He;s not a doc but does put it bluntly why this is dangerous.
The rejection is because it is seen as Catholic of course. But I worked with the Navajo and they also have taboos against marriage with relatives. And in Africa, the Mashona would not marry if you were in the same clan.
and in small religious groups like the Amish, the genetic problems are recognized so although they have few new members to dilute the gene pool, they do encourage their boys to visit other Amish/Mennonite communities to find wives.
Source:
NYU Langone Health / NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Summary:
A sweeping review from NYU Langone Health reveals that everyday exposure to plastics—especially during childhood—poses lasting risks for heart disease, infertility, asthma, and even brain development issues. These chemicals, found in packaging, cosmetics, and common household items, can disrupt hormones, ignite chronic inflammation, and lower IQ.
the only problem: For many things, there is no safe substitute for plastics. Sigh.
I am reading about the Tale of Gengi and the women's diaries from this time in medieval Japan.
Yup. Sei Shonagon did play around a bit, but not the author of Tale of Genji.
One of Murasaki's diaries mentions a man knocking at her room asking for a poem, and she declined to see him because she hadn't put on her makeup yet, but did have her lady in waiting hand him the poem he asked for.
Well, I was aware of blackened teeth but did women back then use white lead makeup such as we see in Geisha photos?
That, plus infectious diseases like small pox, poor diet that could lead to beriberi from white rice, and of course tuberculosis, might explain why so many characters tended to die a lingering death at a young age.
Yes, makeup during the Heian period (794–1185) in Japan often contained lead.
The most prominent example is oshiroi, the white face powder used by aristocratic women to achieve a pale complexion, which was a symbol of beauty and status. This powder was typically made from ground rice or other starches, but in many cases, it was mixed with white lead (basic lead carbonate) to enhance its opacity and smoothness.
Lead-based cosmetics were common across many cultures at the time, including Japan, due to their desirable texture and color.
While the Heian period's records don’t extensively detail the exact composition of all cosmetics, historical accounts and later studies of traditional Japanese makeup confirm that lead was used in oshiroi. For example, the Genji Monogatari and other Heian literature describe women applying thick white makeup, which aligns with the use of lead-based powders.
The toxicity of lead wasn’t understood then, so its use persisted despite health risks like skin damage or systemic poisoning over time. Other makeup, like beni (red lip and cheek pigment made from safflower) and sumi (black ink for eyebrows and teeth blackening, or ohaguro), didn’t typically contain lead, but the white base was the primary culprit. If you’re digging deeper into this, I can look for specific sources or analyze related content for you.
so what led me to ask this? Well this video popped up on my youtube feed.
Queen Elizabeth probably had smallpox scars and heavy make up would cover it up.
Modern makeup can sometimes contain trace amounts of lead or other toxic metals, but it’s heavily regulated in many countries to minimize health risks.
Here’s the breakdown:
Lead: Lead is not intentionally added to cosmetics today, but it can appear as a contaminant in ingredients like pigments, talc, or mica due to natural deposits in the earth. For example, lipsticks and eyeshadows, which use mineral-based colorants, may have trace lead. The U.S. FDA sets a limit of 10 parts per million (ppm) for lead in cosmetics applied to the skin and 20 ppm for lip products, deeming these levels safe based on exposure studies. Tests by the FDA and groups like Campaign for Safe Cosmetics have found some products with lead below these thresholds (e.g., 0.1–3 ppm in lipsticks), but none exceeding dangerous levels in regulated markets. Developing countries with lax rules might have riskier products.
Other Toxic Metals: Metals like arsenic, cadmium, mercury, and chromium can also show up as impurities. These are typically found in trace amounts in mineral-based ingredients (e.g., iron oxides in foundations or eyeshadows). The EU’s Cosmetics Regulation and similar laws in Canada and the U.S. cap these at very low levels (e.g., arsenic < 3 ppm, mercury < 1 ppm). Mercury was historically used in skin-lightening creams but is now banned in most regulated markets, though illegal products still circulate, especially in parts of Asia and Africa.
Health Risks: At regulated levels, these trace metals are considered safe for most people, as exposure is minimal compared to, say, food or water. However, cumulative exposure (especially for heavy makeup users) or use of unregulated products can raise concerns, like skin irritation or, in rare cases, systemic effects.
Safer Options: Brands labeled “clean” or “non-toxic” often avoid mineral pigments altogether or use highly purified ingredients to reduce metal content. Certifications like ECOCERT or USDA Organic can guide choices, though they don’t guarantee zero metals.
If you’re worried, check product origins—U.S., EU, Japan, and Canadian brands face stricter scrutiny than some imported goods.
when one reads about skin whiteners, one thinks: For the face.
lots of explanations why, but I suspect Acanthosis nigricans? That is associated with the gene for metabolic syndrome, and when we saw it in our Objibwe patients, we kept an eye on their blood sugar.
well, anyway, I usually use Old Spice: because it was easier to just buy a man's brand when I lived in a household of men, since the boys would always end up just using the one in the bathroom.
---------------
update: So anyway, since Grok's answer above was about the well regulated market in the US, I asked specifically about third world cosmetics:
Heavy metals in makeup, particularly in products from less-regulated markets often associated with developing countries, pose significant health and environmental risks.
These metals—such as lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and chromium—can contaminate cosmetics through impure raw materials, poor manufacturing practices, or intentional addition for effects like skin lightening.
The problem is amplified in regions with lax regulations, limited testing, and economic pressures that prioritize cheap production over safety.
Health-wise, these metals are toxic even in small amounts.
Lead, found in lipsticks and powders, is a neurotoxin that can impair cognitive development, especially in children exposed through maternal use or direct contact.
Mercury, common in skin-lightening creams, damages kidneys and the nervous system and is absorbed through the skin.
Cadmium and arsenic, sometimes present as colorants or impurities, are linked to cancer and skin irritation.
Chromium can cause allergic reactions or, in its hexavalent form, act as a carcinogen.
Chronic exposure from daily makeup use can lead to bioaccumulation, where metals build up in the body, causing long-term harm like reproductive issues or immune system damage.
Economically and socially, the issue thrives in developing nations due to high demand for affordable beauty products, particularly skin-whitening creams driven by cultural preferences for lighter skin. These products, often produced locally or imported cheaply, bypass stringent checks. For example, studies have shown mercury levels in some fairness creams in South Asia and Africa exceeding safe limits by thousands of times, yet they remain widely sold due to weak enforcement.
Consumers, often unaware of the risks, are exposed to aggressive marketing that downplays dangers.
Environmentally, heavy metals from cosmetics contribute to pollution. Improper disposal of products releases these persistent toxins into soil and water, affecting ecosystems and food chains. Manufacturing processes in under-regulated regions also emit metal-laden waste, compounding the problem.
The root causes include inadequate regulatory frameworks, corruption, or lack of resources to enforce standards. Global trade loopholes allow contaminated products to cross borders, especially into markets with less oversight. Unlike developed nations with agencies like the FDA or EU’s strict cosmetic laws, many developing countries lack equivalent systems or prioritize economic growth over safety.
Solutions are tricky but not impossible. Strengthening local regulations and aligning them with international standards (like WHO or EU limits) is a start, but enforcement is key—random testing and hefty penalties could deter violations. Public awareness campaigns, tailored to cultural contexts, can shift consumer behavior away from risky products. Supporting ethical brands that test for metals and use clean ingredients could drive market change, though affordability remains a barrier. Tech like blockchain for supply chain transparency or portable testing devices could help regulators and consumers verify product safety.
On the flip side, overregulation might stifle small businesses in these economies, and blanket bans on certain products could fuel black markets, where even worse quality control prevails. Cultural attitudes toward beauty standards also resist quick fixes—skin lightening, for instance, is deeply entrenched in some societies, and change requires addressing systemic biases.
The problem isn’t just “third world”—global supply chains mean these issues can spill into any market. It’s a messy intersection of health, economics, and culture, and tackling it demands both local grit and global cooperation.
The treaty is a fraud of course LINKThe proposed "Pandemic Treaty" is NOT designed to prevent the next pandemic.
The World Health Organization has failed to address the obvious fact that regulatory agencies around the world have been captured by pharmaceutical interests. In fact, they are profiting from it. >LINK<
It is designed to enable a small group of well-positioned people to profit from the next pandemic.
More here.
The WHO's "Prequalification" and "Emergency Use Listing" Racket
Are products that are approved, "Prequalified" or listed for emergency use (EUL) by the World Health Organization truly "safe and effective," or is this just another corrupt, money-making racket?
James Roguski
Nov 07, 2024
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Are you aware that the World Health Organization has “prequalified” 272 vaccines? They charge over $100,000 per vaccine!
In order for “health related products” to be part of the United Nations procurement system, they must be “prequalified” by the WHO, which charges substantial one-time and ongoing fees in return for their “prequalification.”
A “racket” is defined as the act of creating demand for a “service” through extortion or intimidation when such a “service” would not have been needed otherwise.
A “racketeer” is a person who engages in organized criminal activity, typically for financial gain.
“Racketeering” is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercive, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit.
Is the WHO ethically and financially liable for the harm that results from the products that they “prequalify?”
Or does their money-making scheme enable them to create an illusion of safety and effectiveness while redirecting blame to the Responsible National Regulatory Agencies?
Click on the links below for details:
https://extranet.who.int/prequal/vaccines/fees-prequalification
https://extranet.who.int/prequal/vaccines/prequalified-vaccines
If manufacturers want their products to be eligible for procurement by United Nations agencies, they must submit to the World Health Organization’s scheme to have their products “prequalified.”
The “Pandemic Agreement” is NOT designed to improve health and there is absolutely no evidence that it will prevent future pandemics.
It is actually a corrupt business deal that is designed to dramatically expand the Pharmaceutical Hospital Emergency Industrial Complex (PHEIC) around the world.
