Staphylococcus aureus is a widespread bacteria — about a third of us have it on our body right now — usually in our nose or on our skin. And it probably isn't causing an infection. But, about 1% of people who have Staphylococcus aureus present have a type that is resistant to the antibiotic methicillin.
Foodborne infections often occur through the contamination of equipment, food-prep tools, and unsanitary surfaces. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reminds us that breast pump parts are part of the food-delivery chain — and they can become contaminated too.
For once there is good news — surprising news, but good news — in the fight against antibiotic-resistant organisms. A recent study found that Staphylococcus aureus bacteria is becoming more sensitive to some key drugs used to treat it.
For younger children, a day at the playground is not complete without some sandbox time. Long a favorite of children and parents, sandboxes could also be sheltering dangerous pathogens.
Montezuma's revenge, the runs, the trots, or just diarrhea — everyone gets it sooner or later. What exactly is diarrhea good for, if anything?
What would it be like to have clothing that killed microbes? Or paper that repelled pathogens? A research team from Rutgers University has developed a prototype out of metalized paper to zap the bad guys without being super expensive. Sound good? Read on.
Multistate outbreaks of Salmonella infection in humans have led the Centers for Disease Control to advise caution when interacting with poultry. A press release on June 1st mentioned eight multistate outbreaks connected to backyard flocks. As of May 25, 372 people in 47 states were reported infected with the outbreaks' Salmonella strains. That means this year could be as bad as 2016, a record year, for salmonella outbreaks with 895 people infected.
The possibility of severe tickborne illness is increasing as an aggressive tick from the American southeast moves up the Atlantic Coast.
An innovative new wound dressing has been developed by a research team at Lodz University of Technology in Poland that uses crustacean shells to create a bandage that packs an antimicrobial punch — and even more potential to help solve a global problem.
Bioluminescence — the ability of an organism to produce and emit light — is nature's light show. Plants, insects, fish, and bacteria do it, and scientists understand how. Until now, though, we didn't know how fungi glow.
Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly contagious disease that can be life-threatening for young children. New research backs a recommendation that all pregnant women receive a pertussis booster with each pregnancy, as it can help their infants fight off the infection.
Antibiotics used to prevent diseases in livestock are creating a world of hurt for humans and the soil we depend on for food. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is a global health issue. The overuse, underuse, and poor use of these life-saving drugs is rapidly removing them as a treatment option for serious infections in humans—plus bacteria are naturally adaptive.
Have you ever had the stomach flu, aka the 24-hour flu? Well, chances are high that you never had influenza, but an intestinal infection called gastroenteritis.
You probably don't give much thought to buying yogurt in the store. You have your favorite brand, or maybe you like trying new varieties each week; either way, you just grab it and go.
When to throw meat away is a common question, and one I often ask when faced with meat sitting in the fridge after a few days. With vegetables, you can usually tell on sight (or with this guide) when they're past due, but meat is not as simple.
Black lights come in all shapes and sizes, and they're useful in a variety of ways. They can help you spot fake currency, urine stains, interesting rocks, and deadly scorpions, and they can even help you view cool fluorescent artwork.
Just what are probiotics and why are they so good for you? Probiotics are "viable microorganisms" that can confer lots and lots of health benefits if they reach your intestine while they're alive. You may have heard them described as "friendly bacteria."
In the case of rotting food, microbes are not our friends. Now, scientists have developed a new food wrap coated with tiny clay tubes packed with an antibacterial essential oil that can extend the shelf life of perishable food, so we can waste less and eat more.
Windborne microbes shifting in the snows of the great ice sheet of Greenland may be able to neutralize some of the industrial contaminants oozing out of the melting ice.
While it is easy to create and maintain your compost pile, you can enjoy it more knowing a few basic tips.
Every party has a pooper, and that's why you're reading this article. We don't mean to be a downer on such a fun day as 4/20, but it's important to make sure you know about the source of your pot, especially if you're one of the 2,299,016 people who use medical marijuana in the US.
Some Montana inhabitants have been making impassioned pleas to legalize raw milk this week. The debate took place during a hearing on House Bill 325, which was held by the Senate Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation Committee on Tuesday, March 21.
Don't Miss: Make Opened Wine Last Longer
Your freezer is no one-trick pony. While it does excel at keeping your food fresh for as long as possible, it has a few secret talents it doesn't want you to know about. Like making soda slushies and pyro-friendly smoke mix, as well as reviving dead hard drives. Even better—it can help you do laundry.
