News briefs

Tribune News Service on Jan 3, 2025

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US surgeon general wants to label alcohol like cigarettes

Wine, beer and spirits should carry a warning label about cancer risks, the U.S. surgeon general said Friday, in a move that could shape a larger debate over government healthy eating recommendations.

“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States — greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S.,” said U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy.

Murthy said most Americans remain unaware of the connection between cancer and alcohol consumption.

Alcohol sold in the U.S. contains labels warning of the risks of drinking while pregnant or driving. The surgeon general proposes adding cancer risks to the text, much as already occurs on packages of cigarettes. But for this change to take place, Congress would have to pass a new law or amend the Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act of 1988.

—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

TikTok’s live video feature ‘groomed’ minors, Utah AG claims

TikTok has long known that its popular video livestreams encourage sexual content, including streams exploiting and “grooming” minors, according to a lawsuit from the state of Utah that was unredacted on Friday.

TikTok also discovered through an internal investigation that the feature, called TikTok Live, facilitated money laundering and allowed users to sell drugs and fund terrorism, the lawsuit alleges.

Bipartisan attorneys general from more than a dozen states sued TikTok last fall, accusing the app of financially and sexually exploiting minors. Utah also sued TikTok on similar grounds in June. Several of those lawsuits — including those from Utah, Vermont, New Hampshire, Kentucky and the District of Columbia — focused on TikTok Live.

The suits cited investigative reporting from Forbes that found adult men regularly use the livestreams to coax teen girls to perform racy, sometimes sexual acts in exchange for digital “gifts” that can be redeemed for money.

—Bloomberg News

Does drinking milk really make congestion worse?

There is a long-standing belief that drinking milk when you’re sick can worsen cold symptoms and increase mucus production. However, research suggests this belief is more related to perception than to actual effects on the body.

“No. Drinking milk does not cause the body to make phlegm,” said Dr. Julie Baughn of the Mayo Clinic. She emphasized that although mucus naturally thickens during respiratory infections, this process happens independently of milk consumption.

The sensation people associate with increased mucus production likely stems from milk’s temporary coating effect on the mouth and throat, which can create a feeling similar to mucus buildup.

Despite this, research on the topic has yielded mixed results. A 2019 study published in the National Library of Medicine indicates some individuals might experience increased mucus production after consuming dairy products. However, several earlier studies found no direct connection in healthy individuals or those suffering from respiratory infections.

—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Zelenskyy: Trump's unpredictability could benefit Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed the hope that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's unpredictability will work to Ukraine's benefit in an interview broadcast by Ukrainian television.

"I see him as strong and unpredictable," Zelenskyy said in the interview broadcast on Thursday. "I would very much like President Trump's unpredictability to be directed primarily towards the Russian Federation," he added.

Zelenskyy said he thinks that Trump was genuinely interested in concluding peace and that Russian President Vladimir Putin feared the U.S. president-elect.

Zelenskyy repeated that all Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia since 2014 would be returned to Ukraine, and he insisted on firm security guarantees, rejecting a demand from Moscow for the Ukrainian army to be reduced in size before peace is agreed.

—dpa