It is simply NOT acceptable to spend tens of billions of dollars to increase Big Pharma’s profits under the guise of “sustainable financing” for “geographically diversified local production” to ensure “equitable access to pandemic related products” to combat “pathogens with pandemic potential.”
Millions of Pounds of Ready-to-Eat Beef, Chicken Recalled Due to Listeria
Affected products may have been used in ready-to-eat products that are “on store shelves or in consumers’ refrigerators or freezers,” or available for use by restaurants and other establishments.
almost every week, we read about similar food recalls in the USA. Imagine how common such things happen in other countries.
this is an important issue, since a longer shelf life means more food. How do you keep food safe and cheap? One answer is Chemicals that prolong shelf life but keep food cheap enough for ordinary folks (especially here in the poorer areas of the world). RFK Jr points out these cause long term health problems but hey, the cost benefit ratio means well nourished poor people.
Food recalls not only mean less food available to eat, but foods contaminated with common germs are a big health risk.
Germs cause diarrhea. Usually from the 4 F problem (contaminated FOOD (usually from not being stored correctly...the poor here don't have refrigerators), FINGERS, (not washing hands), FECES (fertilizer not washed off of vegetables, also contaminated water from poorly placed latrines) and FLIES (that carry germs on their feet that land on your food).
So how do you stop bacterial contamination of meats and cheeze and fresh vegetables? Keep it clean, wash your hands, store it properly.
But for countries where food processing plants (not local farmers a mile away) supply your food, one overlooked answer to contamination is radiation to kill germs.
Here is an article about it in the journal Foods in 2023 which is actually discussing using radiation to prevent food contamination with pathogenic germs:
But first they note that this high tech expensive technology should not be the main way to stop food poisoning:
It is essential to note that irradiation is just one aspect of a comprehensive approach to ensuring the microbial safety of meat. Other interventions, such as good manufacturing practices, hygiene controls, and appropriate storage and handling practices, are also crucial for reducing the risk of contamination
but for food processing plants, radiation is another way that could help:
Irradiation has been studied extensively for its efficacy in reducing microbial contamination of meat. By exposing the food to ionizing radiation, the latter reduces or eliminates harmful microorganisms that can cause foodborne illness. Previous research showed that irradiation could effectively reduce levels of pathogens such as Salmonella and Escherichia coli as well as levels of spoilage organisms, leading to improved microbial safety and a reduced risk of foodborne illness.
another technical article discussing not only radiation but UV light Ozone microwaves etc. And how these technologies might help not just with bacteria but with viruses.
this is a news report summary of using radiation from eight years ago:
this is a lecture from MIT from 2019,...It is more technical but he is a good teacher that makes it easy to follow his arguments..
at three minutes in, he notes that you often find small bugs in rice.
We find this is a problem: we grow and sell organic brown rice to upscale supermarkets in Manila and nearby cities. There is no way our small business could afford to radiate the rice to kill the bugs, so we use more traditional ways to keep our rice from spoilage.
When we package the rice, we sift the rice so the small bugs fall through the screen, and then blowtorch it lightly to kill the eggs that didn't detach (and would result in live bugs months later) but not enough to harm the rice.
We also pack it in vacuum bags which extends the shelf life and keeps it dry so it doesn't spoil as quickly.
As our city modernizes, we have modern supermarkets now that have the same standards of US supermarkets (and higher prices than the traditional markets AKA Palenkes).
But our cook usually buys fresh food every day at the Palenke down the street.
What is a Palenke? An open air market with small vendors selling their wares.
This video by a local comedian is about the wonderfulness of the Filipino Palenke.
I am pro vaccine for routine vaccines since I saw these diseases kill children in Africa, and even saw some very sick cases in the USA before MMR etc was available. (and saw measles deaths measles encephalitis, and Fetal Rubella syndrome)....Cost benefit ratio is important.
As for autism: I didn't see a lot on the reservation (lots of FAS) and suspect a lot of kids who 60 years ago would have been called retarded and put into institutions are now home, and hey, Retard is a bad word but autism, after the movie Rain Man, is more acceptable to middle class parents....
but after the Dengue vaccine debacle here in the Philippines, and after the covid coverups and irrational insistance of giving it to low risk kids, such things do need to be discussed.
We grow organic rice, and both our brown rice business and Joy's working with the government to grow organic food in nearby (and very poor) Bulacan in a coop recognizes this is the healthy way to eat.
But in the meanwhile, I see junk food increasingly advertised on TV etc. and sold in kiosks for snacks. Due to soy sauce and patis, the high blood pressure problem is widespread and has been a problem for years. The decrease in stomach cancer in the US is because chemicals displaced smoking fish and meat, but it is still common in places like Japan.
