dr. richard besser tells us what can make it dangerous for your family. >>> real money. how to save $2600 on doctor bills and you can too. >> that's real money! >>> and by a nose. another big win for the champion they call the people's horse. the nasal strips can stay. so, does he smell victory for the triple crown? >>> good evening to you on this monday night as we begin this week together. the united states is making a unprecedented charge against another country, the chinese,

dr. richard besser who spent many years there at the cdc. in fact, that's where you were before we were lucky enough to have you join us. remind us again what mers is. >> stands for the middle eastern respiratory syndrome and it's a respiratory infection that can lead to pneumonia and the concerning thing is that up to a third of people, 30%, can die from this infection. >> the concern about its spreading here in the u.s. where does that stand? >> this weekend it was really a big turn in this investigation. the concerning thing is the person who got the infection only spent 40 minutes with the infected patient. 40 minutes face to face and a handshake. that's very concerning.

dr. richard besser is standing by here. he just spoke with the cdc. but first, steve osunsami retracing the path of the latest infection. >> reporter: tonight, an unidentified illinois businessman is believed to be the first mers infection transmitted in the u.s. he initially tested negative. a second test showed his body fought the disease and won. health officials who say they're still learning about the disease are now keeping a close eye on friends or family who may have been in close contact while he was infected. they believe he probably caught the virus during two business meetings with the man they're calling patient number one, a health professional who worked in saudi arabia with mers patients who brought the disease stateside in april and was hospitalized in indiana. investigators say the two shook hands. the new patient said he never felt sick. cdc investigators tell us there's good news here. proof that a person can contract the virus and remain healthy. more than 160 patients with the virus have died. most of them in the middle east. the

dr. richard besser traveled to washington, d.c. to get answers. >> reporter: health officials are on high alert. the recall expanding, now including beef sent to restaurants and possibly grocery stores. the biggest worry, ground beef for burgers, because grilling season is here and people often don't cook them enough to kill this dangerous strain of e. coli which has already sickened 11 people. >> i've never been that sick before in my life. >> reporter: kevin mcdermed thinks he's one. diagnosed with the same strain of e. coli behind tonight's recall after eating an undercooked hamburger. forced to spend ten days in the hospital, describing the pain. >> a hot knife in your guts or battery acid. >> reporter: it can take up to ten days before symptoms appear. and not only can this make you sick for a full week, but it can lead to kidney failure, even death. so did you eat or buy the bad beef? well, the federal government is investigating, and is going to disclose any names of the retailers impacted. but they're still going through re

dr. richard besser tells us what can make it dangerous for your family. >>> real money. how to save $2600 on doctor bills and you can too. >> that's real money! >>> and by a nose. another big win for the champion they call the people's horse. the nasal strips can stay. so, does he smell victory for the triple crown? >>> good evening to you on this monday night as we begin this week together. the united states is making a unprecedented charge against another country, the chinese, charging a team of chinese spies with stealing american inventions and costing a lot of miles an hour jobs. the director of the fbi spoke to pierre thomas today, saying the chinese say, why build it, if you can just steal it. >> reporter: these are the faces of five chinese government spies, indicted today by the justice department, accused of spying on american companies, causing thousands of americans to lose their jobs. >> this is a case alleging economic espionage by members of the chinese military. >> reporter: five alleged military spies, computers hackers with unit 61398 worked out of this

dr. richard besser, tracking the spread and the surprising reason it takes them into the world of the amish. >>> rising threat, is this the first american suicide bomber? the florida man turned into a killer in syria. >>> and don't look down, the popular sky deck high in the air cracks. tourists scrambling to solid ground. >>> a good evening to you and on this thursday night we come on the air as an old enemy is back. the cdc has issued an urgent new warning about measles, a rampant increase in the virus america nearly vanquished. remember, this is a virus that can take lives. abc's chief medical editor dr. richard besser who once led the cdc tells us what the experts are urgently asking families to do tonight. >> reporter: measles is wildly infectious, spread by coughing. you can catch it from the air two hours after someone infected was there, and tonight it is spreading. the new record, those 288 cases, the most since the virus was eliminated from the u.s. back in 2000. 18 states affected. the biggest outbreak, in ohio, where the amish are getting sick. unvaccinated, some traveled to the

dr. richard besser, tracking the spread and the surprising reason it takes them into the world of the amish>>> rising threat, is this the first american suicide bomber? the florida man turned into a killer in syria. >>> and don't look down, the popular sky deck high in the air cracks. tourists scrambling to solid ground. >>> a good evening to you and on this thursday night we come on the air as an old enemy is back. the cdc has issued an urgent new warning about measles, a rampant increase in the virus america nearly vanquished. remember,

dr. richard besser investigates. >>> and getting out alive. tonight, our experiment.ow effective are smoke detectors in your home? and some big surprises about what you should do. >>> and tonight, the big dance. behind the scenes, the unlikely new dancing star inspiring millions of americans. how does she do it? >>> good evening to you on this tuesday night.

