Health & Science

• Wednesday, January 15th 2014 - 07:03 UTC

  Obesity problem in UK 'underestimated' and 'hard-hitting' campaigns are needed

  

  Predictions that half the British population will be obese by 2050 “underestimate” the scale of the obesity crisis, a report suggests. The UK is in danger of surpassing predictions of a 2007 report which estimated that 50% of the nation would be obese by 2050, the National Obesity Forum said.

• Friday, January 10th 2014 - 06:27 UTC

  Construction of Monsanto plant in north Argentina halted on environmental grounds

  

  A labor appeals court in north-central Argentina ruled that the construction of a Monsanto plant is unconstitutional, halting work on the site. The three judge court ruled 2-1 in favor of the activists who filed a legal appeal against Monsanto’s GMO seed plant on environmental protection grounds in the municipality of Malvinas Argentinas, located in central Cordoba Province.

• Thursday, January 9th 2014 - 19:00 UTC

  End of the golden age of antibiotics, which has become a 'truly global issue'

  

  The growing threat of antibiotic resistant organisms is once again in the spotlight. Prof Jeremy Farrar, the new head of Britain's biggest medical research charity the Wellcome Trust said it was a “truly global issue”. Prof. Farrar told BBC Radio 4's Today program that the golden age of antibiotics could come to an end unless action is taken.

• Thursday, January 9th 2014 - 06:23 UTC

  Increase in TB cases in Buenos Aires linked to sweat shops working conditions

  

  Tuberculosis cases in Buenos Aires City have increased 25% between 1985 and 2011 according to a paper presented by a Federal Attorney who links the surge to dreadful working conditions in many of the sweat-shops in the Argentine capital that employ cheap foreign labor.

• Monday, January 6th 2014 - 19:07 UTC

  RAF Tornado fighter jets fly with parts made using 3D printing technology

  

  Royal Air Force Tornado fighter jets have flown with parts made using 3D printing technology for the first time, defense company BAE Systems has said. The metal components were used in test flights from the firm's airfield at Warton, Lancashire, late last month.

• Tuesday, December 17th 2013 - 17:51 UTC

  West Antarctic ice sheet loss, one of the multi-year projects to be started this year by BAS

  

  With the Antarctic Summer well underway, British Antarctic Territory Commissioner Peter Hayes has sent his well wishes to British Antarctic Survey staff (BAS) working on the continent over the coming months. In a recent letter to UK Base commanders Dr Hayes commented:

• Saturday, December 14th 2013 - 06:58 UTC

  Pot fumes: Mujica calls UN official, 'liar', after he accused Uruguay of 'pirate attitudes'

  

  President Jose Mujica reacted furiously to the accusation of Uruguay as a 'pirate state' from the UN official in charge of drugs' control, who was protesting the legalization of marihuana and because allegedly he was never received by the Uruguayan leader. Mujica bluntly replied, leaving aside all nice talk, “tell that old man to stop lying and stop showing off to the stands”.

• Saturday, December 14th 2013 - 06:40 UTC

  A Nobel peace prize for Uruguay for legalizing cannabis

  

  Uruguay's recent passing of a bill legalizing cannabis from production to distribution has generated headlines and controversy worldwide. The basics of the law is that current methods to combat drugs addiction and trade have failed completely and new options should be experimented.
  The Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins writes on the controversy.

• Friday, December 13th 2013 - 18:06 UTC

  UK dengue fever health warning for Britons traveling to the Caribbean

  

  The United Kingdom has issued a new health advisory for Britons travelling to the Caribbean following a surge in the incidence of dengue fever in England. The steep rise in British cases of the mosquito-borne disease has forced the health agency Public Health England (PHE) to warn travelers to be on the alert for signs of the illness after visiting the Caribbean.

• Friday, December 13th 2013 - 09:15 UTC

  US to faze out use of antibiotics in animals for meat as resistant diseases keep rising

  

  Citing a potential threat to public health, the United States Food and Drug Administration is taking steps toward phasing out the use of some antibiotics in animals processed for meat. In the US many cattle, hog and poultry producers give their animals antibiotics regularly to ensure that they are healthy and to make the animals grow faster.