The Trump administration has weakened fuel-efficiency requirements for the nation's cars and trucks. Drew Angerer / Getty Images
As the days tick down to next month's presidential election, debate rages over the U.S. government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic with critics of President Donald Trump calling for his ouster due to his failure to protect the American public.
<p>And yet as mass media runs daily tallies of COVID-related cases and deaths, a more sinister threat to public health looms as the Trump administration rolls back regulations that govern the quality of our air, land and water. And though these actions are garnering little public outcry now, they pose grave danger to our children and their children for decades to come. It's a simple truth — a poisoned environment means poisoned people.</p><p>In recent months the Trump administration <a href="https://news.osu.edu/a-watershed-moment-for-us-water-quality/" target="_blank">has stripped protections</a> from wetlands in ways that allow for the dumping of pesticides and other pollutants directly into millions of miles of streams and other waterways; <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/climate/epa-mercury-coal.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">relaxed rules on power plants</a> designed to curb air emissions containing brain-damaging heavy metals <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mercury-and-health" target="_blank">such as mercury</a>; altered automobile fuel efficiency standards to be <a href="https://www.epa.gov/regulations-emissions-vehicles-and-engines/regulations-greenhouse-gas-emissions-passenger-cars-and" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">"less stringent,"</a> allowed more emissions of climate-damaging carbon dioxide; and rolled back requirements governing how coal-fired power plants <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-finalizes-power-plant-effluent-limitation-guidelines-save-money-and-reduce" target="_blank">dispose of toxic wastewater</a>, a move <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/31/climate/trump-coal-plants.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">praised by coal industry executives</a> but expected to add increased levels of lead, arsenic and other harmful contaminants to the environment. </p><p>If there was any doubt about how little Trump cares for the health of our children, that was made clear last month when the Environmental Protection Agency <a href="https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/epa-takes-next-step-review-process-insecticide-chlorpyrifos-making-draft-risk-assessments" target="_blank">(EPA) announced</a> it would continue to allow <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/08/california-pesticide-ban-chlorpyrifos-agriculture" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the neurotoxic chemical chlorpyrifos</a> to be used to grow food despite years of <a href="https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/prenatal-exposure-insecticide-chlorpyrifos-linked-alterations-brain-structure" target="_blank">scientific research</a> showing the pesticide damages babies' brain development. Residues of chlorpyrifos are commonly found in food consumed by young children. A <a href="https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/2018PDPAnnualSummary.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">USDA report</a> released last year documented chlorpyrifos residues in raisins, peaches, mangoes and asparagus, among other foods. </p>
<p>Amid the rush to ease regulations before the end of Trump's term, the EPA is also working to appoint new <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/521044-shuffle-of-epas-science-advisors-elevates-those-with-industry-tries" target="_blank">industry-friendly individuals</a> to its scientific advisory board. In an October 14 announcement, the agency said the new vice chair of the board would be Dr. Barbara Beck, who works for an industry <a href="https://gradientcorp.com/" target="_blank">consulting company</a> with a history of defending controversial chemicals and other substances. Beck has <a href="https://gradientcorp.com/alerts/pdf/Testimony_040711.pdf" target="_blank">advocated</a> for loosened restrictions on lead despite the fact that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/prevention/health-effects.htm" target="_blank">says lead exposure</a> damages a child's brain and nervous system and can cause learning and behavior problems.</p><p>"Trump is burning down the house," Tim Whitehouse, a former senior attorney with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), told me. Whitehouse now heads an organization representing thousands of government employees called Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), and says government scientists are being ignored as the administration pushes through favors for influential industries.</p><p>"I think it's beyond a difference in policy. It is a feeling that the people who are put in charge are robbing the house," Whitehouse said. "We're in a period of massive biodiversity loss and increasing chemical and toxic burdens on individuals, and the EPA is not responding to the crises at hand." </p>
<p>PEER has joined with other groups in suing the EPA over its elimination of clean water protections, charging in a <a href="https://www.peer.org/epa-political-appointees-violate-science-integrity-rules/" target="_blank">formal complaint</a> that Trump's political appointees are ignoring scientific evidence of the harms certain to be wrought by the rule changes.</p><p>To be sure, the EPA's fealty to industry is not unique to the Trump Administration. Indeed, the agency's loyalty to companies over consumers seems to be a longstanding bipartisan tradition. Trump's predecessor President Barack Obama also <a href="https://www.peer.org/epa-posts-pathetically-weak-scientific-integrity-proposal/" target="_blank">faced criticism</a> for actions – and inaction – by his EPA. </p><p>And numerous administrations are to blame for allowing the broad spread of toxic chemicals known <a href="https://theintercept.com/collections/bad-chemistry/" target="_blank">as PFAS</a> (short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) that are linked to an array of serious health problems. </p>
<p><span style="background-color: initial;">But we simply cannot afford this political bargaining with our health anymore. In taking more than 200,000 lives in less than a year, t</span>he COVID-19 virus has underscored the already fragile condition of our health. People suffering from cancer, chronic kidney disease, obesity, and other problems are at increased risk of becoming seriously ill or dying if stricken with COVID-19, <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html" target="_blank">according to the CDC.</a> Scientists <span style="background-color: initial;">have <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S004896972032221X" target="_blank">rightly pointed out</a></span> that <span style="background-color: initial;">environmental pollution is a contributing factor to the vulnerability of many people to the COVID-19 virus.</span></p><p>Adding more toxins into the air we breathe and water we drink only ensures more vulnerability and more deaths. </p><p>We already are facing frightening levels of neurodevelopmental disorders, cancer and disease in our population: Autism spectrum disorder is now effecting roughly <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/ss/ss6904a1.htm?s_cid=ss6904a1_w" target="_blank">1 in every 54 children</a>, far more prevalent than 20 years ago. The rate at which children are diagnosed with cancer has <a href="https://www.cancerfreeeconomy.org/childhood_cancer_prevention/?fbclid=IwAR2GKNud8wrvPjqvkeyDy03bJsDQK2z0wDVYHwyuQDmz_WgqfLyPosIVgs8" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">increased 34 percent</a> since 1975; in 2020 more than 16,800 kids are expected to be newly diagnosed. Overall, <a href="https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/statistics#:~:text=Approximately%252039.5%2525%2520of%2520men%2520and,will%2520die%2520of%2520the%2520disease." target="_blank">close to 40 percent</a> of men and women in the United States will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. More than 600,000 people are <a href="https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/common.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">dying every year</a> from cancer and more than 1.7 million are diagnosed with new cancers each year. </p>
<p>As an environmental journalist, I am astonished at the brazenness with which this administration has made clear that corporate well-being is more valuable than the health and well-being of citizens.</p><p>And as a mother, I agonize over the suffering, sickness and struggles I know lie ahead for our future generations. </p><p>Years from now, when our children tell their children about this time, when they try to explain how much was lost, how cavalierly we allowed their health to be traded for the health of corporate profits, they will be right to blame us. They will also be right to not forgive us. </p>
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One report in spring 2020 found that 38% of students at four-year universities were food-insecure. Frederic J. Brown / AFP / Getty Images
By Matthew J. Landry and Heather Eicher-Miller
When university presidents were surveyed in spring of 2020 about what they felt were the most pressing concerns of COVID-19, college students going hungry didn't rank very high.
