610 Health News Update

Flu season is just beginning, but some schools in North Carolina are reporting a lot of children out with flu-like illnesses. The best prevention for flu, we are told, is the vaccination. How strong is the evidence to support its use?
Lice have developed resistance to many of the chemicals used in lice shampoos. Now scientists in Utah have developed a device that could kill the lice in school, without harming the children or sending them home. How good is industrial-strength hot air against these parasites?
The People’s Pharmacy Pediatrician, Dr. Alan Greene, explains that vitamin C can help prevent some of the damage from second-hand smoke. We learn about the Chinese herb dong quai from Dr. Tieraona Low Dog, an expert on the evidence behind herbal medicine. And we open our lines for calls from listeners at 888-472-3366!
Guests: Tom Jefferson, MD, Cochrane Collaboration http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/333/7574/912
Dale H. Clayton, Ph.D., Professor, Dept. of Biology, University of Utah
Alan Greene, MD, founder and CEO of drgreene.com and Stanford University Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics. His book is From First Kicks to First Steps: Nurturing Your Baby’s Development from Pregnancy Through the First Year of Life.
Tieraona Low Dog, MD, Director of Education for the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine and Clinical Lecturer for the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy.