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A-23A, the world’s largest iceberg, is on the move again
Author of the article:Washington Post
Washington Post
Kasha Patel, The Washington Post
Published Feb 06, 2025 • 4 minute read
This handout satellite photograph taken by the NASA satellite between January 12, 2025 and January 31, 2025 and released by NASA on January 31, 2025, shows the A23a iceberg (CR) drifting toward South Georgia Islands, in the Southern Ocean. The world's biggest iceberg, which split from Antarctica's coastline in 1986, is on the move after more than 30 years. At almost 4,000 sq km (1,500 sq miles) in area, it is more than twice the size of Greater London, and approx 400m (1,312 ft) thick. Photo by HANDOUT /NASA/AFP via Getty Images
After eight months trapped in a whirlpool in the Southern Ocean, the world’s largest iceberg is on the move again – and potentially on a path to hit the island of South Georgia. The island, located between Antarctica and Argentina, is a haven for vulnerable populations of penguins, seals and seabirds.
The iceberg in question is A-23A, sometimes called A23a. It is the world’s oldest and largest – about the size of Rhode Island – and weighs nearly 1 trillion tonnes. As it moves along, the biggest concern, scientists say, is whether the iceberg or its bits could block access to parts of the island for wildlife or ships. Previous iceberg collisions have affected food foraging on the island.
The ice slab is meandering and moving parallel to South Georgia Island, oceanographer Andrew Meijers said. Currents are expected to loop A-23A back to South Georgia’s continental shelf in about two weeks.
“If it does ground on the continental shelf … this could pose a significant problem for seals and [penguins] presently feeding their chicks and pups,” said Meijers, a researcher at the British Antarctic Survey.
On a collision course with South Georgia Island
The iceberg is drifting in a current at about 1 kilometre per hour (about 0.62 miles per hour) toward South Georgia. Although its arrival could occur in weeks, Meijers said, “it is hard to be precise as wind and wave action can also be important and eddies in the current are very hard to predict.”
“The iceberg might take a turn around South Georgia like many before it” or smaller pieces broken off from the iceberg could run aground, said Jan Lieser, marine glaciologist at the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership.
South Georgia Island is a difficult place for humans to live, but it is a haven for wildlife. Its productive waters support abundant populations of krill, which serve as food for many marine predators like fur seals. In fact, more than 3.5 million fur seals live on the island, which is about 95 to 98 percent of the world’s population of the animal. Deep bays also provide homes for millions of penguins and seabirds – including the wandering albatross, which is threatened.
In 2004, an iceberg grounded on the north side of South Georgia and was associated with more seal pup and penguin chick mortalities, Meijers said. When the iceberg grounded, it likely made foraging more difficult.
“The adults must swim further to go around the berg and thus expend more energy and bring back less,” Meijers said.
In 2021, another iceberg about the size of Delaware appeared on a collision course with South Georgia but then fractured into smaller pieces around the island.
The British Antarctic Survey expects A-23A to encounter warmer water and break up into smaller icebergs and, eventually, melt.
If iceberg A-23A breaks up before hitting the island, the impact will be lessened because smaller chunks are easier for wildlife to go around. Fishing vessels, though, might have a harder time navigating around thousands of smaller chunks, Meijers said.
One chunk – measuring 80 square kilometres – broke off A-23A in late January. Leiser said the piece is large enough to be given identifying numbers and letters by the U.S. National Ice Center.
Now, A-23A is sitting in “a bit of storm” with sustained winds around 70 kilometres per hour (about 44 miles per hour) and waves as high as 6 meters (about 6½ feet), Meijers said. This storm may speed up the break up of the iceberg.
A journey down iceberg alley
The iceberg’s path isn’t unusual, nor is it the first to venture to South Georgia Island.
Iceberg A-23A broke off the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf to the northeast of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet in 1986. It then spent decades stuck to the seafloor. In the early 2020s, the iceberg began to loosen and by March 2023, it floated freely. One year later, as it drifted north, it became trapped in a gyre – and it would remain in the rotating system of ocean currents until it escaped several months later.
The mass mostly took the same path as other large icebergs exiting the Weddell Sea, heading down “iceberg alley,” Lieser said.
Iceberg alley starts on the northeastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula and generally heads northeast past the South Orkney Island and South Georgia Island into the South Atlantic Ocean.
“The unusual part of the iceberg’s journey was the long time it was trapped in this oceanic gyre,” said Lieser, who is also a research associate at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania.
This ocean gyre is known as a Taylor column, where rotating water above a seamount trapped the iceberg from drifting north. Imagine placing a stick in a swirling bucket of water; the water flowing around the stick forms a Taylor column.
Lieser doesn’t know why the iceberg escaped the vortex, but hypothesizes that a “random perturbation in the system” might have affected its “usual spin,” allowing the iceberg to find an exit path.
Only time will tell if iceberg A-23A will make another rare maneuver onto South Georgia and disrupt the animals.
“The exact degree of impact will depend on how closely the berg grounds, and whether or not this sits on the optimal path to [or] from the breeding beaches and feeding ground,” Meijers said. “This is pretty much impossible to predict.”
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Washington Post
Washington Post
Kasha Patel, The Washington Post
Published Feb 06, 2025 • 4 minute read
This handout satellite photograph taken by the NASA satellite between January 12, 2025 and January 31, 2025 and released by NASA on January 31, 2025, shows the A23a iceberg (CR) drifting toward South Georgia Islands, in the Southern Ocean. The world's biggest iceberg, which split from Antarctica's coastline in 1986, is on the move after more than 30 years. At almost 4,000 sq km (1,500 sq miles) in area, it is more than twice the size of Greater London, and approx 400m (1,312 ft) thick. Photo by HANDOUT /NASA/AFP via Getty Images
After eight months trapped in a whirlpool in the Southern Ocean, the world’s largest iceberg is on the move again – and potentially on a path to hit the island of South Georgia. The island, located between Antarctica and Argentina, is a haven for vulnerable populations of penguins, seals and seabirds.
The iceberg in question is A-23A, sometimes called A23a. It is the world’s oldest and largest – about the size of Rhode Island – and weighs nearly 1 trillion tonnes. As it moves along, the biggest concern, scientists say, is whether the iceberg or its bits could block access to parts of the island for wildlife or ships. Previous iceberg collisions have affected food foraging on the island.
The ice slab is meandering and moving parallel to South Georgia Island, oceanographer Andrew Meijers said. Currents are expected to loop A-23A back to South Georgia’s continental shelf in about two weeks.
“If it does ground on the continental shelf … this could pose a significant problem for seals and [penguins] presently feeding their chicks and pups,” said Meijers, a researcher at the British Antarctic Survey.
On a collision course with South Georgia Island
The iceberg is drifting in a current at about 1 kilometre per hour (about 0.62 miles per hour) toward South Georgia. Although its arrival could occur in weeks, Meijers said, “it is hard to be precise as wind and wave action can also be important and eddies in the current are very hard to predict.”
“The iceberg might take a turn around South Georgia like many before it” or smaller pieces broken off from the iceberg could run aground, said Jan Lieser, marine glaciologist at the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership.
South Georgia Island is a difficult place for humans to live, but it is a haven for wildlife. Its productive waters support abundant populations of krill, which serve as food for many marine predators like fur seals. In fact, more than 3.5 million fur seals live on the island, which is about 95 to 98 percent of the world’s population of the animal. Deep bays also provide homes for millions of penguins and seabirds – including the wandering albatross, which is threatened.
In 2004, an iceberg grounded on the north side of South Georgia and was associated with more seal pup and penguin chick mortalities, Meijers said. When the iceberg grounded, it likely made foraging more difficult.
“The adults must swim further to go around the berg and thus expend more energy and bring back less,” Meijers said.
In 2021, another iceberg about the size of Delaware appeared on a collision course with South Georgia but then fractured into smaller pieces around the island.
The British Antarctic Survey expects A-23A to encounter warmer water and break up into smaller icebergs and, eventually, melt.
If iceberg A-23A breaks up before hitting the island, the impact will be lessened because smaller chunks are easier for wildlife to go around. Fishing vessels, though, might have a harder time navigating around thousands of smaller chunks, Meijers said.
One chunk – measuring 80 square kilometres – broke off A-23A in late January. Leiser said the piece is large enough to be given identifying numbers and letters by the U.S. National Ice Center.
Now, A-23A is sitting in “a bit of storm” with sustained winds around 70 kilometres per hour (about 44 miles per hour) and waves as high as 6 meters (about 6½ feet), Meijers said. This storm may speed up the break up of the iceberg.
A journey down iceberg alley
The iceberg’s path isn’t unusual, nor is it the first to venture to South Georgia Island.
Iceberg A-23A broke off the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf to the northeast of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet in 1986. It then spent decades stuck to the seafloor. In the early 2020s, the iceberg began to loosen and by March 2023, it floated freely. One year later, as it drifted north, it became trapped in a gyre – and it would remain in the rotating system of ocean currents until it escaped several months later.
The mass mostly took the same path as other large icebergs exiting the Weddell Sea, heading down “iceberg alley,” Lieser said.
Iceberg alley starts on the northeastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula and generally heads northeast past the South Orkney Island and South Georgia Island into the South Atlantic Ocean.
“The unusual part of the iceberg’s journey was the long time it was trapped in this oceanic gyre,” said Lieser, who is also a research associate at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania.
This ocean gyre is known as a Taylor column, where rotating water above a seamount trapped the iceberg from drifting north. Imagine placing a stick in a swirling bucket of water; the water flowing around the stick forms a Taylor column.
Lieser doesn’t know why the iceberg escaped the vortex, but hypothesizes that a “random perturbation in the system” might have affected its “usual spin,” allowing the iceberg to find an exit path.
Only time will tell if iceberg A-23A will make another rare maneuver onto South Georgia and disrupt the animals.
“The exact degree of impact will depend on how closely the berg grounds, and whether or not this sits on the optimal path to [or] from the breeding beaches and feeding ground,” Meijers said. “This is pretty much impossible to predict.”
A-23A, the world’s largest iceberg, is on the move again
As it moves along is whether the iceberg or its bits could block access to parts of the island for wildlife or ships.
The number of snakes removed from this Australian yard will make you shudder
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Rod Mcguirk
Published Feb 07, 2025 • 2 minute read
020725-Australia-Snakes-In-Mulch
In this photo provided by Cory Kerewaro, red-belly black snakes are contained in a bucket after 102 of the reptiles were captured from a suburban Sydney yard, on Jan. 31, 2025. Photo by Cory Kerewaro /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A man described feeling “the shudders” as more than 100 venomous red-bellied black snakes were removed from a pile of mulch in his Sydney backyard.
David Stein called Reptile Relocation Sydney last week after watching around six snakes slither into the mulch. He learned from an internet search that pregnant, known as gravid, red-belly blacks pile on top of each other before they give birth.
Snake catcher Dylan Cooper arrived that afternoon. Stein helped rake away mulch as Cooper bagged 102 pregnant and newborn snakes.
“Just seeing that amount in one group, it gives you a bit of the shudders,” Stein said Friday.
Reptile Relocation Sydney owner Cory Kerewaro said two of the captured adults gave birth to a total of 29 snakes in the bag while Cooper was still sifting through mulch catching more.
The final tally was five adults and 97 offspring caught, Kerewaro said.
