Top 10 Health Stories Of 2005

WebMD Picks The Year's Major Health News Stories

(WebMD) 
8. Katrina and Rita: A One-Two Punch

When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and other parts of the Gulf coast, it left huge health problems in its wake. These health problems followed those who were forced to flee the area. Federal officials fear that some of those problems may linger for years.

Not least of these problems is the enormous emotional toll of the disaster — one that is still testing Americans' resilience. And when Rita followed soon after, the problems got even worse.

And resilience is the only word to describe the survivors and doctors who shared their stories or blogs with WebMD.


9. Cloning — The Science Was Just the Beginning

Few scientific pursuits are more fraught with ethical issues than cloning.

On the one hand, medical researchers hope to clone stem cells, which hold the seemingly magical property of being able to transform into any cell of the body. The cells could be used to repair, replenish, or rejuvenate diseased or worn-out organs -- for example, by replacing lung cells.

This kind of cloning, called therapeutic cloning, isn't an ethical slam dunk. While adult stem cells can be cloned, there's still a need to learn from embryonic stem cells. And this raises ethical issues.

For example, Korean researcher Woo Suk Hwang in 2005 reported cloning the first human embryonic stem cells for a specific patient. But some of those cells came from eggs donated by women working as junior scientists in Hwang's lab — and they were reimbursed $1,445 for "direct expenses."

At the time, reimbursing egg donors was not illegal in Korea. As the year ends, Hwang's research is being called into question.

More controversial than therapeutic cloning is reproductive cloning.
This means implanting a cloned embryo into the womb of a living female, where it could become a fetus and, eventually, a baby. Scientists are nearly unanimous in rejecting human cloning as unethical. But it's not impossible to achieve. Hwang's Korean lab recently reported the birth of a puppy named Snuppy — the clone of an Afghan hound named Tai.

Therapeutic cloning isn't the same thing as reproductive cloning.
Confusion between the two is a problem, as lawmakers tend to tar therapeutic cloning with the brush of reproductive cloning. Polls show that most Americans favor the therapeutic use of embryonic stem cells.

And reproductive cloning of animals may have a future. The FDA is already mulling the question of whether to approve cloned animals for breeding and food purposes.

10. Soda Wars

As the national obesity problem continues to grow, so too does the quest to find a culprit that's causing it. Some of that blame, deserved or not, fell on the shoulder of soft drink manufacturers this year.
Lawsuits are in the works to go after "big soda," and one consumer advocacy group labeled soda "liquid candy."

Do sodas and other soft drinks make us fat? It's unfair to put all the blame for America's obesity epidemic on soft drinks. We gain weight more from what's on our plates than from what's in our glasses.

But there's good evidence that drinking just one or two soft drinks makes preschoolers put on weight, and there is increasing pressure to limit the amount of soft drinks sold in school vending machines.

Oddly enough, sweetened soft drinks aren't the only culprit. Diet soft drinks are linked to obesity, too. That's probably because diet drinks are an indicator for other overweight risks, although animal studies suggest diet drinks may increase appetite.


SOURCES: Bird Flu: WebMD Medical News, "Scientists in Desperate Race With Bird Flu," Sept. 28, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Scientists: 1918 Killer Flu Was a Bird Flu," Oct. 5, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Bird Flu Pandemic: Economic Disaster?" Dec. 8, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Can States Pay for Bird Flu Preps?" Dec. 5, 2005. WebMD Medical Reference, "Bird Flu Time Line," Nov. 2, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Bird Flu: 10 Questions, 10 Answers," Oct. 11, 2005. WebMD Commentary, " Bird Flu Facts and Fears, Oct. 31, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Bird Flu Vaccine Works in Humans," Aug. 8, 2005. WebMD Special Report: Bird Flu. Terri Schiavo: WebMD Medical News, "End-of-Life Decisions: What Would You Want?" March 21, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Schiavo Case Puts Living Wills in Spotlight," March 18, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Eating Disorder Underlies Schiavo Tragedy," March 25, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Are Americans Afraid to Talk About Dying?" March 23, 2005. Drug Warnings: WebMD Medical News, "New Pain Pills: Not Easier to Stomach?" Dec. 1, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Painkiller Warnings Explained," April 7, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Holes in U.S. Drug Safety Net," Dec. 5, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "FDA Issues Advisory on ADHD Drug Strattera," Sept. 29, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Cancer Warning Suggested for Eczema Creams," Feb. 16, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Deaths Prompt Abortion Pill Warning," July 20, 2005. Contraceptives: WebMD Medical News, "Sex Without a Safety Net," Jan. 5, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Mis-Conceptions: Debunking Birth Control Myths," May 6, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Warning Added to Birth Control Patch," Nov. 11, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "New Warning for Depo-Provera Users," Nov. 18, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "FDA Delays Decision on 'Morning After' Pill," Aug. 26, 2005. Tom Cruise: WebMD Medical News, "Psychiatrists Defend Psychiatric Drug Use," June 28, 2005. WebMD Feature, "Brooke Shields' Struggle With Postpartum Depression, from WebMD the Magazine," March 24, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Essay Questions Role of Antidepressants," Nov. 7, 2005. WebMD Commentary, "Tom Cruise Plays Doctor," Sept. 1, 2005. Medicare: WebMD Medical News, "Medicare Drug Plan: Confusion Reigns," Nov. 10, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Medicare Heading for Financial Crisis," March 23, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Study Warns of High Rx Costs in Medicare," July 12, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Report Urges Bargaining Power for Medicare," Sept. 27, 2005. Food Pyramid: WebMD Medical News, "Americans Get Diet Roadmap to Health," Jan. 12, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "New Food Pyramid Gets Personal," April 19, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "New Kid-Friendly Food Pyramid Launched," Sept. 28, 2005. Katrina and Rita: WebMD Medical News, "Hurricane Katrina: Health Aftermath," Aug. 31, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Poll: Many Katrina Evacuees Face Health Woes," Sept. 16, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Officials See Katrina Effects for Years to Come," Sept. 12, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Americans Feel Katrina's Emotional Toll," Sept. 7, 2005. WebMD Feature, "9/11 to Katrina: America's Resilience Shines." WebMD Special Report: "Preparing for Rita." WebMD Medical News, "Katrina's Refugees: Facing Life Far From Home," Sept. 2, 2005. Real Stories from WebMD, "Katrina Shelter, The Full Story." Real Stories from WebMD "Hurricane Aftermath." Real Stories from WebMD, "The Way Home." Cloning: WebMD Medical News, "Stem Cells Used to Grow Lung Cells," Aug. 24, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Korean Stem Cell Scientist Speaks Out," Dec. 16, 2005. Lee, B.C. Nature, Aug. 4, 2005; vol: 436 pp: 641. WebMD Medical News, "Survey: Most OK Embryonic Stem Cell Research," Oct. 14, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Decision on Cloned Meat Expected Soon," June 28, 2005. Soda Wars: WebMD Medical News, "Soft Drinks: Scapegoat for Kids' Obesity?" May 11, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Sweet Drinks Make Preschoolers Gain Weight," Feb. 7, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Changes for School Drink Vending Machines?" Aug. 17, 2005. WebMD Medical News, "Drink More Diet Soda, Gain More Weight?" June 13, 2005.