HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

October 10, 2022 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Covid-19 boosters could prevent about 90,000 US deaths this winter, but only if more people get them, analysis suggests (CNN)
• After being bitten by a rabid fox, a congressman wants cheaper rabies treatments(NPR)
• The FDA Is Revisiting Its Definition of ‘Healthy’ Food  (Mens Health)
• Planned Parenthood launches its 1st mobile abortion clinic  (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Yes, Climate Change Is Making Storms Like Hurricane Ian Worse (Time)
• In Ian’s wake, worried families crowdsource rescue efforts (AP)
• To build for a warming planet, architects look to nature – and the past (CS Monitor)
• Meta disables Russian propaganda network from Facebook, Instagram( 10 News)
• EU mandate for a single universal charger could become world standard  (NPR)

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

HEALTH

Covid-19 boosters could prevent about 90,000 US deaths this winter, but only if more people get them, analysis suggests (CNN)

Covid-19 vaccinations could save thousands of lives and billions of dollars this winter. A new analysis suggests that if more people in the United States get their booster by the end of the year, about 90,000 Covid-19 deaths could be prevented this fall and winter. But if booster vaccinations continue at their current pace, the nation could see a peak of more than 1,000 Covid-19 deaths per day this winter, according to the study, published Wednesday by The Commonwealth Fund.

After being bitten by a rabid fox, a congressman wants cheaper rabies treatments(NPR)

…Typically, people who are exposed to rabies receive a five-shot regimen of rabies immunoglobulin and the rabies vaccine over the course of two weeks. But those shots are expensive. Earlier this year, drug pricing data from GoodRx estimated the cost of this treatment runs between $4,868.35 to $5,930.83 — not including the cost to administer the drugs, or the markups frequently charged by hospital emergency rooms, where treatment usually begins…The post-exposure treatment is extremely effective, but it needs to take place before symptoms set in; when that happens, rabies has an almost 100% fatality rate.

The FDA Is Revisiting Its Definition of ‘Healthy’ Food  (Mens Health)

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Wednesday that it is proposing changes to its definition of “healthy.” The FDA’s definition of healthy defines criteria for when foods can use the word on their packaging.

Planned Parenthood launches its 1st mobile abortion clinic  (NPR)

The mobile clinic will begin offering consultations and dispensing abortion pills later this year. It will operate within Illinois, where abortion remains legal, but will be able to travel closer to neighboring states' borders, reducing the distance many patients travel for the procedure. "It gives us a lot of flexibility about where to be," Rodriguez said.

SCIENCE AND TECH

Yes, Climate Change Is Making Storms Like Hurricane Ian Worse (Time)

As Hurricane Ian barreled toward the central Florida gulf coast this morning before making landfall as a Category 4 storm, the conservative media-sphere was having a field day at the expense of CNN anchor Don Lemon….The science is well-known. Higher average temperatures lead to warmer ocean waters which in turn causes more evaporation. As hurricanes pass over, they absorb more moisture, leading to heavier rainfall. Warmer waters linked to climate change also increase the storms’ wind speed …Rising sea levels also multiply the flooding danger from what is often the deadliest aspect of a hurricane…

In Ian’s wake, worried families crowdsource rescue efforts (AP)

Many people whose loved ones stayed behind in the pathway of Hurricane Ian are crowdsourcing rescue efforts as they grapple with the helplessness of waiting and not knowing. In TikTok videos and Facebook posts, families are sharing their desperate pleas and strangers are answering their calls, even as local officials urge people to use official channels for help….An informal digital structure built on the backs of previous disasters was on full display in the midst of Ian’s fury. Users shared online forms to request and volunteer for rescues. Facebook groups sprung up with pleas for help, including phone numbers and addresses, and offers from volunteers to step in.

To build for a warming planet, architects look to nature – and the past (CS Monitor)

Some architects are dusting off older building methods, as a way to beat the heat, lower emissions associated with construction and air conditioning, and also rediscover the integrity and ingenuity, they say, that come with building locally.

Meta disables Russian propaganda network from Facebook, Instagram( 10 News)

A sprawling disinformation network originating in Russia sought to use hundreds of fake social media accounts and dozens of sham news websites to spread Kremlin talking points about the invasion of Ukraine, Meta revealed Tuesday.

EU mandate for a single universal charger could become world standard  (NPR)

This week the European Parliament approved new rules that will introduce a single universal charger for all manner of electronic equipment. Could this become the world standard?

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