►December 26, 2003 - Therapy in bloom - Program sheds light on healing plants - The Topeka Capital-Journal

►December 24, 2003 - “Mad cow” in US brings hope to organic producers - The outbreak of the first “mad cow” case in the United States could force a rise of beef prices in the international market benefiting organic producing countries such as Uruguay and Argentina. - Merco Press via www.falkland-malvinas.com

►December 27, 2003 - Health alarm over sunburnt children - Herald Sun, Australia

►December 27, 2003 - Jikei med school fires three doctors standing trial for malpractice death - The Japan Times

►December 26, 2003 - Nursing homes should be quick to adopt pet therapy - Abilene Reporter-News

►Special Report - Mad Cow Disease (requires subscription) - in the Combat Zone @Redflagsdaily.com

►Art of the M.I.N.D.: The Art Collection of the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute (book for sale) - "The UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute has assembled a significant collection of artwork created by children and adults with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. The pieces of art featured in this book — pencil drawings, watercolors and oil paintings — are on permanent display throughout the institute's building."

►December 26, 2003 - Scientist is winning converts on Alzheimer's - AP/Wall Street Journal via USA Today - "Ashley Bush, a 44-year-old researcher at Harvard Medical School, was pilloried after he put forth a radical theory of Alzheimer's disease in 1994...Bush's theory is that the real culprit in Alzheimer's is a copper and zinc buildup in the brain — an idea few scientists have looked at...Now scientists are giving Bush more credence. He has a five-year grant from the NIH and this year won an American Academy of Neurology prize for Alzheimer's disease research."

►December 28, 2003 - How Georgia got fooled in hunt for flu vaccine - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

►December 28, 2003 - Anthrax drill shows weaknesses, officials say - CNN - "A drill testing U.S. agencies' ability to distribute and administer antibiotics in the event of an anthrax attack found the federal government unable to respond quickly enough to prevent large numbers of deaths, officials said Sunday."

►December 28, 2003 - GIs in Iraq have mixed reactions on halt to anthrax shots - Stars & Stripes - "But one thing the military assured them they would have some protection against was the specter of anthrax: Before deploying here, each and every U.S. soldier had to take an anti-anthrax vaccine...But after U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan issued a ruling Dec. 22 that ordered the military to stop requiring soldiers take the vaccine, the word in the desert is mixed."

►Overview of Vaccine Manufacturing - Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) - FDA - "The nutrient media that are used to support the growth of bacteria and the cell cultures in which viruses are grown often contain animal-derived components and, commonly, bovine-derived (from cows) components. As examples, the cells that are used to propagate viruses generally require calf serum for their maintenance and growth and the nutrient broths that are commonly used to grow bacteria contain beef extracts (e.g., a beef broth)."

►December 28, 2003 - Your donation can help medics fight Africa's measles epidemic - A charity battling against diseases in Africa will be helped by our appeal, which has raised £221,721 so far. Rory Carroll reports from Congo - The Guardian, UK - "Measles is a viral disease spread by infected droplets during sneezing and coughing, and by touching contaminated objects. It causes fever and rash, and can lead to convulsions, pneumonia, bronchitis, mental retardation and death...In the rich world, it is seldom fatal because infected children eat well and have proper medical care, and because immunisation has restricted epidemics over the past 30 years...But in poor countries it kills 800,000 children every year. More than half of them are in sub-Saharan Africa, and about 50,000 in Congo, according to Lieven Desomer, a vaccine specialist with Unicef, the United Nation's children's agency."

Comment:  For Scandals columns on the measles and measles vaccine, go to What Is Wrong With This Picture?;  More confusing disease stats;   Playing With Fire - It's Not EASY To Fool Mother Nature;   Don't Worry, Be Happy;  Measles In The Vaccination Age:  Is It Now Deadlier?;   Why We Won't Take No* For An Answer  (*No relationship between MMR and autism);  and Shoot First, Don't Ask Questions Later

►December 28, 2003 - SARS patient to soon be released from hospital - eTaiwanNews.com - "The more significant development is that antibodies have appeared in his system, showing that the amount of viral infection is slowly being reduced, Huang said."

