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A species of bacteria has been discovered by a team of Japanese researchers that is capable of eating the plastic present in the majority of disposable water bottles. This important finding will likely be instrumental in handling an annual production of over 50 million tons of this kind of plastic across the world. The kind of plastic we are talking about is called polyethylene terephalate (PET). Polyester clothing, frozen-dinner trays and blister packaging also contain this plastic.

The latest data reported by NOAA has revealed that last year the level of atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased in the most since the recordkeeping started. Level of carbon dioxide increased in 2015 and it could be blamed partially on El Nino. As per the study by researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), for the last four years, the level of CO2 in atmosphere has increased by at least 2 million part per million, each year.

You may not believe if you are told that amount of chemicals in cosmetics you use have potential to increase level of chemicals in your body. However, a new study could persuade you to believe that skipping your daily used cosmetics can bring down the level of certain chemicals in your body.

The study, which showed levels of endocrine-disrupting chemicals falling in young women on avoiding use of conventional cosmetics for a specific time, was published in Environmental Health Perspectives.

Wisconsin state is facing threat from a rare and antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection of the bloodstream known as Elizabethkingia. It has been found that counting from November 2015, a total of 48 cases of this infection have been detected in the state.

The outbreak has resulted in 18 deaths until March 9, 2016. The rarity of the infection can be understood from the fact that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not find it important to conduct close supervision for this infection. This makes it tougher to find out exact number of people affected by the infection.

Many people suffer from the problem of snoring and eventually getting up with an irritable mood in the morning. These are the common symptoms of a condition called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which is a type of sleeping disorder and must not be left unattended. If a person ignores these problems, it might result in high blood pressure and stroke, along with heart attacks and road accidents.

Sleep problems can also lead to depression and poor performance at work. Over 12 million people in the United States suffer from OSA, according to the American Sleep Association.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday that a salmonella outbreak linked to pistachios has infected at least 11 people in nine states in the US, with two of them landing up in the hospital due to salmonella infection. Following the fears of salmonella contamination, the grower has recalled pistachios with the brand names of Paramount Farms, Trader Joe's and Wonderful.

The CDC said people in the age group of 9 to 69 years reported falling ill on December 12 with similar symptoms. Among the affected state are Alabama, Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Virginia and Washington. A detailed list of the outbreak strain of Salmonella Montevideo and the number of cases in each state is available on the Case Count Map page.