Currently, over 1,000 sites are protected by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The growing list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites all carry some importance to local communities.

The organization defines cultural and natural heritages as, “irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration.” They deem the sites, ” touchstones, our points of reference, our identity.”

The sites can be natural or man-made. They can have a long history or be an up-and-coming destination. But, how does a location become a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

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The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is a virus that can affect the skin and mucous membranes. If it goes untreated, HPV can lead to cervical cancer, a potentially deadly form of cancer.

There are over 100 different strains of HPV and due to this diversity, there are many misconceptions and questions regarding HPV.

Here are some basics that you should know:

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Summer may mean the end of flu season, but it’s also prime time for ticks. Bites from the tiny bugs increase throughout the world in the warmer months, increasing risk of Lyme disease.

To make matters worse, the illness is even becoming more common.

According to the CDC, Lyme disease cases, a bacteria spread through a bite from an infected tick, have more than doubled since 2001. The disease joins many others that have spiked in recent years across the country. This increase in cases is partially due to climate change and also the lack of a vaccine for Lyme disease.

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New research revealed a new method that may help us fight the spread of malaria: odor profiling. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the study shows smell may be a fast and reliable way to detect the disease.

Many people infected with malaria and the Plasmodium parasite don’t show any symptoms. Despite being asymptomatic, they are still fully capable of spreading the illness. Numerous people in an endemic region will go unidentified despite their role in the transmission process.

These unknowing sources of malaria may even be a large part of the malaria problem. Authors behind the work estimate that these “hidden reservoir” patients could possibly account for up to 90 percent of the spread.

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As we’ve covered in the past, food is easily one of the best perks of traveling. Understanding this love for delicious eats, TripAdvisor recently named the best food cities in the world.

Based off the rankings, delicious food isn’t hard to find no matter where you visit. New York City and New Orleans offer a variety of foods in North America, while Tokyo and Bangkok represent the best food in Asia. The other six spots belong to European cities and Italy is home to half of those.

From hand tossed pizza to the classic Po’boy, food is a major factor in traveling and experiencing a city to its fullest. These top destinations are about century old traditions, rich flavors, and fresh ingredients. Make your trips memorable by giving your taste buds a vacation too with the five best food cities from around the world:

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The United States’ current salmonella outbreak has led to a staggering recall of over 200 million eggs from Rose Acre Farms. But, how did this shell egg illness event happen and why is salmonella such an issue?

As of May 17, the CDC’s current case count is 35, with 11 total hospitalizations. It can take time for more illnesses to be reported so the number could change in coming weeks.

The multistate outbreak has almost exclusively been affecting the East Coast so far.

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A long-term study shows that it’s not just travelers who are at risk of insect-borne diseases.

States are concerned after the CDC recently published data showing that disease cases from mosquito, tick and flea bites have more than tripled in the United States from 2004 to 2016.

Several other notable points were made:

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After studying over 300 samples of ancient humans from across Europe and Asia, international scientists have discovered the hepatitis B virus in 12 people. The oldest of the samples comes from the 4,500-year-old remains of a man from Osterhofen, Germany.

Eske Willerslev, evolutionary genticist at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, led the team who found the virus. Hepatitis B was present in people from approximately 3500 to 500 B.C.

But, this wasn’t the only team to find ancient proof of hepatitis B. Led by geneticist Johannes Krause, another group found the virus in the teeth of three skeletons in Jena, Germany from about 5000 to 3200 B.C. Krause comes from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.

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After a possible 34 cases and 18 deaths in the past five weeks, the Democratic Republic of Congo has officially declared an outbreak of the Ebola virus.

Two people have been confirmed to have Ebola, specifically the Zaire strain, while others showed signs of the illness.

The news was released by the World Health Organization on Tuesday, May 8. The WHO is working with officials in Congo to handle the outbreak and respond as early and effectively as possible. No deaths have been noted since May 3 as of May 11.

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Mononucleosis is known for many things, including the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which can cause it. But, after a Cincinnati Children’s article on their new research, transmission of EBV may mean a lot more than just mono.

Published in April 2018, the article shows that getting mono can increase risk for developing seven other serious diseases.

A link has been previously found between EBV and lupus, as well as several particular lymphatic system cancers. New genomic methods are the reason we can now prove this significant connection. The science wasn’t available a decade ago, allowing us to show the link between mono and these diseases:

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