►December 28, 2003 - Flu is expected to reach its peak early in January - Fond Du Lac Reporter - "Whooping cough, flu shots and now measles, are all on the mind of Fond du Lac County Health Officer Diane Cappozzo...Fond du Lac became a communicable disease statistic with its whooping cough outbreak, which Tuesday peaked at 210 confirmed cases out of 430 cases of pertussis reported in Wisconsin so far this year."

►December 28, 2003 - Testing starts for West Nile vaccine - Trials now taking place on 60 volunteers in Kansas City area - AP via The Lawrence Journal World

►December 27, 2003 - Anthrax protester wants the Marines to apologize - www.signonsandiego.com - "Anthony Fusco would like the Marine Corps to say it's sorry and then some...The Camp Pendleton Marine was demoted from corporal to lance corporal this year for initially refusing to be vaccinated for anthrax...Now a federal judge has ruled that the Pentagon's mandatory vaccination program is illegal, and the program was temporarily halted this week...Fusco, 23, feels he's been vindicated, and he's upset about the reduction in rank and loss of pay."

►December 29, 2003 - Call to stop deadly viruses getting into wrong hands - www.smh.com - "Ian Ramshaw...was critical of US researchers who have genetically modified cowpox virus, which can infect humans, in a way that is likely to make it extremely deadly...The team at the University of St Louis has said the research is necessary to understand what terrorists might achieve. "But I cannot see any scientific justification for it," Professor Ramshaw said...Sufficient knowledge could be obtained by restricting studies to mousepox virus, which is similar to cowpox but cannot infect humans, he said."

►December 28, 2003 - Inquiry after error over baby MMR - An investigation has been launched after a baby was accidentally given the controversial MMR injection.  - BBC - "The three-month-old girl was supposed to have received a meningitis jab. It is understood the mistake was made at Gorbals Health Centre in Glasgow...Guidelines state babies should be at least 13 months old before they get the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine...Public health experts said the incident should not cause any long-term problems for the child...Politicians described the mistake as appalling."

►December 29, 2003 - Brain damage link to flu in pregnancy - www.theage.com.au - "According to the guidelines, the benefits of immunisation in preventing flu in pregnant women during the second or third trimester outweigh the risks, which can include miscarriage."

►December 26, 2003 - Grant funds childhood vaccinations - Three agencies try to ensure that students receive necessary shots to stay in class. - Statesman Journal

►December 28, 2003 - Scientists, consumer groups debate individual disasters, general good - Such considerations as mercury's problems and the risks of autism and allergies come to fore. - News-Leader - "Consumer groups raising concerns about the risks say they are not anti-vaccine. But they want federal health officials to use what they know to make vaccines safer. Many scientists, doctors and parents believe that states' overzealous vaccination policies have contributed to dramatic increases in asthma, allergies, learning disabilities, autism, attention-deficit disorder, diabetes and other chronic neuroimmune illnesses."

►December 28, 2003 - Teen disabled by vaccine prepares for life on own - A rare reaction to an immunization crippled J.J. Coffelt's muscles, but not her spirit. - News-Leader - "J.J. is a statistical anomaly, one of 638 kids nationwide who, since 1988, have been compensated by the federal government for crippling disabilities suffered after getting immunized against childhood diseases."

►December 28, 2003 - U.S. Has New Concerns About Anthrax Readiness (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

►December 28, 2003 - Despite Mad-Cow Warnings, Industry Resisted Safeguards (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "During a House debate last summer over a possible ban on using sick and injured cows for meat, Representative Gary L. Ackerman, a Democrat from New York, held up a photo of a crippled cow and cautioned that such "downer animals" carried the highest risk for mad cow disease."

►December 28, 2003 - China Tightens Health Screenings After Suspected SARS Case (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times