<p>Just <a href="https://www.acenet.edu/Research-Insights/Pages/Senior-Leaders/College-and-University-Presidents-Respond-to-COVID-19-April-2020.aspx" target="_blank">14% of the presidents</a> listed food or housing insecurity among their top five concerns.</p><p>Granted, these academic leaders had plenty of other things to worry about. Some 86% said they were worried about fall enrollment – a concern that has shown itself to be a legitimate one, especially in light of the fact that low-income students have been dropping out of college at what one headline described as "<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/09/16/college-enrollment-down/" target="_blank">alarming rates</a>."</p><p>As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=AfhawtoAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">researchers who specialize</a> in the study of <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=2ujk8c8AAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">food insecurity</a>, we see the dropout rate as being related to a host of underlying issues. And not having enough to eat is one of them.</p><p>Data support this view. The signs of this growing problem - known as <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us/definitions-of-food-security/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">food insecurity</a> – began to emerge when the COVID-19 epidemic was beginning to take its toll.</p><p><a href="https://hope4college.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Hopecenter_RealCollegeDuringthePandemic.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">One spring 2020 report</a> found that 38% of students at four-year universities were food-insecure in the previous 30 days. That was up 5 percentage points from <a href="https://hope4college.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">33% in the fall of 2019</a>.</p><p>College students, clearly, warrant special attention as a group. These rates of food insecurity are more than three times the rate of that in all U.S. households, which was <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details/?pubid=99281" target="_blank">estimated to be 10.5%</a> in 2019.</p><p>Historically, estimates of food insecurity among college students have ranged from 10% to 75%, according to 50 studies from U.S. academic institutions carried out from 2009 to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmz111" target="_blank">before the COVID-19 pandemic</a>.</p>
Why It Matters
<p>This is not just a matter of growling stomachs. This is a straight-up education and health issue.</p><p>When students don't really know if they'll be able to get enough to eat, it can lead to a series of problems that make it harder to stay in school. For instance, it can affect <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1359105318783028" target="_blank">academic performance</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-6943-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sleep quality</a>. It can also lead to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105318783028" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">poor mental and physical health</a> outcomes for college students.</p><p>Food insecurity can also result in disrupted eating patterns if there is <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6627945/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">not enough food or the variety</a> or <a href="https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-019-6943-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">quality of what someone eats</a> is low.</p>Campus Food Pantries
<p>Previous strategies by <a href="https://www.gao.gov/assets/700/696254.pdf" target="_blank">colleges and universities</a> to fight hunger in their student bodies have varied widely. They include campus food pantries, emergency cash assistance and nutrition education through noncredit classes or workshopse.</p><p>These strategies were put to the test during the spring 2020 semester, when nearly <a href="https://hope4college.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Hopecenter_RealCollegeDuringthePandemic.pdf" target="_blank">three in five students</a> said they had trouble meeting their own basic needs during the pandemic.</p><p>College food pantries saw <a href="https://www.utrgv.edu/newsroom/2020/05/01-utrgv-student-food-pantry-seeing-recent-increase-in-demand-during-covid-19.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">big increases</a> in demand. Others said they <a href="https://www.theprospectordaily.com/2020/09/22/uteps-food-pantry-is-running-out-of-food/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">were getting less donated food</a>. This made it even harder to meet the rising food needs of students.</p><p>Campus food pantries largely rely on local or regional food banks, which have been dealing with <a href="https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/2020/10/04/indiana-food-banks-call-more-food-stamps-meet-publics-need/3523683001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">greater demand</a> than they are able to meet during the pandemic.</p><p>The many students who are attending college remotely will, of course, have less access to campus resources like food pantries.</p>Federal Help
<p>Other potential ways to get more food are government programs like the <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/recipient/eligibility" target="_blank">Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program</a>, known as SNAP. Yet the majority of able-bodied students are not eligible. Long-standing restrictions, like the <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/students" target="_blank">college SNAP rule</a>, prevent full-time students from receiving these benefits.</p><p>Such regulatory hurdles were created under the assumption that most students can rely on their parents to get enough to eat. However, college students have vastly different levels of financial support. Some students can rely on their parents for everything and others cannot rely on their parents for anything.</p><p>Decreased reliance on parental financial support is <a href="https://ir.library.louisville.edu/jsfa/vol47/iss3/5/" target="_blank">especially common</a> for first-generation students and students of color, who now make up <a href="https://1xfsu31b52d33idlp13twtos-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Race-and-Ethnicity-in-Higher-Education.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">45% of enrolled college students</a>.</p><p>Under normal circumstances, many college students might rely on part-time jobs to pay for their food.</p><p>Two-thirds of the students who were employed before the pandemic said that job insecurity was a problem for them, according to the Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice <a href="https://hope4college.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/HOPE_realcollege_National_report_digital.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">#RealCollege survey</a>. As the number of <a href="https://www.bls.gov/news.release/youth.nr0.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">jobless young Americans</a> remains elevated, unemployment and underemployment remain a problem.</p><p>Jobless students face a potential double threat of less money for food and unemployment benefits cutting off their access to SNAP because the program <a href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/students" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">requires most students to work</a> at least part time.</p><p>Attempts have been made at both the federal and state levels to meet the basic food needs of college students. Lawmakers have focused on temporarily suspending eligibility requirements or expanding the criteria for participating in nutrition assistance programs.</p><p><a href="https://www.jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(20)30511-X/fulltext#seccesectitle0005" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Seventeen bills</a> aiming to address food insecurity among college students were introduced to Congress during the 2019-2020 legislative session. However, these proposals failed to gain momentum, and the four COVID-19 stimulus bills to date have not addressed the hunger needs of college students. Notably, some students were ineligible to personally receive a <a href="https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus-tax-relief-and-economic-impact-payments" target="_blank">CARES Act stimulus relief payment</a> because they were claimed as dependents by their parents.</p>
Short-Term Solutions
<p>Universities and colleges can make it a priority to ensure students are aware of all available campus resources and services. They can also potentially help students apply for federal assistance benefits.</p><p>Campus food pantries are not a fully effective and efficacious solution for the scale of college food insecurity, but they can be a good interim solution to increase access to food for students.</p><p>Campuses without food pantries can start one, making use of resources the <a href="https://cufba.org/resources/" target="_blank">College and University Food Bank Alliance</a> provides. Schools with food pantries can try to get them to <a href="https://www.swipehunger.org/5campuspantry/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reach more students</a>.</p><p>Universities and colleges can also lean on one another for support. The <a href="http://wp.auburn.edu/endchildhungeral/alabama-campus-coalition-for-basic-needs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Alabama Campus Coalition for Basic Needs</a> is a great example of this. It brings together 10 universities across the state of Alabama collectively working to address student food insecurity.</p>From Your Site Articles
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Tesla has more than doubled its third-quarter profits, delivering a record number of electric automobiles despite the pandemic. Tesla
By Kristie Pladson
U.S. electric carmaker Tesla has more than doubled its third-quarter profits, the company has announced, delivering a record number of electric automobiles amid a pandemic that has crippled fellow automakers.
<p>In a letter to investors, the company said it delivered 139,300 vehicles in the third quarter, a new quarterly record. It aims to have produced and delivered 500,000 cars by the end of the year.</p><p>Net profits in the third quarter reached $331 million, more than twice the $143 million posted at the same time a year earlier. Revenue went up nearly 40% to $8.7 billion, exceeding analysts' expectations.</p><p>The value of Tesla shares — which have increased fivefold since the beginning of the year — were up 4.3% to $440.81 in extended trading, news agency Reuters reported. </p><p>This marks the fifth straight quarter of profits for the company. As of September, Tesla reported making $451 million in 2020 and seems on course to post its first annual profit.</p>
CO2 Offset Sales Still Key
<p>An uptick in demand abroad countered a drop in US car sales of nearly 10% over the last year; global deliveries increased 44% in the third quarter.</p><p>But Tesla still partly owes its success to competitor carmakers: as in past quarters, the electric car company's profits relied on the sale of CO2 credits to fellow carmakers, which allow them to offset their emissions and reach government climate targets. Valuing $331 million in the third quarter, Tesla would not have been profitable otherwise. </p>Competition Heats Up
<p>While traditional automakers are suffering in a global economy marked by a pandemic, Tesla is no longer alone in its electric ambitions.</p><p>"The company is still incredibly highly rated, as if it were working in a vacuum. But the competitors are working like mad to catch up," said analyst Craig Irwin of Roth Capital Partners, pointing to hundreds of new battery-powered vehicles that are expected to be released by 2024.</p><p>Volkswagen group is investing over €40 billion ($47 billion) into developing an electric car portfolio, and other competitors have announced similar initiatives.</p><p>"With more electric vehicle launches on the horizon, Tesla has a big red target on its back," said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights for the Edmunds.com auto website.</p><p>In its letter, Tesla admitted that reaching its production targets "has become more difficult" and it will rely on of its Model Y small SUV as well as greater activity at its China plant.</p>
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Mouthwash Can Inactivate Human Coronavirus in a Lab, but What Does This Really Mean?
