It is generally assumed that if a woman breast feeds, she will experience enhanced or more rapid than normal breast ptosis (that’s science for breast “sagging”). Phear of Ptosis is often cited as a possible reason to either not breast feed, or a reason to stop breast feeding sooner than otherwise ideal. (I quickly […]

A local story that may be of broader interest. From the Star Tribune (BBS) October 23, 2007:

Rabies kills Monticello man bitten by bat
By Joy Powell, Star Tribune
Randy Hertwig of Monticello swatted at the bat that flew around the cabin porch, and he felt only a pinprick on his hand that day in mid-August. There […]

If you are under the age of about 40 or 50 and raised in the United States, then part of your culture is the belief in the power of Market Forces. Think tanks and departments of economics, journalists and writers have been discussing Market Forces for years now, and unless you are self-consciously critical […]

Staphylococcus aureus is a nasty, antibiotic resistant killer bacterium. This bacterium is widespread in hospitals, and is one of the main reasons why people sometimes get sicker when they go to a hospital to get cured of something else.

The reservoir of Marburg virus identified in a species of fruit bat from PhysOrg.com
The Marburg virus, like its fearsome cousin Ebola, belongs to the Filoviridae family. It carries the name of the German town where it was first detected in 1967, after a mysterious epidemic had hit employees of the Behring […]

… or more specifically, a Pathophysiology. It isn’t natural or healthy.
Or so says Bush’s current nominee for Surgeon General. Nice one, George.
Actually, this is a very interesting case, because the problem surrounds the production of a talk/paper by the nominee, James Holsinger, back in 1991 in conjunction with a Methodist Church […]

… kind of like creationism?
It just so happens that I’ve done some archaeology related to homeopathic medicine. Sounds strange, but it is true. I’m just a foot soldier on that project, so everything I know comes from the research of my colleagues. Minneapolis, it turns out, was one of the major centers […]

Do you know that resistant bacteria (which, actually, are bacteria with what is sometimes called an “r-factor” … a presumed allele conferring resistance to a particular antibiotic) existed before the human use of antibiotics? This is because bacteria and yeasts, molds, and other icky organisms have been fighting it out for a long time […]

As you probably know, everyone should drink milk. Lots and lots and lots of milk. All your life. Or so says the American Dairy Industry, often using those sexy posters of famous people with milk smeared on their faces.
The truly amazing thing about those posters is that the people in them […]

Phenylketonuria (fee-null-keet-o-noo-ria), mercifully also known as “PKU” (pee – kay – you) is a disorder in which phenylalanine, an essential amino acid, is not broken down as it normally would be by an enzyme (phenylalanine hydroxylase) and thus accumulates (in the form of phenylpyruvic acid) in the body. Normally, Phenylalanine hydroxylase coverts phenylalanine into […]

There is a disparity in mortality rates in the US between “African American” and “white” women. This has always been thought to arise from difference in access to care, and this is probably still the main reason.
However new research Britian suggests that there may be another factor involved. It turns out that pre-menopausal […]

Ever wonder why lions can sit around all day doing nothing, spend about 30 minutes or less hunting down an antelope (less time than most people who go to the gym spend on the treadmill) then spend the rest of the day laying around, yet they don’t get fat?
The simple, yet lofty, answer to […]

University of Georgia researchers have developed what they claim to be the first working model that explains how a particular biological clock operates. The work is coming out in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“When the clock goes awry in mammals, it can lead to many diseases, ranging from cancer […]

February issue of Cultural Anthropology includes a paper by Michael Montoya on race and diabetes detection. It is a reificiation of what is now common knowledge among most people who study race, but not so much beyond this sphere.
“Although it’s true that certain ethnic groups have higher rates of diabetes, our social […]