— World Health Organization director-general Margaret Chan warned that the H1N1 flu pandemic might not be brought under control for another six months to a year. If your New Year’s resolution for 2010 is to stay H1N1-free, save it for 2011. (Reuters)

— Regular exposure to disinfectant can turn bacteria into antibiotic-resistant superbugs — even if the bacteria have never been exposed to the antibiotic — according to a new study. Pseudomonas aeruginosa cultures exposed to a common disinfectant evolved a genetic mutation over 33 generations that rendered them immune to the antibiotic ciprofloxacin, among other adaptations. (ScienceDaily)

— The long-term ramifications of the Holocaust may go as far as triggering cancer in later life, according to an Israeli study. Young Jewish men who lived in Europe through World War II were 3.5 times more likely to develop cancer than those who left for Israel before or during the war; similar women had double the risk of their counterparts. (NYTimes)

— Canadian researchers found that reining in unnecessary blood sugar tests for type 2 diabetes patients who don’t take supplementary insulin could save the government tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars. Multiple daily testing not only incurs a financial cost, but a mental cost as well, with patients developing anxiety and depression. (Times & Transcript)

image: Janice Haney Carr, Wikimedia Commons