Experts don’t know why so many snakes gave birth in such a short time frame at Stein’s 1.4-hectare (3.5-acre) property in suburban Horsley Park on Sydney’s western outskirts.
Kerewaro said the largest haul he’d heard of in a similar snake removal job was 30 non-venomous carpet pythons. Pythons hatch from eggs while red-belly blacks give birth.
“You can get a decent number like that when the babies are hatching,” Kerewaro said. “But to have this many venomous snakes, no one’s come across it.”
Scott Eipper, who has written several books about Australian snakes and dangerous wildlife, said gravid red-belly blacks might congregate for safety reasons or a shortage of suitable habitat to give birth.
Eipper, who spoke to Kerewaro on the day the snakes were being caught, said it was possible that extraordinarily hot weather in Sydney had triggered birthing.
“This is an isolated incident. It’s certainly a very rare occurrence.,” Eipper said.
Red-belly blacks have litters of between 4 and 35 young. Some of the captured snakes may be the offspring of adults that already left the nest, Eipper said.
Most of the world’s most venomous snakes are native to Australia.
A week later, Kerewaro still has the snakes, which are a protected species. Government authorities gave him permission on Thursday to release them into a national park.
“Because there was such a large number, obviously people were a bit concerned where 100 snakes were going to go,” Kerewaro said.
“They’ll be far enough away to avoid any human interaction: 100 snakes are going into the middle of the bush in the middle of nowhere,” he added.
In December, Stein’s 2-year-old Jack Russell terrier Belle killed a juvenile red-bellied black that bit her. She spent four days in an animal hospital and recovered after multiple doses of antivenom.
Stein said he has been told snakes could return to give birth in the mulch at the same time next year.
“Within the next couple of days, this big pile of mulch will be gone,” Stein said.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Rod Mcguirk
Published Feb 07, 2025 • 2 minute read
020725-Australia-Snakes-In-Mulch
In this photo provided by Cory Kerewaro, red-belly black snakes are contained in a bucket after 102 of the reptiles were captured from a suburban Sydney yard, on Jan. 31, 2025. Photo by Cory Kerewaro /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A man described feeling “the shudders” as more than 100 venomous red-bellied black snakes were removed from a pile of mulch in his Sydney backyard.
David Stein called Reptile Relocation Sydney last week after watching around six snakes slither into the mulch. He learned from an internet search that pregnant, known as gravid, red-belly blacks pile on top of each other before they give birth.
Snake catcher Dylan Cooper arrived that afternoon. Stein helped rake away mulch as Cooper bagged 102 pregnant and newborn snakes.
“Just seeing that amount in one group, it gives you a bit of the shudders,” Stein said Friday.
Reptile Relocation Sydney owner Cory Kerewaro said two of the captured adults gave birth to a total of 29 snakes in the bag while Cooper was still sifting through mulch catching more.
The final tally was five adults and 97 offspring caught, Kerewaro said.
Experts don’t know why so many snakes gave birth in such a short time frame at Stein’s 1.4-hectare (3.5-acre) property in suburban Horsley Park on Sydney’s western outskirts.
Kerewaro said the largest haul he’d heard of in a similar snake removal job was 30 non-venomous carpet pythons. Pythons hatch from eggs while red-belly blacks give birth.
“You can get a decent number like that when the babies are hatching,” Kerewaro said. “But to have this many venomous snakes, no one’s come across it.”
Scott Eipper, who has written several books about Australian snakes and dangerous wildlife, said gravid red-belly blacks might congregate for safety reasons or a shortage of suitable habitat to give birth.
Eipper, who spoke to Kerewaro on the day the snakes were being caught, said it was possible that extraordinarily hot weather in Sydney had triggered birthing.
“This is an isolated incident. It’s certainly a very rare occurrence.,” Eipper said.
Red-belly blacks have litters of between 4 and 35 young. Some of the captured snakes may be the offspring of adults that already left the nest, Eipper said.
Most of the world’s most venomous snakes are native to Australia.
A week later, Kerewaro still has the snakes, which are a protected species. Government authorities gave him permission on Thursday to release them into a national park.
“Because there was such a large number, obviously people were a bit concerned where 100 snakes were going to go,” Kerewaro said.
“They’ll be far enough away to avoid any human interaction: 100 snakes are going into the middle of the bush in the middle of nowhere,” he added.
In December, Stein’s 2-year-old Jack Russell terrier Belle killed a juvenile red-bellied black that bit her. She spent four days in an animal hospital and recovered after multiple doses of antivenom.
Stein said he has been told snakes could return to give birth in the mulch at the same time next year.
“Within the next couple of days, this big pile of mulch will be gone,” Stein said.
The number of snakes removed from this Australian yard will make you shudder
A man described feeling "the shudders" as more than 100 venomous red-bellied black snakes were removed.
Some whales sing low enough to be ’acoustically invisible’ to predators: Research
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Ashley Joannou
Published Feb 13, 2025 • 3 minute read
New research suggests male baleen whales looking for love sing a different tune when attracting a mate, and it all depends on if they are more likely to fight or flee from a predator.
Killer whales are the only natural predator of baleen whales — those that eat using a system in their mouths to sieve their plankton diet from the water.
Experts have divided baleen whales into two categories based on how they are likely to respond to killer whales.
The whales that travel in groups and are more likely to fight a killer whale, include right, bowhead, grey and humpback, while those that travel solo and are more prone to flight include blue, fin, sei, Bryde’s and minke whales.
Trevor Branch, a professor of aquatic and fishery sciences at the University of Washington, reviewed more than 250 research papers last summer on whales and found that most of the baleen whales more prone to flee from predators will sing at a bass level low enough to avoid being heard by killer whales.
“I think the astonishing thing for me is that you can have animals that produce some of the loudest sounds in nature, and yet their predators can’t hear them,” he said.
“A whale you can hear for hundreds of kilometres away, and yet a killer whale could be right next to it and couldn’t hear it. They could hear, probably, the sound of the blow, or the sound of them splashing, but as soon as you get beyond the range of that it’s like they’re completely acoustically invisible. Like ghosts in the water.”
Branch said most killer whales have poor hearing below 1500 Hz and can’t hear at all below 100 Hz.
He found only 24 per cent of flight species call above 1500 Hz, and generally very quietly, so they can’t be heard further than one kilometre away. Blue whales, for example, don’t call above 100 Hz.
Branch said it makes sense that females that are part of a flight species would be attracted to a male with a call that does not attract predators.
“Blue whales everywhere in the world, every population, over any time period you look at, their calls have been getting deeper and deeper over time and this is a completely unexplained mystery,” he said.
“So, maybe the females are basically forcing the males, through sexual selection, to sing a bit lower every year because the females find it more attractive to go toward a male that can sing deeply. And maybe one part of that is the deeper you sing, the less likely you attract killer whales.”
About 89 per cent of the whales that will fight against killer whales call above 1500 Hz.
Whales in the “fight club” travel in groups and the males sing highly varied, beautiful, intricate songs that change every few years, Branch said.
“If you’re in a big aggregation with lots of males competing, then maybe singing low and monotonously is not going to get you a mate. You want to be singing in a way that shows off your abilities to sing. And maybe that’s a good indication of your fitness,” he said.
Branch said his findings are just the latest in a long line of facts about baleen whale life linked to how they respond to killer whales.
“Killer whale predation drives all kinds of aspects of whale ecology, where they move, where they stay, how they mate, why they sing, how they sing, where they go to breed, how long they suckle their calves until they wean them,” he said.
“All these aspects of life of baleen whales seem to be driven, at least in part, by killer whale predation, or at least the fear of killer whale predation.”
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Ashley Joannou
Published Feb 13, 2025 • 3 minute read
New research suggests male baleen whales looking for love sing a different tune when attracting a mate, and it all depends on if they are more likely to fight or flee from a predator.
Killer whales are the only natural predator of baleen whales — those that eat using a system in their mouths to sieve their plankton diet from the water.
Experts have divided baleen whales into two categories based on how they are likely to respond to killer whales.
The whales that travel in groups and are more likely to fight a killer whale, include right, bowhead, grey and humpback, while those that travel solo and are more prone to flight include blue, fin, sei, Bryde’s and minke whales.
Trevor Branch, a professor of aquatic and fishery sciences at the University of Washington, reviewed more than 250 research papers last summer on whales and found that most of the baleen whales more prone to flee from predators will sing at a bass level low enough to avoid being heard by killer whales.
“I think the astonishing thing for me is that you can have animals that produce some of the loudest sounds in nature, and yet their predators can’t hear them,” he said.
“A whale you can hear for hundreds of kilometres away, and yet a killer whale could be right next to it and couldn’t hear it. They could hear, probably, the sound of the blow, or the sound of them splashing, but as soon as you get beyond the range of that it’s like they’re completely acoustically invisible. Like ghosts in the water.”
Branch said most killer whales have poor hearing below 1500 Hz and can’t hear at all below 100 Hz.
He found only 24 per cent of flight species call above 1500 Hz, and generally very quietly, so they can’t be heard further than one kilometre away. Blue whales, for example, don’t call above 100 Hz.
Branch said it makes sense that females that are part of a flight species would be attracted to a male with a call that does not attract predators.
“Blue whales everywhere in the world, every population, over any time period you look at, their calls have been getting deeper and deeper over time and this is a completely unexplained mystery,” he said.
“So, maybe the females are basically forcing the males, through sexual selection, to sing a bit lower every year because the females find it more attractive to go toward a male that can sing deeply. And maybe one part of that is the deeper you sing, the less likely you attract killer whales.”
About 89 per cent of the whales that will fight against killer whales call above 1500 Hz.
Whales in the “fight club” travel in groups and the males sing highly varied, beautiful, intricate songs that change every few years, Branch said.
“If you’re in a big aggregation with lots of males competing, then maybe singing low and monotonously is not going to get you a mate. You want to be singing in a way that shows off your abilities to sing. And maybe that’s a good indication of your fitness,” he said.
Branch said his findings are just the latest in a long line of facts about baleen whale life linked to how they respond to killer whales.
“Killer whale predation drives all kinds of aspects of whale ecology, where they move, where they stay, how they mate, why they sing, how they sing, where they go to breed, how long they suckle their calves until they wean them,” he said.
“All these aspects of life of baleen whales seem to be driven, at least in part, by killer whale predation, or at least the fear of killer whale predation.”
Some whales sing low enough to be ’acoustically invisible’ to predators: Research
New research suggests male baleen whales looking for love sing a different tune when attracting a mate.
Toronto residents fearful of rampant coyote attacks
Author of the article:Jack Boland
Published Feb 14, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Residents in the Liberty Village, Garrison Park and Fort York areas of the city are on high alert after 42 coyote attacks since November 2024 have left four dogs dead and others badly injured.
Residents in the Liberty Village, Garrison Park and Fort York areas of the city are on high alert after 42 coyote attacks since November 2024 have left four dogs dead and others badly injured.
Concern over coyotes is mounting in Liberty Village-Fort York area of the city in the wake six attacks last Monday.
Garrison Park resident Ruby Kooner spoke to the Toronto Sun by phone Friday explaining her beloved 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix Amber was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
She said area residents are going in circles trying to find a solution with city and provincial officials.
“We were going on a routine walk maybe two minutes from my building,” Kooner said, recalling how she took Amber for a nightly jaunt. “And then we were ambushed by two coyotes – I felt like they appeared out of thin air.”
