Genetic exercise aversion, salmonella redux and science blogs galore: The ReportingonHealth Daily Briefing

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Published on
September 1, 2010

Here's what we're reading today:

Breast Cancer: Not fun, but it works: preemptively removing the ovaries or breasts of women who carry either of the two BRCA breast cancer genes can help save the women's lives even if they've already been diagnosed with cancer, according to a new study. The Los Angeles Times' Thomas H. Maugh has the story.

Food Safety: It's the management, stupid: In his delightfully named BarfBlog, food safety professor Doug Powell outlines some eerie similarities between the current salmonella-egg investigation and previous investigations of tainted peanuts and hydrolyzed vegetable protein. Where are the supplier audits?

Exercise: Good news, workout-shunning couch potatoes! You might one day be able to blame your genes for your lack of motivation, according to a new study of mice. Or you could just get over it and go for a run. (Heads up: this tidbit is from a University of Calif.-Riverside press release.)

Science Blogs: If you're wondering what's been happening in the science and medicine blogosphere since the ScienceBlogs-PepsiCo fiasco, Scientific American has some answers.

Asthma and Violence: The Philadelphia Inquirer's Josh Goldstein highlights a troubling study that suggests asthmatics who witness violence suffer more than people who don't. If you're interested in covering violence as a public health issue, check out our tips from journalists who've done it.