Category: Health

The Wall Street Journal has revealed on Wednesday that scientists in a Beijing lab had mapped out the sequence of the virus SARS-CoV-2, on December 28, 2019, two weeks before the Chinese government announced its existence. In December, the findings were uploaded by Dr. Lili Ren to a database named GenBank operated by the US […]

As countries in the northern hemisphere face a bitterly cold snap, there is serious risk of injury – and even death – from freezing weather. Thankfully, with the right preventative and protective measures, the human body can survive these icy temperatures. Here’s what you need to know about identifying and treating the most common cold […]

Trends in 2022 showed that roughly one in five adults worldwide uses tobacco, compared to one in three in the year 2000. While cigarette smoking is the most common form of tobacco use worldwide, other products include cigars, waterpipe tobacco also known as hookah, and smokeless tobacco products, all of which are harmful. The “tobacco […]

A new variant of COVID-19, known as JN.1, reportedly first emerged in the United States in September of last year. Unlike its predecessors, this variant is more complex and has gradually become the dominant strain worldwide. Disturbingly, it seems to possess resistance against the body’s natural defense mechanisms and potentially the components of existing vaccines. […]

The perils of ultra-processed foods received widespread coverage in recent months – thanks in no small part to the publication and promotion of TV presenter and doctor of virology Chris Van Tulleken’s book Ultra-Processed People. Ultra-processed foods, in short, are commercially manufactured food products that include ingredients you wouldn’t cook with at home. Some of […]

The appeal comes at a time when climate change, drought and other extreme weather events, are fuelling food insecurity, conflict and displacement, causing deeper and increasingly complex health emergencies, leaving healthcare is increasingly under fire. Every humanitarian crisis is a health crisis, WHO said, and each dollar invested in its lifesaving work nets a return […]

In today’s hyperpartisan atmosphere, in Israel as in the US, some couples decide not only not to marry a person with antithetical views – but even to split up over such disagreements. By one estimate, as many as 30% of Americans are in relationships with partners who do not share their political viewpoint. In the […]

As with fashion and music, illicit drugs go through peaks and troughs of popularity. There are popular staples, such as cannabis, and more disruptive and transient substances, such as mephedrone. As with clothing fashion, the drugs that most people are able to buy are determined by the choices of designers, manufacturers and logistical operations, rather […]

Eleven years ago, my colleagues and I estimated that about 2 million people around the world were dying from fungal infections annually. My latest estimate puts the figure today at nearly double that: around 3.8 million deaths. To put this in perspective, it accounts for around 6.8% of total global deaths. Coronary heart disease is […]