Dr. Howard Smith Reports

Vidcast:  ttps://youtu.be/r6alvHymzwg

Simply rubbing your hands with Purell™ or  knock-offs will not kill the influenza virus.  A Japanese study just published by the American Society of Microbiology shows that the mucus that contains the virus protects it from alcohol-based hand sanitizers.

The typical 15-30 second sanitizer rub won’t kill the flu virus, or probably any virus, unless the secretions are dried.  The good news is that first washing your hands with an antiseptic soap for 30 seconds will kill virus.  

You don’t have antibacterial soap but do have Purell?  I suggest quickly washing your hands with any soap to eliminate mucus and then use the hand sanitizer. 

Ryohei Hirose, Takaaki Nakaya, Yuji Naito, Tomo Daidoji, Risa Bandou, Ken Inoue, Osamu Dohi, Naohisa Yoshida, Hideyuki Konishi, Yoshito Itoh. Situations Leading to Reduced Effectiveness of Current Hand Hygiene against Infectious Mucus from Influenza Virus-Infected Patients. mSphere, 2019; 4 (5) DOI: 10.1128/mSphere.00474-19

#Influenza #mucus #Purell

idcast:  https://youtu.be/bILq94CbJoc

Give kids active toys like bikes, skates, scooters, slides, and swings that motivate them to physically exert themselves.  When you do, they will not be among the more than 80% of kids who never meet physical activity guidelines.   These specify at least one hour of vigorous activity each day.

Researchers at the University of Queensland studied more than 4000 children 5-17 years of age.  Predictably, those with more active toys and relatively fewer electronic toys more often met physical activity goals.

Fabricating your kids’ world to promote physical activity teaches them to care for their bodies. This educational gift is the most valuable they’ll ever receive.

Katrina M. Moss, Annette J. Dobson, Kimberley L. Edwards, Kylie D. Hesketh, Yung-Ting Chang, Gita D. Mishra. Not All Play Equipment Is Created Equal: Associations Between Equipment at Home and Children’s Physical Activity. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 2019; 1 DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2019-0075

#Exercise #parenting #activetoys #electronic toys

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/IbIaSEhMt7c

Growing cannabis plants give off biogenic volatile organic compounds, BVOC for short, that can poison those exposed.  Besides the BVOCs from the plants, the oil extraction process gives off another, butane.  Together, these organic compounds create highly toxic ground-level ozone.

Researchers from Nevada’s Desert Research Institute studied emissions from four growing facilities in both Nevada and California.   The large number of plants at each location produce large amounts of BVOCs and ozone.  Nevada and California already exceed acceptable levels of group level ozone,

If you are growing marijuana, be certain to protect yourself sand your community from the fumes.  If you’re growing it legally, consult with the EPA and seek out ways to protect yourself and your community.

Vera Samburova, Mark McDaniel, Dave Campbell, Michael Wolf, William R. Stockwell, Andrey Khlystov. Dominant volatile organic compounds (VOCs) measured at four Cannabis growing facilities: pilot study results. Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2019; 1 DOI: 10.1080/10962247.2019.1654038

#cannabis #ozone #BVOC

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/IbIaSEhMt7c

Growing cannabis plants give off biogenic volatile organic compounds, BVOC for short, that can poison those exposed.  Besides the BVOCs from the plants, the oil extraction process gives off another, butane.  Together, these organic compounds create highly toxic ground-level ozone.

Researchers from Nevada’s Desert Research Institute studied emissions from four growing facilities in both Nevada and California.   The large number of plants at each location produce large amounts of BVOCs and ozone.  Nevada and California already exceed acceptable levels of group level ozone,

If you are growing marijuana, be certain to protect yourself sand your community from the fumes.  If you’re growing it legally, consult with the EPA and seek out ways to protect yourself and your community.

Vera Samburova, Mark McDaniel, Dave Campbell, Michael Wolf, William R. Stockwell, Andrey Khlystov. Dominant volatile organic compounds (VOCs) measured at four Cannabis growing facilities: pilot study results. Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2019; 1 DOI: 10.1080/10962247.2019.1654038

#cannabis #ozone #BVOC

Vidcast:  ttps://youtu.be/r6alvHymzwg

Simply rubbing your hands with Purell™ or  knock-offs will not kill the influenza virus.  A Japanese study just published by the American Society of Microbiology shows that the mucus that contains the virus protects it from alcohol-based hand sanitizers.

The typical 15-30 second sanitizer rub won’t kill the flu virus, or probably any virus, unless the secretions are dried.  The good news is that first washing your hands with an antiseptic soap for 30 seconds will kill virus.  

You don’t have antibacterial soap but do have Purell?  I suggest quickly washing your hands with any soap to eliminate mucus and then use the hand sanitizer. 

