Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:
Los Angeles Voters to Decide on Condoms in Sex Films
Los Angeles residents will have an opportunity during the June presidential primaries to cast a vote on another issue: whether the use of condoms should be mandatory for actors in the area's sex film industry.
According to The New York Times, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation has long been pushing lawmakers to enact such legislation, which would also include fees for inspections aimed at ensuring compliance. The group managed to collect more than 70,000 signatures, many more than were needed to get the measure onto the ballot.
Still, legal hurdles remain, the Times said, with Los Angeles city attorney Carmen Trutanich filing court papers saying that only the state of California would have the authority to adopt the measure. And pornography industry businessman Steven Hirsch, founder of Vivid Entertainment, called such laws "unrealistic."
"People will just film elsewhere and take the jobs with them," he told the Times. "And what are they going to do, have condom police out and about patrolling the set?"
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Build-A-Bear recalls Colorful Hearts Bears for Possible Choking Hazard
A voluntary recall has been issued for a type of teddy bear that was sold at thousands of Build-A-Bear stores across the United States this year, because the eyes could fall off and pose a choking risk to children.
The bears, known as Colorful Hearts Teddy Bears, were sold at 284,000 locations in both the United States and Canada, the St. Louis-based company said in a news release on Thursday. The recall was first issued right before Christmas by Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc., the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada. No injuries involving this product have been reported, the company said Thursday.
According to the Build-A-Bear website, certain production runs used substandard fabric that could tear around the stuffed bear's eyes.
Anyone who bought this bear between April and December should stop letting their children play with the bears immediately, the company said. They can return the bears at any Build-A-Bear store and receive a coupon for any other stuffed bear that is available.
This stuffed animal is roughly 15 inches tall and has black plastic eyes and multi-colored hearts all over its body.
For more information, consumers can call the firm toll-free at (866) 236-5683 between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, on Saturday between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. and on Sunday between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Consumers can also visit the firm's website at www.buildabear.com.
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Third Baby Sickened With Bacteria Sometimes Tied to Formula
An infant in Oklahoma is the third reported case of illness tied to a rare bacterium that has been linked in the past to tainted baby formula, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
Infection with the bacterium, Cronobacter sakazakaii, is thought to have killed a 10-day-old infant in Missouri. A second child, from Illnios, was sickened but has since recovered, the AP said.
The latest case involves an infant in Tulsa County, Okla., who fell ill but has also rebounded. Cases of C. sakazakaii infection have been linked in the past to contaminated formula, and Enfamil was initially suspected as a route of infection in the Missouri death. The child in Oklahoma had not consumed Enfamil, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
Officials at the CDC said they are still awaiting results of tests of the formula and the distilled water used in preparing it, and they stressed that the three cases may not be related.
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