22 October
Health + Wellness
Could mouthwash help stop the spread of the new coronavirus? Craig F. Walker / The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Could mouthwash help stop the spread of the new coronavirus?
<p>A study published in the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jmv.26514" target="_blank">Journal of Medical Virology</a> last month found that some common mouthwashes and nasal rinses could inactivate a type of human coronavirus in the lab. This led the authors to hypothesize that the same products might be an additional line of defense against SARS‐CoV‐2, the virus that causes COVID-19.</p><p>"While we wait for a vaccine to be developed, methods to reduce transmission are needed," research leader Dr. Craig Meyers of Penn State College of Medicine said in a <a href="https://news.psu.edu/story/635101/2020/10/19/research/mouthwashes-oral-rinses-may-inactivate-human-coronaviruses" target="_blank">press release</a>. "The products we tested are readily available and often already part of people's daily routines."</p>
<p>The idea behind the study is that using these products might reduce the amount of coronavirus spread by people who are infected.</p><p>The researchers tested several products including a neti pot, several popular mouthwashes and a one percent baby shampoo solution commonly used by head and neck doctors to rinse the sinuses. They exposed a human coronavirus to the various solutions for 30 seconds, one minute and two minutes. Then, they exposed human cells to the various solutions in order to determine how much of the virus had been inactivated.</p>
<p>The neti pot did not succeed in inactivating any virus, according to the study, but the shampoo solution inactivated more than 99 percent of the virus after 30 seconds and more than 99.9 percent of the virus after two minutes.</p><p>Several common mouthwashes were also very successful at inactivating the virus. Crest Pro Health, Listerine Ultra, CVS Antiseptic Mouthwash and Betadine 5% all inactivated 99.9 to greater than 99.9 percent of the virus after 30 seconds. Listerine Antiseptic was the most effective, inactivating more than 99.9 percent of the virus after 30 seconds.</p>
<p>Outside experts, however, cautioned against a too-enthusiastic response to the findings.</p><p>For one thing, the researchers did not test SARS-CoV-2 itself, which requires extra levels of training and security. Instead, they looked at 229E, a coronavirus that causes human colds, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/21/health/covid-mouthwash.html" target="_blank">The New York Times reported</a>. While it has a similar structure to the new coronavirus, it is not guaranteed that the two will always act the same way, Columbia University virologist Angela Rasmussen told The New York Times. However, Meyers pointed out in the press release that a <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jid/article/222/8/1289/5878067" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">similar study</a> had managed to use mouthwashes to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 itself.</p><p>For another thing, it isn't really possible to test if something will stop the spread of a virus until it is tested on the actual human mouth, which is more complicated than a petri dish. Yale University infectious disease expert Dr. Maricar Malinis told The New York Times that the effectiveness of the products could not be proved without clinical trials on human subjects. This is something the research team is now seeking funding to do, according to <a href="https://fusion.inquirer.com/health/coronavirus/coronavirus-mouthwashes-nasal-rinses-virus-transmission-20201021.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Philadelphia Inquirer</a>.</p>
<p>Finally, a mouthwash could never totally prevent an infected person from shedding virus because the virus would continue to replicate in their cells after the rinse.</p><p>"If you have virus in your lungs, you just cough it back up into your mouth," Thomas E. Rams, director of the oral microbiology testing lab at Temple University's Kornberg School of Dentistry, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. "You'd have to be rinsing on such a frequent basis. And what I fear is that some people would think they don't need masks because they gargled with Listerine."</p><p>Meyers said he is not proposing mouthwash as a replacement for measures like masks or social distancing, but rather another line of defense. And he acknowledged that it would only be effective for a limited amount of time.</p><p>"We have an educated guess because we know how long the virus takes to replicate in culture — 6 to 12 hours,'" Meyers told The Philadelphia Inquirer.</p>
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CDC Adds 'Off and On' Brief Encounters to Coronavirus Contact Guidelines
22 October
Health + Wellness
CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield attends a hearing of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee reviewing coronavirus response efforts on Sept. 16, 2020 in Washington, DC. Andrew Harnik-Pool / Getty Images
The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has altered its guidelines that define close contact between people while also releasing a study that showed the novel coronavirus is able to be transmitted in brief interactions, as STAT News reported.
<p>For several months, the CDC had defined close contact as spending more than 15 minutes within six feet of another person. On Wednesday, however, that definition changed to the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/quarantine.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CDC's new guidelines</a>, which say brief interactions that add up to 15 minutes over the course of a day now count as close contact, as the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-health-infectious-diseases-1fb2e2a5b3fc0dd61f5756277c2d9364" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">AP</a> reported.</p>
<p>The definition was changed for the CDC's quarantine guidelines, so people who spent 15 minutes or more with an infected person over the course of 24 hours know to self-isolate for 14 days. The guidelines were issued in response to a <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6943e1.htm?s_cid=mm6943e1_e&ACSTrackingID=USCDC_921-DM40859&ACSTrackingLabel=MMWR%20Early%20Release%20-%20Vol.%2069%2C%20October%252" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">new study</a> conducted by the CDC and the Vermont Department of Health that traced a coronavirus outbreak of six prisoners back to an employee at a Vermont correctional facility, as <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/10/21/926365995/cdc-reduces-consecutive-minutes-of-covid-19-exposure-needed-to-be-a-close-contac" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">NPR</a> reported.</p><p>An investigation of the outbreak used video evidence to piece together the employee's day. It showed that the officer never spent 15 straight minutes with any one prisoner. However, over the course of an eight-hour workday, the employee had 22 interactions totaling 17 minutes with the six incarcerated people, according to STAT News.</p>
<p>Some of the interactions took place while the six incarcerated people were not wearing face masks, according to NPR.</p><p>"This article adds to the scientific knowledge of the risk to contacts of those with COVID-19 and highlights again the importance of wearing face masks to prevent transmission," the CDC said.</p><p>"While a mask provides some limited protection to the wearer, each additional person who wears a mask increases the individual protection for everyone. When more people wear masks, more people are protected," the CDC added, as <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/10/21/coronavirus-close-contact-cdc/" target="_blank">The Washington Post</a> reported.</p><p>In the first news conference that the agency permitted in more than eight weeks, Jay Butler, the CDC's deputy director for infectious diseases, said Wednesday that the nation is "unfortunately seeing a distressing trend, with cases increasing in nearly 75 percent of the country," as The Washington Post reported.</p>
<p>Butler also stressed that even though the public may be tired of all the suggestions from health officials, the importance of wearing masks should not be taken lightly as the weather cools and more and more interactions move inside, which increases the risk of transmission, according to The Washington Post.</p><p>The new guidelines also note that close contact can include if someone coughs or sneezes on you, hugging and kissing, as well as sharing eating utensils with an infected person.</p><p>"As we get more data and understand this COVID we're going to continue to incorporate that in our recommendations," said CDC Director Robert Redfield at the press conference, according to the AP.</p><p>The new guidelines will "mostly impact workplaces, schools and other places where people spend all day together off and on," said Caitlin Rivers, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to NPR. She added that the expanded definition of close contact has "the potential to significantly increase the number of people who are asked to quarantine."</p>
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Coronavirus-sniffing dogs Miina and Kössi (R) are seen in Vantaa, Finland on September 2, 2020. Antti Aimo-Koivisto / Lehtikuva / AFP/ Getty Images
By Teri Schultz
Europe is in a panic over the second wave of COVID-19, with infection rates sky-rocketing and GDP plummeting. Belgium has just announced it will no longer test asymptomatic people, even if they've been in contact with someone who has the disease, because the backlog in processing is overwhelming. Other European countries are also struggling to keep up testing and tracing.
