The other day, CNN hosted a 7-hour long climate change town hall for the Democratic presidential candidates. This, of course, isn't the only scientific topic of relevance to Americans. If we were running the debate, we would ask questions about the following science and health topics:

Vaccines. Measles and other vaccine-preventable infectious diseases are on the rise, largely due to anti-vaxxer propaganda.

Opioids. The most recent data, from 2017, show that more than 70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses, with nearly 48,000 involving some sort of opioid.

Energy policy. Energy policy is of vital importance because it strongly influences both the economy and the environment.

Alternative medicine. Americans are becoming increasingly distrustful of doctors, scientists, pharmaceutical companies, and expertise in general. As a result, alternative medicine continues to grow in popularity.

Vaping. Americans are rightly concerned about the health effects of vaping.

Biotechnology. Biotechnology is playing an increasingly important role in our lives. Some of the technologies raise serious ethical issues.

What science and health questions would you ask if you ran the debate? Put them in the comments section below!

Originally posted here:

Science and Health Questions for Tonight's Democratic Debate - American Council on Science and Health