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The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to ban flavored tobacco products in stores which include e-cigarettes, menthol cigarettes, and chewing tobacco. Current users will not be punished, and online sales remain legal. The ordinance takes effect on October 24th. Retailers will…

State officials plan to mow down brush and forests at a rate of half a million acres per year in the next five years in response to numerous wildfires that devastated communities across California. However, scientists argue that the plan is not the prime solution, for most fires have been started…

In January 2019, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority recorded a 12% increase in the homeless population from 52,765 to 58,936 individuals. This year’s findings are surprising to many because the city approved a tax hike and a 1.2 billion dollar housing bond three years ago. Likewise, there…

A study recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that consuming white meat, such as poultry, is equally as bad for elevating blood cholesterol levels as consuming red meat, compared to consuming plant proteins. Both types of meat raised LDL cholesterol to similar…

Months after the devastating Camp Fire in Paradise, California, over seven thousand residents are relying on direct federal aid, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In the United States, spending on public assistance grants has been very high for the past five years and is…

A recent state audit found that the child welfare system puts children's’ lives at risk. The audit found that on numerous occasions, the Department of Children and Family Services failed to complete investigations, sometimes even months past the allotted time. Moreover, some social workers did not…

According to the city health department, rats carrying typhus-infected fleas were found in Los Angeles last fall, with some fleas found on animals waiting to be adopted. Last year, Los Angeles had 124 cases of typhus, typically transmitted through bacteria that gets into eyes or cuts on the skin,…

Google AI researchers and healthcare researchers released a journal article stating that they developed an algorithm that detects lung cancer in people at a 94.4% success rate. The process for developing the deep learning algorithm is compared to a student in school, in which the algorithm learns…

Immunologist, Simon Jiang, and his colleagues at the Australian National University recently discovered genes occurring in less than one percent of the population, found to be responsible for the autoimmune disease, lupus. The gene variants, BLK and BANK1, lead to increased T1 IFN protein activity…

San Francisco may become the first city in the United States to ban the use of facial recognition technology by police and city agencies. Supporters believe that the proposed legislation will be a step forward in protecting people’s civil rights and prevent an Orwellian future where people could…

A jury orders agrochemical company, Monsanto, to pay $2 billion dollars to a couple who claims their cancer was caused by long-term exposure to the weedkiller, Roundup. The couple had used Roundup for thirty years and were diagnosed with the same type of lymphoma four years apart. Parent company of…

Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, began Sunday evening. Across Southern California, mosques, such as the Islamic Center of Northridge, are heightening security measures in light of concerns following mass attacks such as the mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand and the synagogue shooting…

Josh Hader, a 28-year old man, suffered a stroke caused by a tear in his artery and subsequent blood clot after cracking his neck. Specifically, it was a vertebral artery tear, or dissection, which can affect younger people and is unrelated to one’s health. Strokes due to cracking necks are…

A five-year study conducted by the Environmental Working Group estimates that cancer-causing contaminants, such as arsenic and chromium, found in public water systems could potentially result in 15,000 cancer cases over a lifetime. Undisclosed water systems were placed in four categories of risk,…