Meanwhile in a small cabin in Helsinki airport, for his preferred payment of a morsel of cat food, rescue dog Kossi needs just a few seconds to tell whether someone has coronavirus.
<div id="bfda0" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="c60b1a0dedbedbe5e0ce44284aff852f"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1308390775328251906" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Covid-19 dogs started their work today at the Helsinki Airport at arrival hall 2B. Dogs have been trained to detect… https://t.co/nw4mrw6eJM</div> — Helsinki Airport (@Helsinki Airport)<a href="https://twitter.com/HelsinkiAirport/statuses/1308390775328251906">1600779644.0</a></blockquote></div><p>If it were left to Kossi and his pals, crowds of potential virus carriers could be cleared in a fraction of the time for a fraction of the cost with none of the physical discomfort that accompanies the current nasal swab test based on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method.</p>
No Human Nose Needed
<p>A dog can sniff a cloth wiped on a wrist or neck and immediately identify if it comes from someone who has contracted the virus as much as five days before any symptoms appear which would lead a person to go into isolation. "A dog could easily save so so, so many lives," University of Helsinki veterinary researcher Anna Hielm-Bjorkman told DW, who says their testing has shown an accuracy level of nearly 100%.</p><p>It was originally her idea to see whether Kossi, a talented disease-detection dog, could redirect his skills in sniffing out mold, bedbugs and cancer to detecting the new virus just as it started to spread in Europe. "It took him seven minutes to figure out 'okay, this is what you want me to look out for," Hielm-Bjorkman said. "So that totally blew our minds."</p><p>Susanna Paavilainen, the executive director of the Wise Nose scent-detection foundation and the woman who saved Kossi from euthanasia in a Spanish shelter eight years ago, immediately started retraining her dogs to find the coronavirus.</p><p>Miina, who used to track a young girl's blood sugar levels by scent, quickly came on board, along with two others already working in disease detection. In all, they hope to train 15 dogs in the first phase.</p><p>Hielm-Bjorkman said once they discovered the new capabilities, while the normal academic procedure would be to test, publish and get peer-reviewed, their first instinct was to get the dogs into service. "[Researchers] who are actually publishing," she noted wryly, "are not at the airports."</p>Wags, Not Wages
<p>But for that, they needed permission and ideally, some funding. Vantaa Deputy Mayor Timo Aronkyto, who is also responsible for airport security, saw the benefit straight away. "It took me two minutes," he told DW.</p><p>However, his funding options were limited to about $390,000 total for the four-month pilot project aiming to prove that results from the dog tests are at least as accurate as the PCR test. Anyone who tests positive at the voluntary canine site is requested to go to the medical unit for confirmation.</p><p>The interest of Aronkyto, a trained physician, is rooted in both health and wealth. "Our testing at the airport costs more than 1 million [euros] (USD $1.2 million) a month at the moment," he said, explaining he expects that to go up to €3 million (USD. $3.5 million) per month in winter. "These dogs would be much cheaper," he pointed out.</p><p>He's optimistic support will grow as data from the current pilot project accumulates, explaining there is already work underway to change Finnish legislation so eventually sniffer dogs would have the same "authority" as customs dogs.</p><p>Aronkyto anticipates one animal performing both functions in the near future. He plans to continue this level of funding from his city budget into next year but that doesn't train new dogs nor expand the capacity beyond the four that split shifts currently at the airport, even as infection rates rise.</p>Helsinki Hesitates
<p>Notably, however, the Finnish government has not signaled it would like to pick up the program itself, despite a huge surge in publicity and, as Hielm-Bjorkman and Paavilainen emphasize, interest from other countries. Travelers have been eager to participate, waiting in line more than an hour at times.</p><p>Finnish ambassador in Ramallah, Palestine, Paivi Peltokoski, praised the experience after a recent trip but, apparently, her enthusiasm is not overly contagious.</p><div id="d9823" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="61d382f115fe66a44eb793d9ebee3d94"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1318564228450615299" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">I was tested negative by two #coronadogs upon arrival at the #Helsinki airport in #Finland. Later a medical test ve… https://t.co/cGlWQn8DJb</div> — Päivi Peltokoski (@Päivi Peltokoski)<a href="https://twitter.com/PaiviPeltokoski/statuses/1318564228450615299">1603205184.0</a></blockquote></div><p>"If the government would see this already as something that they would believe in," Hielm-Bjorkman said, she could envision training hundreds of dogs, stationing sniffers at concert halls or sports matches or elderly care homes. She adds there's a need for a "paradigm shift" for both medical professionals and the public.</p><p>Usually it's doctors telling patients if they're sick, she explained, and "here it's a dog handler."</p>
Little Political Will on German Project
<p>This situation is not limited to Finland. In Germany researchers also <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/german-sniffer-dogs-show-promise-at-detecting-coronavirus/a-54300863" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">announced promising results</a> with canines <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/coronavirus-german-military-training-sniffer-dogs/a-54062180" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">detecting COVID-19</a>, but no dogs have been used anywhere so far. And then, says Professor Holger Volk of the University of Veterinary Medicine Hanover, there has been insufficient political will or funding to move the project forward, something he called "very troubling" especially with a resurgent infection rate.</p><p>"When we started this whole project, we we did it because we wanted to help to stop the pandemic," Volk told DW. "It's really has been a very frustrating ride. I have had a lot of naysayers in the whole process. If I wasn't a very determined person, having done a lot of research, I would have probably stopped it."</p><p>He agrees with Hielm-Bjorkman's assessment that "it's just not in the perception of doctors that dogs are able to do this precise work." But he also echoes her faith in the vast potential of their discovery. "If you had a dog who could sniff every day quickly your cohort of workers, for example," he said, "think about the impact. You could continue having a workplace."</p><p>Speaking of workplaces, Susanna Paavilainen is starting to think if Finland doesn't want to unleash the dogs' potential at home, she and Kossi might accept one of the many requests from all over the world to provide training. "We can move because Kossi likes warm weather," she says, petting her star sniffer.</p>From Your Site Articles
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U.S. Suffered Almost 300,000 Excess Deaths During Coronavirus Pandemic, CDC Reports
21 October
Health + Wellness
Markers of remembrance at a Massachusetts care home that saw a major coronavirus outbreak. Barry Chin / The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Almost 300,000 more Americans have died during the first ten months of the coronavirus pandemic than would be expected in an average year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Tuesday.
