SEOUL, Oct. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean scientists have discovered that bacteriophages — viruses traditionally regarded as a major cause of fermentation failure — may in fact play a beneficial role in sustaining microbial balance in kimchi and other fermented foods. The World Institute of Kimchi said Thursday that its research team, led by Dr. [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — The Korean Medical Association (KMA) on Thursday denounced a proposed amendment to the Medical Service Act that would allow licensed traditional medicine practitioners, or hanuisas, to use X-ray machines, calling it a “grave threat” to South Korea’s medical system. KMA President Kim Taek-woo said during a press briefing at the [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 15 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean government has moved to dismantle decades-old billing practices between clinics and diagnostic laboratories, a reform it says is essential to restoring transparency and safeguarding patient safety. But the medical community is pushing back, calling the measure hasty and detached from on-the-ground realities. The Ministry of Health and [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — A South Korean court has ruled that the death of a 22-year-old man following a COVID-19 vaccination was causally linked to the shot, marking a rare judicial recognition of vaccine-related death in the country. According to a ruling by the Seoul Administrative Court, the man, identified only as A, received [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) pushed back on Monday against a recent study by domestic medical researchers suggesting that COVID-19 vaccines could increase the risk of cancer, saying the findings do not establish a causal link. “The mechanisms behind cancer development take years to identify,” a [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s antibiotic consumption ranks among the highest in the OECD, fueling alarm over the nation’s growing risk of antimicrobial resistance — a potential “superbug” crisis that public health experts warn could endanger lives and strain hospitals. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) and newly released [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Seoul residents who fear accidental drug exposure during overseas travel, such as over the Chuseok holiday, can undergo free and anonymous drug testing at local public health centers, the city government said Monday. The Seoul Metropolitan Government operates the program across all 25 district health centers, offering tests for [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of South Koreans suffering from sleep disorders has surged by more than a quarter over the past five years, surpassing 1.3 million patients last year, according to newly released government data. Figures from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, disclosed by Rep. Nam In-soon of the National [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — While much of the world races to unlock the economic and therapeutic potential of medical cannabis, South Korea remains mired in outdated regulations that treat even non-psychoactive compounds as narcotics. Lawmakers and experts warn that this rigid stance is stifling domestic innovation, draining public healthcare funds, and pushing patients [...]
SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — References to family—especially to mothers and fathers—appear more often than any other words in the final notes left by people who died by suicide, according to a new study that offers insight into emotional and social patterns surrounding such deaths in South Korea. The Korea Foundation for Suicide Prevention analyzed [...]