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Zika virus may spread to Europe in coming months, WHO warns

By Kate Kelland LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) – The Zika virus, an infectious disease linked to severe birth defects in babies, may spread into Europe as the weather gets warmer, although the risk is low, health officials said on Wednesday. In its first assessment of the threat Zika poses to the region, the World Health Organization's European office said the overall risk was small to moderate. It is highest in areas where Aedes mosquitoes thrive, in particular on the island of Madeira and the north-eastern coast of the Black Sea.

In risks to bees, study finds not all neonicotinoids are equal

By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) – A group of chemical insecticides known as neonicotinoids that have been banned in Europe due to fears about potential harm to bees have been found in new research to have very differential risks for bumblebees. Scientists who conducted the research said their findings showed that at least one neonicotinoid in the banned group – clothianidin – may have been unfairly named as among the offenders. This insecticide did not show the same detrimental effects on bee colonies as the others, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam, the researchers found.

Europeans spend 24 billion euros on narcotics each year: report

European Union citizens spend some 24 billion euros ($27.28 billion) on illicit drugs every year, a report said on Tuesday, making it one of the continent’s most profitable activities for organized crime groups. The report, drawn up by Europol and European Union drugs monitoring center EMCDDA, said the advent of new technology such as encrypted networks and digital currencies had opened a new market for the online supply of drugs. “Illicit drug production and trafficking remains one of the largest and most innovative criminal markets in Europe,” Europol director Rob Wainwright said in a statement.

France restricts blood transfusions over Zika virus

Travelers coming back from any outbreak zones of the Zika virus will need to wait at least 28 days before giving blood to avoid any risk of transmission, French Health Minister Marisol Touraine said on Sunday. Zika, which is rapidly spreading through the Americas and has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO), is primarily transmitted through mosquito bites. “Someone who comes from a zone where there is Zika can not give blood for 28 days,” Touraine said in an interview with Europe 1 radio, news channel iTele and Le Monday daily.

Pfizer’s quit-smoking drug not linked to depression or heart risks

By Kate Kelland LONDON (Reuters) – Pfizer's stop-smoking drug Chantix does not raise risks of heart attack or depression, contrary to previous reports, and should be recommended to more smokers wanting to quit, scientists said on Monday. In a study tracking 150,000 smokers in England for 6 months, researchers found that patients who took Chantix, known generically as varenicline and marketed as Champix in Europe, were no more likely to suffer a heart attack than those using nicotine replacement therapy or another quit-smoking drug.