This week’s contribution from “lifestyle epidemiology” was the report — from a huge study of 359,387 participants from nine countries in Europe — that spare tires, love handles, and bulges (the kind you battle) just ain’t good for you. The scientific term for this term is “abdominal adiposity.” Thus, the title of the paper, General […]

Several weeks ago I argued that much of the the observed increase in autistic disorder over time can be explained by three phenomenon: (1) Diagnostic criteria have changed over some part of the period during which increases have been observed. The diagnostic criteria for autistic disorder were broadened over time. (2) The average age of […]

This title isn’t quite correct, but I couldn’t resist, since it sounds so catchy, evoking images of harmonica playing in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Rock Hill is located in beautiful York County, South Carolina, just off Route I-77, about 30 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. From my nerdy scientist’s point of view, the people of […]

Breast-Feeding May Boost IQ: This new study is so well done, and the results are so earth-shattering, that once again I must interrupt writing my post(s) on why toddlers getting the MMR vaccine is so important, and tell you about this study. Meanwhile, you can a look at the abstract (summary) of the article […]