Public Health

• A Finnish study indicates that signs of Alzheimer’s disease, specifically elevated brain-related biomarkers, may be detectable in blood from middle age.
• The research, involving 2,051 individuals aged 41 to 90, found these biological changes in adults aged 41 to 56, suggesting they begin decades before symptoms typically appear.
• The Study identified a potential hereditary component, with a parent’s biomarker levels, particularly mothers, possibly linked to similar patterns in their children.
• Factors such as increasing age and kidney disease were associated with higher biomarker levels, and the APOE ε4 gene was linked to higher levels in older individuals.
• Researchers cautioned that while promising, these blood tests are not yet suitable for routine diagnosis and require further standardisation and research across different populations.

A sweeping analysis of health data from more than 1.2 million children in Denmark born over a 24-year period found no link between the small amounts of aluminum in vaccines and a wide range of health conditions—including asthma, allergies, eczema, autism, and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

The finding, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, firmly squashes a persistent anti-vaccine talking point that can give vaccine-hesitant parents pause.

Small amounts of aluminum salts have been added to vaccines for decades as adjuvants, that is, components of the vaccine that help drum up protective immune responses against a target germ. Aluminum adjuvants can be found in a variety of vaccines, including those against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), and hepatitis A and B.

Despite decades of use worldwide and no clear link to harms, concern about aluminum and cumulative exposures continually resurfaces—largely thanks to anti-vaccine advocates who fearmonger about the element. A leader of such voices is Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the current US health secretary and an ardent anti-vaccine advocate.

In a June 2024 interview with podcaster Joe Rogan, Kennedy falsely claimed that aluminum is "extremely neurotoxic" and "give[s] you allergies." The podcast has racked up nearly 2 million views on YouTube. Likewise, Children's Health Defense, the rabid anti-vaccine organization Kennedy created in 2018, has also made wild claims about the safety of aluminum adjuvants. That includes linking it to autism, despite that many high-quality scientific studies have found no link between any vaccines and autism.

While anti-vaccine advocates like Kennedy routinely dismiss and attack the plethora of studies that do not support their dangerous claims, the new study should reassure any hesitant parents.

An increase in vapes contaminated with synthetic drug Spice has led to secondary school children being rushed to hospital.

The lab-made drug which mimics the effects of cannabis but with much stronger consequences, can cause breathing problems, heart attacks and seizures.

Other symptoms include feeling dizzy, vomiting, heart racing, sweating, anxiety, and paranoia.

Police have warned of a national increase in vapes being contaminated with spice in secondary schools and in severe cases children have been taken to hospital.

A massive spike in young children accidentally ingesting nicotine pouches has alarmed poison control researchers, with a 763% rise reported between 2020 and 2023. Unlike other nicotine products, these pouches have quickly become the most dangerous form ingested, often leading to hospital visits. Experts say appealing packaging and flavors are part of the problem and they're pushing for tougher safety measures, including childproof storage and flavor bans.

From the article:

The number of young children sickened after getting their little hands on nicotine products like pouches and vape e-liquids has skyrocketed in recent years.

From 2010 through 2023, U.S. poison centers reported 134,663 cases of nicotine poisonings among kids under age 6, according to a study published Monday in Pediatrics, a journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Nearly all occurred at home.

The cases included exposures to nicotine pouches, chewing tobacco, regular cigarettes, vapes and nicotine replacement products like gum and lozenges.

But it’s nicotine pouches, like the wildly popular Zyn, that are behind the most significant rise in accidental nicotine poisonings among young kids.

The new research found that the rate of poisonings involving nicotine pouches among kids under 6 rose from 0.48 per 100,000 children in 2020 to 4.14 per 100,000 in 2023.

A child with measles has died at a Liverpool hospital.

The individual was being treated at Alder Hey Children's Hospital after becoming ill with measles and other health problems.

It comes as the NHS hospital said it is "concerned" about the increasing number of children and young people who are contracting the highly contagious virus.

It said it has treated 17 cases of the effects and complications of measles since June.

• A person in Northern Arizona has died from the plague, confirmed by health officials after an autopsy revealed the presence of Yersinia pestis, the bacterium responsible for plague. The victim was taken to hospital with severe symptoms and died the same day.
• This fatality occurred amid a significant die-off of prairie dogs near Flagstaff, prompting Coconino County officials to investigate the link and collect fleas for testing.
• Plague remains rare in modern America, with an average of seven human cases annually, primarily affecting rural areas of the Western U.S.
• Symptoms include fever, chills, and swollen lymph nodes, but prompt antibiotic treatment, ideally within 24 hours, offers a high survival rate for bubonic plague.
• Public health officials urge residents to report sick or dead rodents, use flea control on pets, and seek immediate medical care if symptoms develop after potential exposure.