But as for diabetes: Yes this is a problem. And it is dietary: The Pima Indians have the highest rate of diabetes in the US, but it is rare in their Mexican cousins who eat a traditional diet. Which is why a lot of our outreach to diabetic patients in the Objibwe (who also have a high rate of diabetes) is about dietary changes. The locals blame commodities: Government saw severe malnutrition (and people dying of TB and infectious disease due to low protein diet) so gave them high fat high protein commodities. Voila, thirty precent diabetes rate and huge adults (both tall and obese).
I am not totally opposed to food additives but junk food? that is bad capitalism.
And I left practice 20 years ago so am not up to date on a lot of this: I suspect the increase in junk food consumption is because single mothers or mothers too tired to cook from scratch after being forced to work 40 hours a week to survive.
Sigh.
I have written elsewhere about plastics and herbicides and pesticides maybe inducing metabolic syndrome (pre diabetes) in folks with this gene (which is why AmerIndians and Mexicans have such a high rate of obesity).
But remember: get rid of all these things and you have people with low grade malnutrition who die of infectious diseases. So do you use a diet that makes young people strong but they die of diabetes at age 50, or do you go back to expensive natural food, stay at home moms who know how to prepare and even have backyard gardetns, or what?
and for the third world, will getting rid of chemicals just result in food being so expensive that famines will result? (organic rice is labor intensive and costs more).
I was in Liberia when they increased the price of rice, and left two days before the army overthrew the president and there were riots all over the place. SriLanka collapsed when they went organic. And part of the blame for Syria's horrific unreported civil war was a drought that made farmers flee to the cities.
To me this is not an either or proposition; And you need a conversation about this. So having RFK join Trumpieby might result in interesting discussions areund the dinner table.
Yup. Just like the 1960s, expect to see a lot of sob stories to push the agenda of the elites to keep abortion a human right so these Karens can have their careers without bothering with kids (and who never worry about how they could outreach and help women forced to abort because of lack of financial or social support).
But this article is lying with statistics.
The article claims that the neonatal mortality increased 8%.
That sounds bad, but then they note it is now 5.75 per 1,000
But if you realized the baseline was 5.5 percent, which increased 8 percent to 5.75, this doesn't sound so bad:
The rate of neonatal deaths in whites and Hispanics is about 5, but the rate of neonatal deaths in non Hispanic Black women is 10.
In other words, they push the tiny statistic for their own agenda, but miss the elephant in the room: An excess of neonatal deaths caused by racism.
It's not all racism per se, but psychological distrust of the medical system (Tuskegee. OKC meningocoel non treatment experiment among other things).
And because of this distrust, medical problems that could be prevented or treated if caught early end up causing sickness and even death.
When it comes to prenatal care, Black women have a higher incidence of toxemia, untreated high blood pressure, diabetes, lack of access to prenatal care, poor diets (high salt and high fat diets), hemoglobinopathies, and a higher incidence of twin births
a lot of these things could be picked up and often treated if routine and early prenatal care was done.
Covid infections during pregnancy and also the mRNA vaccine has been suspected to increase premature births, but is not even mentioned here,
nor are other viral illnesses can also increase the rate of malformations (e.g. Rubella, because the lady never got her MMR vaccine, or Zika, which I suspect is still around, or Hep B or C disease or other STDs that are found on routine prenatal screening that was never done)
. And of course, screening for illicit drug use.
Many of these things can be treated if prenatal care was available.
But often there are fewer clinics convenient for the moms to get an appointment, not just in the black communities, but in rural areas,
and often there is a distrust of the system in the black community. And this includes distrust of some doctors (including many FMG who don't understand black culture or come from countries where blacks are looked down upon.)
So the problem is racism, not that moms can't do abortions on malformed babies.
....
,,,,,,
I have worked in rural medicine where many of my patients were poor whites or Hispanics, but it was frustrating because no one was going out and finding the Hispanic farm workers who were women, often who lacked papers, to get them screened for their pregnancy.
and I also worked with the IHS, which had an active outreach using local home health workers to outreach to our patients. Too often the IHS docs came and went, but the tribal home health workers, local nurse midwives, and the fact that local health care workers could work with them via the extended family ties were what made the difference.
Yes, this can be done. And it requires you to work with organizations that are accepted by the locals: which for many black communities are their churches, social centers, and even barbershops.
,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,,update; Another elephant in the room: Is the increase in malformation/premature deliveries, small for date babies a side effect of the mRNA vaccines?,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Loneliness and lack of social connection are widespread and pose a threat to mental and physical health.
What is added by this report?
In 2022, the prevalence of feeling lonely always, usually, or sometimes among adults in 26 U.S. states was highest for bisexual (56.7%) and transgender persons (range = 56.4%–63.9%); these groups also reported the highest prevalence of stress, frequent mental distress, and history of depression (range = 34.3%–67.2%).
Prevalence of lack of social and emotional support was elevated among transgender adults.
What are the implications for public health practice? ''
Addressing the threat to mental health among sexual and gender minority groups should include consideration of loneliness and lack of social and emotional support.
Overall prevalence estimates were 32.1% for loneliness and 24.1% for lack of social and emotional support (Table 2).
