From the American Council on Science and Health

Rise in autism diagnoses may be largely due to changes in diagnostic criteria - The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has increased significantly over the last thirty years, for mysterious reasons. This report indicates that most of that increase may be due to changes in the diagnostic criteria: not vaccines, car exhaust, or any other pseudoscientific explanations. Read more.

Keep e-cigarettes accessible to adults, not kids  - ACSH's Dr. Gil Ross had an op-ed published in the Detroit Free Press, discussing the questionable logic to which "public health" groups subscribe when deciding that any bill terming e-cigarettes as "non-tobacco" products must be vetoed, even if said bill includes restrictions on sales to minors. Read more.

Does HFCS shorten life? Maybe, for some female mice - A new "study" tries to show some adverse impact on mortality from high-fructose corn syrup. But: a) It's a mouse study; b) the alleged effect was only seen in females; c) HFCS has been declared safe by science based consensus, including ACSH's peer reviewed report. Read more.

 New antibiotic a game-changer in the fight against antimicrobial resistance - A new antibiotic has been discovered and incredibly, no resistance has been detected so far. Both the antibiotic and the technique used to discover it are being deemed revolutionary in the fight against superbugs. Read more.

 Biosimilars are coming. But, how similar are they really? - FDA advisory panel votes to recommend approval of "new" product from Novartis called Zarixio. If the FDA listens, pharmaceutical history will be made - the ability of companies to develop and market biologic drugs that are similar to other companies. Read more.

Healthy obese often don't stay that way - If you're obese but healthy, there's no reason to lose weight, right? Well, that may not actually be the case. A new study indicates that there's no guarantee that you'll remain that way as you age. Read more.

 New Drugs For Hepatitis C Show Value Of Choices For Treatment - ACSH's Dr. Josh Bloom and Dr. Henry Miller took on a controversial topic in the pharma world - so called "me-too" drugs. This derisive term should be anything but. Bloom and Miller explain how this concept led to the cure of hepatitis C. Read their Forbes piece here!

It could be more than just the "winter blues" - Seasonal affective disorder affects about 10% of the population, causing irritability, fatigue, and weight gain. Many brush it off as the "winter blues," but effective treatments, such as bright light therapy, exist. Some SAD patients have clinical depression. Read more.

Henry Miller in the Wall St. Journal: EPA/USDA strangled biopharming in its cradle  - In his op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, Dr. Henry Miller reminisces, sardonically, about the vast potential of "biopharming": genetically modifying plants to make pharmaceuticals. Yes, we remember: the regulators choked it to death. Read more.

Disneyland's measles outbreak continues to spread, is "100 percent connected" to the anti-vaccine movement - Earlier this month, we covered a measles outbreak that began in Disneyland. Now 59 cases of measles have been reported in California, and the obvious cause is the state's prevalent anti-vaccine movement. Read more.

Study claims association between hormonal contraceptives and brain tumors - If you scour a vast amount of data from various inputs vs. various outcomes, you will find some "statistically significant" linkage in the test sample by chance. That explains the association study authors found between contraceptives and brain tumors. Read more.

BPA = Big Phony Apocalypse, even in Europe - And yet another objective, science-based agency has declared bisphenol-A (BPA) "safe." This time, even those hyper-precautionary Europeans agree. Will this, at least, stop the hype against it? We doubt it. Read more.

"The Science of the 'Endocrine Disrupter' Debate" explains the absence of science - An opinion piece in the Independent Women's Forum by CEI's Angela Logomasini explores the science behind "endocrine disruptors." Summary: there isn't any. Read more.

New variety of GMO potato introduced by JR Simplot - The USDA approved the use of JR Simplot's 'Innate' potato last November. Now, a new variety - Generation 2 Innate - is up for consideration, which adds late blight resistance and reduces further the amount of acrylamide produced. Read more.

What is really killing bees? You may be surprised. - It has been "known" for years that bees are rapidly disappearing from the face of the earth, and that pesticides are to blame. Both of these "facts" are wrong, and a new review blames something entirely different for regional bee deaths. Read more.