Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

How Big Tobacco Has Made Cigarettes So Much Deadlier Than They Used To Be

“The cigarettes sold today are quite different from the cigarettes that were on the market five decades ago, according to the new report, and that’s because tobacco companies have done extensive research to figure out how to make smoking appealing for new customers. “

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Fifty years ago, the U.S. surgeon general tied tobacco to lung cancer for the first time. Since then, additional scientific research has linked smoking with a host of other health issues, and efforts to publicize those harmful side effects helped spur a historic decline in the number of Americans who regularly smoke. Nonetheless, more than 42

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Coca-Cola Removes Controversial Flame Retardant Chemical From Its Powerade Drinks

Coca-Cola has agreed to remove a controversial ingredient from its Powerade sports drink, after controversy around the chemical spurred Gatorade to drop it last year. The chemical in question, brominated vegetable oil (BVO), was first patented as a flame retardant and isn’t legal in Japan or the European Union. Last year, BVO was the subject […]

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Coca-Cola has agreed to remove a controversial ingredient from its Powerade sports drink, after controversy around the chemical spurred Gatorade to drop it last year. The chemical in question, brominated vegetable oil (BVO), was first patented as a flame retardant and isn’t legal in Japan or the European Union. Last year, BVO was the subject of

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Minnesota Officials: Drug Testing Welfare Recipients Is A Waste Of Time And Money

As Minnesota counties prepare make welfare benefits contingent on random drug testing, some local officials call the program a waste of time and taxpayer money.

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Minnesota counties are preparing to start randomly drug testing the individuals who receive welfare benefits, a new requirement that was passed as an amendment during the 2012 legislative session. But local officials are frustrated with the new policy, saying it’s largely a waste of time and money — and could actually end up costing

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World Health Organization Warns That Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Is A ‘Ticking Time Bomb’

Tuberculosis kills about a million people around the world, but drug-resistant strains are even more deadly, and many victims go undiagnosed.

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Global health officials are warning that the proliferation of antibiotic-resistance tuberculosis is a looming public health disaster that will eventually come to a head. According to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) estimations, 500,000 people are infected with a TB strain that’s resistant to the two drugs typically used to treat it — but many

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On The 25th Annual World AIDS Day, We Have The Tools We Need To Beat The Epidemic

A cure may be years down the road, but we’ve made huge strides toward preventing the spread AIDS and extending the lifespan of HIV-positive people.

Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress
By Tara Culp-Ressler for Think Progress

Sunday marks the 25th annual World AIDS Day, an international effort to raise awareness about the fight to eradicate HIV/AIDS. After a quarter century of activism around this issue, there’s been a lot of progress. Of course, we haven’t yet solved the problem for good. Although the ongoing work to develop an effective HIV vaccine typically

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