dr. richard besser tells us what can make it dangerous for your family. >>> real money. how to save $2600 on doctor bills and you can too. >> that's real money! >>> and by a nose. another big win for the champion they call the people's horse. the nasal strips can stay. so, does he smell victory for the triple crown?

dr. richard besser is right here. >>> going home. tonight, the break for firefighters. but the heartwre jnheartbreak f. a week ago, this couple holding their daughter's wedding right here. >> it was our dream house. you know? we put all our souls into it. >> tonight, the new worries about in the forecast for this week ahead. >>> a family's fight and a little boy's plea for his father. they ask why americans are kept from using experimental drugs if it's their only chance. >> i love my dad. >> tonight, the debate here. we want you to weigh in. >>> and the dream dashed? will he race after all?

dr. richard besser says vaccination is the key. >> i talked to the cdc about this. they're very concerned. there's two things they want everyone to do. if you're an adult and you are traveling overseas, make sure you've had at least two doses of measles vaccine. if you're unsure, get the vaccine again. it's safe. for everyone here, make sure you and your children are vaccinated fully and on time. >> and dr. besser says measles is not just a nuisance. it can be deadly. before vaccinations began in the early 1960s, measles sent 48,000 americans a year to the hospital. about 500 died. >>> the government has announced new and tougher laws on tanning beds used by millions of americans. the fda says sun lamps must now carry black box warnings, cautioning anyone under 18 not to use them. but officials stopped short of banning their use by minors. experts say using an indoor tanning salon even once increases the risk of melanoma by 59%. >>> now, to a medical emergency that forced singer bret michaels off the stage last night in new hampshire. three songs in, michaels was fo

dr. richard besser spoke to the usda about where the meat may have gone. >> no one mentioned what restaurants. >> yes, that's right. that's right. no one has mentioned the restaurants yet. >> doesn't the public have a right to know what restaurants serve this beef? >> they will know at some point where the meat was distributed. 11 illnesses is 11 too in many my book. but we did prevent a larger recall by our quick action. >> dr. besser says bottom line, order your burger well done. for beef at home, the freezer does not the kill e. coli. >>> major pet stores are going to stop selling pet treats made in china. owners have been complaining for years that the food was making their cats and dogs sick. well, now, both petco and petsmart say they will have the treats from china out of their stores by the end of this year. >>> and google has overtaken apple as the world's most valuable brand, according to a new ranking by "forbes." the tech giant grew 40% last year and is now worth $159 billion. apple was bumped to number two, followed by ibm. >>> when we come back, ticket to infection. disturbing,

dr. richard besser will have much more about this coming up on "good morning america." >>> a chicago manetting the last laugh after an april fool's day request. daniel stojak asked his mother to pick up a lottery ticket for him on april 1st saying she was his good luck charm. apparently, she was. check him out. he hit the jackpot for $2.5 million. and of course, he now plans to share his winnings with his mom, just in time for mother's day. although, i have a funny feeling, had she not bought the ticket, she he would be sharing the winnings with mom. >> beats flowers. >>> look at what the portland trail blazers found in the visitors' locker room before their game with the san antonio spurs. a baby snake. they thought at first it was a rattler. but that proved to not be true. but the players were scared until the tiny reptile was moved to the outdoors. they never recovered apparently, losing 114-93. >> you see in the locker room. these guys are scampering and shrieking. exactly. >> i definitely can. >> i believe it. >>> while that was going on, some nfl dreams were coming true, as we ment

dr. richard besser has been tracking this to worked for years with the cdc. first the transmission here simply in a meeting together? >> 40 minutes in a meeting and a handshake. i'd focus on the handshake because we know a lot of viruss spread that way. >> this patient could have been walking around not knowing they had it. >> it tells us not everyone gets severe infection but could he spread it to other room. >> most alarming to you, simply in the same room together. >> that's right. >> rich, thanks. i know you'll continue to track this. >>> overseas and to nigeria where a military operation is under way, trying to rescue those missing school girls as leaders from around the world now hold emergency meetings. abc's hamish macdonald from nigeria again tonight. >> reporter: nigeria's president in paris hoping for a coordinated international response to the islamist group which abducted some 200 school girls. >> i think now it's become our girls, not just nigeria's girls. it's the worlds' girls and there is a very deep commitment to brining them home. >> report

dr. richard besser is going to explain why. >> anyone who's starting on the drug lunesta or generic, shouldt at half the dose that's recommended. instead of two milligrams, it's one milligram. the reason for that is the effect of the drug lasts into the morning. take a look at this recent study. 7 1/2 hours after taking a 3 milligram dose, many people are impaired. problems with memory, coordination. you wouldn't want to be driving. but it continues past that. at 11 1/2 hours, some people are still impaired and often they didn't even know it. >> dr. besser will have much more ahead on "good morning america." >>> doctors at an ohio hospital have delivered a rare set of twins for the second time in a week. just days after these rare mono mono twin girls were born holding hands at akron general medical center, another mom at the same hospital also gave birth to another set of identical mono mono twin girls. mono mono twins share the same amniotic sack. and they only occur in 1 in every 10,000 pregnancies. wow. >> pretty cool. >>> time, now, for sports. the l.a. clippers' season officially over

dr. richard besser. tell us about this study. >> can diet be used to control type ii diabetes? this is a small study out of the czech republic. 54 people for half the study they had two large meals a day. for the other half of this study they had six smaller meals. a day. same number of calories across the board. when they were having two large meals a day, they lost more weight and their blood sugar was better controlled. >> so, do you recommend limiting their food intake to two meals a day? >> i wouldn't, based on this one study. the other thing here they were having breakfast and lunch. for us culturally, dinner is the time where we all get together. but it does say work with your doctor on what kind of food does best for you with controlling your diabetes. >> let me get you to expand on that a little bit. we have so many people in this country with diabetes, what is your advice to them for managing their diet? >> well, you know, the prediction is that, by 2050, 1 in 3 adults is going to have diabetes. but we can turn the tide on that, the biggest risk factor is being overwe

dr. richard besser. >> reporter: it's the strain of e.eved to be in ground beef in restaurants across the nation. beyond making you sick to your stomach. >> this is an infection that can be followed with an illness characterized by bleeding and kidney failure that can be fatal. >> reporter: those 1.8 million pounds of beef recalled all from wolverine packing company in detroit. so far, 11 people have been sickened in four states. the biggest threat hamburgers because americans often eat them medium rare and rare. not cooked through sufficiently enough to kill e. coli on the inside of the burger. with steaks e. coli lives on the outside, likely killed off when it is cooked. every year, 95,000 americans are sickened with this strain of e. coli. it is responsible for some of the most notorious outbreaks including this jack-in-the-box in the '90s sickening 700 people, killing four children. >> i spoke to the cdc and they said it can take ten days before you get sick. though the beef is recalled there may be additional cases. the best advice r

dr. richard besser. >> reporter: measles is spread by coughing.ir two hours after someone infected was there and it's spreading. the new record those 288 cases. the most since the virus was eliminated from the u.s. in 2000. 18 states affected. the biggest outbreak in ohio. where the amish are getting sick. unvaccinated some travel to the philippines on a mission trip catching the virus. now families are racing to get the shots. another outbreak in upscale san diego where parents deliberately avoided vaccination. >> most residents we're training have never seen measles. >> telltale rash, extreme fever and cough. they put negative pressure roads in rady children's hospital to immediately isolate cases. >> special filter that takes out infectious agent. >> reporter: all of these linked to travelers bringing measles here from around the globe giving it to the unvaccinated. the fear, we slide back to the days before vaccinations when measles sent 48,000 americans a year to the hospital. 7,000 with seizures and 500 died. >> he was really sick. i mean, h

dr. richard besser explains why. >> anyone who is starting the drug lieu lunesta should start at half of. the reason for that the effect of the drug lasts until the morning. look at this study. 7 1/2 hours after a three milligram dose people are impaired with memory and coordination. you wouldn't want to be driving. it continues past that. at 11 1/2 hours some are impaired and didn't know it. >> dr. besser adds that users of lunesta should consult their physicians about reducing their medication and take as low of a dose as possible. we will have more later on "good morning america." >>> a group of women on a prestigious college campus are taking justice in to their own hands. they are victims of sexual assault and say their school hasn't done enough to help them. >> flyers with names of their attackers circulating around campus and they are speaking out. alicia mendez from our partner fusion is reporting from columbia university. >> reporter: in one of the nation's most prestigious universities, a kind of storm is brewing. >> i was raped by one of my close friends who was also a student