Within the corresponding demographic categories, prevalences of loneliness and lack of social and emotional support were respectively highest among those aged 18–34 years (43.3% and 29.7%), those with less than a high school education (41.1% and 36.3%), those who never married (45.9% and 34.7%), and those with household income below $25,000 (47.9% and 39.8%); prevalences were lowest among non-Hispanic White adults (29.6% and 20.1%) and those who had two adults living in a household (27.4% and 19.1%).
Loneliness was significantly more common among women than among men (33.5% versus 30.7%), whereas lack of social and emotional support was more common among men than among women (22.3% versus 26.1%). '
The prevalence of loneliness was significantly higher among adults who identified as gay (41.2%), lesbian (44.8%), bisexual (56.7%), or something other than gay, lesbian, bisexual, or straight (50.7%), than among those who identified as straight (30.3%).
Loneliness was significantly higher among adults who were transgender female (56.4%), transgender male (62.6%), or transgender gender nonconforming (63.9%), than among those who were cisgender (32.1%).
Lack of social and emotional support was significantly more prevalent among adults who identified as gay (29.0%), bisexual (36.5%) and something other than gay, lesbian, bisexual, or straight (39.3%), than among those who identified as straight (22.8%); prevalence among adults who were transgender female (44.8%), transgender male (34.4%), or transgender gender nonconforming (41.4%) was significantly greater than among those who were cisgender (23.8%).
one of the problems of using an attenuated virus is that by giving a mild case of the disease, there is a danger that the virus will evolve back into the severe disease. This is rare but a problem with the oral polio vaccine.
the danger ironically is not to the kid who got the vaccine, but to those around them who didn't get one of the polio vaccines: Usually in the US among religious groups that won't vaccinate or in the third world, where the religious leaders read the conspiracy theories and told their people not to get it.
IN other words, the problem with the anti vax movement is not that these essentially healthy people can't get away with their delusions and exaggerations of risk, but that others misinterpret their misinterpretation and so kids die.
so the CDC has a report about the world wide eradification of polio:
Global efforts have led to the eradication of two of the three wild poliovirus (WPV) serotypes (types 2 and 3), with only WPV type 1 (WPV1) remaining endemic, and only in Afghanistan and Pakistan...
I always wondered how they decided this, since many cases in these countries never see a doctor. Well, the public health people monitor sewage.
but the bad news: The polio virus that evolved from the weakened vaccine is spreading: Maybe because more kids didn't get their vaccinations during covid, or because they were told it was dangerous, so the number of people who don't have any immunity to polio has increased:
The number of polio cases caused by circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPVs; circulating vaccine virus strains that have reverted to neurovirulence) decreased from 881 in 2022 to 524 in 2023; cVDPV outbreaks (defined as either a cVDPV case with evidence of circulation or at least two positive environmental surveillance isolates) occurred in 32 countries in 2023
Here in the Philippines, about300 people die of rabies each year. Indeed, our town just lost a young girl bitten by a street dog who didn't tell her mom about the bite.
Sigh
ironically, the treatment of rabies by giving a vaccine during the incubation period dates back to the time of Louis Pasteur in 1885.
this works because unlike other illnesses, the period between being infected and developing the disease with rabies may be weeks or even months.
Louis Pasteur holding rabbits, which were used to help develop the vaccine for rabies. Credit: World History Archive / Alamy Stock Photo
Pasteur (building on ideas from others) figured out that if a germ was made weak, you could give it to a person or animal and they will only get a little sick, but would become immune to the disease.
But rabies back then was a horrible disease and still is fatal. So how could he make the infection weak? By injecting it cross species into rabbits. The virus would be weak, but as it was inoculated into the next rabbit, would become stronger. So make a vaccine from the first rabbit which would give the rabbit a mild rabies infection, and gradually use material from the later, stronger infected rabbits.
Then make the vaccine starting with the first rabbit specimen, and give repeated shots until the final dosage was reached. This way, you could be immune to rabies.
Pasteur was not a licensed physician and could have been prosecuted for doing so — on 6 July 1885, Pasteur used his rabies vaccine, in the presence of two local doctors, to treat 9-year-old Joseph Meister, who had been severely bitten by a neighbour’s rabid dog.
Joseph Meister received a total of 13 inoculations over a period of 11 days, and survived in good health.
But even then, there might have been a question if the vaccine worked:
Pasteur’s reluctance might also be accounted for by posthumous analysis of his laboratory notebooks, which revealed that Pasteur had vaccinated two other individuals before Meister; one remained well but might not actually have been exposed, and the other developed rabies and died.
On the other hand, since rabies is 100 percent fatal, most people would be willing to risk a fifty fifty chance of not getting rabies.
By the end of 1885, several more desperate rabies-exposed people had travelled to Pasteur’s laboratory to be vaccinated. During 1886, Pasteur treated 350 people with his rabies vaccine, of whom only one developed rabies. The startling success of these vaccines led directly to the founding of the first Pasteur Institute in 1888.
partly from immigrants who didn't get a good vaccine (if the measles vaccine isn't kept cold enough it doesn't work) or no vaccine.