She quickly grabbed her dog after hearing “its shrill screams” and refused to let the coyotes take her pet, which was left bleeding badly, as the wild animals both snapped at her until a few bystanders rushed to her aid.
Kooner said she also knows of an attack on a five-year-old dog named Gregorio, owned by area resident Ann Selvanayagam, who lives near the June Callwood Park – just south of the Beltway and Fort York – that occurred Monday.
But there were media reports of five others attacks in the area that same day.
Kooner said the attacks are now coming in “groups” with the coyotes becoming “more stealthy,” seemingly appear “out of nowhere” and encircling dog walkers at dusk and dawn throughout the area between Bathurst St. and Dufferin St.
Ruby Kooner's dog Amber, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix, was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
Ruby Kooner’s dog Amber, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix, was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
She also spoke about a 62-pound leashed dog that was attacked with its female owner in Coronation Park on Monday night.
“The owner was using a whistle, aversion tactics, but the coyote was fearless,” Kooner said. “Two men came running over to help her.”
Kooner and her citizens group now have a detailed map of all the attacks – including times, dates and details of what happened – which they have presented to the city.
She said area City Councillor Ausma Malik, MPP Chris Glover and Carleton Grant, the executive director of licensing for the city, have all been extremely helpful.
However, Kooner feels Animal Services “seems to drag their feet and needs constant pushing to be helpful or affective.”
She said bylaw enforcement officers have been brought into the area, but when they first began patrolling they were handing out $600 dollar tickets to unleashed dog owners.
Over at the Stanley Park off-leash dog enclosure, at least seven dog walkers and owners were enjoying watching their dogs play Friday afternoon. But they all said they are wary of their surroundings even when leaving the enclosure.
Dog walker Kristin Freeland – out with Murray, Bailey, two Golden Retrievers, and Benny and Hal, two mixed breeds – said she has seen the coyotes and has even recorded video of one sitting calmly on a hill on Jan. 5.
“I know of one (attack) that just happened outside of the park a couple of weeks ago, unfortunately – on both little dogs and cats,” Kristin said.
“I’ve seen them quite a few times,” she said. “I live over on Dufferin and have seen them right on the street there. And, unfortunately, its almost becoming a daily occurrence.”
Currently, Kooner said they have a large network of residents – 150 to 200 – who are more up-to-date on all the goings on of the coyote attacks and have documented more information about the incidents than the City of Toronto.
jboland@postmedia.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Jack Boland
Published Feb 14, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Residents in the Liberty Village, Garrison Park and Fort York areas of the city are on high alert after 42 coyote attacks since November 2024 have left four dogs dead and others badly injured.
Residents in the Liberty Village, Garrison Park and Fort York areas of the city are on high alert after 42 coyote attacks since November 2024 have left four dogs dead and others badly injured.
Concern over coyotes is mounting in Liberty Village-Fort York area of the city in the wake six attacks last Monday.
Garrison Park resident Ruby Kooner spoke to the Toronto Sun by phone Friday explaining her beloved 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix Amber was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
She said area residents are going in circles trying to find a solution with city and provincial officials.
“We were going on a routine walk maybe two minutes from my building,” Kooner said, recalling how she took Amber for a nightly jaunt. “And then we were ambushed by two coyotes – I felt like they appeared out of thin air.”
She quickly grabbed her dog after hearing “its shrill screams” and refused to let the coyotes take her pet, which was left bleeding badly, as the wild animals both snapped at her until a few bystanders rushed to her aid.
Kooner said she also knows of an attack on a five-year-old dog named Gregorio, owned by area resident Ann Selvanayagam, who lives near the June Callwood Park – just south of the Beltway and Fort York – that occurred Monday.
But there were media reports of five others attacks in the area that same day.
Kooner said the attacks are now coming in “groups” with the coyotes becoming “more stealthy,” seemingly appear “out of nowhere” and encircling dog walkers at dusk and dawn throughout the area between Bathurst St. and Dufferin St.
Ruby Kooner's dog Amber, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix, was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
Ruby Kooner’s dog Amber, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu-Poodle mix, was attacked by coyotes in November and died of sepsis on Dec. 13, 2024.
She also spoke about a 62-pound leashed dog that was attacked with its female owner in Coronation Park on Monday night.
“The owner was using a whistle, aversion tactics, but the coyote was fearless,” Kooner said. “Two men came running over to help her.”
Kooner and her citizens group now have a detailed map of all the attacks – including times, dates and details of what happened – which they have presented to the city.
She said area City Councillor Ausma Malik, MPP Chris Glover and Carleton Grant, the executive director of licensing for the city, have all been extremely helpful.
However, Kooner feels Animal Services “seems to drag their feet and needs constant pushing to be helpful or affective.”
She said bylaw enforcement officers have been brought into the area, but when they first began patrolling they were handing out $600 dollar tickets to unleashed dog owners.
Over at the Stanley Park off-leash dog enclosure, at least seven dog walkers and owners were enjoying watching their dogs play Friday afternoon. But they all said they are wary of their surroundings even when leaving the enclosure.
Dog walker Kristin Freeland – out with Murray, Bailey, two Golden Retrievers, and Benny and Hal, two mixed breeds – said she has seen the coyotes and has even recorded video of one sitting calmly on a hill on Jan. 5.
“I know of one (attack) that just happened outside of the park a couple of weeks ago, unfortunately – on both little dogs and cats,” Kristin said.
“I’ve seen them quite a few times,” she said. “I live over on Dufferin and have seen them right on the street there. And, unfortunately, its almost becoming a daily occurrence.”
Currently, Kooner said they have a large network of residents – 150 to 200 – who are more up-to-date on all the goings on of the coyote attacks and have documented more information about the incidents than the City of Toronto.
jboland@postmedia.com
Toronto residents fearful of rampant coyote attacks
Concern over coyotes is mounting in Liberty Village-Fort York area of the city in the wake six attacks last Monday.
Flu cases continue to rise across Canada, public health agency data shows
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Nicole Ireland
Published Feb 14, 2025 • 3 minute read
Flu cases are continuing to rise across the country, public health data shows, with Quebec, B.C. and the territories particularly hard hit as vulnerable patients seek help at hospitals.
The Public Health Agency of Canada’s website says 24 per cent of cases tested positive for influenza during the week ending Feb. 8 — up from the already-high 21 per cent the week before.
Only some people get tested when they seek medical care, so positive case rates are “the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to how much flu is actually circulating, said Dr. Jesse Papenburg, an infectious diseases specialist of Montreal Children’s Hospital.
A lot of kids with flu symptoms are coming to his emergency department and the number of children admitted to hospital has been increasing over the past few weeks, he said, noting that some children have had to go to the intensive care unit.
Children under six years of age, seniors, people with chronic health conditions and people who are pregnant are at the highest risk of becoming severely ill from the flu or suffering complications, the PHAC website says.
”We are clearly in the thick of a rather intense influenza season,” said Papenburg, who is also an assistant professor of pediatrics at McGill University.
Although it varies from year to year, the flu season usually begins in November or early December. But this year, it didn’t really get “kick started” until after the holidays, he said.
“That’s when you saw also in Quebec the test positivity rate really starting to have a sharp incline,” Papenburg said. The province has the highest positivity rate in the country at 32.1 per cent, according to PHAC data.
The data also shows positivity rates in the territories have climbed to 29.8 per cent, with B.C. at 28 per cent. The next highest reported positivity rate is in Ontario at 19.8 per cent.
The latest influenza test positivity rates were published on PHAC’s website on Thursday afternoon. The national rate of 24.3 per cent is double the 12.1 per cent positivity rate found at the same time last year.
Dr. Allison McGeer, an infectious diseases specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto who researches influenza epidemiology, said this is “an odd year” for flu.
Influenza A strains H3N2 and H1N1 always circulate, but one of them usually dominates, McGeer said. In a “mixed season” where both strains have high levels of activity, there tends to be a peak of one strain followed by a peak of the other, she said.
But this year, a lot of both H3N2 and H1N1 activity is happening at the same time, McGeer said.
Papenburg said this could be a key reason why this flu season is worse than usual.
“It’s kind of like there are two outbreaks or two epidemics … occurring at the same time of two different strains of influenza A,” he said.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, the southern hemisphere’s flu season earlier this year saw either H3N2 or H1N1 dominate in various countries _ not both.
The influenza B virus is also present in Canada at a much smaller level right now, but tends to increase later in the flu season, infectious diseases experts say.
Papenburg urged people who did not get a flu vaccine this fall or winter to get their shot, noting that high levels of influenza A could continue for a few more weeks and that influenza B “is starting to creep up as well.”
Although the shots may not prevent people from getting the flu, they reduce the risk of getting so sick that medical attention is required by about half, he said.
McGeer recommended people also use other measures to protect themselves against the flu, including handwashing and wearing a mask in indoor crowded places.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Nicole Ireland
Published Feb 14, 2025 • 3 minute read
Flu cases are continuing to rise across the country, public health data shows, with Quebec, B.C. and the territories particularly hard hit as vulnerable patients seek help at hospitals.
The Public Health Agency of Canada’s website says 24 per cent of cases tested positive for influenza during the week ending Feb. 8 — up from the already-high 21 per cent the week before.
Only some people get tested when they seek medical care, so positive case rates are “the tip of the iceberg” when it comes to how much flu is actually circulating, said Dr. Jesse Papenburg, an infectious diseases specialist of Montreal Children’s Hospital.
A lot of kids with flu symptoms are coming to his emergency department and the number of children admitted to hospital has been increasing over the past few weeks, he said, noting that some children have had to go to the intensive care unit.
Children under six years of age, seniors, people with chronic health conditions and people who are pregnant are at the highest risk of becoming severely ill from the flu or suffering complications, the PHAC website says.
”We are clearly in the thick of a rather intense influenza season,” said Papenburg, who is also an assistant professor of pediatrics at McGill University.
Although it varies from year to year, the flu season usually begins in November or early December. But this year, it didn’t really get “kick started” until after the holidays, he said.
“That’s when you saw also in Quebec the test positivity rate really starting to have a sharp incline,” Papenburg said. The province has the highest positivity rate in the country at 32.1 per cent, according to PHAC data.
The data also shows positivity rates in the territories have climbed to 29.8 per cent, with B.C. at 28 per cent. The next highest reported positivity rate is in Ontario at 19.8 per cent.
The latest influenza test positivity rates were published on PHAC’s website on Thursday afternoon. The national rate of 24.3 per cent is double the 12.1 per cent positivity rate found at the same time last year.
Dr. Allison McGeer, an infectious diseases specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto who researches influenza epidemiology, said this is “an odd year” for flu.
Influenza A strains H3N2 and H1N1 always circulate, but one of them usually dominates, McGeer said. In a “mixed season” where both strains have high levels of activity, there tends to be a peak of one strain followed by a peak of the other, she said.
But this year, a lot of both H3N2 and H1N1 activity is happening at the same time, McGeer said.
Papenburg said this could be a key reason why this flu season is worse than usual.
“It’s kind of like there are two outbreaks or two epidemics … occurring at the same time of two different strains of influenza A,” he said.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, the southern hemisphere’s flu season earlier this year saw either H3N2 or H1N1 dominate in various countries _ not both.
The influenza B virus is also present in Canada at a much smaller level right now, but tends to increase later in the flu season, infectious diseases experts say.
