By Laura Watson

Preliminary tests on a Manitoba cow show that it had the dreaded mad cow disease

It is being reported, that there may in fact be a case of mad cow in the province of Manitoba. It is said that the mature animal that tested positive for the disease in preliminary testing, was born before 1997 when new rules were put into place, not allowing the use of cattle parts for cattle feed. The cow in question had not yet entered the food chain so if this is a lone case, then the risk of further spreading of the disease is minimal. The disease spreads from cow to cow, through feed, and is transmitted when a cow eats feed that is contaminated with other cattle's tissue that have the disease.

Samples from the cow have been sent for testing to the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Winnipeg for furthered testing, tests that should take a few days to conduct. This is Canada's 6th case of Mad Cow disease, in a country that is said to house over 17 million heads strong.

If in actual fact the tests come back positive, a full investigation will be carried out by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

By Dennis Landrey

MD patients have hope as the Genentech company has created a drug to help treat their eye condition

Genentech is the name of a company that has manufactured a drug which will be used to treat patients that are dealing with MD, otherwise known as Macular Degeneration. The name of the drug is Lucentis, and it has been approved by the USFDA, bringing a very optimistic view by doctors country wide, due to the effectiveness that the drug showed in its trials.

Macular Degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in US residents over the age of 55, meaning the possibilities that the drug presents are astoundingly positive. 200000 new cases of MD are diagnosed in the US every year, and by using this new drug, it is hoped that a lot of these cases will be slowed down from progressing considerably.

Dr. Eugene de Juan, president of the American Society of Retina Specialists, states that the drug has brought an amazing change to the field of ophthalmology. With the ability of the drug to greatly reduce and suppress vision loss, all experts are in agreeance.

By Mya Blake

Cadbury may lose a lot more money than they originally thought

It is being reported that the Cadbury recall that saw more than 1 million chocolate bars recalled due to salmonella poisoning, may cost the company up to 5 times what it originally projected it would cost. Just recently it was reported that a further 30 products not including the products that were pulled from shelves, may also need to be recalled due to them also likely containing toxic levels of salmonella.

The updated total cost that Cadbury will lose is now estimated at 25 million pounds. JP Morgan Cazenove, the broker for Cadbury states:
"The cost of product withdrawal is estimated at £5m. Of greater significance is the risk to consumer confidence over the Cadbury brand and the impact this may have on volumes in the UK.”

Since the recall of Cadbury's chocolate was made public, supermarkets around Britain have seen a drop in sales of the product as Brits are not sure if what they are buying is safe for consumption. The company has stated that anything that is being sold right now, is perfectly safe to eat, but the publich is not buying in so to speak..

By Laura Watson

FDA gives high marks for new HIV drug combo

It is being reported that the FDA has given its tentative approval for a 3-ingredient pill to be used to help treat HIV patients. The product is not yet approved for use in treating patients in the US, however this does mean that the FDA does believe that the pill meets all of its requirements to be marketed in the US.

The three ingredient pill is manufactured by Aurobindo Pharma Ltd. and is comprised of lamivudine, zidovudine, and nevirapine. The pill will be available for countries to purchase, under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

“Today’s approval marks a significant step forward in our commitment to clearing the way to quickly deliver quality, life-saving HIV/AIDS drugs to people who desperately need them in developing countries. Fixed-dose combination products are an important tool in President Bush’s PEPFAR program, which seeks to combat the AIDS epidemic in the worst affected countries,” said Michael O. Leavitt, Secretary of Health and Human Service. “This new option, a fixed
dose combination tablet containing lamivudine, zidovudine, and nevirapine, simplifies the treatment of HIV-1, which is a stumbling block for many individuals who find it difficult to maintain a regimen requiring the use of several drugs."

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, FDA Deputy Commissioner for Medical and Scientific Affairs. states:
“Our goal is to provide fixed dose combination products that we are confident meet all FDA standards for safety and effectiveness, as well as to ensure that we are purchasing drugs that work through the PEPFAR program. Using fixed dose combinations in developing countries may provide an added advantage by improving the patient’s ability to tolerate the treatment and better adhere to treatment regimens that will help minimize the development of viral resistance and result in long-term effective control of the disease.”

Source: FDA.gov

By Ron Swerdfiger

China's Ningxia reports cases of H5N1

China has once again reported an outbreak of Bird Flu. This time the outbreak is in the town of Zhongwei in the region of Ningxia, and vaccination clinics are being set up to vaccinate the region's residents against the potentially fatal virus.

How many birds are dead, and what type of birds are actually infected are not known at this time, but what is known, is that health officials are doing everything in their power to minimize the outbreak, that currently has no human cases being reported.

Currently, China has reported 19 human H5N1 infections and 12 human deaths as a result of the virus. So far, the world has lost 130 of its human inhabitants due to the virus.

By Mya Blake

Bird flu has been discovered in a 14th Nigerian state

The H5N1 virus has been found in a remote state in the country of Nigeria. Taraba is the state that health officials state has been found to contain infected birds, but health officials stress that no human cases of the virus have been reported. To date, Nigeria is the first African country to report any such case of H5N1 contamination but health officials do state that effective surveillance tactics could be limited and cases may have simply gone undetected.

"We have identified it in three places in Taraba, one commercial farm and two places where there are backyard poultry. There are a few places in Plateau and Kaduna where we are still getting new outbreaks. Elsewhere all the samples we're getting are negative," said Lami Lombin, director of the National Veterinary Research Institute which tests for bird flu.

Currently, 14 out of the country's 36 states have confirmed Bird Flu cases, including the Federal Capital Territory.

Source: NEWS.com.au

By Mya Blake

Contaminated chocolate said to be the cause of three salmonella cases resulting in hospitalization

It is being reported that three British residents have been hospitalized due to them consuming contaminated chocolate. The Cadbury company have been at the center of controversy due to the recent recall of more than a million chocolate products due to them being contaminated with salmonella, and it is believed that the recent three cases are a direct result of the patients eating the chocolate.

The contaminated chocolate is said to be at fault for putting a baby a child and an adult in hospital with salmonella poisoning, bringing the confirmed cases of the salmonella poisoning to a total of 31 cases since the beginning of March.

Cadbury has chosen to not make a comment on the issue until the investigation into their situation has been complete, however they do insist that their products are safe to eat.

For those unfamiliar with the story, a Cadbury factory reported recently that a leaky pipe in one of its factories that was discovered in January of this year was the cause of the contamination of more than a million chocolate products made at that manufacturing plant. Although the leaky pipe was found in January, it was not reported until recently, meaning that a ton of chocolate products that were not fit for sale, were in fact, shipped to stores across Britain and other European countries and sold anyway leading to cases of salmonella poisoning. The Cadbury's company is currently being investigated regarding the matter.

By Mya Blake

Plano Texas has reported cases of West Nile virus in mosquitoes tested this week

It has been reported that Texas is the latest destination to be home to the West Nile virus. Mosquitoes were tested and confirmed to have the virus, meaning that residents need to take procautions to protect themselves from also contracting the virus.

Plano Texas was were the infected mosquitoes were found, and the Texas Department of Health is urging people to protect themselves by;removing any standing water from around their homes, wearing bug spray while outdoors, and wearing long pants and sleeved shirts while outside.

"It's just a reminder that the West Nile virus is present in the North Texas and Plano, and for people to remain vigilant about protecting themselves from mosquitoes," said Steve Berry, environmental health manager for the city of Plano.

Fogging trucks will be spraying the area this morning to try to rid the city of the majority of their mosquito population, and to date, there have been no confirmed human cases of the virus.

By Mya Blake

The World Health Organization states that young people are very susceptible to contracting the H5N1 virus

The World Health Association has stated that the Bird flu virus is very likely to infect a lot of young people, thus mimicking the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that left millions dead. Not only that, but they also state that the threat of a world outbreak of Bird flu cases remains very high.

In a report released this week, the WHO stated that the average age of virus contraction was 20years of age, with a death rate of ages 10 to 19 of 73 percent which is the highest of any age demographic. From the study:
"The differences in the age-related case-fatality distribution among H5N1 cases are reminiscent of those observed during previous influenza pandemics, particularly in 1918, where case-fatality rates were higher among young adults."

To date, the H5N1 virus has infected 228 people since the virus became prevalent in late 2003, first appearing in a Chinese resident. Indonesia is the hardest hit country to date reporting more than 45 Bird flu confirmed cases, and this year alone, 54 people have succumbed to the virus ranging in countries from; Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq and Turkey.

By Luther Brady

Study proves that light cigarettes are just as bad for you as regular ones

A new study published in the American Journal of Public Health, suggests that for somebody smoking a lighter brand of cigarettes, the chances of that person quitting altogether are just as bad as they would be if they smoked a stronger brand.

According to lead author Dr. Hilary A. Tindle of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, many smokers actually view smoking a light brand of cigarette as an alternative to quitting the habit altogether. People have the view that light cigarettes pose fewer health risks, when in actual fact, light cigarettes have been prooven to be just as bad for you as regular cigarettes.

There is a common view amongst experts, that people who smoke light cigarettes, do so to justify smoking more in order to get their nicotine fix, and although appear to contain fewer toxic chemicals, are just as bad due to the fact that people simply inhale harder, and smoke more often.

The study was done featuring 12000 current and former smokers, 1 third of whom stated that they had tried smoking light cigarettes in an attempt to quit; however, a telling statistic showed that 54% of "light cigarette" smokers were less likely to quit than smokers who never smoked light cigarettes.

"Because smoking is such a major cause of death and disability in this country and worldwide, we believe that it is critical to give smokers accurate information on the potentially detrimental effects of the use of lights to reduce health risks and the potential impact on subsequent smoking cessation," says Tindle.

It is estimated that 30 million smokers in the US, smoke a brand of light cigarette.

Source: CBSNews