HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

April 1, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• U.S. urges waiting period before conception after Zika infection (Reuters)
• Mosquitoes could spread Zika in dozens of U.S. cities (CBS)
• Why cancer in the liver is no longer a death sentence (Daily Mail)
• How Potent Is That Pot Brownie? Dry Ice And A Blender Might Crack The Case (NPR)
• U.S. warns of Zika risk in Cuba  (CBS)
• That Cabernet Might Not Be Good For Your Health After All (NPR)
• Report Reveals Infection Rates For Individual San Diego Hospitals (KPBS)
• Hospital mergers within state borders drive up costs (Marketplace)
• Study says patients can manage complex care at home — and cut costs (Marketplace)
• Liberia closes part of border with Guinea after Ebola cases (San Diego Union-Tribune)
•  Children of Anti-Vaxxers Are Biggest Victims of Measles Outbreaks (Slate)
• San Diego Neurologist Says Gut Health Is Crucial (KPBS)
• From daredevil to chicken: Scientists find off-switch for risky behavior  (Ars Technica)
• A 'Forgotten Disease' Is Suddenly Causing New Worries (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Post mortem on 13 beached sperm whales found their stomachs full of plastic (IFL Science)
• Bogota's Bus Rapid Transit System Eyed By U.S. Urban Planners (KPBS)
• Automatic Braking Systems To Become Standard On Most U.S. Vehicles (NPR)
• Number of U.S. cyber incidents jumps in 2015 (Reuters)
• Nike's self-lacing shoes: Another product born of innovation (CS Monitor)
• FBI Warns About Car Hacking. Encryption Security Helps Prevent That. (Reason)
• Why the government can’t actually stop terrorists from using encryption (Washington Post)
• How cleaner air could actually make global warming worse (Washington Post)
• FCC Chair: Proposal Would Let Consumers Determine Value Of Internet Privacy  (NPR)
• Yellowstone supervolcano eruptions were even bigger than we thought (CS Monitor)
• Japanese Fleet Kills 333 Whales In The Antarctic (NPR)
• Are smart cars only as good as the roads they're driving on? (Marketplace)
• FBI agrees to unlock another iPhone (BBC)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

U.S. urges waiting period before conception after Zika infection (Reuters)

U.S. health officials are recommending that women wait at least two months, and men at least six, before attempting to conceive after infection with Zika, a virus linked to thousands of suspected cases of birth defects in Brazil. The new guidance, issued on Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, follows prior recommendations by the agency that focused on preventing infections in women who were already pregnant.

Mosquitoes could spread Zika in dozens of U.S. cities (CBS)

New research estimates that 50 U.S. cities may be at risk for potential Zika virus outbreaks, but experts say there's no need to panic. The living habits of Americans will keep outbreaks of the virus smaller than those in Latin America, mosquito scientists and global health experts predict. The most at risk are cities in the southeast, especially Florida; up the East Coast as far north as New York City; and a swath across the south stretching as far west as Phoenix and Los Angeles, according to the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), in Boulder, Colorado.

Why cancer in the liver is no longer a death sentence (Daily Mail)

Tim Worthington, consultant surgeon at Royal Surrey County Hospital, said patients can now often go home just days after surgery, happy in the knowledge that their tumours have gone.

How Potent Is That Pot Brownie? Dry Ice And A Blender Might Crack The Case (NPR)

Studies have found that many edible marijuana products in the market contain lower or higher concentrations of psychoactive THC and other cannabinoids than advertised. And that's bad news for consumers. Treats with too-little THC may fail to help patients who are prescribed the drug for debilitating conditions like chronic pain, and leave recreational users feeling cheated. And too much THC can cause anxiety and nausea, trigger psychotic episodes and land people in the emergency room.

U.S. warns of Zika risk in Cuba  (CBS)

…The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it's adding Cuba to its travel notice for Zika. The notice warns travelers they are at risk of contracting the virus.

That Cabernet Might Not Be Good For Your Health After All (NPR)

Raise a glass to good health? Probably not. The idea that alcohol is good for you has little scientific purchase, an analysis of previous research finds. The more you drink, the worse off you'll be.

Report Reveals Infection Rates For Individual San Diego Hospitals (KPBS)

The report by the Leapfrog Group, which represents employers who buy health coverage, provides information consumers can use about two types of potentially deadly infections. The data is more specific than what Medicare offers.

Hospital mergers within state borders drive up costs (Marketplace)

And nobody is watching.

Study says patients can manage complex care at home — and cut costs (Marketplace)

This study found that home care by patients saved millions and freed hospital beds.