Papenburg urged people who did not get a flu vaccine this fall or winter to get their shot, noting that high levels of influenza A could continue for a few more weeks and that influenza B “is starting to creep up as well.”
Although the shots may not prevent people from getting the flu, they reduce the risk of getting so sick that medical attention is required by about half, he said.
McGeer recommended people also use other measures to protect themselves against the flu, including handwashing and wearing a mask in indoor crowded places.
Flu cases continue to rise across Canada, public health agency data shows
Flu cases are continuing to rise across the country, public health data shows, with Quebec, B.C. and the territories particularly hard hit
Canadian tourist loses both hands trying to take photo of shark in Turks and Caicos
Author of the article
enette Wilford
Published Feb 17, 2025 • Last updated 9 hours ago • 1 minute read
A 55-year-old woman has lost both her hands in a horrific shark attack while trying to take a selfie with the creature, which was nearly two metres long.
The vacationing Canadian, whose identity has not been released, was swimming at a beach on the Providenciales island of Turks and Caicos during the morning of Feb. 7 when the terrifying incident occurred, according to a news release from the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force.
The woman’s horrified husband jumped in the water to try to scare the shark away, to no avail.
The victim was “brought ashore” and taken to a medical centre for treatment.
The woman had both hands amputated: One from below the wrist, and the other from halfway up her forearm, the New Zealand Herald reported.
She was flown back to Canada for further treatment.
The woman had only ventured “a few yards” into the water at Thompson Cove Beach when she was attacked, according to officials.
The Herald reported that the shark had been swimming in the area for around 40 minutes before striking.
“The shark was estimated to be approximately 6 feet (1.8 metres) in length,” authorities said.
“However, the species is yet to be confirmed. It has been determined that the tourist had attempted to engage with the animal from the shallows in an attempt to take photographs.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the injured female,” police wrote in a statement. “This remains an ongoing investigation.”
The stretch of beach was closed for two days before reopening on Feb. 9, according to the Turks and Caicos Islands Government.
The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force did not respond to The Toronto Sun’s request for comment.
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torontosun.com
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Feb 17, 2025 • Last updated 9 hours ago • 1 minute read
A 55-year-old woman has lost both her hands in a horrific shark attack while trying to take a selfie with the creature, which was nearly two metres long.
The vacationing Canadian, whose identity has not been released, was swimming at a beach on the Providenciales island of Turks and Caicos during the morning of Feb. 7 when the terrifying incident occurred, according to a news release from the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force.
The woman’s horrified husband jumped in the water to try to scare the shark away, to no avail.
The victim was “brought ashore” and taken to a medical centre for treatment.
The woman had both hands amputated: One from below the wrist, and the other from halfway up her forearm, the New Zealand Herald reported.
She was flown back to Canada for further treatment.
The woman had only ventured “a few yards” into the water at Thompson Cove Beach when she was attacked, according to officials.
The Herald reported that the shark had been swimming in the area for around 40 minutes before striking.
“The shark was estimated to be approximately 6 feet (1.8 metres) in length,” authorities said.
“However, the species is yet to be confirmed. It has been determined that the tourist had attempted to engage with the animal from the shallows in an attempt to take photographs.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the injured female,” police wrote in a statement. “This remains an ongoing investigation.”
The stretch of beach was closed for two days before reopening on Feb. 9, according to the Turks and Caicos Islands Government.
The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force did not respond to The Toronto Sun’s request for comment.
Turks & Caicos Islands Government
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT & COASTAL RESOURCES SHARK INCIDENT, BLUE HILLS Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands 12th February 2025, Providenciales - On Friday 7th...
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Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force
***MEDIA RELEASE*** 07th February 2025. Incident at Sea At 10:33 am today (07th February), the Police Control Room of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force received a report that a...
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Shark bites off tourist’s hands after she tried to take a selfie
The 55-year-old woman is understood to be a Canadian tourist in the Caribbean.
Canadian tourist loses both hands trying to take photo of shark in Turks and Caicos
A 55-year-old tourist lost both her hands in a horrific shark attack while trying to take a selfie with the six-foot-long animal.
Family of Canadian who lost hands to shark describes ‘nightmare’ attackCanadian tourist loses both hands trying to take photo of shark in Turks and Caicos
Author of the article
Published Feb 17, 2025 • Last updated 9 hours ago • 1 minute read
A 55-year-old woman has lost both her hands in a horrific shark attack while trying to take a selfie with the creature, which was nearly two metres long.
The vacationing Canadian, whose identity has not been released, was swimming at a beach on the Providenciales island of Turks and Caicos during the morning of Feb. 7 when the terrifying incident occurred, according to a news release from the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force.
The woman’s horrified husband jumped in the water to try to scare the shark away, to no avail.
The victim was “brought ashore” and taken to a medical centre for treatment.
The woman had both hands amputated: One from below the wrist, and the other from halfway up her forearm, the New Zealand Herald reported.
She was flown back to Canada for further treatment.
The woman had only ventured “a few yards” into the water at Thompson Cove Beach when she was attacked, according to officials.
The Herald reported that the shark had been swimming in the area for around 40 minutes before striking.
“The shark was estimated to be approximately 6 feet (1.8 metres) in length,” authorities said.
“However, the species is yet to be confirmed. It has been determined that the tourist had attempted to engage with the animal from the shallows in an attempt to take photographs.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the injured female,” police wrote in a statement. “This remains an ongoing investigation.”
The stretch of beach was closed for two days before reopening on Feb. 9, according to the Turks and Caicos Islands Government.
The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force did not respond to The Toronto Sun’s request for comment.
Turks & Caicos Islands Government
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT & COASTAL RESOURCES SHARK INCIDENT, BLUE HILLS Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands 12th February 2025, Providenciales - On Friday 7th...Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force
***MEDIA RELEASE*** 07th February 2025. Incident at Sea At 10:33 am today (07th February), the Police Control Room of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force received a report that a...Shark bites off tourist’s hands after she tried to take a selfie
The 55-year-old woman is understood to be a Canadian tourist in the Caribbean.Canadian tourist loses both hands trying to take photo of shark in Turks and Caicos
A 55-year-old tourist lost both her hands in a horrific shark attack while trying to take a selfie with the six-foot-long animal.
The woman was swimming on the Providenciales island of Turks and Caicos when she suffered horrific injuries
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Feb 18, 2025 • Last updated 7 hours ago • 2 minute read
Canadian woman being treated after getting attacked by shark that bit off both hands in Turks and Caicos.
Canadian woman being treated after getting attacked by shark that bit off both hands in Turks and Caicos.
The family of a Canadian who lost both of her hands in a shark attack is speaking out about the life-altering moment a vacation turned into “a nightmare.”
The 55-year-old woman was swimming on the Providenciales island of Turks and Caicos when she suffered the horrific injuries at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 7, the government said in a Facebook post.
The victim was taken to Cheshire Hall Medical Centre, where she was stabilized before being transported back to Canada for “further surgery and recovery.”
A GoFundMe campaign organized by the victim’s brother-in-law has raised more than $25,000.
“While on what was supposed to be a relaxing vacation, my sister-in-law and her husband, my brother, lived what can only be described as a nightmare,” Al Chevarie, of Shannon, Que., wrote on behalf of Ralph Chevarie. The woman’s name was not included in the campaign.
“After leaving the beach to join her husband, in only hip deep clear water, a seven-foot bull shark came at my sister-in-law and bumped into her legs. The shark then circled around and bit her thigh,” the fundraiser read.
“Not satisfied, the shark came back again and when she put both hands in front of her to protect herself, the shark instantly amputated both of her hands, one at mid forearm and the other at the wrist.
“Her husband, having rushed back to help, then managed to wrestle away the shark and stayed between her and the shark until she walked out of the water and collapsed on the beach.”
As previously reported, the woman had only ventured “a few yards” into the water at Thompson Cove Beach when she was attacked, according to officials.
The species of shark has yet to be confirmed but authorities “determined that the tourist had attempted to engage with the animal from the shallows in an attempt to take photographs.”
The waters of the archipelago’s extensive barrier reef are home to many types of sharks, however bull sharks are uncommon, according to tourism website VisitTCI, noting that shark attacks are even more rare.
The site mentioned a May 2024 shark attack of a kiteboarder from Prince Edward Island who was seriously injured while snorkelling.
Lucas Arsenault shared a photo of himself in a hospital bed with his lower right leg apparently missing and his left leg and forearm heavily bandaged.
“Life can sure be fragile,” he wrote at the time. “It was a shocking experience. I cannot express how lucky I am to be here.
Chevarie noted on his sister-in-law’s fundraising page that his brother served in the Canadian Armed Forces for more than 30 years.
“He served our country with pride; it’s our turn to help them,” the message reads.
“This is something that has completely altered their life in the blink of an eye,” the victim’s brother added, noting that any donations are greatly appreciated.
“I ask, if you can, to please help them,” he wrote. “They will need a lot of support to get through this.”
Turks and Caicos Sharks
Learn about sharks and shark attacks on humans in the Turks and Caicos. Incident reports, statistics, safety tips, and more.
Donate to Amputated by Shark Attack - Amputer par une attaque requin, organized by Al Chevarie
FOR ALL MEDIA, STOP HOUNDING MY FRIENDS AND RELATIVES TO TRY AN… Al Chevarie needs your support for Amputated by Shark Attack - Amputer par une attaque requin
Family of Canadian who lost hands to shark describes ‘nightmare’ attack
The family of a tourist who lost both hands in a shark attack is detailing the moment a vacation turned into 'a nightmare.'
Artificial sweetener aspartame may affect heart health: Study
Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Feb 23, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
Drinking diet pop sweetened with aspartame may not be healthy for the heart, a new study suggests.
Drinking diet pop sweetened with aspartame may not be healthy for the heart, a new study suggests.
Looking to indulge your sweet tooth while maintaining a heart-healthy lifestyle?
Aspartame may not be the best option when it comes to artificial sweeteners, according to a new study.
Researchers in Sweden conducted experiments on mice that showed the artificial sweetener triggered increased insulin levels. That in turn leads to atherosclerosis, the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on artery walls.
The study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, noted previous research linking sugar substitutes to increases in cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
During the 12-week study, scientists fed mice food that consisted of 0.15% aspartame, which is the equivalent of a person consuming three cans of diet pop each day.
When compared to mice who were not fed the artificial sweetener, the ones consuming it possessed larger and more fatty plaques in their arteries and higher levels of inflammation.
After analyzing the blood from the mice, researchers noticed a large jump in insulin levels after aspartame was consumed.
While that is typical when consuming sugar, the sweetness-detecting receptors inside the rodents’ bodies were tricked into releasing additional insulin due to aspartame being 200 times sweeter than regular sugar.
The scientists then set out to show how the surge in insulin the mice experienced aided the growth of fatty plaques in their arteries, and then identified an immune signal called CX3CL1 that became very active.
“Because blood flow through the artery is strong and robust, most chemicals would be quickly washed away as the heart pumps,” senior author and Karolinska Institute researcher Yihai Cao told EurekAlert.
“Surprisingly, not CX3CL1. It stays glued to the surface of the inner lining of blood vessels. There, it acts like a bait, catching immune cells as they pass by.”
After eliminating that receptor from one of the immune cells in the mice who consumed aspartame, plaque did not build up.
