Research Suggests There May Be A Limit To Human Life Span.

points out that “starting in the late 19th century, average life expectancy started to rise because fewer children were dying.” Meanwhile, “in recent decades, adults have also enjoyed better health.” On its website, NBC News (10/5, Fox) reports that the researchers wrote, “We show that improvements in survival with age tend to decline after age 100, and that the age at death of the world’s oldest person has not increased since the 1990s.” They added, “Our results strongly suggest that the maximum lifespan of humans is fixed and subject to natural constraints.” CBS News (10/5, Welch) reports on its website that although senior author Jan Vijg, PhD, “expects medical advancements to continue to keep more people healthier for a longer amount of time – thus increasing average life expectancy – he believes those advancements will not increase the maximum age of the longest-lived people.” http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/06/science/maximum-life-span-study.html

Copper Equipment May Reduce Infections In Hospitals, Study Suggests.

reports copper equipment may reduce infections in hospitals, according to a study published in the American Journal of Infection Control. Researchers installed “copper faucet handles, toilet flush levers, door handles, light switches and other commonly touched equipment” in “nine rooms in a small rural hospital” and found that there was less bacteria in those rooms compared to other rooms with “traditional plastic, porcelain and metal surfaces.” Curious how /why. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/04/well/copper-sinks-and-faucets-may-stem-hospital-infections.html?_r=0

J&J Warns Insulin Pump At Risk For Hacking.

reports that Johnson & Johnson “issued a warning about a possible cybersecurity issue with its Animas OneTouch Ping Insulin Infusion Pump.” Rapid 7, a cybersecurity firm, “discovered that it might be possible to take control of the pump via its an unencrypted radio frequency communication system that allows it to send commands and information via a wireless remote control.” J&J said there have been no cases of the device being hacked thus far. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-10-04/j-j-warns-diabetic-patients-about-hacking-risks-of-insulin-pumps

Range of Brain Injuries in Zika Microcephaly But overall pattern of brain atrophy suggests interference in neuronal migration

http://www.medpagetoday.com/Neurology/GeneralNeurology/60591?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2016-10-05&eun=g721819d0r&pos=3

Risk For Developing Diabetes May Be Modestly Increased In Adults With Job Insecurity, Study Finds

“The risk for developing diabetes is modestly increased in adults with job insecurity,” researchers found after evaluating “data from previously published studies including 140,825 adults (mean age, 42.2 years) to determine the role of job insecurity on the risk for incident diabetes.” The findings were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Endocrine Today (10/3, Cox) also covers the study. https://consumer.healthday.com/diabetes-information-10/type-ii-diabetes-news-183/workers-worried-about-job-loss-more-at-risk-of-diabetes-study-715361.html

No Wheat or Barley on the Label? Be Careful, There Could Still Be Gluten But specific 'gluten-free' labeling is generally trustworthy

http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/DietNutrition/60558?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2016-10-03&eun=g721819d0r&pos=2

Superbugs Cause Infections In At Least Two Million People In The US Annually, And Kill 23,000, CDC Data Suggest

reported that “many thousands of Californians are dying every year from infections they caught while in hospitals,” but one would not know by looking at “their death certificates,” as “California does not track deaths from hospital-acquired infections.” The Times pointed out that “University of Michigan researchers reported in a 2014 study that infections – both those acquired inside and outside hospitals – would replace heart disease and cancer as the leading causes of death in hospitals if the count was performed by looking at patients’ medical billing records...rather than death certificates.” http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-torrance-memorial-infections-20161002-snap-story.html