the History of Vaccinations
I thoroughly enjoyed Arthur Allen’s book “Vaccine: The Controversial Story of Medicine’s Greatest Lifesaver” (2007). The concept of vaccination is unique because, unlike asthma sprays, insulin shots, or liquid penicillin, vaccines prevent rather than battle disease. Allen highlights that during the first 200 years of vaccination’s history, it could only stop smallpox, which was finally eradicated in 1980. None of my daughters born during that decade received any protection from smallpox as a result. There was no need for it. The medical establishment built upon a foundation of success and increasing credibility during the twentieth century and inaugurated campaigns to eliminate polio, malaria, measles, and hepatitis B too.
Life expectancy increased from 47 to 60 between 1900 and 1930 and medical doctors had become the most respected professionals. Many become celebrities and others became martyrs, such as Dr. Walter Reed for his work on yellow fever.
Subsequent to World War II, vaccine development accelerated and conquered a number of major diseases. Public health effectively grew out of the scientific advances to tame diseases besides smallpox, which included the following:
Military vaccinations had proved successful in shielding troops from diseases that cost millions of lives in previous wars. Soldiers were inoculated to prevent typhoid fever, tetanus, smallpox, cholera, and the plague. It raised the power of this preventive technique to comparable status with “antibiotics, isolation, sanitation, and better disease treatment in general.” For example, filtered water and pasteurized milk buried the typhoid bacterium, and therefore, it did not become a universal vaccine. Only during times of floods, for example, was the typhoid vaccine used. My mother and her family received typhoid shots from the Winnipeg Health Department during the Great Flood of 1950.
By 1955, government and public health officials had helped raise the life expectancy to 70 years, owing to better nutrition and housing, improved sanitation systems, vaccines, and other drugs. People respected the medical authorities and continued to get their shots.
Viruses do not grow like bacteria and so were harder to isolate in the lab. Once this problem was solved, and virus mutations in cells could be reproduced, viral vaccines were developed. Smallpox was the first due to trial and error, while polio was the second viral vaccine, but it used proven laboratory science. As Allen writes, “90 percent of Americans knew about the Salk trials in May 1954, more than could give Dwight D. Eisenhower’s name.”
Vaccinations played a big role in society. They helped to produce healthier and better-protected children, which made it easier for women to work outside of the home. Some critics of vaccinations believe shots like chicken pox and Hib were developed to prevent sick children from keeping either caregiver in a family at home with their children for weeks at a time. Allen shares the fact that vaccines, in part, “played a role in the legalization of abortion, the disabled rights movement, and the creation of the welfare state.” Inoculations came just in time with the rise in daycare centers as the family unit became smaller and women entered the work force in huge numbers; expectations of equality, fair treatment, and access to public resources arose from the civil rights movement; and, more people were traveling around the world spreading germs among different countries.
With the decline in disease, people became complacent and would let vaccination schedules lapse late in the twentieth century. Some parents would object to getting shots but they comprised the minority. Most parents, however, understood the importance of protection and ensuring the bigger community would not sustain the spread of disease. For those that did not, there was the 1944 Supreme Court Case ruling, in Prince vs. Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which stated that “parents may be free to become martyrs themselves. But it does not follow that they are free...to make martyrs of their children.” Parents were compelled to have their children vaccinated or else the government would do it for them.
I recommend this book for everyone since all of us have received a number of vaccinations and continue to get them for a number of reasons, many of them personal. I continue to get a tetanus shot every decade while my Dad gets his flu shot every year. Allen’s book explores the history of vaccination and the pros and cons of getting shots as the years have gone by. He looks at how government regulators made them safer, while causing fewer side effects in an ever-decreasing small percentage of the population.
bravenet.com