Only a handful of food products are impervious to spoilage—dried rice, salt, sugar—but even among those, honey is unique in that it remains edible without any preparation necessary. It's like this: if you came across honey in an Egyptian tomb, as archaeologists have, you could taste it and never guess it was thousands of years old.
Acne develops when pores become blocked with dead skin cells and oil. They usually disappear over time but sometimes they leave a scar. When those blemishes form white blood cells rush to the surface to help heal the area. But occasionally a scar forms. Popping and picking can send bacteria further into the skin and increase the blemish and it greatly increases the likelihood that a scar will appear. Nodules and cysts are more severe blemishes and have an increased likelihood of leaving scars...
At a global security conference in Munich, philanthropist and businessman Bill Gates spoke about the next pandemic and a dire lack of global readiness. Here's how his statement could come true—and how to be ready when it does.
Learn how to make a "Resident Evil"-style Biohazard Virus with nothing except the brush tool and layer effects in Photoshop. Use adjustment layers to create extra grain and contrast to your made from scratch hi-res microscopic bacteria and learn more about those brush tool options you didn't know about.
In this video Debbie Witter gives tips on how to get rid of a stye. A stye is a painful little pimple on your eyelid that comes from a bacteria called staphylococcal, which is found in the nose. Children get styes often because they pick their noses and then rub their eyes. Frequent hand washing is the best way to keep from getting a stye. Other possible causes are a clogged pore or ingrown hair.
There is nothing like fresh vegetables from the garden. Dave Epstein shows us the secrets to planting peas.
John White of Southwest Yard and Garden along with Kitty Schafer teach you about bio-intensive gardening. Bio-intensive gardening is the combination of two techniques. Part of the technique involves composting top soil with other coarse organic material into a lasagna style mound. Add 2 inches of straw to the soil and spray with water. Add 2 inches of green material that you have collected from other area of your garden, such as bug eaten greens or specific greens for composting. Then add som...
"Foodborne illnesses are responsible for more than 75 million illnesses, more than 230,000 hospitalizations, and approximately 5000 deaths each year in the United States." In this six-part video lesson, learn about the basics of food safety in a commercial food enviornment. In the first video, three types of contamination are gone over as well as how improper handling can allow food to become dangerous to your patrons. In video two, learn about proper holding times and temperatures, and what ...
In this video, Jennifer Taggart Of Healthy Child Healthy World shows us how to make a non-toxic disinfecting cleaner. You can use this cleaner for almost any surface in your home. What you'll need is a re-purpose spray bottle, some castile soap, some tea tree oil, and water. For the water, it's preferable to use distilled water, but you don't have to. The distilled water ensures there's no bacteria or anything in it. First, if you're re-using a spray bottle make sure it's clean. Add 2 cups of...
Treat your acne and pimples the natural way with this video! Take some honey and put it in a small microwave safe bowl. You will want to heat it for maybe 8-10 seconds. You are not trying to heat the honey and make it hot. You are trying to thin the honey out a little bit so that it is not so thick. Before you heat it, it is harder to spread and sticky. Get a cheap foundation brush and use it to apply the honey. Start in the affected areas and spread it out over your whole face because it's g...
Ingrown toenails happen when the nails on your toes grow in the wrong direction and dig into the surrounding skin. Follow a few easy steps to treat this painful condition, and prevent it from happening again.
Once we recover from the respiratory infection pneumonia, our lungs are better equipped to deal with the next infection — thanks to some special cells that take up residence there.
It's not always easy to get to the root of an infection outbreak. Epidemiologists study infected people, contacts, and carefully examine where the infections happened and when. In the case of a 2012 outbreak of pertussis — whooping cough — in Oregon, scientists just published an analysis of how vaccination status affected when a child became infected during the outbreak.
Long admired for their active and cooperative community behavior, some types of ants also wear a gardening hat. Nurturing underground fungus gardens, these ants have a win-win relationship that provides food for both ants and fungi. If we humans understand it better, it may just help us out, too.
Termite poop and biofuels — what's the connection? New research into termites' intestinal comings and goings describes a process that may speed the development and lower the cost of fuels made from plant matter.
When it comes to global warming, most of us think of carbon dioxide emissions. While carbon dioxide is the most important greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide emissions have stayed constant for the last three years. On the other hand, methane, the second most important gas, has been steadily rising since 2007.