<p>The agency found that there were an estimated 299,028 excess deaths in the U.S. between Jan. 26 and Oct. 3. That's a higher death toll than the 221,078 deaths officially attributed to COVID-19, according to the latest figures from <a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html" target="_blank">Johns Hopkins University</a>.</p><p>"This is one of several studies, and the bottom line is there are far more Americans dying from the pandemic than the news reports would suggest," Dr. Steve Woolf, director emeritus of the Center on Society and Health at Virginia Commonwealth University who conducted a study along similar lines, told <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/20/health/coronavirus-excess-deaths.html" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>.</p>
<p>Excess death studies are valuable for understanding <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/public-health" target="_self">public health</a> threats precisely because deaths from a particular cause may have been undercounted, the CDC explained. In the case of COVID-19, an excess death study will catch cases that have been misdiagnosed or misattributed on the death certificate. Two-thirds of the excess deaths in the study were directly attributed to the coronavirus, but others could have been indirectly caused by the new disease.</p><p>"There are many factors that could contribute to an increase in deaths indirectly due to the pandemic, with disruptions to health care being one factor," study author Lauren Rossen, from CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, told <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-cdc-deaths-idUSKBN2752NQ?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A%20Trending%20Content&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR0dG3t8HUtMH3bMWyRt-ZGIiAPbw2OMnIg3ym0L-O0JTCsSc9Psh2NvSX0" target="_blank">Reuters</a>.</p>
<p>For example, Woolf told The New York Times that his study, which looked at excess deaths from March 1 to April 25, found huge increases in deaths from conditions like diabetes, heart disease and Alzheimer's.</p><p>"It's important for people who have these conditions to not delay or forgo medical care because of their fears of the virus," Woolf said. "In many cases, the danger of not getting care is much greater than the risk of exposure to the virus."</p><p>The CDC got their figures by comparing deaths in 2020 every week during the study period with the average deaths for that week from 2015 to 2019. They found that excess deaths have occurred every week in the U.S. since March, peaking in the weeks ending April 11 and August 8.</p>
<p>The study looked at deaths by age group and by race, and found one surprising result. While more older Americans have died of the virus in total numbers, the group that saw the greatest percentage increase in deaths in 2020 was adults aged 25 to 44.</p><p>The breakdown by age group was as follows:</p><ul><li>Under 25: two percent decrease</li><li>25-44: 26.5 percent increase</li><li>45-64: 14.4 percent increase</li><li>65-74: 24.1 percent increase</li><li>75-84: 21.5 percent increase</li><li>Over 85: 14.7 percent increase</li></ul>
<p>The study also confirmed that the pandemic has <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/black--hispanic-americans-coronavirus-2645677258.html" target="_self">taken a higher toll</a> on racial minority groups than on white Americans. Hispanic Americans saw the highest percent increase of deaths in 2020 at 53.6 percent. The rest were as follows:</p><ul></ul><ul><li>Asian Americans: 36.6 percent increase</li><li>Other or unknown ethnicity: 34.6 percent increase</li><li>Black Americans: 32.9 percent increase</li><li>Indigenous Americans: 28.9 percent increase</li><li>White Americans: 11.9 percent increase</li></ul>
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Trump Calls Fauci 'a Disaster,' Tries to Blame Science and Medical Experts for Failed Coronavirus Response
20 October
Politics
Trump arrives as Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci looks on during a Coronavirus Task Force press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on April 4, 2020. JIM WATSON / AFP via Getty Images
President Trump attacked the nation's top infectious disease specialist in a call with campaign staffers that several reporters were allowed to listen to on Monday. In the call, Trump said that Dr. Anthony S. Fauci was "a disaster." He added that despite the evidence that coronavirus cases are once again rising across the country, the public was tired of hearing so much news about the virus, especially from "these idiots" in the government and scientific community, as The Washington Post reported.
<p>Trump seemed irked by an interview that Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, gave to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssiLlfGT9gg&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">60 Minutes</a> in which Fauci said he was not surprised that Trump contracted the coronavirus after attending a large event at the White House for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett where attendees were not masked.</p><p>In many interviews, Fauci has touted the efficacy of wearing masks and social distancing, while warning that a failure to follow those safety measures could lead to a very difficult fall and winter as coronavirus and influenza intersect. The evidence suggests Fauci is correct, as the U.S. saw more than 70,000 new cases on Friday, its highest total in months, while the virus is gaining strength in Europe once again, as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/19/us/politics/trump-fauci-covid.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> reported.</p><p>In his broadside Monday, Trump dismissed those concerns about the virus, claiming that the public's interest has waned.</p>
<p>"People are tired of COVID," Trump said on the call, according to The New York Times. "I have the biggest rallies I've ever had. And we have COVID. People are saying: 'Whatever. Just leave us alone.' They're tired of it."</p><p>He tried to shift blame for the administration's response by saying, "People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots — these people, these people that have gotten it wrong," Trump said, as <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/fauci-says-he-s-not-surprised-trump-contracted-covid-19-n1243857" target="_blank">NBC News</a> reported. "Fauci's a nice guy. He's been here for 500 years. He called every one of them wrong. And he's like this wonderful guy, a wonderful sage telling us how to respond to the pandemic. Fauci is a disaster. If I listened to him, we'd have 500,000 deaths. If we listened to him, we'd have 700-800,000 deaths right now."</p>
<p>At the same time that Trump was issuing his attacks on the government's medical experts, Fauci was receiving the National Academy of Medicine's first-ever Presidential Citation for Exemplary Leadership in a virtual event, as <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/19/politics/donald-trump-anthony-fauci-coronavirus/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a> reported.</p><p>"We have a lot of challenges ahead of us and I can't help thinking that we're really going through a time that's disturbingly anti-<a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/science/">science</a> in certain segments of our society," Fauci said in his speech as he accepted the award, according to CNN.</p><p>Trump was not done with his attacks on Fauci. Later in the day, Trump took to Twitter to mock Fauci for his <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eD5xkn4WLA" target="_blank">errant ceremonial first pitch</a> for the Washington Nationals on opening day, as The Washington Post reported.</p><p>"Tony should stop wearing the Washington Nationals' Mask for two reasons. Number one, it is not up to the high standards that he should be exposing," Trump wrote on <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1318252740431155200" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Twitter</a>. "Number two, it keeps reminding me that Tony threw out perhaps the worst first pitch in the history of Baseball!"</p>
<p>Trump's attack on one of the nation's most revered doctors generated a swift backlash from both sides of the aisle.</p><p>The Biden campaign responded by saying, "Mr. President, you're right about one thing: The American people are tired. They're tired of your lies about this virus," as The New York Times reported.</p><p>Senator Lamar Alexander, a Republican from Tennessee, called Fauci one of the country's most distinguished public servants.</p><p>"If more Americans paid attention to his advice, we'd have fewer cases of COVID-19, & it would be safer to go back to school & back to work & out to eat," Alexander wrote on <a href="https://twitter.com/SenAlexander/status/1318259834437906439" target="_blank">Twitter</a>.<span></span></p>
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Trending
Anika Chebrolu of Frisco, Texas has been named "America's Top Young Scientist" for identifying a molecule that can selectively bind to the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Anika Chebrolu / YouTube
Scientists at top universities searching for a coronavirus cure have just gotten help from an unexpected source: a 14-year-old from Texas.
<p>Anika Chebrolu of Frisco, Texas has been named "America's Top Young Scientist" for identifying a molecule that can selectively bind to the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, in hopes of developing a cure for the disease that has so far <a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html" target="_blank">infected</a> more than 40 million people and claimed more than one million lives.</p><p>"My effort to find a lead compound to bind to the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus this summer may appear to be a drop in the ocean, but still adds to all these efforts," Chebrolu told <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2020/10/18/us/anika-chebrolu-covid-treatment-award-scn-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>.</p>
<p>To identify the binding molecule, Chebrolu used in-silico methodology for drug discovery. Binding the virus's spike protein is important because inhibiting this protein can potentially stop the virus from entering a healthy cell, <a href="https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201014005340/en/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Business Wire explained</a>. Chebrolu used software to screen millions of potential molecules for drug-likeness and ADMET properties, as well as their ability to bind to the spike protein. The molecule with the most binding ability was then chosen as a potential drug candidate.</p><p>Chebrolu did all this work as part of the <a href="https://www.youngscientistlab.com/challenge" target="_blank">3M Young Scientist Challenge</a>, a nationwide science competition for fifth to eighth grade students, now in its 13th year. Students submit a one to two minute video explaining their solution to an everyday problem. Based on these videos, ten finalists are then selected and given the chance to develop their project with a 3M scientist mentor. Chebrolu's mentor was Dr. Mahfuza Ali, a 3M corporate scientist in the materials resource division.</p>
<p>This year for the first time, the top ten finalists competed virtually for the winning spot, which comes with $25,000, a special trip and the honor of being named "America's Top Young Scientist."</p><p>"Amidst the challenges of a global pandemic, quality STEM education for all has become an even more urgent need, and 3M's commitment to fostering the next generation of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/science" target="_self">science</a> leaders has never been more determined," 3M senior vice president of corporate affairs Denise Rutherford told Business Wire. "In spite of challenges, like adjusting to new norms of distance learning and participating in virtual events, this year's <em>3M Young Scientist Challenge</em> finalists have smashed through barriers with grit, creativity, innovative thinking, and excitement – all in the name of applying science to improve lives. 3M is inspired by these young innovators and we celebrate each one of them. Our heartfelt congratulations go to this year's winner, Anika Chebrolu, and our many thanks to all our <em>3M Young Scientist Challenge</em> finalists."</p>
<p>Chebrolu did not originally intend to complete a project about the coronavirus, according to CNN. Her initial submission video was about finding a molecule that could bind a protein in the influenza virus.</p><p>"I have always been amazed by science experiments since my childhood and I was drawn towards finding effective cures for Influenza disease after a severe bout of the infection last year," <a href="https://www.youngscientistlab.com/entry/2397" target="_blank">she told 3M</a>.</p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="959cb7785a544c148c6302151ef7a793"><iframe lazy-loadable="true" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fziWyFUO2dw?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span>
<p>However, when COVID-19 began to spread, Chebrolu worked with her mentor to switch gears.</p><p>"After spending so much time researching about pandemics, viruses and drug discovery, it was crazy to think that I was actually living through something like this," Chebrolu told CNN.</p><p>Chebrolu's work isn't done now that she has won the prize. She told 3M that she hopes to be a medical researcher and professor in the next 15 years, and she is getting an early start. She now wants to work with other scientists to turn her project into an actual treatment for COVID-19.</p>
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New Zealand’s Jacinda Ardern Wins Historic Victory Following Science-Based Leadership on COVID and Climate
19 October
Politics
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declares victory during the Labor Party Election Night Function at Auckland Town Hall on Oct. 17, 2020 in Auckland, New Zealand. Hannah Peters / Getty Images
Jacinda Ardern, the New Zealand Prime Minister who has emerged as a leader on the climate crisis and the coronavirus pandemic, has won a second term in office.
