Precis - Professor Could

On a fairly regular basis one eminent "authority" or another will pop-up in the media with some research which claims that there may well be dramatic, not to say extremely serious consequences related to the subject of the research . The research may be limited, will not be definite and the claims will always be accompanied by the words "could lead to...". The media will gleefully latch on to this with a consequent frightening blaze of publicity and the "authority" will have 10 minutes of fame whilst the public may be unnecessarily alarmed.

The one thing all these reports have in common is that nothing has been proved but the public has been unnecessarily alarmed.

This page is a rolling collection of such reports. If readers have evidence of similar items, set out as below, countrydoctor would be pleased to consider them for publication. There have, after all, been very many over the last several years - and we have all rather remarkably survived.

DATE	SOURCE	FIELD	EFFECT CLAIMED	EVIDENCE
21 May, 2004	General media via "Pathology"	nvCJD	Thousands of people could still die of new variant CJD	An examination of 12,000 operative appendix and tonsillar specimens which found 3 infected ones. The owner of the report urged caution on his own interpretation of his research..
2002	Eminent researcher plus multi-media	Women & antibiotics	Antibiotics could cause breast cancer	Women taking a/bs for > a year or 25 prescriptions over 17 years may have double the risk but that may also be due to the infections. More research is needed says Cancer Research UK.
2003	Reading and Weybridge researchers	Anti-perpsrants	Anti-perspirants could cause breast cancer	Tumours in 20 women had parabens (oestrogen-like preservatives) in them. Parabens has not been linked to breast Ca and may be harmless - said the researchers
May 2004	University of Michigan	Antibiotics	Antibiotics could be the cause of asthma	Antibiotics given to children may be the cause of the "explosion" in adult asthma cases due to disturbances of the immune system. More research needed.
June 2004	Cancer Research Council & MRC	Diabetes Bowel cancer	Bowel cancer could be linked to diabetes	Examination of some 1000s of cases show there may be a link. More research is needed, they admit.
July 12 2004	German Association for Environmental Protection (quoted in "GP")	Wearing flip-flops	Wearing flip-flops could make men impotent	None cited but phthalates could damage reproductive organs
July 31 2004	BMJ	Childhood exposure to smoke	Childhood exposure to smoke may increase risk of adult back pain	Exposure to second hand smoke may affect developing spine. Limited study on nurse aides (Univ. of Oslo)
August 8 2004	The Observer	Secret mass medication	There's so much Prozac prescribed by GPs that it's contaminating the water supply	LibDem Environment spokesman, Mr Baker, says it is secret mass medication but that the amount of Prozac in the water is unknown
August 20 2004	Mr Thompson, American scientist and the WHO via BBC R4 6 pm News, 20/8/04	Bird 'flu has transmitted to pigs	Millions of humans will die if it transmits to humans	There is no evidence that it can or will
October 19 2004	Dr Alexandra Farrow, Brunel University, W London	Air fresheners and aerosols	May cause babies to have stomach upsets and diarrhoea and women to have post-natal depression	Looking at data from University of Bristol's "Children of the 90s" project. Monitoring 170 women for a year
November 29 2004	American Journal of Clinical Nutrition	Ovarian cancer and milk	Drinking more than one glass/day of milk could double the risk of ovarian cancer	"Major" study of 61,000 women over 13 years. Milk consumption only studied for first three years.
December 6 2004	Minot State University, North Dakota	Sexuality	Pregnant women taking amphetamine slimming pills may make their babes lesbians	Mothers of 5000 students and members of gay and lesbian support groups traced
December 6, 2004	Minot State University, North Dakota	Sexuality	Mothers of heterosexual men were more likely to have taken anti-nauseants than those of gays.	None given
February 14 2004	Medical College of Georgia	Hypertension	2 cans/day of fizzy drinks could cause hypertension in teenagers	A study of 160 teenage boys and girls aged 15-19
June 11 2005	Biology Letters reported in Daily Mail and PULSE	Sexuality	Mobile phones decrease male fertility by 15%	A world-shattering study of a 52 men
19 October 2005	Britain's Chief Medical Officer	Avian 'flu	50,000 Britons will be killed by the pandemic of avian flu - but not this year!	The disease has been rife in SE Asian birds for a considerable time and 50% of 126 affected humans have died. The virus MAY mutate to cause a pandemic. At present there is no pandemic.