Liberia closes part of border with Guinea after Ebola cases (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Authorities have closed a portion of Liberia's northern border with Guinea and plan to expand the cordon amid a resurgence of Ebola.

Unsurprisingly, the Children of Anti-Vaxxers Are the Biggest Victims of Measles Outbreaks

Slate

In 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared that measles had finally been eliminated in the United States. It was a triumph—but it didn’t last. By 2014 there were 677 reported cases of the disease, the highest rate in 20 years. In 2015, there were 189 reported cases—low compared to 2014, but still outrageous considering there were zero cases 15 years earlier.

San Diego Neurologist Says Gut Health Is Crucial (KPBS)

In her new book, San Diego neurologist Kulreet Chaudhary says the key to good health is a healthy digestive system.

From daredevil to chicken: Scientists find off-switch for risky behavior  (Ars Technica)

Firing up specific brain cells—linked to gambling in people—turns rats cautious.

A 'Forgotten Disease' Is Suddenly Causing New Worries (NPR)

Yellow fever is spreading in Angola. Experts are afraid it could spread further in Africa and Asia. This couldn't come at a worse time.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Post mortem on 13 beached sperm whales found their stomachs full of plastic (IFL Science)

The whales likely died of cardiac and circulatory failure from starvation, however, not via the rubbish in their intestines. Still, the stomach contents – which include a 13-meter-long (43-foot-long) fisherman’s net and a 70-centimeter (28-inch) piece of plastic from a car – are stark reminders of the environmental impact of human trash. 

Bogota's Bus Rapid Transit System Eyed By U.S. Urban Planners (KPBS)

Bogota's system has a question for American urban planners: Why pay for rail transit when you can do Bus Rapid Transit instead?

Automatic Braking Systems To Become Standard On Most U.S. Vehicles (NPR)

Automatic brakes are designed to stop a vehicle before it collides with a car or another object. Some 20 carmakers have agreed to make it a standard feature on nearly all new cars in the U.S. by 2022.

Number of U.S. cyber incidents jumps in 2015 (Reuters)

The U.S. government was hit by more than 77,000 "cyber incidents" like data thefts or other security breaches in fiscal year 2015, a 10 percent increase over the previous year, according to a White House audit.

Nike's self-lacing shoes: Another product born of innovation (CS Monitor)

Nike unveiled a variety of new products at its innovation conference in New York on Wednesday, including its heavily anticipated self-lacing shoes.

FBI Warns About Car Hacking. Encryption Security Helps Prevent That. (Reason)

While FBI prepares for a court hearing next week to try to force Apple to help it break into the work phone of San Bernardino, California, terrorist Syed Farook, the agency also wants you to pay attention to your cybersecurity to protect yourself from hackers attempting to commandeer your car.

Why the government can’t actually stop terrorists from using encryption (Washington Post)

Even if the U.S. government prevails in its quest to compel Apple and other U.S. companies to give the authorities access to encrypted devices or messaging services when they have a warrant, such technology would still be widely available to terrorists and criminals, security analysts say. That's because so many encrypted products are made by developers working in foreign countries or as part of open source projects, putting them outside the federal government's reach.

How cleaner air could actually make global warming worse (Washington Post)

A significant amount of the climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions in the past century has been hidden from us, scientists say — by another type of pollution that actually cools the climate and temporarily cancels out some of the warming. Two new studies, both released today in the journal Nature Geoscience, address the powerful influence of aerosols — fine particles or drops of liquid often released by industrial activity — on the climate, and suggest that as nations around the world work to reduce this type of air pollution, we will begin to see more rapid warming than expected. And that could hurt our ability to meet the climate goals set in last year’s Paris Agreement.

FCC Chair: Proposal Would Let Consumers Determine Value Of Internet Privacy  (NPR)

The Federal Communications Commission is proposing, for the first time, privacy regulations for Internet service providers. The goal is to let consumers weigh in on what information about them gets collected and how it's used.

Yellowstone supervolcano eruptions were even bigger than we thought (CS Monitor)

Yellowstone's geysers and hotpots are 'just the latest in a protracted history of numerous catastrophic super-eruptions that have burned a track along the Snake River eastwards from Oregon to Yellowstone,' says UK geologist.

Japanese Fleet Kills 333 Whales In The Antarctic (NPR)

The fleet killed the minke whales over the past four months, drawing condemnation from environmentalists and the Australian government. 

Are smart cars only as good as the roads they're driving on? (Marketplace)

When lane markings don't work, neither do driverless cars, it seems.

FBI agrees to unlock another iPhone (BBC)

The FBI offers to unlock another iPhone for police after revealing it could access the handset used by San Bernardino killer Syed Farook.