<p>Ardern's Labour Party secured a historic victory in New Zealand's <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/new-zealand-ardern-renewable-energy-2647595133.html" target="_self">general election Saturday</a>, earning 49 percent of the vote and an estimated 64 out of 120 parliamentary seats, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/17/jacinda-arderns-labour-party-set-for-victory-in-new-zealand-election" target="_blank">The Guardian reported</a>. It is Labour's biggest victory in 50 years, and the first time any party has won a large enough majority to govern alone since 1996, according to <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-54519628" target="_blank">BBC News</a>. Ardern's popularity has been attributed in part to her pro-<a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/science" target="_self">science</a> approach to the coronavirus pandemic, according to The Guardian. She acted to close down borders and institute a national lockdown, and the country saw a total of 25 deaths and less than 2,000 cases.</p><p>"Science and clear communication around Covid-19 have won the day against Trumpery and fake news — people have clearly seen how the government looked after us," Labour supporter Christine told <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/18/jacinda-ardern-eases-into-second-term-amid-relief-in-new-zealand-at-election-landslide" target="_blank">The Guardian</a> Sunday.</p>
<div id="1bb8d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="870071749bb41f9c7a734ba644150169"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1317477722789236740" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Historic results:
-New Zealand First loses all its representatives
-Worst National result since 2002 (26.85%)
-Firs… https://t.co/zX1tn3xis3</div> — Election Forecast 🇦🇺 🇳🇿 (@Election Forecast 🇦🇺 🇳🇿)<a href="https://twitter.com/ForecastOceania/statuses/1317477722789236740">1602946141.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>The election has also been seen as a mandate for Labour's climate policy, according to <a href="https://www.climatechangenews.com/2020/10/19/new-zealanders-vote-climate-ambition-jacinda-ardern-greens/" target="_blank">Climate Home News</a>. During Ardern's first term, Labour governed in coalition with the Greens and the populist New Zealand First party. The government <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/new-zealand-offshore-oil-gas-2559278982.html" target="_self">banned</a> future offshore <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/oil-and-gas" target="_self">oil and gas</a> exploration and passed a <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/new-zealand-zero-emissions-2641247378.html" target="_self">historic bill</a> pledging to get the country to zero emissions by 2050.</p><p>However, some of Ardern's climate ambitions during her first term were curtailed by her partnership with New Zealand First, which blocked ideas like a tax on imported <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/fossil-fuel" target="_self">fossil-fuel</a> cars and a subsidy for <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/electric-vehicles" target="_self">electric vehicles</a>.</p>
<p>This time around, New Zealand First has lost all of its seats in parliament while the Green Party has increased its share of the votes from six to eight percent. While Labour has secured enough votes to govern alone, Ardern has said she is open to forming a coalition government, according to The Guardian, and Green Party leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson said they hoped to be included in order to move the government in a more progressive direction.</p><p>Before the election, Labour had promised more environmental policies if it won, <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/new-zealand-ardern-renewable-energy-2647595133.html" target="_self">including</a> achieving 100 percent <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/renewable-energy/" target="_self">renewable energy</a> by 2030 instead of 2035. Labour's main opposition, the National Party, only secured 27 percent of the vote, down from 44 percent, according to Climate Home News. The party had run on reversing the oil and gas drilling ban as well as rolling back protections for freshwater ecosystems, <a href="https://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/story/jacinda-arderns-nuclear-free-moment-heres-three-things-that-would-make-it-a-reality/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=election&utm_content=supporter-email" target="_blank">according to Greenpeace New Zealand</a>.</p>
<p>"The election result has delivered a strong mandate for the transformational climate action that the Prime Minister promised," Greenpeace New Zealand wrote.</p><p>Nearly 80 percent of New Zealanders are worried about the climate crisis and support a green recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, which has thrown New Zealand into its first recession in 11 years, according to BBC News.</p><p>Recovering from that recession will be a major challenge for Ardern's second term. In addition, she no longer has the excuse of New Zealand First holding her back from more ambitious climate policies.</p><p>"NZ First was often blamed for slow progress on environment policies, and sometimes this was true. With Winston Peters and his party gone, we expect to see immediate moves to tackle agricultural climate pollution, to invest in rail and cycleways, and to protect the oceans from overfishing," Greenpeace New Zealand director Russell Norman told Climate Home News.</p>
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A woman holds a handful of vitamin C. VO IMAGES / Getty Images
By Laura Beil
Consumers have long turned to vitamins and herbs to try to protect themselves from disease. This pandemic is no different — especially with headlines that scream "This supplement could save you from coronavirus."