Cao said he and his team will study the effects of CX3CL1 on humans to confirm their findings.
“Artificial sweeteners have penetrated almost all kinds of food, so we have to know the long-term health impact,” Cao said.
torontosun.com
Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublished Feb 23, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
Drinking diet pop sweetened with aspartame may not be healthy for the heart, a new study suggests.
Drinking diet pop sweetened with aspartame may not be healthy for the heart, a new study suggests.
Looking to indulge your sweet tooth while maintaining a heart-healthy lifestyle?
Aspartame may not be the best option when it comes to artificial sweeteners, according to a new study.
Researchers in Sweden conducted experiments on mice that showed the artificial sweetener triggered increased insulin levels. That in turn leads to atherosclerosis, the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on artery walls.
The study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, noted previous research linking sugar substitutes to increases in cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
During the 12-week study, scientists fed mice food that consisted of 0.15% aspartame, which is the equivalent of a person consuming three cans of diet pop each day.
When compared to mice who were not fed the artificial sweetener, the ones consuming it possessed larger and more fatty plaques in their arteries and higher levels of inflammation.
After analyzing the blood from the mice, researchers noticed a large jump in insulin levels after aspartame was consumed.
While that is typical when consuming sugar, the sweetness-detecting receptors inside the rodents’ bodies were tricked into releasing additional insulin due to aspartame being 200 times sweeter than regular sugar.
The scientists then set out to show how the surge in insulin the mice experienced aided the growth of fatty plaques in their arteries, and then identified an immune signal called CX3CL1 that became very active.
“Because blood flow through the artery is strong and robust, most chemicals would be quickly washed away as the heart pumps,” senior author and Karolinska Institute researcher Yihai Cao told EurekAlert.
“Surprisingly, not CX3CL1. It stays glued to the surface of the inner lining of blood vessels. There, it acts like a bait, catching immune cells as they pass by.”
After eliminating that receptor from one of the immune cells in the mice who consumed aspartame, plaque did not build up.
Cao said he and his team will study the effects of CX3CL1 on humans to confirm their findings.
“Artificial sweeteners have penetrated almost all kinds of food, so we have to know the long-term health impact,” Cao said.
Artificial sweetener triggers insulin spike leading to blood vessel inflammation in mice
From diet soda to zero-sugar ice cream, artificial sweeteners have been touted as a guilt-free way to indulge our sweet tooth. However, new research publishing in the Cell Press journal Cell Metabolism on February 19 shows that aspartame, one of the most common sugar substitutes, may impact...
eurekalert.org
Artificial sweetener aspartame may affect heart health: Study
Looking to indulge your sweet tooth while maintaining a healthy heart? Aspartame may not be good when it comes to artificial sweeteners.
What to know about meteorological spring, which begins Saturday
Forecasts suggest a temperature roller coaster in the United States
Author of the article:Washington Post
Washington Post
Matthew Cappucci, Ben Noll
Published Feb 25, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
map
Temperatures will be typical of early to mid spring at times over the next two weeks. CREDIT: Ben Noll. Source: ECMWF
Spring is just around the corner. It’s a time of brightening skies, lengthening days, new blooms – and potential meteorological chaos.
While astronomically, spring doesn’t begin until March 20 – when the sun’s most direct rays return to the Northern Hemisphere – meteorological spring begins on March 1. It’s the start of what is typically the most tempestuous time of the year. The Lower 48 becomes an atmospheric battleground, with swarms of tornadoes, blistering blizzards and drenching deluges all possible across the country.
And at least in the first half of the coming month, forecasts suggest a temperature roller coaster in the United States.
Here’s what happens, or can, during meteorological springtime.
– – –
The days get longer
This is the time of year when the days are growing the fastest.
Throughout March, Washington, D.C., for example, gains roughly 2½ minutes of daylight every day – totaling 66 minutes over the course of the month.
Farther north, it’s even more dramatic. Boston tacks on up to 2 minutes 52 seconds of additional daylight per day, totaling 1 hour 26 minutes of day length by the end of the month.
In southern regions, the shift is more gradual. Orlando adds only 51 minutes of daylight in March.
– – –
Temperatures warm up
The increasing sunlight means warmer temperatures.
Boston’s high temperatures climb by 8.7 degrees on average during the month. Temperatures in Washington increase by 10.7 degrees, and Orlando’s rise by 4.1 degrees.
Chicago’s average high increases 12 degrees, from 40.9 at the start of the month to 52.9 by the end of the month.
Glancing ahead, a temperature roller coaster is expected during the first half of March. In many places, unusually warm conditions will oscillate with brief cold spells – and high temperatures could swing 3o to 50 degrees or more over the course of a week.
This is a stark change from January and February, which were consistently colder than average, particularly across the northern half of the country.
As a whole, March is expected to feature near-average temperatures for much of the northern and northeastern United States, with above-average temperatures across the South and cooler weather in the Pacific Northwest, according to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center.
It’s a pattern typical of La Niña conditions.
The jet stream slices from the northwestern United States eastward across the country, dividing the nation north to south. Warm air from the Gulf of Mexico wafts north across the Deep South and Mid-South. The land-falling jet stream, meanwhile, pumps clouds and storm systems into the northwestern United States, keeping temperatures chilly and leading to more precipitation.
– – –
Snowfall wanes … usually
The warming temperatures typically lead to less snowfall in most places. The exception is in coastal New England, where late-winter nor’easters are quite common.
In 2018, an assembly line of four back-to-back coastal storms plastered Hartford, Connecticut; Providence, Rhode Island; and Boston with heavy snow. On average, Boston gets 9 inches of snow during the month – about 20 percent of its annual snowfall. Chicago averages 5.5 inches and Minneapolis 9.2 inches.
Looking ahead, warm air over the North Pacific will amplify a high-pressure system near Alaska, forcing the jet stream north into Canada. That jet stream will then dip over the eastern United States, allowing chilly weather and storminess to spill south over the Great Lakes and Northeast to kick off the month.
Weather models suggest there could be near-average to slightly above-average probabilities of snow over the Intermountain West, the northern Great Lakes and interior New England. There appear to be lower odds of snow in the northern Plains, the Midwest and coastal New England in the first week of March.
After that, the medium-range weather pattern could support continued cool and stormy weather in the Northeast between March 7 and 15, with increased snow odds.
The end of the month should be warmer than average, however.
– – –
Severe weather chances climb
March is usually when tornado season begins to awaken – first over the Deep South and then by April in the southern Plains and perhaps the Midwest. That’s why places like Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Louisiana should be on alert during March.
As gulf moisture sneaks north, it provides ample instability, which is thunderstorm fuel. But leftover cold air masses from the Rockies can kick that moisture up, forming thunderstorms.
And since the jet stream is still in its wintertime position over the Lower 48, there’s plenty of wind in the upper atmosphere to sculpt storms into rotating supercells. Many of those storms produce tornadoes.
There are two time periods that may favor increased tornado chances – March 2 to 4, and more broadly during the second half of March.
For the March 2 to 4 period, meteorologists are eyeing a possible large-scale low-pressure system that could shift east out of the Rockies and help generate thunderstorms.
Thereafter, a large-scale jet stream dip filled with cold air will probably take shape over the western United States during the second half of the month. This could allow occasional low-pressure systems to push east as well, spawning more thunderstorms.
torontosun.com
Forecasts suggest a temperature roller coaster in the United States
Author of the article:Washington Post
Washington Post
Matthew Cappucci, Ben Noll
Published Feb 25, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
map
Temperatures will be typical of early to mid spring at times over the next two weeks. CREDIT: Ben Noll. Source: ECMWF
Spring is just around the corner. It’s a time of brightening skies, lengthening days, new blooms – and potential meteorological chaos.
While astronomically, spring doesn’t begin until March 20 – when the sun’s most direct rays return to the Northern Hemisphere – meteorological spring begins on March 1. It’s the start of what is typically the most tempestuous time of the year. The Lower 48 becomes an atmospheric battleground, with swarms of tornadoes, blistering blizzards and drenching deluges all possible across the country.
And at least in the first half of the coming month, forecasts suggest a temperature roller coaster in the United States.
Here’s what happens, or can, during meteorological springtime.
– – –
The days get longer
This is the time of year when the days are growing the fastest.
Throughout March, Washington, D.C., for example, gains roughly 2½ minutes of daylight every day – totaling 66 minutes over the course of the month.
Farther north, it’s even more dramatic. Boston tacks on up to 2 minutes 52 seconds of additional daylight per day, totaling 1 hour 26 minutes of day length by the end of the month.
In southern regions, the shift is more gradual. Orlando adds only 51 minutes of daylight in March.
– – –
Temperatures warm up
The increasing sunlight means warmer temperatures.
Boston’s high temperatures climb by 8.7 degrees on average during the month. Temperatures in Washington increase by 10.7 degrees, and Orlando’s rise by 4.1 degrees.
Chicago’s average high increases 12 degrees, from 40.9 at the start of the month to 52.9 by the end of the month.
Glancing ahead, a temperature roller coaster is expected during the first half of March. In many places, unusually warm conditions will oscillate with brief cold spells – and high temperatures could swing 3o to 50 degrees or more over the course of a week.
This is a stark change from January and February, which were consistently colder than average, particularly across the northern half of the country.
As a whole, March is expected to feature near-average temperatures for much of the northern and northeastern United States, with above-average temperatures across the South and cooler weather in the Pacific Northwest, according to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center.
It’s a pattern typical of La Niña conditions.
The jet stream slices from the northwestern United States eastward across the country, dividing the nation north to south. Warm air from the Gulf of Mexico wafts north across the Deep South and Mid-South. The land-falling jet stream, meanwhile, pumps clouds and storm systems into the northwestern United States, keeping temperatures chilly and leading to more precipitation.
– – –
Snowfall wanes … usually
The warming temperatures typically lead to less snowfall in most places. The exception is in coastal New England, where late-winter nor’easters are quite common.
In 2018, an assembly line of four back-to-back coastal storms plastered Hartford, Connecticut; Providence, Rhode Island; and Boston with heavy snow. On average, Boston gets 9 inches of snow during the month – about 20 percent of its annual snowfall. Chicago averages 5.5 inches and Minneapolis 9.2 inches.
Looking ahead, warm air over the North Pacific will amplify a high-pressure system near Alaska, forcing the jet stream north into Canada. That jet stream will then dip over the eastern United States, allowing chilly weather and storminess to spill south over the Great Lakes and Northeast to kick off the month.
Weather models suggest there could be near-average to slightly above-average probabilities of snow over the Intermountain West, the northern Great Lakes and interior New England. There appear to be lower odds of snow in the northern Plains, the Midwest and coastal New England in the first week of March.
After that, the medium-range weather pattern could support continued cool and stormy weather in the Northeast between March 7 and 15, with increased snow odds.
The end of the month should be warmer than average, however.
– – –
Severe weather chances climb
March is usually when tornado season begins to awaken – first over the Deep South and then by April in the southern Plains and perhaps the Midwest. That’s why places like Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Louisiana should be on alert during March.
As gulf moisture sneaks north, it provides ample instability, which is thunderstorm fuel. But leftover cold air masses from the Rockies can kick that moisture up, forming thunderstorms.
And since the jet stream is still in its wintertime position over the Lower 48, there’s plenty of wind in the upper atmosphere to sculpt storms into rotating supercells. Many of those storms produce tornadoes.
