/oss/taxonomy/term/201/all en /oss/article/health-and-nutrition/just-say-no <p>“A spoonful of sucrose helps the medicine go down,” as Mary Poppins told us. But she neglected to say that it also increases our risk of cardiovascular disease. Actually, Mary didn’t say sucrose, she said a “spoonful of sugar.” Sucrose is the chemical term for table sugar and is actually composed of two smaller molecules, glucose and fructose joined together. All three are referred to as “simple sugars,” in contrast to “complex sugars” such as the starch in food, or the glycogen stored in the liver, that are composed of long chains of glucose molecules. </p><p></p> Wed, 22 Feb 2023 17:34:01 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 9410 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-and-nutrition/why-children-shouldnt-just-be-left-get-covid <hr /> <p><em>This article was originally published in the <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-why-children-shouldnt-just-be-left-to-get-covid">Montreal Gazette</a></em></p> Sat, 12 Feb 2022 03:11:59 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 9024 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition/benzene-jitters <p>At one time it was used as an aftershave because of its sweet smell.  It was even used to decaffeinate coffee.  Oh my, how times change!  Today we worry about a few parts per billion of benzene in our drinking water, in our soft drinks, in our antiperspirants or sun protection products.  Why?  Because benzene is an established carcinogen and should be avoided.  But benzene also happens to be one of the building blocks of our society.  Traces of it are everywhere.  Given that eliminating benzene from the environment is impossible, what we need is a reasonable risk analysis.  That’s quite a c</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 01:26:48 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8995 at /oss /oss/article/critical-thinking-health/funhouse-mirror-risk-perception <p>The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many preexisting problems. One of them is how to vet the avalanche of information flowing down at us on a daily basis. Another is how to properly assess the risks that we face.</p> Fri, 09 Jul 2021 18:22:36 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8780 at /oss /oss/article/history-general-science/when-you-play-fire <p>There is an old saying that if you play with fire, eventually you will get burned. The same can be said for certain chemicals. Of course, I don’t mean “play” in the literal sense. What I mean is that when chemicals are produced, especially on a large scale, as many are, accidents can happen. However, risk can be minimized by adhering to good manufacturing practice and proper handling and storage of chemicals. Unfortunately, human error, negligence and greed can take a toll.</p> Fri, 25 Jun 2021 17:12:37 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8769 at /oss /oss/article/general-science-you-asked/california-knows-better-really <p>Such warnings have become ubiquitous as a result of California’s Proposition 65, a well-intentioned law that has gone haywire and has caused undue anxiety among consumers. The intent was to protect people from exposure to potentially toxic substances, a noble effort. Any substance that can cause cancer or reproductive problems under some condition is a candidate for being subject to regulation under Proposition 65. The problem is that the law is based on hazard, not risk.</p> Tue, 09 May 2017 14:58:06 +0000 Joe Schwarcz 2424 at /oss /oss/article/health-news/number-needed-treat <p>We all want to be healthy and live as long as possible. So we think about popping vitamin pills, a daily dose of aspirin, eating foods with probiotics and taking statin drugs. And we puzzle over dietary regimes that claim to result in weight loss, lower blood cholesterol and reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease. All of these are supported by some evidence. But the chances of significant benefit are in general much less than what people think.</p> Wed, 04 Feb 2015 01:08:46 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2234 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-environment-health-news-toxicity/phthalates-and-microwave-ovens <p>It always pays to read the study! It really does, because popular accounts often misinterpret what researchers actually found and end up raising undue alarm. Of course it is raising the red flag of alarm that gets attention, and these days, with all sorts of bloggers scooting around to popularize their websites hoping to recruit advertisers, getting attention is what it is all about.</p> Sun, 20 Sep 2015 11:48:18 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2284 at /oss /oss/article/cancer-environment-health/hazard-and-risk <p>If you watched the news, read newspapers or surfed the web recently you will have been inundated with pictures of bacon and headlines describing it as carcinogenic. That’s because the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified processed meats as being carcinogenic, placing them in the same category as tobacco smoke, asbestos, oral contraceptives, alcohol, sunshine, X-rays, polluted air, and inhaled sand. However, it is critical to understand that the classification is based on hazard as opposed to risk.</p> Fri, 27 Nov 2015 01:19:00 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2296 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-environment-news/us-toxic-substances-control-act-tsca <p>Amidst the cacophony of jingoist, vacuous blather at the Republican Convention there were some noteworthy phrases that probably slipped by most viewers. A number of speakers talked about the need to reign in the activities of the Environmental Protection Agency, the “EPA.” That is something one would expect from Republicans who want as little government interference in their life as possible. But these are the same Republicans who voted to update the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act that finally was passed in June by Congress with bipartisan approval after ten years of debate.</p> Sat, 27 Aug 2016 08:44:58 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2352 at /oss /oss/article/general-science-quackery/chemistry-lesson-food-babe-and-everyone-else-7-difference-between-hazard-and-risk <p>We know that Ms. Food Babe’s scientific knowledge is negligible. Especially when it comes to understanding the difference between hazard and risk. This is important especially when it come to understanding the International Agency for Research on Cancer’s listing of chemicals as being carcinogenic. This list is based on hazard, not risk. Hazard can be defined as a potential source of harm or of some adverse health effect. Risk is the likelihood that exposure to a hazard causes harm or some adverse effect.</p> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 21:41:19 +0000 Joe Schwarcz 1459 at /oss