U.S. doctor refuses prenatal care to woman for being unmarried
A Tennessee woman says her doctor denied her prenatal care because she isn’t married, forcing her to cross state lines for basic pregnancy support.
The refusal came just weeks after the state’s new Medical Ethics Defense Act took effect, allowing providers to deny care based on religious or moral beliefs. Tennessee has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the U.S., on par with Kyrgystan and Mongolia.
“Medical conscience” laws have a devoted fan base among organized religious groups in Western Canada, who’ve pushed for them for years, provincially and federally. A Saskatchewan campaign was active as recently as May of this year.
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Glass bottles contain far more plastic than expected — and the culprit isn’t the glass
French researchers found that glass-bottled drinks contain up to 50 times more microplastic than drinks in plastic bottles.
It’s often assumed glass is the purer, cleaner packaging choice. But this research flips that on its head… or its cap.
The contamination was traced to the painted metal caps used on glass bottles. The sheer volume of contamination (~50x higher than plastic bottles) challenges assumptions about “clean” packaging. Microplastics are known endocrine-disruptors, and are linked to increased risk of cancers, cardiovascular harm, and immune dysfunction, among other things.
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Alberta recovery centres require private 'coaches' to access treatment
People in Alberta seeking addiction treatment are being routed through Bowline Health, a private company with deep ties to the Smith government.
At least one Alberta recovery centre now makes all of its clients go through an unregulated “recovery coach” to access addictions treatment.
FOIPed emails from health workers show this mandate might apply to at least five other centres. Bowline coaches are now embedded in emergency rooms, jails, and shelters — all funded publicly but operated by a web of subsidiaries under ROSC Solutions Group. ROSC is deeply enmeshed in Alberta’s abstinence-based recovery strategy and its owner is closely connected to the Premier’s former Chief of Staff, Marshall Smith.
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FDA promotes falsehoods and lies about antidepressants in pregnancy
Psychiatrists say the agency is now a platform for disinformation.
At a recent panel, the U.S. FDA showcased speakers who downplayed the risks of untreated perinatal depression while amplifying debunked claims about SSRIs, including false links to autism and birth defects.
The FDA’s growing politicization should raise red flags for Americans and non-Americans alike. As U.S. institutions drift further and further afield from science-based guidance, Canadian clinicians and regulators need to closely and critically scrutinize U.S. health messaging — and stop treating it as authoritative by-default.
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Alcohol’s health risks downplayed by powerful pseudo-science group
A leading scientific forum routinely promotes alcohol’s benefits and dismisses its harms. But the group’s self-described experts have deep ties to the alcohol industry.
In a direct parallel to the historical activities of Big Tobacco 80–100 years ago, Canadian experts warn that alcohol’s risks (cancer, heart disease, stroke, etc) are being obscured by biased science and industry influence.
A peer-reviewed analysis shows that ISFAR, a group of doctors and research authors self-identifying as experts on the subject of alcohol-related health research, praises and promotes studies suggesting health benefits from alcohol and works to discredit any research that shows harm.
Experts say this disinformation delays progress on public health policy and clouds individual decision-making, especially for women, who face higher risks even at low consumption levels.
ISFAR calls itself independent, but at least three executive members have heavy ties to the alcohol industry.
Some widely cited studies claim moderate drinking improves health. But experts say these are methodologically flawed. Many “abstainers” in such studies were former drinkers who quit due to illness (the thing alcohol puts you at risk of). When these biases are accounted for, researchers say the evidence is clear: the more you drink, the greater your risk.
Canada’s updated guidelines now recommend no more than two drinks a week. Alcohol is now linked to at least seven cancers and is the top cause of substance-related harm in most provinces. Its social and institutional costs are unknowable.
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