<p>It also helps to have celebrity enthusiasts. When President Donald Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19, his pill arsenal included Vitamin D and zinc. And in an Instagram chat with actress Jennifer Garner in September, infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci touted vitamins C and D as ways that might generally boost the immune system. "If you're deficient in vitamin D," he noted, "that does have an impact on your susceptibility to infection. I would not mind recommending, and I do it myself, taking vitamin D supplements."</p><p>But whether over-the-counter supplements can actually prevent, or even treat, COVID-19, is not clear. Since the disease is so new, researchers haven't had much time for the kind of large experiments that provide the best answers. Instead, scientists have mostly relied on fresh takes on old data. Some studies have looked at outcomes of patients who routinely take certain supplements — and found some promising hints. But so far there's little data from the kinds of scientifically rigorous experiments that give doctors confidence when recommending supplements.</p><p>Here's what we know today about three supplements getting plenty of attention around COVID-19.</p>
Vitamin D
<p><strong>What it is: </strong>Called "the sunshine vitamin" because the body makes it naturally in the presence of ultraviolet light, <a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/vitamin-d-supplements-lose-luster" target="_blank">Vitamin D is one of the most heavily studied</a> supplements (<em>SN: 1/27/19</em>). <a href="https://health.gov/our-work/food-nutrition/2015-2020-dietary-guidelines/guidelines/appendix-12/" target="_blank">Certain foods</a>, including fish and fortified milk products, are also high in the vitamin.</p><p><strong>Why it might help: </strong>Vitamin D is a hormone building block that helps strengthen the immune system.</p><p><strong>How it works for other infections:</strong> In 2017, the <em>British Medical Journal</em> published a meta-analysis that suggested a daily vitamin D supplement <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6583" target="_blank">might help prevent respiratory infections</a>, particularly in people who are deficient in the vitamin.</p><p>But one key word here is <em>deficient. </em>That risk is highest during dark winters at high latitudes and among people with more color in their skin (melanin, a pigment that's higher in darker skin, inhibits the production of vitamin D).</p><p>"If you have enough vitamin D in your body, the evidence doesn't stack up to say that giving you more will make a real difference," says Susan Lanham-New, head of the Nutritional Sciences Department at the University of Surrey in England.</p><p>And taking too much can create new health problems, stressing certain internal organs and leading to a dangerously high calcium buildup in the blood. The recommended daily allowance for adults is 600 to 800 International Units per day, and the upper limit is considered to be 4,000 IUs per day.</p><p><strong>What we know about Vitamin D and COVID-19:</strong> Few studies have looked directly at whether vitamin D makes a difference in COVID.</p><p>In May, in the <em>BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health</em>, Lanham-New and her colleagues published a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7246103/" target="_blank">summary of existing evidence </a>and concluded that there's only enough to recommend vitamin D to help with COVID-19 prevention for people who are deficient. That paper made inferences from how vitamin D works against other respiratory tract infections and immune health.</p><p>More than a dozen studies are now testing vitamin D directly for prevention and treatment, including a large one led by JoAnn Manson, a leading expert on vitamin D. An epidemiologist and preventive medicine physician at Harvard Medical School and Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston. That study will analyze if vitamin D can affect the course of a COVID-19 infection. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1551714420302548" target="_blank">The trial</a> aims to recruit 2,700 people across the United States with newly diagnosed infections, along with their close household contacts.</p><p>The goal is to determine whether newly diagnosed people given high doses of vitamin D — 3,200 IU per day — are less likely than people who get a placebo to experience severe symptoms and need hospitalization. "The biological plausibility for a benefit in COVID is compelling," she says, given the nutrient's theoretical ability to impede the severe inflammatory reaction that can follow coronavirus infection. "However the evidence is not conclusive at this time."</p>
Zinc
<p><strong>What it is: </strong>Zinc, a mineral found in cells all over the body, is found naturally in certain meats, beans and oysters.</p><p><strong>Why it might help: </strong>It plays several supportive roles in the immune system, which is why zinc lozenges are always hot sellers in cold and flu season. Zinc also helps with cell division and growth.</p><p><strong>How it works for other infections: </strong><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6457799/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Studies of using zinc for colds</a> — which are frequently caused by coronaviruses — suggest that using a supplement right after symptoms start might make them go away quicker. That said, a clinical trial from researchers in Finland and the United Kingdom, published in January in <em>BMJ Open</em> <a href="https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/10/1/e031662" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">did not find any value for zinc lozenges</a> for the treatment of colds. Some researchers have theorized that inconsistencies in data for colds may be explained by varying amounts of zinc released in different lozenges.</p><p><strong>What we know about zinc and COVID-19:</strong> The mineral is promising enough that it was added to some early studies of hydroxychloroquine, a drug tested early in the pandemic. (Studies have since shown that <a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/covid-19-coronavirus-hydroxychloroquine-no-evidence-treatment" target="_blank">hydroxychloroquine can't prevent or treat COVID-19</a> (<em>SN: 8/2/20</em>).)</p><p>In July, researchers from Aachen University in Germany wrote in <em>Frontiers of Immunology</em> that current evidence "strongly <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2020.01712/full" target="_blank">suggests great benefits of zinc</a> supplementation" based on looking at similar infections including SARS, another disease caused by a coronavirus. For example, studies suggest that giving zinc reduces the risk for death from a pneumonia infection. The researchers cite evidence that zinc might help prevent the virus from entering the body, and help slow the virus's replication when it does.</p><p>Another review — also based on indirect evidence — published August 1 in <em>Advances in Integrative Medicine</em> also concluded that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7395818/" target="_blank">zinc might be helpful in people who are deficient</a>.</p><p>In September, researchers from Hospital Del Marin Barcelona <a href="https://www.univadis.co.uk/viewarticle/eccvid-2020-lower-plasma-zinc-levels-associated-with-increased-risk-of-death-in-covid-19-patients-729760" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reported that among 249 patients studied</a>, those who survived COVID had higher zinc levels in their plasma (an average of 63.1 mcg/dl) than those who died (43mcg/dl).</p><p>Overall, though, the jury is still out, says Suma Thomas, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, who in June led a team that <a href="https://www.ccjm.org/content/early/2020/06/08/ccjm.87a.ccc046" target="_blank">reviewed the evidence for popular supplements</a> in the <em>Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine</em>. Given what's already known, zinc could possibly decrease the duration of infection but not the severity of symptoms, she said, particularly among people who are deficient. About a dozen studies are now looking at zinc for COVID treatment, often with other drugs or supplements.</p><p>Thomas and her colleagues are <a href="https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04342728?term=zinc&cond=covid-19&cntry=US&draw=2&rank=2" target="_blank">comparing symptom severity and future hospitalization</a> in COVID-19 patients who take zinc with and without high doses of vitamin C with those who receive ordinary care without the supplement. Results are expected soon, she says.</p>
Vitamin C
<p><strong>What it is: </strong>Also called L-ascorbic acid, vitamin C has a long list of roles in the body. It's found naturally in fruits and vegetables, especially citrus, peppers and tomatoes.</p><p><strong>Why it might help:</strong> It's a potent antioxidant that's important for a healthy immune system and preventing inflammation.</p><p><strong>How it works for other infections: </strong>Thomas cautions that the data on vitamin C are often contradictory. One review from Chinese researchers, published in February in the <em>Journal of Medical Virolog</em>y, looked at <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jmv.25707" target="_blank">what is already known about vitamin C</a> and other supplements that might have a role in COVID-19 treatment. Among other encouraging signs, human studies find a lower incidence of pneumonia among people taking vitamin C, "suggesting that vitamin C might prevent the susceptibility to lower respiratory tract infections under certain conditions."</p><p>But for preventing colds, a 2013 Cochrane review of 29 studies <a href="https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD000980.pub4/full" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">didn't support the idea</a> that vitamin C supplements could help in the general population. However, the authors wrote, given that vitamin C is cheap and safe, "it may be worthwhile for common cold patients to test on an individual basis whether therapeutic vitamin C is beneficial."</p><p><strong>What we know about Vitamin C and COVID-19: </strong>About a dozen studies are under way or planned to examine whether vitamin C added to coronavirus treatment helps with symptoms or survival, including Thomas' study at the Cleveland Clinic.</p><p>In a review published online in July in <em>Nutrition</em>, researchers from KU Leuven in Belgium concluded that the <a href="https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD000980.pub4/full" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">vitamin may help prevent infection</a> and tamp down the dangerous inflammatory reaction that can cause severe symptoms, based on what is known about how the nutrient works in the body.</p><p>Melissa Badowski, a pharmacist who specializes in viral infections at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy and colleague Sarah Michienzi published an extensive look at all supplements that might be useful in the coronavirus epidemic. There's <a href="https://www.drugsincontext.com/can-vitamins-and-or-supplements-provide-hope-against-coronavirus/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">still not enough evidence to know whether they are helpful</a>, the pair concluded in July in <em>Drugs in Context</em>. "It's not really clear if it's going to benefit patients," Badowski says.</p><p>And while supplements are generally safe, she adds that nothing is risk free. The best way to avoid infection, she says, is still to follow the advice of epidemiologists and public health experts: "Wash your hands, wear a mask, stay six feet apart."</p>From Your Site Articles
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Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is seen in a video conversation in Stockholm, Sweden on April 22, 2020. Jessica Gow / TT News Agency / AFP / Getty Images
By Priyanka Jaisinghani
COVID-19, "stay-at-home" orders and enforced physical distancing has made us more dependent on digital when it comes to connection and communication at both a local and global level.