And partly due to the distrust of vaccine: the anti vax types pushed measles vaccine as causing autism for years, and now with covid problems covered up, they are believed more by some.
“Behind these numbers lie the stories of midwives and skilled health personnel helping mothers safely deliver their newborns… vaccinating… children against deadly diseases, and (making) home visits to support families,” Unicef Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.
For example, after throwing out the Taliban, midwife training led to a huge decrease in maternal/child deaths.
Routine vaccinations also lowered the death rate from measles and whooping cough.
and encouraging family planning that enables spacing of children, along with encouraging prolonged breast feeding, also helps.
and the general lowering of the poverty rate led to better food so the kids had better immune systems. That is why the covid shutdown was a disaster here in the third world.
the resurgence of an obsolete form of Islamic fanaticism will reverse these trends in many countries.
And the anti vax types will ignore the good of the vaccines leading to deaths.
and the green movement to ban fossil fuels will make the economy worse by raising food prices and by subtle things like making LGP gas to cook with too expensive, so back to using wood (causing indoor pollution and asthma in kids, not to mention deforestation).
This has led me to read about that period in Japanese history, about the introduction of tea, about the varieties of Buddhism that changed from ceremonial and strict to the more popular version that lets non intellectuals to get to heaven by taking Buddha as their Lord and savior without all that complicated rituals.
but anyway, one of the side issues is disease. Lots of child birth deaths, not just in Genji but in other related writings by ladies of those days.
But what about disease?
I am just starting to do research into the healing ceremonies, but one of the issues I ran across was infectious disease
Japan, being an island, and in rural areas in valleys tended to be isolated, was what in public health calls virgin territory: where no one is immune to a disease so the result is a huge number of deaths.
This is what happened to the American Indians for example. Or to the Europeans who got Syphillis in return
The first recorded smallpox epidemic in Japan was in the eighth century. The smallpox that started in 735 ravaged the country and killed probably about one-third of the entire population. Almost certainly this was a virgin soil epidemic. Later, twenty-eight smallpox epidemics were recorded until 1206. Among these epidemics, there was a clear trend of progressive shortening of the interval between two epidemics: until the year 1000, smallpox visited Japan with the interval of twenty-four years on average, while between 1001 and 1206 the interval became thirteen years.4 (Table 1) By the Tokugawa Period or the early modern period in Japan, smallpox was firmly settled as an endemic disease.5 Statistics from a village show that the village experienced major outbreaks of smallpox about every ten years. (Figure 1) They also show that about ninety-five per cent of the deaths from smallpox were those who were under ten-years-of-age.
I bring this up for two reasons:
One: that a new disease into a population without immunity could kill a large percentage of the population, and
TWO: that as time goes on, with each epidemic, fewer die, until it essentially becomes a disease of childhood
The lessons for covid? Well, thanks to the omicron varient, the milder disease took over (omicron varients tend to stay in the upper airway, and not give those huge fluffy pneumonias we saw earlhy in the epidemic).
the death rate of covid, although terrible, did not kill a significant part of the population.
when discussing covid, I should add three:
That the early shut down might have helped, but since the young had natural immunity, the shut down of society that lasted two years was malpractice (or maybe a crime). Two weeks to flatten the curve, yes, but prolonged shut down made no sense.
Finally, if you read about the high mortality of small pox etc: remember there are a lot of scary diseases out there.
Monkey pox could result in a minor epidemic, but it is rarely fatal even in Africa and HIV postitive westerners whose immune system is lousy.
Indeed, despite the hysteria, the CDC types didn't even bother to shut down the rave parties where it was being spread, and although the white gay community was organized enough to tell each other to get the vaccine, the public health departments failed to reach out to high risk Hispanic and black communities,. So here too you can see that they either didn't take it seriously or were incompetent, or were stopped from doing what was necessary due to political correctness.
This is similar to the way the public authorities failed to stop all those "firey but peaceful" demonstrations: if this was a serious disease someone should have done an evaluation on those attending. This population study ignores that the counties where protesters gathered were not the same places these professional protesters came from, and also ignored that the huge numbers they cited as protesters was a fake number, since the same protesters probably attended several meetings. Instead, anyone concerned with this danger were silenced.
to see a good study, check out the one that was done later for the Sturgis motorcycle ralley which found little spread despite the hysteria of the linked CNN report (86 cases, four people were hospitalized, and one died_) probably because by then herd immunity had taken place.
sigh.
But anyway: Yes, stop the conspiracy theories about meetings planning for future epidemics: because such epidemics do happen.
But two: remove the nincompoops who mishandled the Covid response.
Finally, stopping people from using medicines that might stop them from dying was major malpractice, but hey Fauci did it in the past and got away with it:
Prepfar has saved millions of Africans. This program was started by President Bush and aimed at giving (expensive) drugs to people to slow down the evolution of the HIV infection.
