Bias seen
tainting medical
articles
The Experts may
not be telling
the truth in
exchange for
money.Drug
companies often
pay academic
scientists to
take credit for
research
articles that
are prepared by
company-paid
medical writers
and then
published in
peer-reviewed
journals, say
reports in the
Journal of the
American Medical
Assoc. This
practice of
ghostwriting can
lead editors to
publish biased
research that
can result in
doctors giving
patients
improper
treatment. The
association's
journal singles
out Merck, but
says
ghostwriting is
not uncommon
among drug
makers. It's
calling for all
authors to spell
out their roles
more clearly. Do
you always
notice how drug
companies will
stress
that show us
double blind
studies to prove
weather such and
such is correct.
As drug
companies are
the only
institutions
rich enough to
fund such double
blind research.
Plastic baby
bottles may be
toxic
A chemical
widely used in
plastic baby
bottles and
other containers
may cause neural
and behavioral
changes in
humans who
ingest it, says
a report by the
U.S.
government's
National
Toxicology
Program. The
chemical, called
bisphenol A or
BPA, also has
been linked to
health problems
like breast
cancer. In
Canada, Wal-Mart
Stores and other
retailers are
pulling
containers,
including water
bottles, with
BPA amid news
that the country
may declare it
to be toxic.
Among
Americans and
Brits, 12% have
surreptitiously
piggybacked on
someone else's
wireless
Internet
connection, a
survey by
consulting firm
Accenture found.
Logging onto
open, unsecured
Wi-Fi is most
popular among
people ages
18-34. One in 7
Americans said
they piggybacked
vs. 1 in 11
Brits. Experts
warn that data
on unsecured
Wi-Fi can be
read by hackers.
Clothes may
monitor your
health by
analyzing your
sweat, say
scientists at
the Swiss Center
for Electronics
and
Microtechnology.
The researchers
use specialty
yarns and
sensors attached
to fabrics in
order to
determine the
amount of
potassium,
chloride or
sodium in a
person's sweat
and get
information
about that
person's
metabolism.