dr. richard besser who spent many years there at the cdc.n fact, that's where you were before we were lucky enough to have you join us. remind us again what mers is. >> stands for the middle eastern respiratory syndrome and it's a respiratory infection that can lead to pneumonia and the concerning thing is that up to a third of people, 30%, can die from this infection. >> the concern about its spreading here in the u.s. where does that stand? >> this weekend it was really a big turn in this investigation. the concerning thing is the person who got the infection only spent 40 minutes with the infected patient. 40 minutes face to face and a handshake. that's very concerning. the encouraging thing is although he was infected, he didn't get sick. his body fought it off. >> we don't know if that's the norm. that has to be of concern. >> i talked to the cdc last night. how serious really is this infection? how serious is this infection? could there be a lot of people that get it but have no problem? until they answer it they'll be all over it. >>

dr. richard besser. >> reporter: health officials are on high alert. the recall expanding. grocery stores. the biggest worry, ground beef for burgers because grilling season is here and people often don't cook them enough to kill the dangerous strain of e. coli which has already sickened 11 people. >> i have never been that sick in my life. >> reporter: kevin mcdermott thinks he is one. diagnosed with the same strain of e. coli after eating an under cooked hamburger. forced to spend ten days in the hospital. describing the pain. >> hot knife in your guts or battery acid. >> reporter: it can take up to ten days before symptoms appear and not only can it make you sick for a full week it can lead to kidney failure and even death. did you eat or buy the bad beef? the federal government is investigating. it's going to disclose any names of retailers impacted but they are going through reams of paper trying to sort out where it went. >> no one mentioned what restaurants. >> yes, that's right. that's right. no one has mentioned the restaurants yet. >> reporter: why is that? there

dr. richard besser. dr.., why should we as parents or all of us be concerned about artificial food dye? >> for most people artificial food dye isn't going to cause a problem. but for a small group of children and some with behavioral problems, food dyes are going to worsen their behavior. you have no idea if your children is going to be one of those. >> a lot of our viewers are about to pour a bowl of cereal right now. what do parents need to know? how much? how little? what do we need to know? >> yeah, well, start -- definitely. look at your breakfast table. a lot of the foods you may be looking at right now. the breakfast cereals. the sweet cereals with bright colors, those are artificial dyes. processed cakes, some breakfast bars. they have artificial dyes. and hopefully nothing you have at breakfast, candy and sodas. a lot have dyes in them. >> like the skittles i ate last night probably should be taken -- >> exactly. >> taken seriously. all right. should parents blanket-avoid these foods or be more caut

dr. richard besser.luten-free diets have been very popular in recent years. >> very popular. i think part of the reason is celebrities talking about it for weight loss. celiac disease is a real thing. 1% of people have that. removing gre ining gluten is life-changing. these are the same doctors that did the study that says you may not have celiac disease but have a problem with gluten. >> if you don't have celiac disease but you believe you're feeling better because of the gluten-free diet, what do you say to those folks? >> there's a major mind/body connection. in this study, they had -- the whole group of people were off gluten. one-third they put on high gluten, low gluten and no gluten, all of them said their symptoms got worse. the belief this is working for you may actually help with your symptoms. and that's real. >> that's what i want to ask you is. is there any harm just getting rid of gluten? >> i mean, gluten is in wheat, in barley and rye. it's everywhere. it's a major life change to get it o

dr. richard besser here to explain that.h, so many of us have heard the advice about taking a baby aspirin to prevent a heart attack, but this warning says that's not for everyone. >> this is a big controversy. there's absolutely disagreement. if you had a heart attack or stroke, taking a daily aspirin will reduce the chances of you having another one and save lives, but an aspirin manufacturer wanted to say on the label, take an aspirin to prevent your first heart attack. the fda said, no way. >> i don't have any heart problems, but my doctor has recommended taking an aspirin. >> that's right, and many doctors are recommending that. what the fda found, though, was that the evidence to prevent that first aheart isn't there, and aspirin can cause internal pleading. and so they don't think it's for everybody. but here's the thing. there's ray big disagreement here. the american heart association says take that aspirin. even the government panel there was asked to review this and says if you're at high risk, take an aspirin. if

