"We should be skeptical of any people who sell themselves as singularly capable of giving health advice on the internet and should always follow the money and connections where they lead." The Big Lie propping up Big Wellness. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/o... via @nytopinion.nytimes.com

This headline is factually incorrect. The US Olympic athletes were cheered when they entered. It was only when Vance appeared on the Jumbotron screen that they then turned to boos. apple.news/ApUAVfIIdRpe...

A PSA to those who take health or medical advice from various influencers on social media. An anecdote is a story, and the plural of anecdote is anecdotes, NOT evidence.

Given the two seemingly disparate challenges in health care staffing and grocery store prices, this article seems rather timely. www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/cala...

This is not a good thing unless you want to hide the information needed for evidence-based public health interventions. www.the-scientist.com/nearly-half-...

Hey @germhuntermd.bsky.social, I finally left the cesspool that is X.

The Conservative Party of Canada reaffirms it’s desire to lose the next federal election. www.cbc.ca/news/politic...

Finally, a mainstream media article on a subject many of we infectious disease docs have to deal with on an almost daily basis. It correctly identifies a “wellness” industry profit motive that drives the misinformation on this subject. www.cbc.ca/news/investi...

I've been thinking this exact thing for over a year. And, it's not just Europe that is the target for this malfeasance. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Well-written pitch to the economic dangers of destroying public health measures. www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/pres...

Some people I follow as Editor-in-chief of @jammi-journal.bsky.social are elegantly able to tie current geopolitics to their areas of interest. Here’s a great example. open.substack.com/pub/journalo...

Here's a great example of why the media & journalists should be speaking with, and requesting comments from, mental health professionals rather than political pundits in dealing with today's geopolitical challenges. www.theglobeandmail.com/life/advice/...

Wasn't there another person who was famous for not paying their bills from contractors?

I do really like NPR and journalistic principles, but how is this even a headline? Appearing to be “balanced” by stating the obvious isn’t really news. www.npr.org/2026/01/19/n...

And, it's still bloody brilliant and funny!

“Wellness” grifters tell their followers what they want to hear using a now well-worn formula where they take a scientific-sounding term that has some dubious research behind its supposed dangers, and then amplify the message in a like-minded echo chamber, arguing that they alone hold the “truth”.

I think most people missed @nikkiglaser.bsky.social best joke during last night's Golden Globes monologue. Rebranding CBS News as "See" BS News.

Antivirals against influenza. Here's a nice distillation of the available info in a well-written piece by @sarahzhang.bsky.social. www.theatlantic.com/health/2026/...

Interesting analogy to the novel "Lord of the Flies" in this opinion piece. www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...

No question that the northern hemisphere is having an early and intense influenza season. However, it ain't "super flu" folks. Seasonal influenza, particularly in unvaccinated persons, has always been a much more severe illness than most people realize. A quote from an influenza expert, not me.

I see that the country to the south of mine is now providing health advice by edict/decree/pronouncement.

Nice job here explaining why a “diagnosis” of UTI in elderly persons usually is not. The bane of ID docs everywhere. www.statnews.com/2025/12/29/u...

Already seeing lots of lists of well-known people who died in 2025. However, this was is not only exhaustive, it's also quite thoughtful and well written. www.cbsnews.com/news/hail-an...

Just in time for the holidays and as we enter the peak of this year's early & dramatic #influenza season, we have posted our AMMI Canada Influenza Guidance Update for 2025-26. Take a look for guidance on the use of influenza antivirals including baloxavir. ammi.ca/wp-content/u...

Another excellent piece by @katherinejwu.com on why measles is such a tricky (and serious) infection. www.theatlantic.com/health/2025/...

Sure shaping up to be quite the season for influenza this year. Be careful out there folks. And, get your flu shot, if you haven't already as the seasonal peak is still a couple of weeks away. www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

Can a government department be labeled a vexatious litigant?

Biological entities don't "rewire" their genes. Spontaneous mutations that arise naturally and confer a survival advantage in their environment are selected out for propagation within the bear population. "That's what evolution is all about Charlie Brown! www.nbcnews.com/world/greenl...

"...“super flu” is not a scientific term … It’s a colloquial phrase that’s been used by various NHS England bosses and taken up by Wes Streeting … and Keir Starmer." Hmm, I wonder what it is about this group that prompts them to use a hyperbolic label..? www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

UK now reporting that this year's seasonal influenza, which is predominantly due to A(H3N2), is hitting those aged 5 to 14 years the hardest. Not surprising as that age group is mainly A(H1N1) imprinted having been born after the 2009 Influenza pandemic that was driven by the H1N1pdm09 virus.

Great piece here by @boghuma.bsky.social on the person-power challenges facing our American ID colleagues. "ID specialists have become convenient targets or "human piñatas" for political frustrations related to the pandemic, vaccines, and public health measures." www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/seco...

My favourite Christmas special. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

The same could be said of some social media posts. www.newyorker.com/culture/the-...

This @bbcnews.bsky.social story has a byline that suggests alcohol products have an expiry date. Seriously? Alcohol has an expiry date? I don't think so. In America maybe, I mean they'll believe anything these days. www.bbc.com/news/article...

One of the many drawbacks to the early onset of seasonal #influenza is that children are still in school for another couple of weeks. School-aged children act as amplifiers of seasonal influenza once it arrives. It's going to be a rough go for our communities and hospitals over the holidays.

I've always thought that the whole "natural immunity is the best way to protect people" thing was a bit like saying "getting pregnant is the best form of birth control." Anyway, cool to see it's better for the immune system to see vaccine before virus from an effectiveness standpoint too.

A nice reminder that a medical image is a picture that has a subjective interpretation; it is not a diagnosis. www.cmaj.ca/content/197/...

Bottom line from UK modelling preprint: This year's seasonal influenza driven by A/H3N2 K clade will be comparatively early with a peak over mid to late December. A suggestion that children may be more affected than other age groups. An explanation of Japan's experience? zenodo.org/records/1770...

A delightful treatise on cruciferous vegetables. Big fan broccoli and Brussels sprouts. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...

Now it's just a structural study of the brain rather than a functional one but still, quite interesting. www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Umm..because he's a narcissist? www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...

I recall a debate between two of my ID colleagues @germhuntermd.bsky.social & @drneilstone.bsky.social about choosing to leave Twitter/X. Here's a great read to give Ilan the win. www.theatlantic.com/technology/2...

So, when AI doesn't have an answer, it just lies and makes up stuff? The use of the colour orange in the graphic of this article is perhaps telling. theconversation.com/ai-systems-c...

Contributed to this article by @egpayne.bsky.social about the challenges with improving vaccination rates of health care workers against influenza this year. ottawacitizen.com/news/local-n...

Having just participated in a provincial health care tabletop exercise dealing with special pathogens, this real life report is similar to one part of a scenario that was used. www.afro.who.int/news/ethiopi...

We fast-tracked the peer-review on this paper given the potential implications for this year's influenza season. Kudos to our Canadian colleagues for their work.

Well, this case report came as a bit of a shock. www.jaci-inpractice.org/article/S221...

Amen.

"We are the dead. Short days ago, we lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow. Loved, and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields." - Lt. Col John McCrae, MD