There are two time periods that may favor increased tornado chances – March 2 to 4, and more broadly during the second half of March.
For the March 2 to 4 period, meteorologists are eyeing a possible large-scale low-pressure system that could shift east out of the Rockies and help generate thunderstorms.
Thereafter, a large-scale jet stream dip filled with cold air will probably take shape over the western United States during the second half of the month. This could allow occasional low-pressure systems to push east as well, spawning more thunderstorms.
What to know about meteorological spring, which begins Saturday
The Lower 48 becomes an atmospheric battleground, with swarms of tornadoes, blistering blizzards and drenching deluges all possible
Measles is one of the world’s most contagious viruses. Here’s what to know and how to avoid it
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Laura Ungar
Published Feb 27, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Measles is rarely seen in the United States, but Americans are growing more concerned about the preventable virus as cases continue to rise in rural West Texas.
This week, an unvaccinated child died in the West Texas outbreak, which involves more than 120 cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the last confirmed measles death in the United States was in 2015.
There are also nine measles cases in eastern New Mexico, but the state health department said there is no direct connection to the outbreak in Texas.
Here’s what to know about the measles and how to protect yourself.
What is measles?
It’s a respiratory disease caused by one of the world’s most contagious viruses. The virus is airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It most commonly affects kids.
“On average, one infected person may infect about 15 other people,” said Scott Weaver, a center of excellence director for the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. “There’s only a few viruses that even come close to that.”
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
People who have had measles once can’t get it again, health officials say.
Can measles be fatal?
It usually doesn’t kill people, but it can.
Common complications include ear infections and diarrhea. But about 1 in 5 unvaccinated Americans who get measles are hospitalized, the CDC said. Pregnant women who haven’t gotten the vaccine may give birth prematurely or have a low-birthweight baby.
Among children with measles, about 1 in every 20 develops pneumonia, the CDC said, and about one in every 1,000 suffers swelling of the brain called encephalitis — which can lead to convulsions, deafness or intellectual disability.
It’s deadly “in a little less than 1% of cases, mainly in children,” said Weaver, who works at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. “Children develop the most severe illness. The cause of death in these kinds of cases is usually pneumonia and complications from pneumonia.”
How can you prevent measles?
The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.
“Before a vaccine was developed in the 1960s, everybody got” measles, Weaver said. “But then when the vaccine came along, that was a complete game-changer and one of the most successful vaccines in the history of medicine.”
There is “great data” on the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, he said, because it’s been around for decades.
“Any of these outbreaks we’re seeing can easily be prevented by increasing the rate of vaccination in the community,” he said. “If we can maintain 95% of people vaccinated, we’re not going to see this happening in the future. And we’ve slipped well below that level in many parts of the country.”
Vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95% vaccination threshold for kindergartners — the level needed to protect communities against measles outbreaks.
Do you need a booster if you got the MMR vaccine a while ago?
Health care professionals are sometimes tested for antibodies to measles and given boosters if necessary, Weaver said _ even if they’ve already had the standard two doses as a child.
He said people at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may also want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.
“But I don’t think everyone needs to go and run out to their doctor right now if they did receive two doses as a child,” he said. “If people would just get the standard vaccination, none of this would be happening.”
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Laura Ungar
Published Feb 27, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Measles is rarely seen in the United States, but Americans are growing more concerned about the preventable virus as cases continue to rise in rural West Texas.
This week, an unvaccinated child died in the West Texas outbreak, which involves more than 120 cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the last confirmed measles death in the United States was in 2015.
There are also nine measles cases in eastern New Mexico, but the state health department said there is no direct connection to the outbreak in Texas.
Here’s what to know about the measles and how to protect yourself.
What is measles?
It’s a respiratory disease caused by one of the world’s most contagious viruses. The virus is airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It most commonly affects kids.
“On average, one infected person may infect about 15 other people,” said Scott Weaver, a center of excellence director for the Global Virus Network, an international coalition. “There’s only a few viruses that even come close to that.”
Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.
The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.
There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.
People who have had measles once can’t get it again, health officials say.
Can measles be fatal?
It usually doesn’t kill people, but it can.
Common complications include ear infections and diarrhea. But about 1 in 5 unvaccinated Americans who get measles are hospitalized, the CDC said. Pregnant women who haven’t gotten the vaccine may give birth prematurely or have a low-birthweight baby.
Among children with measles, about 1 in every 20 develops pneumonia, the CDC said, and about one in every 1,000 suffers swelling of the brain called encephalitis — which can lead to convulsions, deafness or intellectual disability.
It’s deadly “in a little less than 1% of cases, mainly in children,” said Weaver, who works at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. “Children develop the most severe illness. The cause of death in these kinds of cases is usually pneumonia and complications from pneumonia.”
How can you prevent measles?
The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.
“Before a vaccine was developed in the 1960s, everybody got” measles, Weaver said. “But then when the vaccine came along, that was a complete game-changer and one of the most successful vaccines in the history of medicine.”
There is “great data” on the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, he said, because it’s been around for decades.
“Any of these outbreaks we’re seeing can easily be prevented by increasing the rate of vaccination in the community,” he said. “If we can maintain 95% of people vaccinated, we’re not going to see this happening in the future. And we’ve slipped well below that level in many parts of the country.”
Vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95% vaccination threshold for kindergartners — the level needed to protect communities against measles outbreaks.
Do you need a booster if you got the MMR vaccine a while ago?
Health care professionals are sometimes tested for antibodies to measles and given boosters if necessary, Weaver said _ even if they’ve already had the standard two doses as a child.
He said people at high risk for infection who got the shots many years ago may also want to consider getting a booster if they live in an area with an outbreak. Those may include family members living with someone who has measles or those especially vulnerable to respiratory diseases because of underlying medical conditions.
“But I don’t think everyone needs to go and run out to their doctor right now if they did receive two doses as a child,” he said. “If people would just get the standard vaccination, none of this would be happening.”
Measles is one of the world’s most contagious viruses. Here’s what to know and how to avoid it
Here's what to know about the measles and how to protect yourself.
Ontario measles cases nearly double over last two weeks
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Hannah Alberga
Published Feb 27, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 1 minute read
Measles
Measles
Ontario is reporting 78 new measles cases over the last two weeks, nearly doubling the province’s total count since an outbreak started in the autumn.
The new cases bring Ontario’s total this year to 119 that were confirmed in a lab and 23 that are deemed “probable,” surpassing the 101 total infections recorded in the province between 2013 and 2023.
Almost all of the new cases are connected to an interprovincial outbreak that began in October, which has sickened 177 people in Ontario and also saw the virus spread in New Brunswick and Manitoba. Quebec has also reported an outbreak of 27 cases that began in December.
As a result of the outbreak, 18 kids have been hospitalized, including one who required intensive care.
The highly contagious — but preventable — disease has primarily infected children and teenagers who are unvaccinated.
One of the cases reported Thursday was in an unvaccinated child who acquired measles outside of Canada and required hospitalization.
The U.S. is also seeing measles spreading, marking its first measles death in a decade Wednesday after an unvaccinated child died in Texas.
Measles is an airborne disease that usually begins with a fever, cough, runny nose and red watery eyes, followed by a red blotchy rash that starts on the face and spreads to the body and limbs. The virus can lead to pneumonia, inflammation of the brain and death.
The Public Health Agency of Canada says the current spread is due to a global rise in measles, reduced vaccination rates, and increased international travel. They say vaccination is the best path of protection.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Hannah Alberga
Published Feb 27, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 1 minute read
Measles
Measles
Ontario is reporting 78 new measles cases over the last two weeks, nearly doubling the province’s total count since an outbreak started in the autumn.
The new cases bring Ontario’s total this year to 119 that were confirmed in a lab and 23 that are deemed “probable,” surpassing the 101 total infections recorded in the province between 2013 and 2023.
Almost all of the new cases are connected to an interprovincial outbreak that began in October, which has sickened 177 people in Ontario and also saw the virus spread in New Brunswick and Manitoba. Quebec has also reported an outbreak of 27 cases that began in December.
As a result of the outbreak, 18 kids have been hospitalized, including one who required intensive care.
The highly contagious — but preventable — disease has primarily infected children and teenagers who are unvaccinated.
One of the cases reported Thursday was in an unvaccinated child who acquired measles outside of Canada and required hospitalization.
The U.S. is also seeing measles spreading, marking its first measles death in a decade Wednesday after an unvaccinated child died in Texas.
Measles is an airborne disease that usually begins with a fever, cough, runny nose and red watery eyes, followed by a red blotchy rash that starts on the face and spreads to the body and limbs. The virus can lead to pneumonia, inflammation of the brain and death.
The Public Health Agency of Canada says the current spread is due to a global rise in measles, reduced vaccination rates, and increased international travel. They say vaccination is the best path of protection.
Ontario measles cases nearly double over last two weeks
Ontario is reporting 78 new measles cases over the last two weeks, nearly doubling the province’s total count.
Blood flow in legs may help predict heart disease: U of T study
Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Mar 02, 2025 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 2 minute read
According to a new study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
According to a new study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
Tired legs and difficulty exercising may reveal serious health problems with your heart — before you even know it.
According to a University of Toronto study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
Researchers at the university’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering say earlier signs of stiffening or scarring of heart tissue can be found elsewhere in the body despite the advances in medical imaging to diagnose heart-specific issues.
The study’s authors say previous research shows poor blood flow in leg muscles may occur before similar changes in the heart.
The condition, called heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpPE), is on the rise and affects millions of people worldwide. It accounts for more than half of all heart failure cases.
There are few symptoms to alert doctors before it becomes serious and tough to treat.
“Our study shines a light on an important gap in how we detect HFpEF before the heart becomes irreversibly damaged,” senior study researcher Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng, a professor at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, told U of T News recently.
“Our work suggests that vascular changes in leg muscle could serve as an earlier, more accessible warning sign of the disease.”
The study, published in the journal Discover Medicine, tested male and female rats with diabetes-induced HFpEF. A special MRI was used to track how blood vessels respond to stress in the legs and heart.
The research team found, among the diabetic rats, the blood flow was showing problems in the leg muscles months before similar issues were detected in the heart.
The results suggested testing the leg muscles for HFpEF was a better location on the body to catch the disease at its earlier stage.
“Our results show that by looking at blood flow in the legs, we could detect problems much sooner than we would by focusing only on the heart,” said the study’s lead researcher Sadi Loai, who has a PhD in biomedical engineering at the university.
“This could make a big difference in how we diagnose and treat this condition.”
Cheng said the next phase of the research into the disease is to study humans.
“Our ultimate goal is not only to open a door to early diagnosis when this disease may be treatable, but also to offer a new direction in treating a condition that is growing in prevalence and has become the most common form of heart failure.”
link.springer.com
utoronto.ca
torontosun.com
Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublished Mar 02, 2025 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 2 minute read
According to a new study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
According to a new study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
Tired legs and difficulty exercising may reveal serious health problems with your heart — before you even know it.
According to a University of Toronto study, testing the blood flow in leg muscles may be a better way to diagnose cardiovascular disease.
Researchers at the university’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering say earlier signs of stiffening or scarring of heart tissue can be found elsewhere in the body despite the advances in medical imaging to diagnose heart-specific issues.
The study’s authors say previous research shows poor blood flow in leg muscles may occur before similar changes in the heart.
