Most Potentially Deadly Bio-Terror Weapon: Influenza
Oh, we of the short attention span
Remember not so long ago when we were all worried about a biological attack at the hands of terrorists? Well, ever since our troops invaded Iraq and felt nary a sting of the chemical or biological agents we were so certain Saddam possessed by the ocean-full, the very real possibility of such an attack here at home seems to have slipped off our radar screen.
But what’s this? A July article on Reuters about one of the most potentially deadly bio-terror weapons: Influenza.
Hmmm, where have we heard about this before? I wonder. Could it have been in February’s issue of my Real Health newsletter? No, no – that would mean someone out there is reading me and (GASP!) running similar stories in mainstream outlets! Either that, or the establishment is actually starting to come to its senses and report the REAL NEWS you need to know (nah, it couldn’t be that).
In any event, the Reuters piece focused on University of Texas scientists who’ve sounded the alarm about influenza just as researchers are nearing completion of the genome sequence map of the 1918 Spanish Flu virus that wiped out 40 million people worldwide. Why anyone would want to replicate that horrific killer is beyond me
Yet the fact remains that very soon – and for the first time in history – those with the will, resources, and desire (paging Mr. Bin Laden, please hold) to do so may well be able to replicate this virus using the completed sequence as an “instruction manual.” Once they’ve done that, loosing it on the world could be as simple as spraying a small amount of it into the air on a crowded international flight. When that plane lands at a major airport and all the passengers then connect to other flights to their homelands, a chain of destruction unlike any the planet has ever known would be set in motion.
And what’s really scary is this: Influenza, by its very nature, is quick to mutate and develop into treatment-resistant strains. By the time the glacially slow World Health Organization could get a handle on the “parent” strain, ever more hyper-resistant strains could spring up. And by the time we got it under control
Well, I shudder to think.
But take heart, because now we’ve got the Department of Homeland Security up and running! Now we can get state-of-the art advice and tips on what to do in the event of the unthinkable
Got your duct tape and Saran wrap, everyone?
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The prostate health tip that’s definitely not a sin
Recent research from the Australian Cancer Council shows that regular ejaculation helps ward off prostate cancer.
How’d they come to this conclusion? By surveying over 2300 men (both healthy and prostate cancer patients) about their frequency of ejaculation-either from sex or from, er, other things-from age 20 all the way up through their 50s.
Their findings: The more frequently men ejaculate during this time span of their lives, the less likely they are to develop prostate cancer-up to 33% less likely, in fact. And no, there was no increased incidence of blindness, insanity or hair on the palms in the cancer-free group, either
Couple these findings with previous research which showed celibate clergymen were 30 percent MORE LIKELY to develop prostate cancer and you’ve got a 60+% swing in cancer rates that are seemingly related to ejaculation.
Now, I’m not suggesting that you, uh-take matters into your own hands, so to speak. But what I am telling you is that if you used to back in your glory days, so much the better. Also, a roll in the hay with your better half once in a while (yes, even at your age) can do you nothing but good
Still enjoying a healthy lust for life,
William Campbell Douglass II, MD
