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Bird flu on Saskatchewan farm results in culling of 50,000 chickens

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) says chickens infected with a highly pathogenic H7N3 strain of avian influenza on a farm in Saskatchewan have all been destroyed.

4 Oct 2007

Best weight-loss plans for heart health

Over the past three decades, the rising obesity epidemic has been accompanied by a proliferation of weight-loss plans. However, as a new study by researchers from the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) reveals, these weight-loss plans vary significantly in their ability to positively affect heart health.

1 Oct 2007

Feeding the world without genetic engineering

The work of a Kansas State University professor is challenging the assumption that genetically engineered plants are the great scientific and technological revolution in agriculture and the only efficient and cheap way to feed a growing population.

1 Oct 2007

New Giardia lamblia research provides hope for millions of sufferers

Today's issue of the scientific journal Science presents research on the genetic make-up and biology of the parasite Giardia lamblia that ultimately may lead to better diagnosis and treatment of the diarrhea disease giardiasis, which affects 200 million people every year.

29 Sep 2007

Occupational exposures in farming and industry may be linked to death from autoimmune disease

A new study examined the possible associations between occupation and the risk of dying from systemic autoimmune diseases and found that occupational exposures in farming and industry may be linked to higher death rates from these diseases.

29 Sep 2007

Consumer perceptions of the safety, health, and environmental impact of various scales and geographic origin of food supply chains

A recent survey shows that American consumers are skeptical about the safety of the global food system and many believe that local foods are safer and better for their health than foods from afar.

29 Sep 2007

British farmers dealt a blue tongue blow

The farming industry in Britain has been dealt another blow with the confirmation of another case of blue tongue disease.

26 Sep 2007

Effectiveness of interventions to promote screening for diabetic retinopathy

Increasing patient and clinician awareness and improving access to health care can encourage people with diabetes to seek annual eye exams, which help prevent a serious complication called retinopathy, according to a new systematic review of studies.

26 Sep 2007

Impact of population-wide weight loss observed

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Cienfuegos, Cuba and Loyola University had a unique opportunity to observe the impact of population-wide weight loss due to sustained reductions in caloric intake and an increase in energy output.

25 Sep 2007

China in denial over pig disease

Agriculture officials in China have denied the country is the source of blue ear disease outbreaks among pigs in Vietnam and Myanmar.

24 Sep 2007

FDA warns consumers not to consume Organic Pastures raw cream

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to drink or consume raw (unpasteurized) cream labeled as "ORGANIC PASTURES Grade A RAW CREAM" in one-pint plastic bottles coded "SEP 14" through "SEP 21."

24 Sep 2007

Food safety act calls for inspections on produce farms

Legislation introduced by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) would establish a national program to assure the safety of fresh produce.

20 Sep 2007

Chinese authorities say bird flu under control

According to Chinese authorities the bird flu outbreak in southern China has now been brought under control following the culling of all poultry and other birds in the affected area.

20 Sep 2007

China culls 33,000 ducks to contain bird flu outbreak

Authorities in China say a suspected outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus has been discovered among ducks in an outlying district of the southern city of Guangzhou.

17 Sep 2007

Foot and mouth far from over in Britain

The foot and mouth crisis in Britain is far from over with the discovery of more cases at another farm in Surrey.

17 Sep 2007

IMPACT: Increasing clinical trial participation

Before a new treatment for a disease like cancer becomes available, physician-researchers must recruit hundreds or thousands of patients to participate in clinical research trials.

14 Sep 2007

World's longest-running study of the health effects of low levels of mercury exposure

The presence of mercury in dental amalgams, or fillings, is relatively common knowledge; however, whether its presence affects the neurological system is a debate that has been ongoing for 150 years.

13 Sep 2007

Older men chasing younger women contributes to human longevity

It turns out that older men chasing younger women contributes to human longevity and the survival of the species, according to new findings by researchers at Stanford and the University of California-Santa Barbara.

13 Sep 2007

Federal plan to determine nanotech risks fails to deliver

Almost a year in the making, a federal plan to prioritize research on the potential environmental, health, and safety (EHS) impacts of nanoscale materials has so many failings that its begs the question as to whether the government's 13-agency nanotechnology research effort is able to deliver an effective risk research strategy, according to David Rejeski, head of the Wilson Center's Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies.

13 Sep 2007