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A woman who arrived at a New Orleans hospital with an arm infection left sans one arm, thanks to recreational injections of bath salts, an increasingly popular and incredibly dumb drug that no one should ever use, ever. Seriously. Don't inject yourself with bath salts, you guys. Good lord. More »
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You probably already knew that when you flush the toilet with the lid open, a great big cloud of bacteria shoots up into the air like a mushroom cloud of poo germs. But did you know that if you leave the lid open even when the toilet is just hanging out and not being shat in, you're exposing all nearby surfaces to a veritable cloud of toilet bacteria that might be causing other people to catch a disease? A disease that makes them throw up? More »
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In case you were planning to complain about the cleanliness of your local McDonald's, just be advised that you won't be welcome back in their feces-covered eatery. After swabbing several Arizona McDonald's as part of her crusade against bacteria in kids' playrooms, Erin Carr-Jordan received a hand-delivered letter informing her that she's no longer allowed in eight local restaurants. Carr-Jordan says she believes the incident that really set off the chain was when she found MRSA in a PlayPlace. She demanded that the area be shut down after she saw a child licking a ball. McDonald's says it's still willing to talk with her, but she's become "disruptive to the employees and customers within our franchise's restaurants." Carr-Jordan says she doesn't care about the ban because, "I've gotten positive responses from parents who said, 'Hey, I'm not banned. Give me swabs.'" More »
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Um, no. As the chief of the division of infectious diseases at Weill Cornell Medical College tells the New York Times, "Eating dropped food poses a risk for ingestion of bacteria and subsequent gastrointestinal disease, and the time the food sits on the floor does not change the risk." Guess we don't need to ask if the rule is really 5 or 10 seconds, then. More »
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Doctors in the UK have identified a new superbug that is resistant to even the most powerful antibiotics. They say the bacteria was brought to the country from patients who went abroad for treatments like cosmetic surgery. More »
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The scientific explanation for morning breath: Billions of bacteria live in your mouth and create waste, using your mouth like a toilet bowl. When you brush your teeth and eat breakfast, they're killed by the acids in your stomach. [WaPo] More »
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Confirming what we've always suspected, a new study shows that hand sanitizers only reduce bacteria by 46-60%. Use soap and water — or just give up and wallow in filth. [UPI.com] More »
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Researchers found bacteria builds up in showerheads, then aerosolized particles are inhaled while bathing. For healthy people, the bacteria is harmless, but it can be reduced by running the water for 30 seconds/using a metal showerhead. [NYTimes, Image via Flickr.] More »
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Thinking of having sex on the beach or in the pool this summer? Watch out! Pools can dissolve condoms, and sand could give you a UTI. Instead, have sex in a sterile room while wearing a biohazard suit. [LiveScience] More »
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Scientists in San Diego say they have developed a process for making genetically modified E. coli bacteria consume sugar and "excrete" the key ingredient in spandex. This is how it starts! [Technology Review] More »
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Scientists have begun mapping the 1,000 species of bacteria living on the human skin in efforts to better understand healthy epidermis. Apparently, the forearm is teeming with an average of 44 different types of bacteria, while the armpit is a "lush rain forest" of microscopic life. [NationalGeographic & ScienceNow] More »
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Meet the world's first wig purifier. It's futuristic and creepy and scored with heroic music and we want one. [Youtube via BoingBoing] More »
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Commuters at train stations in the UK had their hands analyzed by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine as part of the first Global Handwashing Day, reports The Independent. In London, 21% of women had fecal bacteria on their hands, compared to only 6% of men. Oh, sure the bacteria were "all from the gut" and do not necessarily cause disease, but the statistics do indicate that hands have not been washed properly and that women have filthier hands than men. More »
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Elle's Beauty Genius Awards are...well, I was going to call them the MacArthur "Genius" Fellowships of beauty, but look here — the magazine actually just went ahead and called them the "Nobel Prizes" of Beauty, which pretty much takes the wind out of my faux-hubristic sails. Anyway! It's an invaluable spread filled with the collected wisdom of 25 hairstylists, makeup artists, colorists, dermatologists, cosmetic dentists representing the "brightest stars" in the business of Making You Beautiful, and I am here because I wanted to share with you the explanation of Facialist and "former chemist" Mady Shany, healer of Hollywood's A-Listiest acne problems, as to why you should switch up your skin care products every three or four months. "Bacteria figures out what you are using to kill it and becomes immune to ingredients." Wait, really? So...these breakouts...they're like a mild superbug?? Is the advent of Purel and hormone-treated beef making our skin stay uglier later? More »
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