13 December 2005	Newcastle University and the European Journal of Cancer + the Daily Mail!	Childhood leukaemia	Common illnesses such as the common cold in the mother may trigger cancer...	...but only if they carry mutant cells already. Study over 45 years BUT how can it be proved the mother had a cold during pregnancy. Don't most people? The researchers admit they need more evidence. Then why the blistering hell did they go public and worry people?
28 December 2005	Radio 4, BBC and other media. Researchers in California	Cancer prevention	Large doses of Vitamin D2 may prevent many common cancers	Doses of 2.5 times the recommended dose. Limited research. If only it were so simple.
9 January, 2006	Russian Academy of Sciences; Daily Mail	Deformed babies	Eating GM crops could harm your baby	Tests on rats point to a risk of underweight babies who may die early. Unproven, not peer-reviewed
10 May 2006	Liverpool University; Daily Mail 8/5/06	Nervous system of children	The colours of Smarties could have a "cocktail effect" on the nervous system and should be removed - especially the blue ones	"A recent study by experts at Liverpool University". Dr Lizzie Vann of Organix "applauds" Nestles but did not reveal how many tons of the colourant children would need to ingest to cause the effect.
16 June 2006	Health expert senior midwife at King's College, Annette Briley, Daily Mail	Maternity. In particular Britney Spears seen sun bathing	Sunbathing on the beach may break down folic acid and may cause chloasma	"Evidence shows that UV rays can break down folic acid needed in pregnancy". No other evidence cited.
12 July 2006	Dr Odent, French expert obstetrician at the Birthright Trust Cambridge Conference. Midwives agree.	Maternity	Caesars may prevent mothers bonding with their babies	"Caesars somehow prevent the provision of bonding hormone oxytocin", he believes. Midwives agree but say they don't know what low oxytocin causes. No evidence given.
28 July 2006	Paper in Royal Society of medicine Journal by Drs Vassilliou and Zipitis from Addenbrookes. Reported in D Mail 27 July.	Asthma	Asthma drugs may kill. Salometerol and formotorel have increased death rates in asthmatics especially children.	Contradicted by Dr M. Partridge of the Asthma Society who said the report was not new and patients should continue their drugs
3 August 2006	Joanna Verran, Manchester University microbiologist	Infections	Mobile phones health hazards. They harbour more "germs" than a toilet seat	No evidence cited nor what proportion of the 55million British users are adversely affected - if any. No comparison made with ordinary phones.
3 August 2006	Mike O-Neill, "foot surgeon" , amongst others, in Daily Mail	Muscular injuries	Flip-flops can damage your health. Shin-splints, tendonitis	"Figures show 55,100 flip-flop related complaints went to hospital in 2002". What "figures" and where? No serious evidence cited.
21 August 2006	DoH D. Mail	CT scans	Screening test could cause cancer. "Private companies are making money out of scanning people". DoH worried about safety and called for enquiry.	No clear evidence
21 August 2006	Prof Douglas McMahon, Tenessee in Paediatric Research and Prof. Shennon of Tommy's Baby Charity. D. Tel	Psychiatry and behaviour	Hospital lighting could harm babies. May make them feel depressed and have a lasting effect on their behaviour	A study on baby mice by Prof McMahon and an extrapolation relating from SAD in adults. No other evidence and certainly none directly related to human babies.
5 October 2006	Dr Yvonne Kohlhammer, Neuherberg, Germany reported in D Mail	Allergy	Swimming pools "can cause hay fever" . Chlorination may not be harmless. Allergy UK said there was no proven link between hayfever and swimming pools.	Those who swim once a month are 70% more likely to develop hay fever in retrospective study, with no controls, of 2600 adults between 35 & 74.