<p>In the early months of the pandemic, marginalized communities were disproportionately affected and the realities of a widening inequality gap were apparent. What was once thought to be an equalizer had become the opposite.</p><p>Where COVID-19 has removed the option for young people to take to the streets to voice their concerns about these surfacing inequalities, staying at home (and off the streets) hasn't translated to staying silent.</p><p>Recently, we've witnessed how young people are rallying around issues such as climate change, racial injustice and voting rights, using digital as their platform and driving civic engagement.</p>
Civic Engagement Redefined
<p>Long-lasting impact requires changes from the bottom up. Civic engagement means working to make a difference in our communities to promote quality of life in a community, through both political and non-political processes.</p><p>We're seeing how, across multiple issues, young people are becoming active participants in driving dialogues with policy-makers, on a state and federal level. In addition, they are empowering the citizens of the communities in which they reside, taking an active role in shaping the future we hold.</p>1. Racial Justice
<p>Across the U.S., we saw the rise of the racial justice movement through Black Lives Matter. Hundreds of protestors came to the streets, from New York to Nevada, acknowledging, supporting and condemning the long-existing inequalities faced by the black community. We saw this movement propel beyond the streets, throughout social media, and to the polling stations.</p><p>Young activists were demanding not only awareness but also change. In this digital space, young people started sharing resources and information for others to educate themselves about the pressing need for racial justice. They were able to mobilize support to inform, educate and shape citizen action. They shared links to petitions, offered advice for safe protesting practices, created templates for emailing authorities, listed bail funds and black-owned restaurants and businesses in need of support. They used social media to support the various needs of this movement – and continue to do so.</p>2. Climate Change
<p>The youth-led climate change has become dominant online. Every Friday, young people lead a digital #ClimateStrike to raise awareness of important legislative initiatives and create tangible ways for individuals to get involved in the fight against climate change.</p><p>As a leading example, to commemorate this year's Earth Day, youth held a 72-hour, live-streamed "digital march" with protests, speeches, and more. This "digital march" was attended by more than 200,000 viewers. Young people are pivoting their strategies and applying them to a digital space. We know when the streets are safe again, they will continue their activism by marching to raise awareness both on the streets and digitally.</p>3. Voting Rights
<p>Voting is another pertinent issue coming to the fore. In <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/315761/lack-voting-information-hamper-youth-turnout.aspx" target="_blank">a Gallup poll</a>, four out of five (79%) young people say "the coronavirus pandemic has helped them realize how much political leaders' decisions impact their lives"; three in five say "they are part of a movement that will vote to express its views."</p><p>As a result of these changing attitudes, young people are having conversations with their families and finding ways to get politically active. They're donating funds to campaigns, volunteering their time to raise awareness around voting and creating social campaigns to try to influence other people to vote and register to vote.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDUxMTg0Ni9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMzg2OTcxNn0.AkqUpUNFBQm9qJhYK1ET2Nx_74OlOKaa0XdF-cRCuEY/img.jpg?width=980" id="0edf5" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f6e1d0f9874383be19f0bba0625aa61e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/10/3-ways-covid-19-has-changed-youth-activism/" target="_blank">World Economic Forum</a>.</em></p>How social media is used in the U.S. for political issues. Statista
<p>It's inspiring to see young people around the world deeply engaged in the digital space and continuing their activism. They have played a critical role in calling for change and transformation in society. From climate to health to politics, young people are the most affected. The only way to make progress is to build back better. They're building upon existing issues and movements, creating new alliances and driving conversations and action. This generation is also building upon the same values and ideas of those before them to change the status quo and find ways to enact change for a better future.</p>From Your Site Articles
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Action Against Hunger USA / YouTube
By Dr. Charles Owubah
Today is World Food Day, a time to reflect on the foundational role that food plays in our lives, communities, and cultures. We cannot live without food.
<p>While safe and nutritious food is an essential right, sadly, <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca9692en/online/ca9692en.html#chapter-1_1" target="_blank">two billion people go without</a>. After decades of progress, world hunger is on the rise again. From 2018 to 2019, <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca9692en/online/ca9692en.html" target="_blank">10 million more people</a> became undernourished because of climate change and conflict, and COVID-19 is further exacerbating this crisis. The UN's World Food Program says <a href="https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-chief-warns-grave-dangers-economic-impact-coronavirus-millions-are-pushed-further-hunger" target="_blank">more people may die from hunger</a> due to the economic impacts of COVID-19 than from the virus itself.</p><p>On the bright side, new innovations for dealing with hunger offer hope in these ominous times. At Action Against Hunger, we are working on innovations that never-before could have been imagined, such as artificial intelligence to help herders in the Sahel find food for livestock and real-time data on global hunger. These and other programs will enable the planet's poorest communities to more easily predict and prevent hunger and are a needed source of progress toward the UN's Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger by 2030.</p>
<h3>Artificial Intelligence to Help Herders Feed Livestock</h3><p>With support from The World Bank, we are using AI and tele-detection technology to help herders in West Africa find food and water for their goats, sheep and other livestock. Across Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Senegal, the <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferhicks/2020/09/29/these-west-african-herders-are-using-ai-to-find-food-for-livestock/#512aadcf7b4e" target="_blank">Pastoral Early Warning System (PEWS)</a> lets herders know — via local radio, SMS, and bulletins in local languages — where to find fodder for their herds, as well as market prices and animal disease trends. In many of these nations, livestock farming accounts for 40% of the agricultural GDP, making it a lynchpin of the economy and culture. The information, which they receive every 10 days, helps them navigate droughts, heatwaves, bushfires, and even closures due to COVID-19, reaching approximately 100,000 people.</p>
<h3>First Real-Time View of Global Hunger</h3><p>Right now, most of the world's malnutrition data lives in spreadsheets and reams of paper. We're in the middle of creating a new app and database to provide the first real-time view of world hunger. Currently in development, "SMART+" will be an all-in-one digital tool to log data when children are screened for malnutrition and provide an aggregate view, down to the "postal code" level. The goal is to detect food emergencies earlier and improve coordination among governments and agencies so that aid can get to people quicker.</p>
<h3>Treating Life-Threatening Hunger at Home</h3><p>COVID-19 has prevented many families from traveling to faraway hospitals for treatment of malnutrition. We have been able to fill in this critical need for urgent care by training health workers and volunteers to treat malnourished children at home. This is not only more convenient and less expensive for families, but also eases the burden on clinics, which are already stretched thin in the midst of a global pandemic.</p><p>Even better, it's more effective. Research shows that <a href="https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1186/s12913-018-2987-z?author_access_token=sEM77f4NL6OVUxdibMBYl2_BpE1tBhCbnbw3BuzI2ROcqaRsdkQtin8Sw9l7_SdYsd0krVlNAyuV2YlFU8bgIAueZEQFx0_IiG-Xqjng2wY-WshE652zBUE82BftMJjh9FAQTKa3BCZ51A8qAT0KSQ%3D%3D" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">95% of malnourished children treated locally by community health workers recovered</a> from malnutrition, compared with 88% of those who were treated in health centers. These findings prompted the country of Mali to change its entire national health system to reflect this new approach, and now several other countries are following their lead.</p>
<h3>Growing Plants Without Soil<br></h3><p>In Ethiopia's Waghimra region, which borders the Sahel, climate change is exacerbating unpredictable rainfall and recurring droughts. More than 90% of families depend on farming or herding, and they now face historically large livestock losses and rising levels of malnutrition. In response, we introduced hydroponics, an innovative way to grow plants without soil. Grass sprouts from a simple raised bed built with wood and plastic and is watered with a nutrient-rich mineral solution that produces richer fodder. This feed nourishes livestock that become healthier, expanding herds and milk production. In turn, farmers can better feed their families and have more to sell, earning income and strengthening local markets. Compared to traditional, soil-based methods, hydroponics uses less water and can produce higher yields in as little as seven days, rather than months.</p><p>Every day thousands of children still die from hunger. In fact, when a child younger than five dies, nearly half the time, hunger is to blame. This isn't inevitable. Innovations abound — both high- and low-tech — that continue to offer hope.</p><p>This World Food Day, let's pause to remember that hunger is predictable and preventable, and we all can take action. Solutions exist, and we must continue to support the world's most vulnerable until everyone has food to eat.</p>
<p><em>Dr. Charles Owubah, is the CEO of<a href="https://www.actionagainsthunger.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Action Against Hunger</a>.</em><br/></p>From Your Site Articles
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