/oss/taxonomy/term/4301/all en /oss/article/covid-19-health/how-much-benefit-there-first-dose-covid-vaccine <hr /> <p>This article was originally published in the <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-how-much-benefit-from-first-dose-of-covid-vaccine">Montreal Gazette</a></p> Fri, 14 May 2021 23:52:58 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8735 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health/i-felt-sick-after-getting-vaccine-why <p>Many years ago, I received the flu shot for the very first time and, later that day, I began to feel sick. Fatigue, body temperature on the rise and a general unease made me think I actually had the flu. “Why get a flu shot if it’s going to give you the flu?” I thought at the time and skipped that shot for a few years before being convinced to get it again.</p> Fri, 09 Apr 2021 19:15:21 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8693 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health-general-science/humans-sometimes-get-way-science <p>I never expected to read the word “glooped” in a BBC article. An<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56556806"> investigation by the BBC programme Panorama</a> recently revealed troubling behaviour on the part of some technicians at one of the major UK COVID-19 testing laboratories. These laboratories receive the swabs that went up the nose and down the throat of potential coronavirus hosts. Technicians there must extract the genetic material present and try to amplify coronavirus-specific sequences using a test known as PCR to check for the presence of the virus.</p> Fri, 02 Apr 2021 19:50:04 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8676 at /oss /oss/article/health-videos/march-18-2021-dose-science <p></p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-1"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-8woab-refko" width="640" height="390" title="March 18, 2021; A Dose of Science" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/8WOAb_rEfKo?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-8woab-refko&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="March 18, 2021; A Dose of Science" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="">Video of March 18, 2021; A Dose of Science</iframe> </div> Mon, 22 Mar 2021 18:13:55 +0000 OSS 8662 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-health/johnson-johnson-vaccine-welcome-addition-toolbox <p>There are several take-away’s from the Johnson & Johnson trial but most worthy is the 85% efficacy in preventing severe illness and 100% efficacy in preventing deaths in the 28 day period following vaccination. The efficacy in preventing any symptoms was 66%, significantly less than the 90-95% for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and this will likely be portrayed as disappointing. It should not be.</p> Fri, 29 Jan 2021 20:27:19 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8583 at /oss /oss/article/health/there-cancer-risk-talcum-powder <p> </p> <hr /> <p><em>​</em><em>This article was first published in</em><span> </span><a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/christopher-labos-is-there-a-cancer-risk-with-talcum-powder">The Montreal Gazette<span>.</span></a></p> Fri, 31 Jan 2020 18:56:31 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 8096 at /oss