MIKE STOBBE

AP Medical Writer

FILE - Water flows from a water fountain in Concord, N.H., on Friday, Jan. 7, 2011. (AP Photo/Jim Cole, File)

US government report says fluoride at twice the recommended limit is linked to lower IQ in kids

A U.S. government report concludes that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked with lower IQ in children.

FILE - A blue rectangular piece of microplastic sits on the finger of a researcher with the University of Washington-Tacoma environmental science program, after it was found in debris collected from the Thea Foss Waterway, in Tacoma, Wash., on May 19, 2010. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

Microplastics are everywhere, but are they harming us?

Some recent studies seem to suggest taking a new and more cautious look at plastic water bottles and frozen meal containers.

FILE - This 2005 electron microscope image shows an avian influenza A H5N1 virion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, announced it will spend $5 million to buy seasonal flu shots for livestock workers. (Cynthia Goldsmith, Jackie Katz/CDC via AP, File)

US will buy flu shots for farmworkers in a bid to prevent bird flu from getting worse

The U.S. will pay for flu shots for farmworkers to try to prevent bird flu from getting worse. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday announced it will spend $5 million to buy seasonal flu shots for livestock workers.

This combination of photos provided by Dr. Maya Bunik in July 2024, shows a baby with ankyloglossia where the tongue does not extend beyond the gums, left, and a baby with an indentation at the tip of a the tongue which may be a sign of ankyloglossia. On Monday, July 29, 2024, one of the largest doctor's groups in the U.S., voiced concerns that the condition, also known as "tongue-tie" which can affect breastfeeding, is being over-diagnosed and often treated with unnecessary surgery to babies' mouths. (Dr. Maya Bunik via AP)

Infants’ tongue-tie may be overdiagnosed and needlessly treated, American Academy of Pediatrics says

A prominent doctors’ group worries that a condition in infants that can affect breastfeeding known as tongue-tie is being overdiagnosed in the U.S. and too often treated with unnecessary surgery.

FILE - This 2002 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a Listeria monocytogenes bacterium. Health officials have announced a recall of liverwurst and deli meat products, Friday, July 26, 2024, in connection with a national listeria outbreak that has sickened nearly three dozen people in 13 states. (Elizabeth White/CDC via AP, File)

Recall of Boar’s Head deli meats announced during investigation of listeria outbreak

U.S. health officials have announced a recall of some Boar’s Head liverwurst and other deli meats as they investigate a listeria outbreak. The outbreak has sickened nearly three dozen people and caused two deaths since late May.

FILE - This 2005 electron microscope image shows an avian influenza A H5N1 virion. (Cynthia Goldsmith, Jackie Katz/CDC via AP, File)

Two more bird flu cases reported in Colorado, but elsewhere a study finds no asymptomatic infections

U.S. health officials have announced two more bird flu cases among farmworkers. But here’s some good news: A new study in Michigan suggests the virus is not causing asymptomatic infections in people.

Peter Buxtun is pictured in San Francisco in this undated photo. Bruxton, the whistleblower who revealed that the U.S. government allowed hundreds of Black men in rural Alabama go untreated for syphilis in what became known as the Tuskegee study, died on May 18, 2024, from Alzheimer's disease in Rocklin, Calif. (Liz Hafalia/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Tuskegee syphilis study whistleblower Peter Buxtun has died at age 86

The whistleblower who exposed the Tuskegee syphilis study that left hundreds of Black men untreated has died at age 86. Peter Buxtun died in May of Alzheimer’s disease in California.

FILE - Chickens stand in their cages at a farm, in Iowa, Nov. 16, 2009. Four more people, all Colorado poultry workers, have been diagnosed with bird flu infections, health officials said late Sunday, June 14, 2024. The new cases are the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth in the United States diagnosed with the bird flu, which so far has caused mild illness in humans. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

US health officials confirm four new bird flu cases, in Colorado poultry workers

Four poultry workers in Colorado have been diagnosed with bird flu. The new cases, confirmed Sunday, bring the U.S. total to nine since the first human case of the current outbreak was detected in 2022, also in a Colorado poultry worker.

FILE - Thermometers are seen atop a small-scale pasteurizer in Plainfield, Vt., on March 13, 2012. On Friday, June 28, 2024, U.S. officials said a new study provides reassurance that pasteurization kills bird flu virus in cow's milk. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)

Research gives more reassurance that milk pasteurization kills bird flu, officials say

U.S. officials say a new study provides reassurance that pasteurization kills bird flu virus in cow’s milk.

FILE - Syringes with vaccines are prepared at the L.A. Care and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plans' Community Resource Center where they were offering members and the public free flu and COVID-19 vaccines Oct. 28, 2022, in Lynwood, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

As COVID-19 ticks up in some places, US health officials recommend a fall vaccination campaign

As COVID-19 bubbles up in some parts of the country, health officials are setting course for a fall vaccination campaign. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday recommended a new round of shots for all Americans this fall.