Ryohei Hirose, Takaaki Nakaya, Yuji Naito, Tomo Daidoji, Risa Bandou, Ken Inoue, Osamu Dohi, Naohisa Yoshida, Hideyuki Konishi, Yoshito Itoh. Situations Leading to Reduced Effectiveness of Current Hand Hygiene against Infectious Mucus from Influenza Virus-Infected Patients. mSphere, 2019; 4 (5) DOI: 10.1128/mSphere.00474-19

#Influenza #mucus #Purell

idcast:  https://youtu.be/bILq94CbJoc

Give kids active toys like bikes, skates, scooters, slides, and swings that motivate them to physically exert themselves.  When you do, they will not be among the more than 80% of kids who never meet physical activity guidelines.   These specify at least one hour of vigorous activity each day.

Researchers at the University of Queensland studied more than 4000 children 5-17 years of age.  Predictably, those with more active toys and relatively fewer electronic toys more often met physical activity goals.

Fabricating your kids’ world to promote physical activity teaches them to care for their bodies. This educational gift is the most valuable they’ll ever receive.

Katrina M. Moss, Annette J. Dobson, Kimberley L. Edwards, Kylie D. Hesketh, Yung-Ting Chang, Gita D. Mishra. Not All Play Equipment Is Created Equal: Associations Between Equipment at Home and Children’s Physical Activity. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 2019; 1 DOI: 10.1123/jpah.2019-0075

#Exercise #parenting #activetoys #electronic toys

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/GIM0xl8Rs10

Babies delivered by C-section rather than by a normal vaginal route develop a gastrointestinal bacterial population contaminated by bad bugs found around the hospital.  Their gut bacteria include antibiotic-resistant ones rather than the more benign species found in their mothers.

British researchers studied 600 healthy babies to identify their gut bacteria using DNA fingerprinting techniques.  The C-section babies had more than 800 potentially-dangerous bacteria, of the type that cause life-threatening, blood-borne infections in hospitalized patients.

These observations mandate that C-sections be avoided except for life-threatening situations.  Elective c-sections for convenience are foolish and unnecessarily risky.

Yan Shao et al. Stunted gut microbiota and increased pathogen colonisation associated with caesarean birth. Nature #2019 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1560-1

#Caesariansection #microbiome #antibioticresistantbacteria

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/GIM0xl8Rs10

Babies delivered by C-section rather than by a normal vaginal route develop a gastrointestinal bacterial population contaminated by bad bugs found around the hospital.  Their gut bacteria include antibiotic-resistant ones rather than the more benign species found in their mothers.

British researchers studied 600 healthy babies to identify their gut bacteria using DNA fingerprinting techniques.  The C-section babies had more than 800 potentially-dangerous bacteria, of the type that cause life-threatening, blood-borne infections in hospitalized patients.

These observations mandate that C-sections be avoided except for life-threatening situations.  Elective c-sections for convenience are foolish and unnecessarily risky.

Yan Shao et al. Stunted gut microbiota and increased pathogen colonisation associated with caesarean birth. Nature #2019 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1560-1

#Caesariansection #microbiome #antibioticresistantbacteria

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/bTWGLdnm90w

If you prefer more conservative medical therapy but must visit a surgeon for a consultation, pick an appointment at the end of day or just before lunch.  You’ll be half as likely to hear a recommendation for surgery.

A Swedish study of some 848 orthopedic appointments confirms that, when doctors are relatively fatigued, they avoid difficult or risky decisions.  Patients visited the orthopods during a total of 133 office sessions including morning, afternoon, or all-day.  The surgeons recommended operations more than 40% of the time earlier in the sessions but only 22% of the time at the end of any given session.

In general, if you can, see clinicians at the beginning of any given office session.  Their minds will be fresh and they will most likely be on time.

Emil Persson, Kinga Barrafrem, Andreas Meunier, Gustav Tinghög. The effect of decision fatigue on surgeons' clinical decision making. Health Economics, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/hec.3933

#Surgery #officevisits #conservativetherapy

Vidcast:  https://youtu.be/bTWGLdnm90w

If you prefer more conservative medical therapy but must visit a surgeon for a consultation, pick an appointment at the end of day or just before lunch.  You’ll be half as likely to hear a recommendation for surgery.

A Swedish study of some 848 orthopedic appointments confirms that, when doctors are relatively fatigued, they avoid difficult or risky decisions.  Patients visited the orthopods during a total of 133 office sessions including morning, afternoon, or all-day.  The surgeons recommended operations more than 40% of the time earlier in the sessions but only 22% of the time at the end of any given session.

In general, if you can, see clinicians at the beginning of any given office session.  Their minds will be fresh and they will most likely be on time.

Emil Persson, Kinga Barrafrem, Andreas Meunier, Gustav Tinghög. The effect of decision fatigue on surgeons' clinical decision making. Health Economics, 2019; DOI: 10.1002/hec.3933

#Surgery #officevisits #conservativetherapy