I've been loosely following the BBCs coverage of the so-called Zika Virus emergency in Brazil (following loosely because I believe the BBC to be moderately neurotoxic). I've found the whole coverage has come across like some kind of outtakes reel from a disaster movie that never made it to the big screen.
I'm extremely skeptical, suspecting that the whole thing may have been invented for various economic and political reasons. A quick pubmed search suggested that Zika has been around for a long time - if so, why has it no previously been connected with microencephaly?
I am seriously unqualified to speculate on real causes of microencephaly but, since increased availability of glucose seems to result in larger brains, then the inverse situation should result in smaller ones. I would imagine that in all the mothers of the affected children had the classical signs of the stress metabolism with elevated FFAs, Glucocorticoids etc. If these things are responsible for microencephaly then it seems unlikely that the virus is actually the cause. It seems far more likely that environmental toxins and an environment engendering hopelessness would be.
I think they're probably jumping to blame to epidemic on the 'Zika virus' to distract from the environmental causes of microencephaly. It's also likely that someone's going to design a vaccine for it and make a lot of money. Is it even an epidemic... or simply advertising copy?
What do people think? What might actually prevent this... Aspirin?
I'm extremely skeptical, suspecting that the whole thing may have been invented for various economic and political reasons. A quick pubmed search suggested that Zika has been around for a long time - if so, why has it no previously been connected with microencephaly?
I am seriously unqualified to speculate on real causes of microencephaly but, since increased availability of glucose seems to result in larger brains, then the inverse situation should result in smaller ones. I would imagine that in all the mothers of the affected children had the classical signs of the stress metabolism with elevated FFAs, Glucocorticoids etc. If these things are responsible for microencephaly then it seems unlikely that the virus is actually the cause. It seems far more likely that environmental toxins and an environment engendering hopelessness would be.
I think they're probably jumping to blame to epidemic on the 'Zika virus' to distract from the environmental causes of microencephaly. It's also likely that someone's going to design a vaccine for it and make a lot of money. Is it even an epidemic... or simply advertising copy?
What do people think? What might actually prevent this... Aspirin?