FILE - This electron microscope image provided by the National Institutes of Health shows human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) virions, colorized blue, and anti-RSV F protein/gold antibodies, colorized yellow, shedding from the surface of human lung cells. Federal advisers on Wednesday, June 26, 2024, made a stronger endorsement for RSV vaccinations for people 75 and older, but made a narrower recommendation for people 60 to 74. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH via AP, File)

US health officials strengthen endorsement of RSV shots for oldest Americans

Federal health officials are strengthening their endorsement of RSV vaccinations for people 75 and older. But they also made a narrower recommendation for people 60 to 74.

FILE - This 2003 photo provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a female Aedes albopictus mosquito acquiring a blood meal from a human host. Dengue, a tropical illness caused by a virus, is spread by Aedes mosquitos, a type of warm weather insect that is expanding its geographic reach because of climate change, experts say. (James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP, File)

Health officials tell US doctors to be alert for dengue as cases ramp up worldwide

U.S. health officials are warning doctors to be alert for dengue cases as the tropical disease breaks international records. Dengue is spread by mosquitoes and it has been surging worldwide, helped by climate change.

FILE - A dead sea bird lays beside a dead sea lion on the beach at Punta Bermeja, on the Atlantic coast of the Patagonian province of Río Negro, near Viedma, Argentina, Monday, Aug. 28, 2023. Government experts suspect that bird flu is killing sea lions along Argentina's entire Atlantic coastline, causing authorities to close many beaches in order to prevent the virus from spreading further. (AP Photo/Juan Macri, File)

Bird flu is highly lethal to some animals, but not to others. Scientists want to know why

Scientists are trying to determine why bird flu kills some animals quickly but leads to mild illnesses in others. In the last two years, the virus has been blamed for the deaths of millions of wild and domestic birds worldwide.

A man in Mexico died with one form of bird flu, but US officials remain focused on another

Experts say the mysterious death of a man in Mexico who had one kind of bird flu is unrelated to outbreaks of another bird flu at U.S. dairy farms.

FILE - A pharmacist holds a bottle of the antibiotic doxycycline hyclate in Sacramento, Calif., July 8, 2016. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, finalized its endorsement of taking the antibiotic doxycycline after unprotected sex as a way to prevent chlamydia, gonorrhea or syphilis infections. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)

US health officials advise using antibiotic as a ‘morning-after pill’ against STDs

U.S. health officials now recommend that some people consider taking an antibiotic as a morning-after pill to prevent certain sexually transmitted diseases.

FILE - Cows stand in the milking parlor of a dairy farm in New Vienna, Iowa, on Monday, July 24, 2023. The bird flu outbreak in U.S. dairy cows is prompting development of new, next-generation mRNA vaccines — akin to COVID-19 shots — that are being tested in both animals and people. In June 2024, the U.S. Agriculture Department is to begin testing a vaccine developed by University of Pennsylvania researchers by giving it to calves. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Scientists are testing mRNA vaccines to protect cows and people against bird flu

The bird flu outbreak in U.S. dairy cows is prompting development of new, next-generation mRNA vaccines — akin to the shots deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shots are being tested in cattle as well as in people. The U.S.

FILE - Dairy cattle feed at a farm on March 31, 2017, near Vado, N.M. Another Michigan dairy worker has been diagnosed with bird flu, the third human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows, health officials said Thursday, May 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd, File)

Another Michigan dairy worker has bird flu, the third US case this year

Health officials say another Michigan dairy worker has been diagnosed with bird flu. It’s the third human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows. The case was announced Thursday.

FILE - This electron microscope image provided by the National Institutes of Health shows human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) virions, colorized blue, and anti-RSV F protein/gold antibodies, colorized yellow, shedding from the surface of human lung cells. In a report released Thursday, May 30, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they are continuing to investigate a link between two new RSV vaccines and cases of a rare nervous system disorder in older U.S. adults. (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH via AP, File)

Guillain-Barre syndrome ‘more common than expected’ with RSV vaccine in older people, CDC reiterates

Reports of a rare nervous system disorder are “more common than expected” in older U.S. adults who got the new RSV vaccines.

Mosquitoes cling to the inside of a jar loaded with repellent during a test as part of a tour of the Center for Disease Control laboratory, Thursday, April 4, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

What to look for in mosquito repellents

Mosquito season is starting to rev up across much of the United States. So you might want to pause summer vacation planning and consider what to look for in insect repellents. U.S. officials say to look only at EPA-registered repellents.

This 2005 electron microscope image shows an avian influenza A H5N1 virion. On Wednesday, May 22, 2024, Michigan health officials said a farmworker has been diagnosed with bird flu, the second human case connected to an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows. (Cynthia Goldsmith, Jackie Katz/CDC via AP)

Michigan farmworker diagnosed with bird flu, becoming 2nd US case tied to dairy cows

A Michigan farmworker has been diagnosed with bird flu in what is the second human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows. Health officials say the person experienced mild eye symptoms and has recovered.

