Science Controversies in the Media +++ +++ ++

Science Controversies in the Media ‘Humanitarian catastrophe’: Trump’s USAID shutdown could help drive nearly 23 million deaths — including 5.4 million children — by 2030, Lancet study warns Nick Ferris | The Independent https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/15/humanitarian-catastrophe-trumps-usaid-shutdown-could-help-drive-nearly-23-million-deaths-including-5-4-million-children-by-2030-lancet-study-warns/ Nearly 23 million additional deaths are expected by 2030 as a result of countries like the US and UK dramatically cutting their overseas aid, a new report estimates. Viewpoint: COVID lab leak? Misguided backers of the lab leak theory refused to give up Rasmussen Retorts https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/15/viewpoint-covid-lab-leak-misguided-backers-of-the-lab-leak-theory-refused-to-give-up/ [W]hen I learned that Lord Matt Ridley had been invited to speak at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about his search for the origins of COVID-19 by NIH Director “Podcast Jay” Bhattacharya, I reacted like John Wick after his dog got killed. I felt a return of the fighting spirit …. Six key health insights from taking weight-loss drugs Dani Blum | New York Times https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/15/six-key-health-insights-from-taking-weight-loss-drugs/ Tens of millions of people around the world are now taking drugs like Ozempic — a kind of real-time experiment that offers far more data than a carefully controlled clinical trial can. ‘Have you asked your doctor?’: AMA launches campaign to counter health misinformation Bruce Japsen | Forbes https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/15/have-you-asked-your-doctor-ama-launches-campaign-to-counter-health-misinformation/ The American Medical Association confirmed plans to launch a national campaign to combat health misinformation and “rebuild trust in medicine.” Selective Pressure, Selective Silence Jon Entine, Patrick Whittle | Quillette https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/12/selective-pressure-selective-silence/ Human evolution, particularly of the brain, ended a long time ago—at least that is what many educated people, wary of claims about biological differences between human groups, prefer to believe. For much of the postwar era, it was widely assumed that natural selection had largely ceased to shape human populations and that any evolution during the past ten millennia was too slow or too slight to detect. … Will hi-tech genetic fortune-telling really help parents make healthier children? Rob Stein | NPR https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/12/will-hi-tech-genetic-fortune-telling-really-help-parents-make-healthier-children/ Like high-tech fortune-telling, the screening estimates the chances that embryos will produce children at risk for thousands of illnesses, from rare inherited disorders such as Tay-Sachs and cystic fibrosis to common diseases with genetic factors such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s. ‘Toxin’ detox: A gastroenterologist weighs in on $71 billion health trend Marc Zarefsky | American Medical Association https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/12/detoxing-from-toxins-a-gastroenterologist-weighs-in-on-latest-health-trend/ In 2025, the detoxification industry worldwide was valued at over $71 billion, and some estimates have that number approaching $120 billion by 2034. Gen Z burned by sunscreen misinformation and tanning myths American Academy of Dermatology https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/12/gen-z-burned-by-sunscreen-misinformation-and-tanning-myths/ The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) released results from its annual Practice Safe Sun Survey, revealing many Americans still engage in risky sun behaviors driven by misinformation, social media, and persistent tanning myths despite their concerns about the long-term aging effects of sun exposure.

Viewpoint—‘The gleeful efficiency of an arsonist’: Administration’s health and science research cuts are ‘sabotaging’ America’s future Henry Miller | June 15, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/06/15/viewpoint-the-gleeful-efficiency-of-an-arsonist-administrations-health-and-science-research-cuts-are-sabotaging-americas-future/ There is a word for what the federal government has done to American science during the past year and a half: sabotage. Not reform. Not streamlining. Not the “realignment of priorities” the White House prefers to call it. Sabotage — the deliberate, systematic destruction of one of the most productive enterprises in the history of human civilization, inflicted at a time when the nation can least afford it, for reasons that range from the ideological to the incoherent.

Viewpoints: We Already Have The Data And Tools To Fight Medicare Fraud. Use Them; The Stigma Of An Autism Diagnosis Is Hurting Kids

https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/viewpoints-we-already-have-the-data-and-the-tools-to-fight-medicare-fraud-use-them-the-stigma-of-an-autism-diagnosis-is-hurting-kids/

Wyoming Abortion Restrictions Ruled Unconstitutional By Judge

Wyoming Abortion Restrictions Ruled Unconstitutional By Judge A Wyoming judge struck down three anti-abortion state laws, ruling that they violated the state's constitutional right for a person to make their own healthcare decisions. Other state health news comes from Minnesota, Illinois, California, and elsewhere. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/state-watch-061526/

FDA OKs Sanofi's Teplizumab To Help Treat Stage 3 Diabetes In Kids

FDA OKs Sanofi's Teplizumab To Help Treat Stage 3 Diabetes In Kids The FDA expanded its approval of the drug for children 8 and older who have stage 3 diabetes. Teplizumab was created to delay the progression of Type 1 diabetes. The former acting director for the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research worried that the drug’s benefits did not outweigh its risks, Stat reports. Also in the news: drug shortages; new GLP-1 drugs; remote patient monitoring; and more. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/pharmaceuticals-061526/

Poison Center Calls For Benadryl Surge Among Teens Amid Social Media Challenge

Poison Center Calls For Benadryl Surge Among Teens Amid Social Media Challenge Through May of this year, poison centers received 6,179 calls involving diphenhydramine — the active ingredient in Benadryl — among people ages 13 to 19. It is more than double the number reported during the same period in 2025, ABC News reports. Other public health news is on nicotine pouches, a formula recall, ticks, and more. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/public-health-061526/

CDC: US Measles Cases Reach 2,073, With Virginia As A New Hot Spot

CDC: US Measles Cases Reach 2,073, With Virginia As A New Hot Spot Meanwhile, across the country, the San Francisco Chronicle reports on a measles case in Santa Clara County as thousands of World Cup soccer fans descend on the area. Also in the news: New World screwworm, hantavirus, Ebola, and more. https://kffhealthnews.org/morning-breakout/outbreaks-and-health-threats-061526/