Cell Phone Study Yields Inconclusive Results
Cell phones did not appear to raise brain cancer risk in a new international study of nearly 13,000 users—but researchers aren't letting them off the hook just yet. Conducted by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer or IARC, the study yielded inconclusive results after 10 years, Reuters reports. The study relied on participants to estimate the amount of time they spent on their cell phones, which could have led researchers to an inaccurate conclusion, according to Reuters. Many of the participants, moreover, were not heavy cell phone users. "The results really don't allow us to conclude that there is any risk associated with mobile phone use, but...it is also premature to say that there is no risk associated with it," IARC director Christopher Wild told Reuters. Results are published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.
MRSA Infections Are Rising in Kids: 'Superbug' Author Shares Prevention Tips
MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, may be the most frightening epidemic since AIDS, and it's already in homes and schools. That's the news in Superbug: The Fatal Menace of MRSA. U.S. News contributor Nancy Shute asks Superbug author Maryn McKenna: How can families steer clear of MRSA without becoming crazy germaphobes?
To reduce your risk of MRSA infection, hand washing is key. It is one of the simplest and most effective tools we have, says McKenna. "I'm a freak for hand washing. I wash my hands when I come in the door. I wash my hands a dozen times when I'm cooking. I operate elevator buttons with my knuckle rather than the pads of my fingers, because we touch our faces with the pads of our fingers," she says.
Nobody knows if kids are more likely to be infected with MRSA than adults, says McKenna. But lack of cleanliness and frequent skin-to-skin contact are particular dangers for kids. A lot of cases occur in kids who are playing sports that involve lots of skin-to-skin contact. [Read more: MRSA Infections Are Rising in Kids: 'Superbug' Author Shares Prevention Tips.]
Heinz Slashes Salt From Ketchup Recipe
A less salty Heinz ketchup is headed for grocery stores this summer. The ketchup maker has announced that its condiment will now contain 15 percent less sodium, the New York Post reports. Heinz's commitment to health and wellness inspired the move to reduce salt in its ketchup, said a company spokeswoman. In April, Heinz and 15 other major food manufacturers joined a national effort to lower salt in foods, led by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The American Medical Association and other medical groups have made numerous requests of manufacturers to cut the amount of sodium in processed foods by as much as half, with the aim of reducing rates of high blood pressure, heart problems, and stroke, U.S. News contributor Katherine Hobson wrote in October.
But salt is tough to simply remove from foods. "If you just take the sodium out, at best you end up with a product that doesn't taste [good], and in the worst case, you lose preservation qualities," said Jane Anders, vice president of research and development at ConAgra Foods, which is working to cut 20 percent of the salt in its products between 2006 and 2015. [Read more: Can Americans Change Their Taste for the Sweet and Salty?].