A lot of people hated it because they claimed it took money from other disease, or that it encouraged local docs and nurses to work for Prepfar instead of other programs (reality: without a decent salary a lot of these people would have emigrated to get a better job, but the argument sounded good for Bush haters).
Well, anyway, this program was accepted by Africans, and ended up saving millions of lives. But Bush was Republican so of course few in the USA or Europe ever heard about it.
But now Biden seeks to subvert this popular program to push birth control and abortion on Africans.
Like the Biden State Dept etc who pushes gay rights on countries by linking this policy to aid given to these governments, subverting Prepfar, which saves lives, with organizations who openly push the idea that there is a need to stop Africans from having children will be seen as a racist plot to stop Africans from having babies because of racism.
and if you don't think China notices this and quietly points this out to the leaders of these countries, then you are naive.
ah but the western press will pretend this is about evil Republicans opposing Prepfar because racism, and ignore that this policy is being changed by Biden, and will become part of the long crusade to limit African births.
essentially this will let them hijack the funds to go from those saving lives by giving out HIV drugs to NGOs whose object is to push birth control and abortion, and worse, to pressure these countries to change their laws.
When I worked in Africa, every village had a "pill lady" to give out birth control, because we did the public health for the area, and as a Catholic hospital we did not give out birth control
however, although we had pill ladies, a lot of these villages had no wells for drinking water etc.
The sisters started a program for villagers to dig shallow wells, line the holes, and then we got funds to cover the well with concrete and a simple pump. True, this water was not always clean (we still urged them to boil it or use filters for dringking water) but it enabled them to wash and clean. Before this, often the only water in the dry season would be from rivers which might mean walking a long distance and carrying the water home.
We also funded village health workers, who could give out simple Rehydration fluid for diarrhea (a simple rememdy that can cut the rate of death up to 90 percent), teach basic hygiene and nutrition, and monitor children for malnutrition, care for minor wounds etc. Abd we started a nutrition village to feed up children whose weight was going down, and we sponsored programs for chicken raising for eggs etc.
As for Prepfar: I predate HIV....We probably had cases when I worked there (people dying of minor infections, two cases of Kaposi sarcoma) but it was not a known disease so no, I didn't know about it until I got home and heard in my National Guard unit about this mysterious STD that was fatal.
However, the hospital where I had worked in Africa, and some of the sisters became active with Prepfar to save lives, and several of our nurses reported family members whose lives were saved by this program.
So again I stress: By diverting the funding to birth control and pushing sexual policies to limit population, the danger is that people will no longer trust these caregivers: They might see them as part of the evil west trying to stop Africans from having babies because of racism.
and of course, such ideas won't just be pushed by locals who remember colonialist racism, but will be believed by religious leaders (Bishops and Muslim leaders). And of course, China will quietly push this idea. Already the Biden administration and the EU is pushing their sexual agenda (gay rights, encourage teenage sex by sex education), and pushing countries to change their local laws.
By the way: African women who have jobs might indeed want to space their babies, and this should be available: But as I pointed out, these organizations have been busy for years, and of course now Mrs Gates is using oodles of money for it.
However, most women in the villages might merely want to space their children. In the past this was done by taboos against genital sex while breast feeding and prolonged breastfeeding. Alas, in urban areas, women working outside the home might find this difficult, hance the need for birth control... however, hormonal birth control leads to decreased breast milk. The birth control shot increases breast milk, but causes vaginal dryness that increases the risk of HIV and other STDs. IUDs result in infections. And local barrier methods are often not used because they are not culturally friendly.
So anyway: You might want to ask yourself why the Biden administration is willing to become unpopular by pushing this type of policy that caused sexual anarchy and destruction of the family on poor countries where families are literally the basis of society and necessary to survive.
Another potentially life-threatening form of the disease, visceral leishmaniasis, affects the spleen, liver and bone marrow, and a new study suggests this form may be gaining a foothold in U.S. sand flies when they feed on infected dogs brought into the country by well-meaning dog rescue organizations.
and right on cue, this expert blames global warming.
"As our weather gets more erratic and the planet as a whole gets warmer and wetter, it becomes a much better place for these bugs to live and create disease," said study author Christine Petersen, director of the Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases at the University of Iowa.
"We need to up our game and remember these tropical diseases aren't going to be so tropical anymore due to global warming," she added.
uh, malaria was rampant in Europe and in much of the USA in the past. And of course, yellow fever epidemics killed thousands, not just in the Missisipi delta but upstream, and don't forget the epidemic of Philadelphia in 1790.
Yellow fever is endemic in Brazil, and an epidemic in Angola spread to China via their workers in that country.
article here....ironically yellow fever was not reported in China in the past LINK...NATURE WONDERS WHY
The reasons explaining this absence (e.g., transmission barrier resulting from low compatibility between mosquito and virus genotypes2,3, limited duration and low viraemia in humans, absence of a sylvatic cycle4,5, competition with well-established flaviviruses as dengue and Japanese encephalitis viruses6) are still poorly explored, making the possibility of an epidemic unpredictable.
actually other studies doubt that part about mosquitoes.
back to leishmaniasis.