A 57-year-old woman spent six days in the hospital for severe liver damage after taking daily megadoses of the popular herbal supplement, turmeric, which she had seen touted on social media, according to NBC News.

The woman, Katie Mohan, told the outlet that she had seen a doctor on Instagram suggesting it was useful against inflammation and joint pain. So, she began taking turmeric capsules at a dose of 2,250 mg per day. According to the World Health Organization, an acceptable daily dose is up to 3 mg per kilogram of weight per day—for a 150-pound (68 kg) adult, that would be about 204 mg per day. Mohan was taking more than 10 times that amount.

Eight people have been arrested in China after more than 200 children in the northwestern province of Gansu were found to have dangerously high levels of lead in their blood.

The children fell ill with symptoms including stomach and leg pain, loss of appetite, and hair loss, according to online media outlets Jimu and The Cover, which cited parents.

All the children are pupils at a privately owned kindergarten in Tianshui, Gansu, which was established in 2022 with 251 enrolled students.

Investigations revealed lead contamination in food served to the students, China's state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the kindergarten's staff, including its principal and legal representative.

The herbicide ingredient used to replace glyphosate in Roundup and other weedkiller products can kill gut bacteria and damage organs in multiple ways, new research shows.

The ingredient, diquat, is widely employed in the US as a weedkiller in vineyards and orchards, and is increasingly sprayed elsewhere as the use of controversial herbicide substances such as glyphosate and paraquat drops in the US.

But the new piece of data suggests diquat is more toxic than glyphosate, and the substance is banned over its risks in the UK, EU, China and many other countries. Still, the EPA has resisted calls for a ban, and Roundup formulas with the ingredient hit the shelves last year.

A new study investigates the link between processed meat, sugar-sweetened beverages, and trans fatty acids, to diseases such as cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

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The “3 by 35” Initiative targets tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks to cut deaths and boost health and development funding

The World Health Organization (WHO) today has launched a major new initiative urging countries to raise real prices on tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks by at least 50% by 2035 through health taxes in a move designed to curb chronic diseases and generate critical public revenue. The “3 by 35” Initiative comes at a time when health systems are under enormous strain from rising noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), shrinking development aid and growing public debt.

The consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and sugary drinks are fueling the NCD epidemic. NCDs, including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, account for over 75% of all deaths worldwide. A recent report shows that a one-time 50% price increase on these products could prevent 50 million premature deaths over the next 50 years.

The man in his 50s was bitten by a bat carrying Australian bat lyssavirus several months ago, the health service in New South Wales said.

"We express our sincere condolences to the man's family and friends for their tragic loss," NSW Health said in a statement.

"While it is extremely rare to see a case of Australian bat lyssavirus, there is no effective treatment for it."

The man from northern New South Wales, who has not been identified, was this week listed as being in a "critical condition" in hospital.

Officials said he was treated following the bite and they were investigating to see whether other exposures or factors played a role in his illness.

The virus -- a close relative to rabies, which does not exist in Australia -- is transmitted when bat saliva enters the human body through a bite or scratch.

Despite reporting over 4,400 confirmed cases of mpox as of 27 June 2025, Sierra Leone has performed genomic characterization on only approximately 2.5% of these cases (108 sequences), representing a significant limitation in understanding viral evolution and informing targeted public health interventions. Currently, these genomic data are deposited in international repositories such as Pathoplexus, GISAID, and NCBI Virus; however, the disparity between outbreak detection and genomic data generation hampers real-time surveillance efforts.

The week-long workshop employed a multidisciplinary, hands-on approach combining didactic instruction, practical exercises, and group data analysis. The curriculum included:

• Day 1: Introduction to genomic surveillance principles, sequencing technologies, and foundational bioinformatics tools such as Linux and Conda environments.
• Day 2: Emphasis on sequencing data quality control (FastQC, MultiQC), read trimming (Fastp, Hostile), and genome assembly techniques utilizing reference-based (BWA, Cutadapt) and de novo (SPAdes) approaches.
• Day 3: Variant detection and analysis (SAMtools, FreeBayes, Snippy), consensus sequence generation (Bcftools), and genome annotation (SnpEff, VEP).
• Day 4: Phylogenetic analysis, clade classification (Nextclade, Nextstrain), and visualization using platforms such as GISAID, Pathoplexus, NCBI Virus, Microreact, iTOL, and Galaxy.
• Day 5: Integration of all components through a case study simulating mpox outbreak response, culminating in data interpretation and strategic planning.

Walter Oguta, WHO AFRO EPI Analytics Specialist and the Lead Bioinformatics Trainer, underscored the practical value of the training, stating, “Translating genomic data into actionable public health strategies is the ultimate goal. Our aim was to equip participants with both technical proficiency and confidence to utilize these tools effectively.”