Science And Health

I wonder how many people who read Elizabeth Whelan's column regarding meat contamination realized that the American Council on Science and Health is not a government office, and that the group accepts money from industries that directly benefit from the council's findings. In this case, Whelan writes that irradiation could prevent tragedies like the Jack in the Box food poisoning episode. It's no coincidence that trade groups and private firms involved in food irradiation have given generously to Whelan's council over the past five years.

The article [“Gardasil Vaccine Doubts Grow,” Aug. 11] is irresponsible and grossly misleading. It will scare parents away from potentially lifesaving protection against cervical cancer (and genital warts) for their daughters. Of course "some doctors and parents" have concerns -- it would be impossible to get unanimity on any medical topic. But all pediatric and vaccine experts, as well as all federal health officials, advocate vaccination of preteen and young teen girls against human papilloma virus.

To the Editor: Martin Gardner's article "Mind Over Matter" (Book Review, Aug. 22) purports to review three books: Mary Baker Eddy's "Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures;" Dr. Gillian Gill's 1998 biography, "Mary Baker Eddy"; and Caroline Fraser's new "God's Perfect Child: Living and Dying in the Christian Science Church." Had these books received equal treatment along with their equal billing, the first two books would have considerably redressed the pointed imbalance of the latter.

Re "Panel OKs fast-food curbs," July 23 Obesity and its resultant health complications, especially diabetes, are indeed a challenging public health problem in our nation. But banning so-called fast-food restaurants from specific zones will not ameliorate the problem. People will walk a few extra blocks to get the products they crave, especially in today's cost-conscious environment. Eliminating Big Macs and their ilk won't bring in supermarkets and green grocers -- and even if it did, the public needs to be educated about the real root causes of obesity: poor nutritional balance and inadequate exercise.

The article [“Gardasil Vaccine Doubts Grow,” Aug. 11] is irresponsible and grossly misleading. It will scare parents away from potentially lifesaving protection against cervical cancer (and genital warts) for their daughters. Of course "some doctors and parents" have concerns -- it would be impossible to get unanimity on any medical topic. But all pediatric and vaccine experts, as well as all federal health officials, advocate vaccination of preteen and young teen girls against human papilloma virus.

Your article on toxicants in "green" products will needlessly frighten consumers who use them. ("Popular 'green' products test positive for toxicant," March 14) The fact that a substance is detectable at parts-per-million levels does not indicate that it's in any way harmful to our health or that of our children. As your article notes, the Food and Drug Administration is not concerned about adverse health effects of 1,4-dioxane. Since no human being has ever been harmed by the low levels of this chemical in any product, your readers should not be concerned either.

Re "Panel OKs fast-food curbs," July 23 Obesity and its resultant health complications, especially diabetes, are indeed a challenging public health problem in our nation. But banning so-called fast-food restaurants from specific zones will not ameliorate the problem. People will walk a few extra blocks to get the products they crave, especially in today's cost-conscious environment. Eliminating Big Macs and their ilk won't bring in supermarkets and green grocers -- and even if it did, the public needs to be educated about the real root causes of obesity: poor nutritional balance and inadequate exercise.

Regarding Glenn M. Langdon's comment on Tiger Woods' loss to Darren Clarke in match play: "He's not even atop a 3,000-pound racehorse going 35 mph." As a 36-year fan of horse racing, I've yet to see a Budweiser Clydesdale start a race or go 35 mph. Besides, it wouldn't even fit in the starting gate. STEVE McNURLIN Lomita

Earl Ubell, a journalist who covered the leading health and science breakthroughs of the postwar age with a lively and effective style, died Wednesday at a nursing facility in Englewood, N.J. He was 80 and had Parkinson's disease and dementia. Ubell, who had a physics degree, first came to prominence as science editor at the New York Herald Tribune from 1953 until the paper folded in 1966. His columns regularly appeared in the Los Angeles Times from 1959 until 1966.

From the jacket and frontispiece of Gillian Gill's massive, impeccably researched biography, a haunting photo of Mary Baker Eddy, taken when she was a young widow, stares at you. Her gaunt face, especially her enormous eyes, seem tinged with suffering, perhaps also with madness.

Your article on toxicants in "green" products will needlessly frighten consumers who use them. ("Popular 'green' products test positive for toxicant," March 14) The fact that a substance is detectable at parts-per-million levels does not indicate that it's in any way harmful to our health or that of our children. As your article notes, the Food and Drug Administration is not concerned about adverse health effects of 1,4-dioxane. Since no human being has ever been harmed by the low levels of this chemical in any product, your readers should not be concerned either.

Earl Ubell, a journalist who covered the leading health and science breakthroughs of the postwar age with a lively and effective style, died Wednesday at a nursing facility in Englewood, N.J. He was 80 and had Parkinson's disease and dementia. Ubell, who had a physics degree, first came to prominence as science editor at the New York Herald Tribune from 1953 until the paper folded in 1966. His columns regularly appeared in the Los Angeles Times from 1959 until 1966.

Regarding Glenn M. Langdon's comment on Tiger Woods' loss to Darren Clarke in match play: "He's not even atop a 3,000-pound racehorse going 35 mph." As a 36-year fan of horse racing, I've yet to see a Budweiser Clydesdale start a race or go 35 mph. Besides, it wouldn't even fit in the starting gate. STEVE McNURLIN Lomita

To the Editor: Martin Gardner's article "Mind Over Matter" (Book Review, Aug. 22) purports to review three books: Mary Baker Eddy's "Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures;" Dr. Gillian Gill's 1998 biography, "Mary Baker Eddy"; and Caroline Fraser's new "God's Perfect Child: Living and Dying in the Christian Science Church." Had these books received equal treatment along with their equal billing, the first two books would have considerably redressed the pointed imbalance of the latter.

From the jacket and frontispiece of Gillian Gill's massive, impeccably researched biography, a haunting photo of Mary Baker Eddy, taken when she was a young widow, stares at you. Her gaunt face, especially her enormous eyes, seem tinged with suffering, perhaps also with madness.

I wonder how many people who read Elizabeth Whelan's column regarding meat contamination realized that the American Council on Science and Health is not a government office, and that the group accepts money from industries that directly benefit from the council's findings. In this case, Whelan writes that irradiation could prevent tragedies like the Jack in the Box food poisoning episode. It's no coincidence that trade groups and private firms involved in food irradiation have given generously to Whelan's council over the past five years.

Endorsing the view that reducing risk is always for the best are the California attorney general and environmental activists. They want to warn consumers about the presence of acrylamide, a known carcinogen, in French fries and potato chips. Taking a more pragmatic approach are food scientists. They say that acrylamide has been discovered in many foods -- black olives, coffee, bread, breakfast cereal -- and that humans have been eating the chemical for years with few, if any, ill effects.

The American Medical Assn. voted Tuesday to declare obesity a disease, a move that effectively defines 78 million American adults and 12 million children as having a medical condition requiring treatment. The nation's leading physicians organization took the vote after debating whether the action would do more to help affected patients get useful treatment or would further stigmatize a condition with many causes and few easy fixes. In the end, members of the AMA's House of Delegates rejected cautionary advice from their own experts and extended the new status to a condition that affects more than one-third of adults and 17% of children in the United States.