How is it controlled?
the treatment varies (partly because there are different versions of the disease and parasite. And also because of drug resistance. CDC Page here.
I am familiar with many of these drugs because we use them against fungus infections.
They have few side effects, except for the main one for serious disease: Amphotericin B.
One parenteral agent, liposomal amphotericin B (AmBisome®), which is administered by IV infusion, is FDA-approved for treatment of visceral leishmaniasis (the approved indications do not include cutaneous or mucosal leishmaniasis). This approval for visceral leishmaniasis dates back to 1997.
I used that on a patient who had cerebral blastomycosis (a disease that usually infects dogs but we had a few cases in the north woods of Minnesota). That drug is toxic: The patient with recurrant cerebral blastomycosis had to be treated with IV Amphotericin, and it destroyed his kidneys, and shortly after we stopped treatment because his kidneys were failing, he died of a stroke from high blood pressure from his bad kidneys. Sigh.
Among American troops serving in Iraq, 653 cases of cutaneous and 2 cases of visceral leishmaniasis were reported by the end of March 2004. According to the U.S. sources, the number of infected American soldiers could have been higher, from 750 to 1250 or even more, what made up to nearly 1% of U.S. troops serving in Iraq in 2003-2004.
Sand flies are usually
found in small pockets around rodent burrows, and are not spread evenly across sites. They
typically bite at night while people are sleeping, and the bites are not found until the following
day. Sand fly bites can quickly become numerous, painful, and very distracting (see photo to
right). Follow these precautions to help prevent sand fly bites that can lead to leishmaniasis and
other diseases such as sand fly fever:
• Limit outdoor activity between dusk and dawn when sand flies are most active. Avoid
sleeping in the open. If possible, personnel should sleep in sealed, air-conditioned buildings
or tents, or employ window screens or other barriers to help keep sand flies from entering.
However, since sand flies are much smaller than mosquitoes (approximately one-third the
size), they can oftentimes work their way through standard window screens (16-18 mesh/in2
)
and even standard military bed netting (25-27 mesh/in2
).
• Sand flies bite both indoors and outdoors. Although generally nocturnnocturnal, they can also feed
during the day. Personal protective measures should be used at all times.
• Use the DoD Insect Repellent System for maximum protection from sand fly bites. This system incorporates a properly worn,
permethrin-treated uniform; DEET, picaridin, or IR3535 repellent on exposed skin; and sleeping inside a permethrin-treated bed net.
To keep sand flies on the outside of your clothing, tuck pant legs inside boots, and fasten your cuffs snuggly at the wrist.
hmmm...essentially the same way you protect yourself against malaria, yellow fever, tick borne diseases, etc.
so what about vaccines? LINKyup. It's a lot of stuff about T cells:
The generation of immunological memory is a requirement of effective vaccination. Studies on the generation of effector and central memory CD4+ T cells indicate that central memory T cells mediate long-term immunity to L. major infection, even in the absence of persistent parasites
so is there a vaccine? Well, the Russkies had one in the past:
An effective vaccine against leishmaniasis has existed in the past. This involved inoculation with live, virulent parasites, in a process called leishmanization. It was practiced successfully in the former Soviet Union, Middle East and Israel.30, 31 However, it was abandoned in most countries because of logistical problems and safety concerns, due to some individuals developing non-healing lesions and immune suppression.
and giving dead parasites gave partial immunity.but ran into problems of keeping the vaccine potent due to storage problems and other logistical problems
However, concerns remain regarding the feasibility of developing killed, whole-parasite vaccines, including the variation in results obtained from different field and clinical trial sites in the past, and potential difficulties in producing such a product to good clinical manufacturing standards.
attenuated parasites in vaccines seems to be a good commpromise (i.e. a parasite treated to make it weaker).
and then they are trying a vaccine that only uses part of the parasite to induce immunity>
then there are DNA vaccines that have been tried since 1992
. despite many years of effort in identifying immunogenic parasite antigens and advances in vaccine technologies, there does not yet appear to be a vaccine candidate capable of delivering the level of protection needed for a disease elimination program.
this would be a place for using mRNA technology. LINK
long discussion. Like Covid, or like Tuberculosis, you can't just make an antibody: You have to persuade the T cells to kill the germ.
and although these vaccines work on experimental animals, they just don't work well in primates. so there is dog vaccine but none for humans...
tge o=problem?,P>In contrast to the relative ease in generating responses in mice (where even naked RNA can generate immunity if larger enough doses are provided), several formulation strategies have failed upon evaluation in primates and humans [49]. Thus, although many candidates may appear valid in small animal models this “primate barrier” represents a critical hurdle to clinical use of RNA vaccines.
this article discusses problems of mRNA theraputics. too bad because that would be a good way to get rid of the disease, in both animals and in humans... Sorry I will have to read up on this.
Here is a video about the disease.
And here is a video to scare you about the disease:
