A series providing answers to common questions from a scientific standpoint
A friend with kids who just went back to school asked me about using various zinc products to reduce the length of or prevent the common cold. Years ago, I tried the nasal swab version of one of these products (Zicam) and was amazed at how painful they were. This prompted me to research the … Read more
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are becoming a major threat to human health (Figure 1). After a recent scare with a relative who contracted pneumonia while in the hospital, I began to think about antibiotic resistance and how bacteria become resistant even to those antibiotics that are rarely used, such as the carbapenem antibiotics. Bacteria can be infected … Read more
What is a vaccine? A vaccine may be described as medicine that stimulates an immune response with a “memory.” Many people also consider a vaccine to be a medicine that prevents a disease caused by a pathogen. Indeed, the first vaccines were ones that prevented infectious diseases, such as polio and measles. Some vaccines have … Read more
I have known many people, including my own mother, who suffered from heartburn or gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). Frequently, they complain of pain at night and have wondered why they would have pain at night when they are not eating. The simple answer is that there is a surge of acid production by the stomach … Read more
A recent conversation inspired me to start the series: “In case you were wondering.” This is the first post in the series. We were discussing how people can exhibit different sensitivities to medicines, either the desired effect or side effects. The example that my relative used was the difference in children’s responses to local anesthetics, … Read more