The condition, called heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpPE), is on the rise and affects millions of people worldwide. It accounts for more than half of all heart failure cases.
There are few symptoms to alert doctors before it becomes serious and tough to treat.
“Our study shines a light on an important gap in how we detect HFpEF before the heart becomes irreversibly damaged,” senior study researcher Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng, a professor at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, told U of T News recently.
“Our work suggests that vascular changes in leg muscle could serve as an earlier, more accessible warning sign of the disease.”
The study, published in the journal Discover Medicine, tested male and female rats with diabetes-induced HFpEF. A special MRI was used to track how blood vessels respond to stress in the legs and heart.
The research team found, among the diabetic rats, the blood flow was showing problems in the leg muscles months before similar issues were detected in the heart.
The results suggested testing the leg muscles for HFpEF was a better location on the body to catch the disease at its earlier stage.
“Our results show that by looking at blood flow in the legs, we could detect problems much sooner than we would by focusing only on the heart,” said the study’s lead researcher Sadi Loai, who has a PhD in biomedical engineering at the university.
“This could make a big difference in how we diagnose and treat this condition.”
Cheng said the next phase of the research into the disease is to study humans.
“Our ultimate goal is not only to open a door to early diagnosis when this disease may be treatable, but also to offer a new direction in treating a condition that is growing in prevalence and has become the most common form of heart failure.”
Abnormal skeletal muscle and myocardial vasoreactivity manifests prior to heart failure in a diabetic cardiomyopathy rat model - Discover Medicine
Background Microvascular dysfunction (MVD) is a recognized sign of disease in heart failure progression. Intact blood vessels exhibit abnormal vasoreactivity in early stage, subsequently deteriorating to rarefaction and reduced perfusion. In managing heart failure with preserved ejection...
link.springer.com
Leg muscle may serve as an early warning system for heart failure, study finds
Researchers at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Biomedical Engineering have found that studying blood flow in leg muscles may help detect cardiovascular disease earlier than standardized tests, opening the door to earlier treatment and better outcomes. While medical imaging has improved...
Blood flow in legs may help predict heart disease: U of T study
Tired legs and difficulty exercising may reveal serious health problems with your heart before you even know it.
How 5 days of eating ultra-processed food can impact your brain
Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Mar 02, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
This just in: Junk food is not good for your health.
We jest, but recent research reveals just how damaging ultra-processed foods can be.
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake typically comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
What’s more, a recent study linked exposure to these foods to 32 poor health outcomes, such as a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, metabolic syndrome, obesity, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Type 2 diabetes and premature death.
In yet another new study, it gets worse.
Researchers at the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Center in Munich and the University of Tubingen in Germany found that those adverse effects might be dangerously easy to acquire, and long-lasting, too.
Researchers found that even in the short-term, consuming a high-calorie diet rich in ultra-processed foods impairs brain insulin responsiveness and increases liver fat in healthy men.
These effects linger long after the eating period, according to the researchers.
Insulin regulates appetite and metabolism, and insulin resistance such as the kind triggered by ultra-processed foods compromises this regulation and contributes to obesity, Type 2 diabetes and cognitive dysfunction.
The German team also found a link between ultra-processed food consumption and disruption in the brain’s reward learning response. This suggests that as little as five days of overeating can condition the brain for unhealthy eating patterns.
As part of the study, 29 healthy male participants between 19 and 27 were divided into a high-caloric diet (HCD) group and a control group.
Over five days, the HCD group was asked to eat additional daily calories from ultra-processed snack foods. The control group, meanwhile, maintained their regular diet.
The aim of the study was to assess insulin-induced brain activity during three moments: Before the high-caloric diet, during it and one week after subjects returned to eating normally.
The HCD group increased their daily caloric intake by 1,200 calories on average, and liver fat content in that group increased dramatically, while brain insulin responsiveness also increased.
One week after resuming a regular diet, insulin activity was significantly lower in the brain.
Researchers were surprised at the effect short-term HCD had on reward learning, which is the process by which the brain learns to associate behaviours or stimuli with a positive or negative outcome and modify accordingly.
After five days of eating ultra-processed foods, the HCD group showed decreased reward sensitivity and increased punishment sensitivity.
After a week of normal eating, this trend let up but didn’t fully reverse itself.
“Data suggest that a short-term HCD, rich in sugar and saturated fat, has prolonged effects on the brain that outlast the time frame of its consumption,” according to the research team.
“Habitual daily intake of sweet and fatty snacks has been shown to increase neural responses to food, while decreasing the preference for low-fat food independent of changes in body weight and metabolism.”
The study is gender specific and more research is required, but the team said, “the brain response to insulin adapts to short-term changes in diet before weight gain and may facilitate the development of obesity and associated diseases.
torontosun.com
Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublished Mar 02, 2025 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
This just in: Junk food is not good for your health.
We jest, but recent research reveals just how damaging ultra-processed foods can be.
Research shows that 60% of Americans’ daily caloric intake typically comes from ultra-processed foods, which often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats and other lab-based ingredients.
What’s more, a recent study linked exposure to these foods to 32 poor health outcomes, such as a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, metabolic syndrome, obesity, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Type 2 diabetes and premature death.
In yet another new study, it gets worse.
Researchers at the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Center in Munich and the University of Tubingen in Germany found that those adverse effects might be dangerously easy to acquire, and long-lasting, too.
Researchers found that even in the short-term, consuming a high-calorie diet rich in ultra-processed foods impairs brain insulin responsiveness and increases liver fat in healthy men.
These effects linger long after the eating period, according to the researchers.
Insulin regulates appetite and metabolism, and insulin resistance such as the kind triggered by ultra-processed foods compromises this regulation and contributes to obesity, Type 2 diabetes and cognitive dysfunction.
The German team also found a link between ultra-processed food consumption and disruption in the brain’s reward learning response. This suggests that as little as five days of overeating can condition the brain for unhealthy eating patterns.
As part of the study, 29 healthy male participants between 19 and 27 were divided into a high-caloric diet (HCD) group and a control group.
Over five days, the HCD group was asked to eat additional daily calories from ultra-processed snack foods. The control group, meanwhile, maintained their regular diet.
The aim of the study was to assess insulin-induced brain activity during three moments: Before the high-caloric diet, during it and one week after subjects returned to eating normally.
The HCD group increased their daily caloric intake by 1,200 calories on average, and liver fat content in that group increased dramatically, while brain insulin responsiveness also increased.
One week after resuming a regular diet, insulin activity was significantly lower in the brain.
Researchers were surprised at the effect short-term HCD had on reward learning, which is the process by which the brain learns to associate behaviours or stimuli with a positive or negative outcome and modify accordingly.
After five days of eating ultra-processed foods, the HCD group showed decreased reward sensitivity and increased punishment sensitivity.
After a week of normal eating, this trend let up but didn’t fully reverse itself.
“Data suggest that a short-term HCD, rich in sugar and saturated fat, has prolonged effects on the brain that outlast the time frame of its consumption,” according to the research team.
“Habitual daily intake of sweet and fatty snacks has been shown to increase neural responses to food, while decreasing the preference for low-fat food independent of changes in body weight and metabolism.”
The study is gender specific and more research is required, but the team said, “the brain response to insulin adapts to short-term changes in diet before weight gain and may facilitate the development of obesity and associated diseases.
How 5 days of eating ultra-processed food can impact your brain
This just in: Junk food is not good for your health.
Horse shit. Where is the highest consumption of so-called "ultraprocessed" food?
In all the countries anybody'd want to live in, that's where. All the people in countries where Sally Struthers wails "Won't you please HELP?" eat all-natural stuff.
In all the countries anybody'd want to live in, that's where. All the people in countries where Sally Struthers wails "Won't you please HELP?" eat all-natural stuff.
Majority of adults worldwide expected to be overweight, obese by 2050: Study
Author of the articleenette Wilford
Published Mar 04, 2025 • 2 minute read
A new study suggests that 60% of adults worldwide will be overweight or obese in 25 years.
As the warmer seasons approach, you may already be tempted to get into shape if you happened to let yourself go a little during this seemingly endless winter.
That’s a good thing, though a new study might motivate you to go even harder at improving your health and fitness after it suggested that about 60% of adults and nearly a third of young people around the world will be overweight or obese in 25 years.
“The unprecedented global epidemic of overweight and obesity is a profound tragedy and a monumental societal failure,” lead author Emmanuela Gakidou of the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) said in a statement.
The study, published Monday in the medical journal The Lancet, noted that the number of overweight or obese people worldwide rose from 929 million in 1990 to 2.6 billion in 2021. Without serious change, researchers predict that figure will grow to 3.8 billion by 2050.
They also predicted a 121% increase in obesity among children and adolescents around the world, with a third of all obese young people living in North Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean by 2050.
According to the study, we are gaining weight faster than previous generations — and obesity is occurring earlier. But study co-author Jessica Kerr, from Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia, said it’s not too late to overcome the weighty prognosis.
“Ultimately, as global obesity rates continue to soar, much stronger political commitment is needed to transform diets within sustainable global food systems,” Kerr said, adding there also needs to be strategies that “improve people’s nutrition, physical activity and living environments, whether it’s too much processed food or not enough parks.”
The research — funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — is based on figures from the IMHE’s Global Burden of Disease study, and is said to be “most comprehensive global analysis to date.”
The definition of overweight or obese is based on body mass index, a simple calculation where you divide your weight in kilograms by your height in metres squared (though BMI calculators are widely available).
According to the study, more than half the world’s overweight or obese adults live in just eight countries — China, India, the United States, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Egypt.
torontosun.com
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Mar 04, 2025 • 2 minute read
A new study suggests that 60% of adults worldwide will be overweight or obese in 25 years.
As the warmer seasons approach, you may already be tempted to get into shape if you happened to let yourself go a little during this seemingly endless winter.
That’s a good thing, though a new study might motivate you to go even harder at improving your health and fitness after it suggested that about 60% of adults and nearly a third of young people around the world will be overweight or obese in 25 years.
“The unprecedented global epidemic of overweight and obesity is a profound tragedy and a monumental societal failure,” lead author Emmanuela Gakidou of the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) said in a statement.
The study, published Monday in the medical journal The Lancet, noted that the number of overweight or obese people worldwide rose from 929 million in 1990 to 2.6 billion in 2021. Without serious change, researchers predict that figure will grow to 3.8 billion by 2050.
They also predicted a 121% increase in obesity among children and adolescents around the world, with a third of all obese young people living in North Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean by 2050.
According to the study, we are gaining weight faster than previous generations — and obesity is occurring earlier. But study co-author Jessica Kerr, from Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia, said it’s not too late to overcome the weighty prognosis.
“Ultimately, as global obesity rates continue to soar, much stronger political commitment is needed to transform diets within sustainable global food systems,” Kerr said, adding there also needs to be strategies that “improve people’s nutrition, physical activity and living environments, whether it’s too much processed food or not enough parks.”
The research — funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — is based on figures from the IMHE’s Global Burden of Disease study, and is said to be “most comprehensive global analysis to date.”
The definition of overweight or obese is based on body mass index, a simple calculation where you divide your weight in kilograms by your height in metres squared (though BMI calculators are widely available).
According to the study, more than half the world’s overweight or obese adults live in just eight countries — China, India, the United States, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Egypt.
Majority of adults worldwide expected to be overweight, obese by 2050: Study
A new study suggests that 60% of adults worldwide will be overweight or obese in 25 years.
