— Bob-a-job-alog-a-roonie

Sunlight is good for you, unless you get too much. For those that wish to be out in the sun longer than is safe, there are a few options:

• Decide not to, at the expense of work, exercise or pleasure
• Wear long garments and look odd
• Wear sunscreen
• Risk getting burned

The latter sounds crazy, unless you’ve thought about the perils of sunscreen. In general, letting metal absorb into your skin is probably not a good idea – but who will pay for the research? If not reapplied every 3 hours, it can increase the odds of skin cancer, that has been proven.

Nowadays there’s an extra concern – nano-particles. More than 60% of Australians are worry about the tiny ingredients, and according to a survey:

…17% of people in Australia were so worried about the issue, they would rather risk skin cancer by going without sunscreen than use a product containing nanoparticles.

Epocrates is a free smartphone app, that doctors can use to quickly determine the best medication to prescribe – during your appointment. 320,000 out of the 600,000 doctors in the USA use it.

Sounds great!

Except, before the doctor gets to see the info, they see an ad for a product related to their search – a drug they now might prescribe because they were influenced by advertising. Not great at all.

Of the $60 billion spent each year on marketing, according to former Epocrates CEO, Kirk Loevner, $16 billion is spent trying to directly influence doctors. That’s $23,333 per doctor per year, and the industry is planning to increase that figure. They do it for one reason alone: it works. 

A pint of beer, a shot of whisky, or a glass of wine taken before exercise could reduce the risk of heart disease.

You have to wonder what prompted such a study! I love my drinking, but even with this news I can’t see myself following their advice. It just doesn’t sound right. About the only exercise you should ever do after drinking is a runner from a restaurant.

…drinking a moderate amount of alcohol before a strenuous workout reduces the levels of clotting substances in the blood by at least 15 per cent.

The moderate amount they used in the study was 1.5 pints of beer (or equivalent amounts or wine or whisky).

But what else does the drink do to you? It’s a relaxant, so I wouldn’t be surprised if your loosened muscles are more prone to injury.

Project Censored: Top 25 Censored Stories of 2012:

21: Lyme Disease: An Emerging Epidemic

Lyme disease is one of the most political and controversial epidemics of our time. Lyme originates from a bacteria transmitted through the bite of a tick and can remain hidden – often being called the great imitator – mimicking other diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis, ALS, ADHD and other neurological conditions. And it is growing – new cases of Lyme occur each year at a rate ten times higher then that of AIDS and the West Nile Virus combined.

Current Lyme treatment guidelines were developed by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (ISDA), a group associated with pharmaceutical, insurance and university interests that are profiting from the diagnostic criteria, vaccines and recommended treatments for Lyme. These guidelines, endorsed by the National Institute of Health and the CDC, define the treatment of Lyme as a two to four week course of antibiotic therapy.

Physician’s who believe Lyme is a more chronic condition needing long-term treatment, risk losing their medical license for treating patients outside IDSA guidelines. And insurance companies refuse to pay for longer treatments despite evidence that illustrates the chronic nature of the condition and the effectiveness of long-term therapies. This leaves thousands of Lyme patients suffering from a commercialized medical community that won’t acknowledge the chronic nature of their illness and the public uneducated about a growing epidemic.

Just an hour from Melbourne, they are now testing the nastiest animal diseases, presumably including many that can infect humans. I feel ill.

What’s been described as the world’s most advanced biosecurity research facility has been opened in the Victorian city of Geelong.

The new laboratory inside CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory was opened in the Victorian city of Geelong on Friday for research of infectious diseases that affect humans, domestic animals and wildlife.

As well as identifying and characterising viruses, the new facility will also investigate the origin of zoonotic diseases that affect both people and animals.

…CSIRO says the building is the most secure biosecurity and biocontainment facility in Australia.

A 1.5km exclusion zone around the building keeps livestock away.

You can almost guarantee that the precautions taken are less than sufficient. The proximity to 4 million people is evidence enough. Smug wankers.