Infectious Thoughts

I recently wrote about an ‘advertising feature’ I saw in a magazine that discussed migraines before leading onto an advert for a migraine prevention medicine. I jumped to the conclusion that the ‘feature’ was paid for by the pharmaceutical company, but thought it best to get in touch with the magazine and check. So I owe Janssen‘s an … Read More

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Reading the July issue of North & South I came across a 4 page advertising feature called “Good Health Special Report”. It starts: Taking time out and making your own health and wellbeing a priority isn’t just a nice idea – it’s a necessity. Our health report also brings you some of the latest developments and research into common … Read More

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Those familiar with my ‘infectious thoughts’ will know that I’m following the deadly European E. coli outbreak with great interest. Earlier this week, it was announced that the genome of the culprit strain had been sequenced by BGI (formally the Beijing Genomics Institute) in collaboration with the University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf. A really interesting development has been release of … Read More

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Forensic evidence emerges that European e.coli superbug was bioengineered to produce human fatalities So says Mike Adams, also known as the ‘Health Ranger’, a “natural health researcher, author and award-winning journalist with a mission to teach personal and planetary health to the public“. He has just posted this astonishing article on his blog. Where do we begin? Lets start … Read More

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Escherichia coli, better known as E. coli, is a common inhabitant of the human gut. Most E. coli strains are harmless but a few can cause serious illness and even death. One such group, known as enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) or Shiga-toxin producing E. coli (STEC), cause bloody diarrhoea, and in some people, Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome (HUS) which … Read More

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I’ve just been informed that the NZ College of Chiropractic will be attending the University Of Canterbury Careers Fair in an attempt to recruit science students. The fair is being held on Monday the 16th May in the NZi3 foyer from 5pm – 8pm. Given how much it costs to see a chiropractor, this will probably seem like … Read More

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Hidden amongst the hysteria of the royal wedding, the EU Directive on Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products came into force. Actually, it came into force in 2005 but there has been a ‘transitional period’ which ran out at the end of April. The Directive requires traditional, over-the-counter herbal remedies to be made to assured standards of safety and quality … Read More

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Apparently last week was National Immunisation Week, promoted by the Ministry of Health as part of the WHO’s Western Pacific Region Vaccination Week. It completely passed me by, hence this post a week after the event. Oops. This is what the WHO had in mind: Educate parents and caregivers about the importance of vaccination in protecting their children from … Read More

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A few days ago I blogged about the very sad case of Chace Topperwien, a little boy who is undergoing treatment for acute myaloid leukaemia (AML). Chace’s story made the news because his family believe that the AML must be related to his accidentally being given the Gardasil vaccine as a baby. The post generated … Read More

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“Parents fear toddler’s illness result of vaccine” says the NZ Herald. “Wrongly injected toddler fights leukaemia” says the Waikato Times. Chace Topperwien was incorrectly given the Gardasil vaccine as a six week old baby. Now just shy of his second birthday he has been diagnosed with acute myaloid leukaemia (AML). Gardasil is a vaccine against types … Read More

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