dr. richard besser. and reality check, indeed.his is one where we need a reality check. there's only been one study. it was done five years ago. it was a very small study. but here's the catch. to get in the study, you had to be overweight and constipated. and there's a reason for that. this is concentrated fiber. we all know what fiber does when you take a lot of it. one-third of the people in the study dropped out because of the intestinal side effects. >> because of the side effects. is it actually safe? >> it's one study done five years ago. i always worry when there's something that looks promising and no one's looked at it since then, that there's something going on. it lasted four months. so, we don't know if this works long-term. i'd be concerned about taking this stuff for a long-term. >> the other big question. every time one of these crazes comes up, we ask the question, is there a quick fix to a problem like this, being overweight? or just struggling with weight? >> it's so hard. there's so many people who want to lose

dr. richard besser has the story this morning. >> reporter: burger lovers, beware. ground beef sold to restaurants and retailers across the nation is believed to be contaminated with a potentially deadly strain of e. coli. it's believed the meat came from the wolverine packing company in detroit and was shipped to distributors nationwide. so far, 11 people in 4 states have been sickened. in massachusetts, michigan, missouri and ohio. >> this is an infection that can be followed with an illness characterized by bleeding and kidney failure that can be fatal. >> reporter: experts warned even getting your burger cooked medium is not sufficient to kill e. coli. each year, over 95,000 americans are sickened with this strain of e. coli. this particular strain is responsible for some of the most notorious outbreaks including one linked to the jack in the box food chain back in the 1990s which sickened over 700 people, killing 4. wolverine packing company did issue the recall and said all of the meat is now out of the circulation but defended their products saying, "while no

dr. richard besser, is here. so what is the recommendation and why? >> the fda is saying anyone starting on the drug of lunesta or a generic form start with one milligram instead of two. so, half the dose. the reason is, the effects of the drug lasting to the next morning. look at this new study. 7 1/2 hours after taking a 3 milligram dose, a lot of people were still having impaired memory, impaired coordination, which means no driving. 11 1/2 hours later, some people were still impaired. >> and they had no idea. >> that's what concerns me. they asked people whether they were functioning fine. many people who were impaired thought they had no problem. >> what are your recommendations? >> with any sleeping aid, you want to start with as low a dose as you can. for me, half of a starting dose works just fine. but try other things first. i found since i've taken up meditation, i rarely have any trouble sleeping. it's totally changed my approach to night time. >> and melatonin. there's natural things to do. >> there are. you don't want to reach for these p

dr. richard besser is here with more on that. >> this is concerning. i talked to the cdc. they're very worried about this. measles in 18 states. 288 cases. 15 outbreaks. and all of the outbreaks involved an american, who is not vaccinated, going overseas and bringing it back. the biggest, ohio, where more than 100 people in the amish community have gotten sick since someone went to the philippines. >> can you get it if you've been vaccinated? >> well, 90% of the cases are in people who are not vaccinated or didn't know if they had it, but two doses give you 95% protection. it's very effective. >> you put out so many warnings. people need to get the vaccinations. what should concerned parents know right now? >> two things. first, your children need to be vaccinated on time and fully. i met a baby yesterday, 8 months old, got measles because people around him were not vaccinated. the other is, if you're traveling overseas, you need to make sure you've had two doses of measles vaccine so you don't get infected and bring it back. >> so many doctors haven't seen measles. >> i s

dr. richard besser. you're going to -- no pun intended -- weigh in. what do you think?ing to fuel a lot of debate. this debate has been going on for decades. between those people who say no fat, and those who say no carbs. you got the dean ornish group that bill clinton was on, no fat or as low fat as possible, and the atkins crowd who are saying it's all about getting rid of the carbs and this isn't going to solve that. it's so hard to study diets. >> we have a little illustration. eggs and bacon on one side. low-fat gras nonola, berries and yogurt on the other. fat is going to leave you feeling fuller. those calories will hold you longer so you may eat less and one of the things she points out that i think is great people hear low fat and so you have to look at what you're adding in. a lot of people are add iing in a lot of sugar and we're learning more and more that simple sugar is really bad for us. >> i think everyone on the show knows how i eat in the morning and, you know, the left is probably more my speed, but i eat a lot in the morning. i'll have the protein a