Category Archives: Health

Epidemic

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Autism Epidemic Rampant

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has declared that the autism prevalence in the U.S. has reached an “epidemic” level, with the latest data showing that 1 in 31 children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) by age 8, up from 1 in 36 in 2020.

Kennedy has pledged to launch an intensive investigation into the rise in autism diagnoses, focusing on potential environmental causes, and has set a September deadline for the National Institutes of Health to determine the underlying causes.

Key Points:

Epidemic Declaration: Kennedy has called the rise in autism rates a “preventable” crisis-level epidemic, attributing it to environmental toxins.

CDC Data: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the autism rate among 8-year-olds increased to 1 in 31 in 2022, up from 1 in 36 in 2020.

Research Focus: Kennedy has tasked the Department of Health and Human Services with assembling teams of world-class scientists to focus on the origins of the autism epidemic.

Criticism: Many autism researchers and advocacy groups dispute the framing of autism as an epidemic, attributing the rise in prevalence to better awareness, improved screening, and expanded diagnostic criteria.

Vaccine Claims: Despite widespread scientific consensus, Kennedy has repeatedly suggested a link between vaccines and autism, a claim that has been widely debunked.

Geographic Variation: The CDC report noted wide geographic variation in autism diagnosis rates, ranging from roughly 1 in 100 in parts of south Texas to 1 in 19 in San Diego.

Expert Opinions:

Genetic and Environmental Factors: Experts agree that autism is a multifactorial condition influenced by both genetic and environmental factors, with up to 40% of cases having a specific genetic basis.

Improved Awareness and Screening: Many researchers attribute the rise in autism rates to increased awareness, better screening, and more comprehensive evaluations, especially among previously underserved groups.

Conclusion:

While the HHS Secretary has declared an autism epidemic, the scientific community largely attributes the rise in autism diagnoses to improved awareness and screening methods. The debate over the causes and framing of autism continues, with ongoing research and discussions aimed at better understanding the condition.

https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/autism-epidemic-runs-rampant-new-data-shows-grants.html

‘Autism Epidemic Runs Rampant,’ New Data Shows 1 in 31 Children Afflicted _ HHS.govDownload

5 Types of Foods That Cause Inflammation

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Inflammation is part of your body’s natural defense against things that adversely affect health, like bacteria, viruses and toxins.

But your immune system is complicated, and its components are sometimes triggered by unexpected things — including certain foods.

“Our diets play an enormous role in what’s happening inside our bodies, much more than most people probably realize,” says Dr. Karla Saint Andre, an endocrinologist at Houston Methodist.

We all know the obvious consequence of making consistently unhealthy food choices: weight gain. What you may not realize is that being overweight is linked to increased levels of inflammation in the body.

The story of how our eating habits can lead to inflammation doesn’t stop there.

“An unbalanced diet means eating a lot of processed foods, which contain ingredients that can activate inflammatory processes directly,” Dr. Saint Andre adds.

This is less noticeable than weight gain, of course, but Dr. Saint Andre emphasizes that it’s still harmful.

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Project 226 and $13,000 bought Harvard University and changed health culture in the Unites States for 50 years

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In a 2015 JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) research paper a shocking revelation was made that contained proof the sugar industry bribed leading doctors to lie about and report on the consumption of sugar was safe when they knew it wasn’t.

In 1965, in fact, the Sugar Association paid two Harvard scientists $6,500 to twist the facts surrounding sugar.

They wanted to blame fat for the health problems sugar seemed to be causing. Why? So they could keep selling you more sugar.

They succeeded, and it led directly to the chronic disease and obesity epidemics we’re facing today. These epidemics have claimed the health and lives of billions of people.

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Monkeypox in the United States

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Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to investigate a situation in which a U.S. resident tested positive for monkeypox on May 18 after returning to the U.S. from Canada.

CDC is also tracking multiple clusters of monkeypox that have been reported in early- to mid-May in several countries that don’t normally report monkeypox, including in Europe and North America.

It’s not clear how people in those clusters were exposed to monkeypox but cases include people who self-identify as men who have sex with men. CDC is urging healthcare providers in the U.S. to be alert for patients who have rash illnesses consistent with monkeypox, regardless of whether they have travel or specific risk factors for monkeypox and regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

CDC: Rising overdose deaths hit record

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After a catastrophic increase in 2020, deaths from drug overdoses rose again to record-breaking levels in 2021, nearing 108,000, the result of an ever-worsening fentanyl crisis, according to preliminary data published Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The increase of nearly 15% followed a much steeper rise of almost 30% in 2020, an unrelenting crisis that has consumed federal and state drug policy officials. Since the 1970s, the number of drug overdose deaths has increased every year except 2018.

A growing share of deaths continues to come from overdoses involving fentanyl,a class of potent synthetic opioids that are often mixed with other drugs, and methamphetamine, a synthetic stimulant.

State health officials battling an influx of both drugs said many of the deaths appeared to be the result of combining the two. Drug overdoses, which long ago surged above the country’s peak deaths from AIDS, car crashes and guns, killed about one-quarter as many Americans last year as COVID-19.

Deaths involving synthetic opioids — largely fentanyl — rose to 71,000 from 58,000, while those associated with stimulants like methamphetamine, which has grown cheaper and more lethal in recent years, increased to 33,000 from 25,000. Because fentanyl is a white powder, it can be easily combined with other drugs, including opioids like heroin, and stimulants like meth and cocaine, and can be stamped into counterfeit pills for anti-anxiety drugs like Xanax. Such mixtures can prove lethal if drug users are unaware they are taking fentanyl or are unsure of the dose.