FILE - This undated photo provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a blacklegged tick, also known as a deer tick. Another mild winter and other favorable factors likely means the 2024 tick population will be equal to last year or larger, some researchers say. (CDC via AP, File)

Tick season has arrived. Protect yourself with these tips

Tick season is starting across the U.S., and experts are warning the bloodsuckers may be as plentiful as ever. That’s because of a another mild winter and other favorable factors.

Fewer US overdose deaths were reported last year, but experts are still cautious

The number of U.S. fatal overdoses fell last year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted the numbers Wednesday.

FILE - Dairy cows stand together at a farm, Monday, April 1, 2024, in Clinton, Maine. Federal health and agriculture officials pledged new spending and other efforts Friday, May 10, 2024, to help track and contain an outbreak of bird flu in the nation's dairy cows that has spread to more than 40 herds in nine states. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)

US pledges money and other aid to help track and contain bird flu on dairy farms

U.S. officials pledged nearly $200 million in new spending and other efforts Friday to help track and contain an outbreak of bird flu in the nation’s dairy cows. The outbreak of the virus known as Type A H5N1 has spread to 42 herds in nine states.

FILE - A trainer walks with a service dog through the Terminal C at Newark Liberty International Airport while taking part of a training exercise, Saturday, April 1, 2017, in Newark, N.J. All dogs coming into the U.S. from other countries must be at least 6 months old and microchipped, according to new government rules published Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The new rules were prompted by concerns about dogs coming from countries where rabies is common, and applies to dogs brought in by breeders or rescue groups as well as pets traveling with their U.S. owners. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

Dogs entering US must be 6 months old and microchipped to prevent spread of rabies, new rules say

New U.S. rules require all dogs coming into the U.S. to be at least 6 months old and microchipped to help prevent the spread of rabies.

FILE - A single room, fully dedicated maternity room in a hospital maternity ward in Mississippi is seen on Oct. 11, 2012. In 2023, U.S. pregnancy-related deaths fell back to pre-pandemic levels, according to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday, May 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

Maternal deaths have fallen to pre-pandemic levels, new US data says

New government data suggests U.S. maternal deaths have fallen back to pre-pandemic levels. About 680 women died last year during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth. That’s down from 817 deaths in 2022.

FILE - A sign for flu vaccination is displayed outside of a grocery store in Glenview, Ill., Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024. On Friday, April 26, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week, for the third straight week, medical visits for flu-like illnesses dipped below the threshold for what's counted as an active flu season. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Long flu season winds down in US

The U.S. flu season appears to be over. It was long, but federal health officials and doctors say it was a moderate one.

FILE - A pregnant woman stands for a portrait in Dallas, Thursday, May 18, 2023. According to provisional statistics for 2023 released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday, April 25, 2024, U.S. births fell last year, in a substantial drop marking an apparent end to pandemic-related fluctuations and a return to a long-standing national decline. A little under 3.6 million babies were born in the U.S. last year, about 76,000 fewer than the year before. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

US births fell last year, marking an end to the late pandemic rebound, experts say

The number of U.S. births fell last year. It was the lowest count in more than 40 years. A little under 3.6 million babies were born in the U.S. in 2023, about 76,000 fewer than the year before.

FILE - In this March 27, 2019, file photo, a woman receives a measles, mumps and rubella vaccine at the Rockland County Health Department in Pomona, N.Y. Measles outbreaks in the U.S. and abroad are raising health experts' concern about the preventable, once-common childhood virus. The CDC on Thursday, April 11, 2024 released a report on recent measles case trends, noting that cases in the first three months of this year were 17 times higher than the average number seen in the first three months of the previous three years. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

US measles cases are up in 2024. What’s driving the increase?

There have been 17 times as many U.S. measles cases in the first three months of this year compared with the average number seen in the first three months of the previous three years. That’s according to a government report published Thursday.

This colorized electron microscope image provided by The Rockefeller University and NIAID shows a hepatitis C virion. New U.S. hepatitis C infections dropped slightly in 2022, a surprising improvement after more than a decade of steady increases, federal health officials said Wednesday, April 3, 2024. (Maria Teresa Catanese, Charles M. Rice/The Rockefeller University, NIAID via AP)

Hepatitis C cases dropped in the US. Health officials aren’t sure if it’s a blip or a trend

Federal health officials say that new U.S. hepatitis C infections dropped slightly in 2022. It’s a surprising improvement after more than a decade of steady increases.

FILE - Dairy cattle feed at a farm on March 31, 2017, near Vado, N.M. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Monday, March 25, 2024, that milk from dairy cows in Texas and Kansas has tested positive for bird flu. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd, File)

Person is diagnosed with bird flu after being in contact with cows in Texas

A person in Texas has been diagnosed with bird flu — an infection tied to the recent discovery of the virus in dairy cows. The only reported symptom was eye redness, and the patient is recovering. Texas health officials announced the case Monday.