The FDA has already approved eight new dentistry products or tools based on artificial intelligence. The idea is that AI software will help dentists more quickly and precisely spot decay and bone loss that can lead to gum disease and propose treatments earlier.

That might mean fewer more expensive root canals or implants later, but skeptics also worry that more aggressive treatments will increase patients' bills without a clear clinical benefit. As is often the case, standards for using these products on patients are lagging behind efforts to sell them.

Call Me

Public health advocates are pushing for cellphones to be sold pre-loaded with a suicide helpline app. The U.S. suicide hotline 988 is just over a year old, but it is still hard to reach for many and the number isn't included as an option among emergency numbers (such as 911 or 311) that can be initiated from a locked screen.

Advocates say the idea isn't radical. Cellphones already come pre-loaded with dozens of apps, including the stock market. Depressed brokers aren't the only ones who need help sometimes.

Body of Knowledge

We've all learned that 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit is supposed to be normal, but new research shows an individual's body temperature varies with time of day, between genders, among older and younger people and even among people of different heights and weights.

The "normal" range among more than 618,000 oral readings was 97.3 F to 98.2 F, with an overall average of 97.9 F.

Get Me That, Stat!

Some years ago, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative set 2023 as its goal to finally stamp out both wild polio viruses and vaccine-derived viruses that have paralyzed children for centuries.

The good news is that vaccination efforts worldwide have resulted in just seven wild polio cases recorded this year — all in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The bad news is that the clock is running out, and there will likely be new cases of the highly infectious disease in 2024. And every year the virus exists is a year it can make a comeback.

Counts

1 in 5 — Americans aged 65 and older are underinsured, with healthcare costs too high for their income.

1 in 5 — Say they struggle to pay premiums, rising to 2 in 5 for those with low incomes.

1 in 4 — Delay or skip dental care for financial reasons.

1 in 6 — Have medical bill problems or debt; it's more than 1 in 5 for those with low incomes.

Source: Commonwealth Fund

Doc Talk

Ego boost units — medical students and junior doctors who follow a senior physician to learn the ropes

Phobia of the Week

Athazagoraphobia — an intense or irrational fear of being forgotten or of forgetting someone or something

Never Say 'Diet'

In case you're feeling particularly ambitious at Thanksgiving this year, here are the Major League Eating records for turkey (9.35 pounds in 10 minutes), jellied cranberry sauce (13.23 pounds in eight minutes), French cut green beans (2.71 pounds in six minutes) and pumpkin pie (20 pounds, 13 ounces in eight minutes).

No surprise that folks gobbled way more dessert than vegetables.

Just in case: The maximum prescribed dose of Pepto Bismol (for persons ages 12 and older) is 30 milliliters every 30 minutes as needed, up to a maximum of 240 milliliters per day. There are roughly five milliliters in a teaspoon.

Food for Thought

Guinness World Records recently crowned Pepper X as the newest hottest pepper in the world, with an average 2,693,000 Scoville Heat Units. That's more than 1 million units greater than the previous record-holder: Carolina Reaper (1,640,000 SHUs). The notorious "ghost pepper" is a mere 1 million SHUs. A jalapeno is usually between 3000 and 8000 SHUs.

The Scoville scale was created in 1912 to measure pungency of chili peppers. It's based on the concentration of capsaicinoids in the plant. Capsaicinoids are essentially chemical irritants produced by the plant as deterrents.

Best Medicine

I don't mind leg day at the gym. It's just the two days after that I can't stand.

Observation

"A sad soul is just as lethal as a germ." — American writer John Steinbeck (1902-1968)

Medical History

This week in 1979, artificial blood was first used in a patient by transfusion at the University of Minnesota hospital. The patient was a Jehovah's Witness and had refused a transfusion of real blood due to religious beliefs.

Self-Exam

Q: What is the largest salivary gland in the human body?

a) Glossopalatine

b) Parotid

c) Sublingual

d) Submandibular

A: b) Parotid. There are two types of salivary glands in the mouth: major and minor. Parotid glands are located just in front of the ears and secrete saliva into the mouth from a duct near your upper second molar. Submandibular are major glands located below the jaw that secrete beneath the tongue, and sublingual major glands are located on the floor of the mouth below either side of the tongue.

There are hundreds of minor salivary glands throughout the mouth. Most are found in the lining of the lips, tongue and roof of the mouth, as well as inside the cheeks, nose, sinuses and larynx.

Glossopalatine refers to a muscle of the soft palate and tongue that forms a clear arch at the back of the mouth.

Medical Myths

For years, health experts cautioned that the best way to prevent children from developing food allergies was to avoid feeding them common allergenic foods, such as peanuts and eggs, during the first few years of life.

New research suggests parents should introduce such food items to children early on, specifically peanuts. Unless a baby shows an obvious food allergy or suffers from severe eczema, researchers say parents can start introducing peanut products (watered-down peanut butter or peanut puffs, not whole peanuts) at around 4 to 6 months when the child is beginning to eat solids.

The introduction should be modest and gradual, beginning perhaps with a couple of bites two or three times a week. The idea is that early exposure builds early tolerance and reduces the risk of developing a subsequent allergy.

Last Words

"Now farewell, and remember all my words." — Greek philosopher Epicurus (341-270 B.C.). Epicurus was reportedly a prolific writer who founded an influential school of philosophy. Of the more than 300 works said to be written by him, only three letters survive intact, along with a handful of fragments of other writings.

To find out more about Scott LaFee and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Atikah Akhtar at Unsplash