WASHINGTON - An executive for a maker of the drug heparin says a contaminant in the blood-thinning medication appears to have been placed there deliberately.Eighty one deaths are associated with allergic reactions to tainted doses of heparin.
Heparin is used to help patients undergoing kidney dialysis and other procedures. The medication is made by Baxter International […]

FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA– Women from coast-to-coast and around the globe once equated getting older with invisibility. Thanks to the Red Hat Society (RHS), founded 10 years ago today, perceptions began to change. In just one decade RHS has evolved from a few friends who donned red hats and purple outfits in the spirit of having fun […]

WASHINGTON - Tests on several plastic baby bottles have found they emit “very significant” levels of a chemical linked to deadly illnesses in laboratory animals. That is according to a new report released by American and Canadian environmental health groups. 
The study found 95 percent of all baby bottles on the market are made with bisphenol […]

GENEVA - International health agencies say the world is on the brink of a cancer epidemic. The World Health Organization reports 7.6 million people died of the disease in 2005. It predicts the number of cancer deaths and new cases of the disease will rise astronomically in the coming years, unless action is taken now […]

GENEVA - A new study sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows children with severe pneumonia can be effectively treated at home and do not need to be hospitalized. The World Health Organization calls this finding hugely significant for developing countries.  It says the change of treatment will save many children’s lives and take […]

WASHINGTON - Scientists have discovered that blood stored in a bank loses a vital gas that is important for transferring oxygen from the blood. The discovery may explain why a significant number of people die after receiving blood transfusions.
For the past five years, experts have wondered why people who should survive after receiving a blood […]

MIAMI - Chinese manufacturers are facing harsh scrutiny after a series of health scares involving toxic exports to several nations.  In Panama, officials are struggling to understand how a poisonous chemical made in China was wrongly mixed into a cough syrup formula, killing more than 100 people since last year.  China has denied wrongdoing in […]

WASHINGTON - Top executives of the company that makes a powerful painkiller called Oxycontin admitted this week they lied about the drug’s addictive qualities in order to boost sales.  Worldwide abuse of prescription drugs, such as Oxycontin, is almost as widespread as illegal drug use. 
Oxycontin can be a legitimate blessing for many patients in great […]

WASHINGTON - For decades, as fast food and highly processed packaged foods have become increasingly popular, the converted fat these foods contain, known as transfat, has become commonplace in the American diet.
Transfat is formed in a chemical process that makes vegetable oils more solid. It gives fast food its taste and allows for a longer shelf […]

WASHINGTON - People all around the world will be watching the Super Bowl this Sunday (Feb 4).  The Super Bowl is, in effect, the world championship of American football. Most people will concentrate on the game, but one former player will split his attention between the big game and the health of both current and […]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. government has a introduced a system to rate the severity of a potential influenza pandemic. Public health officials say it will help states and communities determine the appropriate level of preparation if the H5N1 bird flu or a similar virus spreads through the population.
The new U.S. flu severity index copies the […]

WASHINGTON - An international team of scientists has cracked the genetic code of the parasite that causes one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted diseases in the world known as trichomoniasis. The research is expected to help people with the infection soon.
Up close, the single-celled bacterium that causes trichomoniasis is almost pretty to look as […]

Blacks’ HIV Risk Dramatically Higher Than Whites Despite Safer Sex Lives
Population-Wide Prevention is Vital, Study Suggests
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Young black adults are far more likely to be infected with a sexually transmitted disease, including HIV, than young white adults, even when they engage in the same or even safer behavior, according to research released […]

NEW DELHI - Former U.S. President Bill Clinton’s foundation has negotiated with Indian drug companies to make affordable treatment available to thousands of children afflicted with the AIDS virus. Anjana Pasricha reports for VOA from New Delhi, where Mr. Clinton made the announcement.
Mr. Clinton appeared at a high-profile gathering at a crowded children’s hospital in […]

WASHINGTON - Not long ago, Benedict DiGiovanni played 18 holes of golf. Instead of taking an easy-going ride in a golf cart, the 41-year old orthopedic surgeon at the University of Rochester Medical Center decided to walk the course.
He says he didn’t have a problem until the next morning, “I woke up and put my […]

NEW YORK - A new state of the art medical facility in the United States is harnessing a new weapon in the cancer fighting arsenal: proton therapy. Medical experts say the procedure, a precise form of radiation to target tumors, offers new hope in the treatment of various types of cancer.
The M.D. Anderson Proton Therapy Center at […]

A Second Major U.S. Brand - Kentucky Fried Chicken - Makes the Switch to Low-Linolenic Soybean Oil
KFC Decides to Reduce Trans Fat Content With Enhanced Soybean Oil
ST. LOUIS — According to QUALISOY(TM), a soybean industry initiative helping market healthier, more functional soybean products to the food industry, Yum Brands Inc. represents the second major U.S. […]

Studies Say Benefits of Eating Fish Outweigh Risks 
WASHINGTON - Two new U.S. studies say the nutritional benefits of eating fish outweigh the potential hazards from environmental contaminants. Some environmental and consumer groups dispute the finding.
You may have heard that fish contain mercury and other compounds called PCBs and dioxins that can be harmful physically.  But […]

CLEVELAND — Each and every day, fire extinguishers save lives and protect property and are a critical component of a balanced fire protection plan - both at home and at work. However, it is not only important to own a fire extinguisher. It is equally as critical to know how to operate a portable fire […]

WASHINGTON - The number of polio cases reported in Afghanistan so far this year is up sharply over figures tallied for the whole of 2005. As VOA’s George Dwyer reports, nearly all of the new cases occurred in the country’s southern provinces, scene of some of the fiercest armed violence the country has witnessed in […]

WASHINGTON - U.S. researchers have developed a vaccine that offers protection against a common allergy trigger in the United States known as ragweed. Scientists say the development has the potential to guard against any number of inflammatory diseases. 
Ragweed, which causes hay fever, is the number-one cause of allergic symptoms during the autumn season in the […]

LOS ANGELES - A landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion in 1973, but the issue remains divisive.  The latest battleground is the state of South Dakota, where voters will decide in November whether to ban abortions.  Both sides say the debate has national implications.
Law professor and author Sarah Weddington has been at […]

CHICAGO - Diamond Brownridge, a 5-year old girl from Chicago, Illinois, has died after a visit to the dentist. Children’s Memorial Hospital officials say that the girl was rushed to the hospital when she never woke up after being sedated for a dental procedure. She had been in a coma, on life support, since being […]

GENEVA - The World Health Organization reports more than 17 million people a year die from heart disease and stroke, making it the world’s largest killer. To mark World Heart Day, health specialists are urging people to exercise, to eat healthy food, and to stop smoking to keep their hearts strong and stay alive. Statistics show […]

WASHINGTON - A recent update in the outbreak of E. coli was reported today in 21 states, which now include Illinois and Nebraska.
At least 112 people have fallen ill because of the bacteria, and one was killed.
In some of the latest cases, a resident of northern Illinois has fallen ill of E. coli, and was […]