12 October 2006	Harvard School of Public Health in D Mail	Pregnancy	Eating oily fish during pregnancy could cause prematurity.	1024 women tested, 44 gave birth prematurely but "further work is needed" to establish a connection. May be due to mercury.
20 October 2006	Inst. of Pharmacological Research, Milan in International Journal of Cancer	Cancer	Eating 5 slices of white bread a day may increase the risk of kidney cancer	A study of 2300 Italians asked them to remember what they had eaten every day for the previous 5 years.
26 October 2006	Reproductive Research Centre, Cleveland Clinic., Ohio, Prof Agarwal. Radio 4, Daily Mail etc.	Fertility	4 hours daily on mobile phones could impair male fertility	Not made clear how a phone being used at the ear could affect testes. It is understood that only politicians speak through their rear ends and therefore are even slightly at risk.
31 October 2006	Prof Stern, British Govt for the Chancellor of the Exchequer	Climate change	Effects of climate change will cost >£3trillion so must put up taxes to prevent this.	Chancellor Gordon Brown, well known to have a very deep "black hole" in his financial arrangements - and the originator of billions in increased stealth taxes - commissioned a global warming report. Stern carried this out using the flimisiest of scientific and financial evidence and came up with an answer which would, surprise, surprise require the imposition of massive increases in taxation as "green taxes". Stern is not the first "expert" this govt has appointed to get the answer it wanted.
29 November, 2006	"Scientists" at Harvard Medical School	Bladder cancer	Bacon sandwiches could cause bladder cancer. Eating skinless chickens regularly could also cause bladder cancer	Scientists analysed diet and lifestyle of 135,000 people over 22 years (Really!!!). 800 are said to have developed bladder cancer after eating five bacon sandwiches a week. Did they really keep such detailed records or did they rely on peoples' memories?
7 April 2007	Dermopathic Institute, Rome in The European Journal of Cancer	Skin cancer	Home insecticide sprays could double the risk of skin cancer	Scientists believe their findings may account for some of the 10% of skin cancer cases not caused by the sun. Of the 300 questioned, those who used the sprays more than four times a year doubled the risk. Cancer Research UK, paraphrased, said "Crap".
18 April, 2007	Columbia University Medical School, New York. Dr Rui Jiang in American Journal of Respiratory and critical Care Medicine	Chronic lung disease	Bacon may cause lung disease	Eating bacon at least 14 times a month may cause smoking-type diseases due to the nitrites used in curing it. Study from diets of "thousands".
18 April 2007	Leeds University via Daily Mail	Post-menopausal breast cancer	2oz red meat daily may raise the risk by 56%	No evidence quoted
25 April 2007	Wayne State Uni, Michigan and European Journal of Cancer Prevention	Endometrial cancer	Uterine cancer may be caused by electric blankets	Those asked if they had ever used an electric blanket were 15% more likely to develop endometrial cancer. 36% if used regularly for 20 years. The research methods are not stated.
8 May, 2007	Dr Winchester, paediatrician, Indiana Medical School	Intelligence	Pesticide use in spring may make spring babies less intelligent	Dr Winchester says he cannot prove the link but his findings supported one.
18 July, 2007	University of Southern California and of Hawaii. British Journal of Cancer	Breast cancer	Eating a quarter of a grapefruit a day raises the risk of breast cancer by 30% in post-menopausal women	"It is thought" that it boosts oestrogen levels.
18 July 2007	Harvard Medical School	Breast cancer	A single alcoholic drink may increase the risk	None given
18 July 2007	American Journal of Epidemiology	Kidney cancer	Fluctuating weight loss through dieting may cause kidney cancer. 10 episodes in life of losses of 10lb on dieting.	140,000 women in Sweden and Britain.
15 August 2007	Royal Veterinary College, London	Maternal junk food diet	A maternal diet of junk food during pregnancy could cause babes and children to prefer these foods	300 rats were used. "Our research shows that healthy eating habits need to start during the foetal and suckling life of an individual" said Prof Strickland.