Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker premiered on December 18, 1892 in St. Petersburg. I don’t like much about the holiday season (humbug!) but I do like listening to The Nutcracker on loop.
- Glaxo Says It Will Stop Paying Doctors to Promote Drugs – From Will.
- Experts Decisive Against Multivitamins: ‘Stop Wasting Money’ – “We believe that the case is closed— supplementing the diet of well-nourished adults with (most) mineral or vitamin supplements has no clear benefit and might even be harmful. These vitamins should not be used for chronic disease prevention. Enough is enough.” Oh snap! Did anyone read this study?
- Growing Up Unvaccinated – A woman remembers her unvaccinated childhood and explains why she has chosen to vaccinate her children. Good for posting on Facebook so that one of “those” friends sees it. From Stacey.
- This Chart Blows Up the Myth of the Welfare Queen – “The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows us the frugal reality of life on the social safety net.”
- Does Purell Breed Superbugs? – Soap and warm water, plus paper towels for added friction, are really the best ways to clean your hands. From Amy.
Does Purell Breed Superbugs? No. Most of the article is about triclosan, the active ingredient in most antibacterial soaps. It’s becoming less effective, getting into the waterways, etc. The alcohol in Purell is still effective at killing germs and viruses. However, it doesn’t remove dirt or deactivate spores, so it’s best paired with frequent hand-washing.
Seconding Jackal – Purell is made of ethyl alcohol, not triclosan. If bacteria gains resistance to alcohol-based antibacterials, we have a big problem on our hands.
And yeah, I know that the article actually discusses the difference, but those kinds of leading headlines are ripe for rampant misinterpretation.