Popular Credit: Ken Doerr/Flickr Rethinking our approach to zoonotic diseases in a changing world Despite historical attempts to eliminate diseases, experts now suggest focusing on control and coexistence.Joanna Thompson reports for Undark.In short:Many diseases, like Lyme and malaria, cannot be eradicated due to their complex ecologies involving multiple hosts and vectors.Recent efforts focus on prevention, like using narrow-spectrum antibiotics in natural reservoirs and developing gene-edited mosquitos.Historical efforts to eradicate diseases, such as the Soviet campaign against plague, have largely failed and shifted to containment strategies.Key quote:"Shifting our resources — which are limited — to prevention and surveillance is the only way to go." — Susan Jones, ecologist and historian at the University of MinnesotaWhy this matters: Understanding the complexity of zoonotic diseases indicates a need for sustainable prevention strategies rather than eradication. Read more: Cutting forests and disturbing natural habitats increases our risk of wildlife diseases.Keep reading...Show less
Newsletter Photo by Patty Zavala on Unsplash Climate change is changing public health In Washington, a new team of epidemiologists is preparing for a hotter, smokier future.
Impacts www.nytimes.com Death toll from Texas winter storm continues to rise Epidemiologists examining causes of deaths reported from Feb. 11 to March 5 have added 59 deaths to the storm’s toll, bringing it to 210.
Causes Many Americans are lactose intolerant. A federal lawsuit challenges USDA dietary guidelines on dairy The USDA is charged with marketing American dairy and telling us how much milk to drink. Doctors file a lawsuit, saying this is a conflict.
Causes www.fairwarning.org Moving away from fossil fuel: The escalating push for setbacks from drilling sites How far away from oil and gas wells is safe? Scientists and activists are calling buffer zones between wells and homes into question.
Newsletter Thomas E. Lovejoy: To prevent pandemics, stop disrespecting nature A leading conservationist and biodiversity scholar, with decades of experience in the Amazon, reflects on the lessons of COVID-19.
Impacts Tracking animal diseases could help spot the next COVID-19 The veterinary telemedicine company VetNow is teaming up with Smithsonian scientists to detect animal disease outbreaks remotely—before these “zoonotic” viruses jump over to humans.
As Biden prepares to block the sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel, pollution concerns persist in Pennsylvania
A Pennsylvania fracking company with more than 2,000 environmental violations selected for federal environmental justice funding
Op-ed: “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you” — disabling environments in Cancer Alley and the Ohio River Valley
