Reaching the Masses
Radio dramas help to combat unwanted pregnancies and environmental degradation in villages across the globe.
Melissa Knopper
Posts by Melissa Knopper:
Fish on Drugs
Widely prescribed antidepressants are mellowing minnows and other freshwater fish, posing serious risk to the aquatic food chain.
Quest for Pearly Whites
Cosmetic dentistry has gone mainstream, and sales are booming for over-the-counter teeth whitening pastes, trays and strips. But is all this bleaching safe?
Whatever Happened to Greensburg, Kansas?
Two years after a tornado flattened the town, Greensburg, Kansas boasts a bright green future…
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark: Is That Light Pollution Killing You?
Reconsider all those electronic sources of night light, for health’s sake. The light pollution could be harmful to your health…
Bottled Water Backlash
Call it reverse snob appeal. These days, it’s the tap water enthusiasts, concerned about the growing mountains of plastic waste, who get to act self-righteous.
Something in the Air
The upcoming Beijing Olympics have brought concerns over air quality to light—and athletes in cities across the U.S. have their own smog issues to deal with. Fortunately, there are some precautions everyone can take.
Calling the Shots
Publicity about kids who react to shots, combined with mistrust of traditional medicine, has led to a backlash against childhood vaccines. If too many parents opt out, it could spawn a dangerous resurgence of disease.
The Fast Track
Advocates believe fasting gives the body a necessary break from digesting food, a healthy cleansing, allowing it to heal. But health experts caution that it’s a form of starvation that could overload the kidneys and liver with toxins.
Protecting the Prostate
New and better information is coming to light every day about ways to prevent prostate cancer, which struck an estimated 234,460 American men in 2006. An estimated 27,350 die of it each year, according to American Cancer Society estimates. Since doctors are getting better at catching it early, fewer men are dying of prostate cancer.
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