Scientists genetically engineer mice with thick hair like the extinct woolly mammoth
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Christina Larson
Published Mar 04, 2025 • Last updated 13 hours ago • 2 minute read
WASHINGTON — Extinction is still forever, but scientists at the biotech company Colossal Biosciences are trying what they say is the next best thing to restoring ancient beasts — genetically engineering living animals with qualities to resemble extinct species like the woolly mammoth.
Woolly mammoths roamed the frozen tundras of Europe, Asia and North America until they went extinct around 4,000 years ago.
Colossal made a splash in 2021 when it unveiled an ambitious plan to revive the woolly mammoth and later the dodo bird. Since then, the company has focused on identifying key traits of extinct animals by studying ancient DNA, with a goal to genetically “engineer them into living animals,” said CEO Ben Lamm.
Outside scientists have mixed views about whether this strategy will be helpful for conservation.
“You’re not actually resurrecting anything — you’re not bringing back the ancient past,” said Christopher Preston, a wildlife and environment expert at the University of Montana, who was not involved in the research.
On Tuesday, Colossal announced that its scientists have simultaneously edited seven genes in mice embryos to create mice with long, thick, woolly hair. They nicknamed the extra-furry rodents as the “Colossal woolly mouse.”
Results were posted online, but they have not yet been published in a journal or vetted by independent scientists.
The feat “is technologically pretty cool,” said Vincent Lynch, a biologist at the University of Buffalo, who was not involved in the research.
Scientists have been genetically engineering mice since the 1970s, but new technologies like CRISPR “make it a lot more efficient and easier,” said Lynch.
The Colossal scientists reviewed DNA databases of mouse genes to identify genes related to hair texture and fat metabolism. Each of these genetic variations are “present already in some living mice,” said Colossal’s chief scientist Beth Shapiro, but “we put them all together in a single mouse.”
They picked the two traits because these mutations are likely related to cold tolerance — a quality that woolly mammoths must have had to survive on the prehistoric Arctic steppe.
Colossal said it focused on mice first to confirm if the process works before potentially moving on to edit the embryos of Asian elephants, the closest living relatives to woolly mammoths.
However, because Asian elephants are an endangered species, there will be “a lot of processes and red tape” before any plan can move forward, said Colossal’s Lamm, whose company has raised over $400 million in funding.
Independent experts are skeptical about the idea of “de-extinction.”
“You might be able to alter the hair pattern of an Asian elephant or adapt it to the cold, but it’s not bringing back a woolly mammoth. It’s changing an Asian elephant,” said University of Montana’s Preston.
Still, the refinement of precision gene-editing in animals could have other uses for conservation or animal agriculture, said Bhanu Telugu, who studies animal biotechnology at the University of Missouri and was not involved in the new research.
Telugu said he was impressed by Colossal’s technology advances that enabled scientists to pinpoint which genes to target.
The same approach might one day help fight diseases in people, said Lamm. So far, the company has spun off two health care companies.
“It’s part of how we monetize our business,” said Lamm.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Christina Larson
Published Mar 04, 2025 • Last updated 13 hours ago • 2 minute read
WASHINGTON — Extinction is still forever, but scientists at the biotech company Colossal Biosciences are trying what they say is the next best thing to restoring ancient beasts — genetically engineering living animals with qualities to resemble extinct species like the woolly mammoth.
Woolly mammoths roamed the frozen tundras of Europe, Asia and North America until they went extinct around 4,000 years ago.
Colossal made a splash in 2021 when it unveiled an ambitious plan to revive the woolly mammoth and later the dodo bird. Since then, the company has focused on identifying key traits of extinct animals by studying ancient DNA, with a goal to genetically “engineer them into living animals,” said CEO Ben Lamm.
Outside scientists have mixed views about whether this strategy will be helpful for conservation.
“You’re not actually resurrecting anything — you’re not bringing back the ancient past,” said Christopher Preston, a wildlife and environment expert at the University of Montana, who was not involved in the research.
On Tuesday, Colossal announced that its scientists have simultaneously edited seven genes in mice embryos to create mice with long, thick, woolly hair. They nicknamed the extra-furry rodents as the “Colossal woolly mouse.”
Results were posted online, but they have not yet been published in a journal or vetted by independent scientists.
The feat “is technologically pretty cool,” said Vincent Lynch, a biologist at the University of Buffalo, who was not involved in the research.
Scientists have been genetically engineering mice since the 1970s, but new technologies like CRISPR “make it a lot more efficient and easier,” said Lynch.
The Colossal scientists reviewed DNA databases of mouse genes to identify genes related to hair texture and fat metabolism. Each of these genetic variations are “present already in some living mice,” said Colossal’s chief scientist Beth Shapiro, but “we put them all together in a single mouse.”
They picked the two traits because these mutations are likely related to cold tolerance — a quality that woolly mammoths must have had to survive on the prehistoric Arctic steppe.
Colossal said it focused on mice first to confirm if the process works before potentially moving on to edit the embryos of Asian elephants, the closest living relatives to woolly mammoths.
However, because Asian elephants are an endangered species, there will be “a lot of processes and red tape” before any plan can move forward, said Colossal’s Lamm, whose company has raised over $400 million in funding.
Independent experts are skeptical about the idea of “de-extinction.”
“You might be able to alter the hair pattern of an Asian elephant or adapt it to the cold, but it’s not bringing back a woolly mammoth. It’s changing an Asian elephant,” said University of Montana’s Preston.
Still, the refinement of precision gene-editing in animals could have other uses for conservation or animal agriculture, said Bhanu Telugu, who studies animal biotechnology at the University of Missouri and was not involved in the new research.
Telugu said he was impressed by Colossal’s technology advances that enabled scientists to pinpoint which genes to target.
The same approach might one day help fight diseases in people, said Lamm. So far, the company has spun off two health care companies.
“It’s part of how we monetize our business,” said Lamm.
Scientists genetically engineer mice with thick hair like the extinct woolly mammoth
Scientists at a biotech company are trying to genetically engineer living animals with qualities to resemble extinct species.
Ancient humans made tools from animal bones 1.5 million years ago
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Christina Larson
Published Mar 05, 2025 • 2 minute read
This photo provided by the Spanish National Research Council shows a bone tool found in Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, at the CSIC-Pleistocene Archaeology Lab in Madrid in 2023.
This photo provided by the Spanish National Research Council shows a bone tool found in Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, at the CSIC-Pleistocene Archaeology Lab in Madrid in 2023. Photo by Angeliki Theodoropoulou /CSIC via AP
WASHINGTON — Early humans were regularly using animal bones to make cutting tools 1.5 million years ago.
A newly discovered cache of 27 carved and sharpened bones from elephants and hippos found in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge site pushes back the date for ancient bone tool use by around 1 million years. Researchers know that early people made simple tools from stones as early as 3.3 million years ago.
The new discovery, published Wednesday in Nature, reveals that ancient humans “had rather more complex tool kits than previously we thought,” incorporating a variety of materials, said William Harcourt-Smith, a paleoanthropologist at the American Museum of Natural History, who was not involved in the research.
The well-preserved bone tools, measuring up to around 16 inches (40 centimeters), were likely made by breaking off the thick ends of leg bones and using a stone to knock off flakes from the remaining bone shaft. This technique was used to create one sharpened edge and one pointed tip, said study co-author Ignacio de la Torre, a researcher at the Spanish National Research Council.
The bone tools were “probably used as a hand axe” — a handheld blade that’s not mounted on a stick — for butchering dead animals, he said.
Such a blade would be handy for removing meat from elephant and hippo carcasses, but not used as a spear or projectile point. “We don’t believe they were hunting these animals. They were probably scavenging,” he said.
Some of the artifacts show signs of having been struck to remove flakes more than a dozen times, revealing persistent craftsmanship.
The uniform selection of the bones — large and heavy leg bones from specific animals — and the consistent pattern of alteration makes it clear that early humans deliberately chose and carved these bones, said Mirian Pacheco, a paleobiologist at the Federal University of Sao Carlos in Brazil, who was not involved in the study.
The bone show minimal signs of erosion, trampling or gnawing by other animals — ruling out the possibility that natural causes resulted in the tool shapes, she added.
The bone tools date from more than a million years before our species, Homo sapiens, arose around 300,000 years ago.
At the time the tools were made, three different species of human ancestors lived in the same region of East Africa, said Briana Pobiner, a paleoanthropologist at the Smithsonian’s Human Origins Program, who was not involved in the study.
The tools may have been made and used by Homo erectus, Homo habilis or Paranthropus boisei. “It could have been any of these three, but it’s almost impossible to know which one,” said Pobiner.
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Associated Press
Associated Press
Christina Larson
Published Mar 05, 2025 • 2 minute read
This photo provided by the Spanish National Research Council shows a bone tool found in Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, at the CSIC-Pleistocene Archaeology Lab in Madrid in 2023.
This photo provided by the Spanish National Research Council shows a bone tool found in Tanzania's Olduvai Gorge, at the CSIC-Pleistocene Archaeology Lab in Madrid in 2023. Photo by Angeliki Theodoropoulou /CSIC via AP
WASHINGTON — Early humans were regularly using animal bones to make cutting tools 1.5 million years ago.
A newly discovered cache of 27 carved and sharpened bones from elephants and hippos found in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge site pushes back the date for ancient bone tool use by around 1 million years. Researchers know that early people made simple tools from stones as early as 3.3 million years ago.
The new discovery, published Wednesday in Nature, reveals that ancient humans “had rather more complex tool kits than previously we thought,” incorporating a variety of materials, said William Harcourt-Smith, a paleoanthropologist at the American Museum of Natural History, who was not involved in the research.
The well-preserved bone tools, measuring up to around 16 inches (40 centimeters), were likely made by breaking off the thick ends of leg bones and using a stone to knock off flakes from the remaining bone shaft. This technique was used to create one sharpened edge and one pointed tip, said study co-author Ignacio de la Torre, a researcher at the Spanish National Research Council.
The bone tools were “probably used as a hand axe” — a handheld blade that’s not mounted on a stick — for butchering dead animals, he said.
Such a blade would be handy for removing meat from elephant and hippo carcasses, but not used as a spear or projectile point. “We don’t believe they were hunting these animals. They were probably scavenging,” he said.
Some of the artifacts show signs of having been struck to remove flakes more than a dozen times, revealing persistent craftsmanship.
The uniform selection of the bones — large and heavy leg bones from specific animals — and the consistent pattern of alteration makes it clear that early humans deliberately chose and carved these bones, said Mirian Pacheco, a paleobiologist at the Federal University of Sao Carlos in Brazil, who was not involved in the study.
The bone show minimal signs of erosion, trampling or gnawing by other animals — ruling out the possibility that natural causes resulted in the tool shapes, she added.
The bone tools date from more than a million years before our species, Homo sapiens, arose around 300,000 years ago.
At the time the tools were made, three different species of human ancestors lived in the same region of East Africa, said Briana Pobiner, a paleoanthropologist at the Smithsonian’s Human Origins Program, who was not involved in the study.
The tools may have been made and used by Homo erectus, Homo habilis or Paranthropus boisei. “It could have been any of these three, but it’s almost impossible to know which one,” said Pobiner.
Ancient humans made tools from animal bones 1.5 million years ago
Early humans were regularly using animal bones to make cutting tools 1.5 million years ago.