CDC Blogs
blogs.cdc.gov · Company blog · on HN since 2011
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention runs blogs on public health and workplace safety, including N95 masks, veterinarian suicide, and sound-measuring apps.
What HN saysHN commenters cite CDC posts as evidence in debates over mask fit, alcohol and DNA damage, veterinary suicide rates, and heat-related deaths.
30HN people shared it
24linked it in comments
6stories submitted
59story points
1 year agolast shared
2011people per year2026
Most-shared posts
- 1How Accurate Are These Smartphone Sound Measurement Apps?4 people · 55 points · first shared 2014 · 17 comments on HN
- 2N954 people · first shared 2020
- 3Veterinary suicide3 people · first shared 2022
- 4Noshave3 people · first shared 2020
- 5Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse2 people · 2 points · first shared 2011 · discussion on HN
- 6FacialHairWmaskSmall.jpg2 people · first shared 2020
- 7Ladder safety month2 people · first shared 2019
- 8What is the public health impact of genomewide association studies?1 people · 1 points · first shared 2013 · discussion on HN
- 9CDC Prepares Nation for the Zombie Apocalypse1 people · 1 points · first shared 2011 · discussion on HN
- 10Nfl1 people · first shared 2017
- 1126 34101 people · first shared 2024
- 12Food workers working while sick1 people · first shared 2020
- 13Patient safety action plan1 people · first shared 2023
- 14Nightshift cancer1 people · first shared 2022
- 15Silicosis countertop1 people · first shared 2023
What HN people wrote when they linked it
EForEndeavour · 2024-03-01
Could you share any evidence-based arguments against the evidence-based statements and recommendations summarized in the article? What fatal flaws undermine the research in the linked CDC page[1] establishing a causal link between alcohol consumption and DNA damage and increased risk of cancers of the mouth and throat, larynx, esophagus, liver, colon and rectum, and breast in women?
[1] https://blogs.cdc.gov/cancer/2018/04/02/3-weird-things-about-acetaldeh…
ckcheng · 2020-03-18
I found: "Over time, components such as the straps and nose bridge material may degrade, which can affect the quality of the fit and seal" [1]
Also, some filters are constructed from charged fibers and electrostatic attraction helps in the filtering [2]. I wonder if that electrostatic attraction can be lost in some way, which would help explain the expiry date.
Anyway, [1] also says using expired masks may be considered in a crisis, best for training and fit testing though.
[1] https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/respirators-strategy/cri…
[2] https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2009/10/14/n95/
lukas099 · 2025-06-24
Sadly, vets have a high suicide rate. This study found 1.6x the general population rate for male vets and 2.4% for females.
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2019/09/04/veterinary-suicide…
I have a vet friend that I talk to a lot. One thing that struck me was how many clients will bring in a dog with a serious, obvious malady (the one I remember was a dog with maggots in its anus, sorry for the visual) and will be like, “are you sure he’s in pain? He hasn’t been crying all day”. And it will be evident that this has been happening for weeks.
nobody9999 · 2024-12-23
>We've been doing the education approach for decades.
Have we? The "education approach" seems to have worked for cigarettes[0]
But we haven't used that approach for sugary drinks. And the results show that[1].
[0] https://www.statista.com/statistics/184418/percentage-of-cigarette-smo…
[1] https://blogs.cdc.gov/nchs/2017/01/26/3410/
Alupis · 2024-04-12
Nothing has stopped, and nothing is stopping businesses and unions from putting their own protections in place.
The articles says "dozens" of deaths across the country per year are heat related. How many are from Florida? Seems like largely a non-issue - hundreds of people die from falling off ladders every year[1], for comparison.
But... NPR likes to sensationalize and politically charge these sorts of headlines to rile people over "Florida Bad" since it's currently a Republican Governor.
Yesterday you didn't know about this, hadn't put one second of thought into it, and didn't care about it. Today, metaphoric you is outraged by it. ie, you're being played.
[1] https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2017/03/13/ladder-safety-mont…
Arson9416 · 2023-11-27
>Medical errors now vie with COVID-19 infections as the third largest cause of preventable death in the United States.
https://blogs.cdc.gov/safehealthcare/patient-safety-action-plan
jader201 · 2023-09-24
I’m sure it’s not “good”, but from my limited understanding, it’s not equivalent to risks of quartz.
This article [1] indicates quartz contains about 2x silica vs. granite.
[1] https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2019/10/29/silicosis-countert…
zdw · 2023-03-14
Related - suicide rates are much higher for Veterinarians and techs than the general public:
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2019/09/04/veterinary-suicide…
gdavisson · 2023-02-18
"They filter AT LEAST 95% of the particles above a certain size."
That's a common misunderstanding; they filter at least 95% of particles of all sizes. It's actually intermediate-sized particles (around 0.1 - 1 micron) that're hardest to capture. Smaller particles are more subject to Brownian motion, which makes them jiggle around more, and hence makes them more likely to bump into one of the respirator's strands... where they'll stick, thanks to Van der Waals forces.
