News that Vexes

News that Vexes

It's so tiresome to read 'new studies' that reveal Smoking, Stress or Obesity are Bad for you. Yet these studies appear all the time. It's time to take back the newswire from so-called Scientists!

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Two bits of distressing news - news that vexes in fact:

Got a cough? Doctors say over-the-counter syrup doesn't work

The doctors at the American College of Chest Physicians:

"Cough syrups may suppress a cough a little bit. But they don't treat the underlying cause," said Dr. Michael Alberts, a Tampa pulmonologist who is president of the physician group. "They won't make you better any faster."Another option that some doctors recommend: Just tough it out, because colds typically go away on their own.
Are you for real Dr. Alberts (whose email I couldn't track down so I'm asking rhetorically)?? It's not called "Cold Curing Syrup", it's called Cough Syrup. Even Dr. Alberts admits it works to suppress a cough and hey, that's why I took it in the first place. Whatever you do, don't take my Nyquil away!

Next up:

Prostate cancer test may leave men even worse off

Oh man, this doesn't help. It seems that neither the PSA test nor the DRE reduce prostate cancer deaths:

A study in the US suggests that the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test, when used to screen healthy men with no symptoms of the disease, does not reduce deaths.

A positive result often causes anxiety and leads men to have a painful biopsy. If this, too, proves positive they may have a prostate operation that can leave them impotent and incontinent — without ever being sure that they needed it.
Doctors should stop worrying about cough syrup and start concentrating on cancer! Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men.

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