K0TWA, Zimbabwe — Since childhood, Loveness Bhitoni has collected fruit from the gigantic baobab trees surrounding her homestead in Zimbabwe to add variety to the family’s staple corn and millet diet. The 50-year-old Bhitoni never saw them as a source of cash, until now. Climate change-induced droughts have decimated her crops. Meanwhile, the world has … Read more
LOS ANGELES — In 2019, Brandon McDowell was contacted by a sophomore in college who asked to buy Percocet, a prescription painkiller. What the 20-year-old sold her instead were counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid that can be lethal in a dose as small as 2 milligrams. Hours later, Alexandra Capelouto, also … Read more
LONDON — Scientists searching for the origins of COVID-19 have zeroed in on a short list of animals that possibly helped spread it to people, an effort they hope could allow them to trace the outbreak back to its source. Researchers analyzed genetic material gathered from the Chinese market where the first outbreak was detected … Read more
Over the weekend, Tufts University announced that 12 players on the men’s lacrosse team had been diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a rare but serious condition where your muscles break down. Some of the athletes are now in the hospital for the condition, which can lead to disability and death if not properly addressed. The affected players … Read more
Dr. Nicole Saphier on ‘good alternative’ for flu shot Fox News medical contributor Dr. Nicole Saphier weighs in on the FDA approving an at-home nasal spray flu vaccine and 12 Tufts University lacrosse players being diagnosed with Rhabdomyolysis, a rare muscle condition. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved FluMist — the nasal … Read more
DAKAR, Senegal — The global vaccine alliance Gavi will buy 500,000 doses of mpox vaccine to battle outbreaks of the disease in African countries, the organization said on Wednesday. The vaccine doses — manufactured by the Danish company Bavarian Nordic — will be available this year, Gavi said, without giving any specific dates. Gavi said … Read more
In a nondescript garage in Connecticut, a New Haven man manufactured hundreds of thousands of counterfeit pills containing methamphetamine, a powerful opioid and other illicit drugs that he shipped around the U.S. and gave to local dealers to sell on the streets, new federal grand jury indictments allege. Federal law enforcement officials announced the criminal … Read more
LOS ANGELES — Health officials warned Wednesday that the Los Angeles area is seeing more dengue fever cases in people who have not traveled outside the U.S. mainland, a year after the first such case was reported in California. Public health officials said at least three people apparently became ill with dengue this month after … Read more
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Scientists in South Africa say they have identified an outbreak of rabies in seals that is believed to be the first time the virus has spread in sea mammals. At least 24 Cape fur seals that were found dead or euthanized in various locations on South Africa’s west and south … Read more
The first big update to U.S. methadone regulations in 20 years is poised to expand access to the life-saving drug starting next month, but experts say the addiction treatment changes could fall flat if state governments and methadone clinics fail to act. For decades, strict rules required most methadone patients to line up at special … Read more