N95 masks (if properly fitted) block at least 95% of particles in that 0.1 - 1 micron range (they're tested with particles around 0.3 microns), and even higher percentages of particles that're either larger or smaller than that.
Reference: https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2009/10/14/n95/ (especially figure 2)
gumby · 2022-07-05
One difference is that doctors don’t have the high suicide rate veterinarians do: https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2019/09/04/veterinary-suicide…
deanc · 2022-02-19
This is the same approach as night shifts for nurses.
There’s a lot of evidence to suggest that the effects on this infrequent but consistent disturbance to their circadian rhythms causes all kinds of physiological damage. One example [1]. We have to do better. I think the original suggestion of finding specialised night workers or those in other timezones is more humane.
[1] https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2021/04/27/nightshift-cancer/
jonas21 · 2020-11-13
As long as your facial hair doesn't cross the area where the mask seals to your face, it's fine.
For example, a Hitler mustache would probably be okay (though it may negatively impact your health in other ways)
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/files/2017/11/FacialHairWmask…
trentdk · 2020-07-04
The idea is to stop the respiratory droplets that contain viruses. Droplets measure on the order of micrometers, which is the range that surgical masks are made to be effective.
A Google search result for droplet sizes: https://www.pnas.org/content/115/10/E2386
A Google search result for effectiveness of various masks related to particle size: https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2009/10/14/n95/
gentryb · 2020-06-08
When I first started doing volunteer health assessments and triage at our local homeless shelter, I inquired if facial hair was an issue with PPE. The organization's initial response was no.
I sent them a link to the CDC guidance[1] that includes this picture regarding facial hair styles that are ok[2].
I don't think the notice at the top of said article is helpful whatsoever saying that this isn't advice for covid-19. A proper fit and seal is important. The picture could also be considered somewhat offensive to some.
[1]: https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2017/11/02/noshave/
[2]: https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/files/2017/11/FacialHairWmask…
bootlooped · 2020-04-22
The first linked study, the one from Japan, had 32 participants that finished the study and there were only 2 colds observed, one in each group. To me, a layperson, that feels like such a small sample size to be totally useless. Am I wrong about this?
It's also stated, "The main transmission path is long-residence-time aerosol particles (< 2.5 μm), which are too fine to be blocked". Why when I look at a CDC article on masks does it say N95 is effective on this particle size? Unless the author is using "blocked" to mean "100% prevented from moving through the filter", which would be a higher standard than N95 masks claim to have.
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2009/10/14/n95/
totetsu · 2020-02-27
Looks like this has been around a while.
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2017/11/02/noshave/
jdkee · 2020-02-24
Your assertion is categorically false.
"But not all state and local food codes include FDA’s sick worker rules. In fact, 19 states have not adopted these rules. And some food workers work while sick even when their states or localities do have those rules. Indeed, 20% of food workers say they worked at least one shift with vomiting or diarrhea in the past year."
https://blogs.cdc.gov/yourhealthyourenvironment/2016/12/05/food-worker…
muthas · 2019-11-26
A couple items to note here:
- while agreed that a trap should help contain gasses, in order to cure the resin involved they have to inject high-pressure steam into the piping... possible that it could cause bubbles to pass through functional traps
- even if the trap system worked perfectly, the fumes from the cure process get vented to the local atmosphere through outlets set up during the CIPP process. This exposes workers to the largest amount of byproduct chemical vapors, but it's entirely reasonable to think that it could get accumulated or trapped in buildings as well.
The CDC has a good article about this very topic:
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2017/09/26/cipp/
jackspace · 2019-09-11
Very interesting that the e-cigarette problem, which has actually been rising only in recent months (they've been around for years now), and involves roughly 450 people (according the the Wall Street Journal piece: https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-we-know-about-vaping-related-lung-il… ), whereas falls from ladders cause about 355 deaths annually in the U.S. ( https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2017/03/13/ladder-safety-mont… ).
No one is talking about banning or even changing ladders.
Qui bono?
:)
balls187 · 2017-05-30
> Football players have to demand their safety is taken seriously before any positive change is going to happen to the sport.
In the NFL, the players don't have much authority past their players union, and it's been documented that most of the players who hold power are the NFL stars, who's comp structures don't incentivize participation in CBA's.
Pro Football players live on average more than the average american male.
https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2012/01/30/nfl/
MiguelVieira · 2015-02-06
Is a db meter on an iPhone really inaccurate? This recent article from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health suggests otherwise:
> for A-weighted sound level measurements three apps had mean differences within ± 2dBA of the reference measurements. For un-weighted sound level measurements three apps had mean differences within the ± 2 dB of the reference measurement. Since national standards and occupational guidelines specify that type 2 sound measurement instruments have an accuracy of ± 2dBA, some of the above-mentioned apps could potentially be used in the occupational setting
http://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2014/04/09/sound-apps/
rwl4 · 2015-02-04
Here's an interesting post at the CDC on this very topic:
http://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2014/04/09/sound-apps/
Fomite · 2014-01-14
http://blogs.cdc.gov/safehealthcare/2013/03/05/the-beginning-of-the-en… is the CDC blog article about this report: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/HAI/CRE/ which is about the rise of CREs in healthcare.