Health IQ: The sharks are heading to Canada

Warming oceans bring more sharks to Canada

Rising ocean temperatures linked to climate change are rewriting the map for some apex predators.

As water temperatures rise, it’s becoming increasingly hospitable for sharks to migrate from tropical and subtropical oceans to Canada. Experts say this may be the new norm.

And as the number of sharks increases, so does the frequency of human-shark interactions.

“A lot of these sharks are fairly close to the beach where the people are and that’s something I would encourage people to be aware of,” warned Dr. Stephen Kajiura, a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Florida Atlantic University. “They’re cruising in the water and you’re seeing more and more sharks coming farther and farther north than ever before,” he said.

Once a rare sight in frigid northern waters, sharks are becoming increasingly common. Growing evidence suggests a rise in great white shark populations, specifically along Canada’s East Coast.

Shark sightings are becoming so common that Neil Hammerschlag, the executive director of the Shark Research Foundation and president of Atlantic Shark Expeditions, said Nova Scotia may soon start putting warning signs on beaches.

Although there are more sharks in Canadian waters, he stressed that this is a sign of a healthy ecosystem, as a large prey population is needed to support sharks.

Read more about why sharks are swimming towards Canada and how to stay safe around these apex predators.

Toxic tampons

Popular tampon brands, including organic ones, may contain toxic metals such as lead and arsenic, a recent study out of the University of Berkeley in California found.

The study, published in the latest volume of Environmental International, found that all 30 tampons tested from 14 brands contained lead, with some showing concerning levels of other toxic metals like arsenic.

“We selected several different products and tested them for a panel of 16 different metals. And we found concentrations of every single one of the metals we tested. For some of the metals, like lead, which is toxic, we found a presence in every single one of the tampons we tested. So we found a lot of metals,” said lead author Jenni Shearston, a postdoctoral student at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health.

Despite regulations by Health Canada, which oversees tampons as medical devices to ensure safety and quality, the study suggests current standards may not adequately address metal contamination.

“A lot of the metals that they found, we naturally have in our body, our body naturally uses for various things,” explained Dr. Eboni January, a U.S.-based obstetrician-gynecologist. “However, when it’s at toxic levels, that is of most concern to me. Lead was found in pretty much every tampon and lead is not safe at any level,” she told Global News.

Metals have been found to increase the risk of dementia, infertility, diabetes and cancer. They can damage the liver, kidneys, brain, and cardiovascular, nervous and endocrine systems.

Read more about the study and different theories on how these metals find their way into tampons.

— THE TOPIC —

The revival of WWII-era plasma use?

— WHAT EXPERTS ARE SAYING —

Canadian Blood Services hopes to reintroduce dried plasma, originally used to save soldiers in WWII and the Korean War.

The non-profit organization is partnering with the Department of National Defence on this “innovative” project funded by Veterans Affairs Canada that will involve research on how to produce dried blood plasma safely.

“Having a blood component that is dried will allow access to life-saving products in regions that’s not currently available,” Chantale Pambrun, senior medical director of innovation and portfolio management at the Canadian Blood Services, said in an interview with Global News on Wednesday.

During the Second World War, freeze-drying technology for serum was developed by Canadian researchers and widely used on the battlefield. Serum is a component of plasma (a part of blood containing important clotting proteins that help stop bleeding).

The new goal is to take plasma from Canadian donors, dry it in a way that is safe and effective, and then transport it into a lightweight, easy-to-carry container that can withstand battlefield conditions over a prolonged period, Pambrun said.

A good analogy for this project, she said, is the use of freeze-dried strawberries in cereals that can sit on the shelf for months, compared with fresh strawberries that go bad faster in the fridge.

Veterans Affairs Canada said that a grant of up to $1.939 million over three years will be provided to CBS for this project.