The National Institutes of Health reports that an independent panel convened to determine the value of strategies to prevent or slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease has not found any evidence of their success.
“To tell the truth, there is just no known way to prevent Alzheimer’s, despite many claims that you can take steps to reduce the risk of disease,” says Dr. Whelan.
Search
Nutrition “guru” Gary Null has filed a lawsuit in the Manhattan Supreme Court after suffering “excruciating fatigue along with bodily pain” as a result of eating his own dietary supplement, aptly titled “Gary Null’s Ultimate Power Meal.”
A study published this month in Environmental Health Perspectives ties chemicals found in consumer products and other sources to the early onset of puberty in girls.
ACSH staffers are proud of the Coca-Cola Company for standing up to pressure from a minority faction of their shareholders who demanded that they disclose information about BPA in their packaging.
The CDC says that it is too early to confirm the Washington Post s reported estimates that 71.5 million doses of the H1N1 flu vaccine may be discarded. Some of the doses will expire as soon as June.
The Wall Street Journal reports, A new generation of anti-obesity drugs could hit the market in coming months...The three new medications, which have been submitted for approval to the Food and Drug Administration, also can be expected to have side effects for some patients...But doctors say different weight-loss medications affect people differently, so having more choices should help them match a patient to a therapy tha
An analysis of Medicare data indicates that the rate of hospital admissions for heart attack was 23% lower in 2007 than in 2002.
CBS' 60 Minutes may be known for its investigative news, but on Sunday it failed to thoroughly examine the claims against phthalates, a group of chemicals that help to make plastic flexible. Sunday's segment perpetuates baseless allegations against these everyday chemicals, creating unfounded health scares in homes nationwide.
Dr. Lawrence Deyton, director of the FDA s Center for Tobacco Products, spoke at a tobacco policy conference on Monday. Jeff Stier got a chance to participate in the conference on Tuesday. The topics included smokeless tobacco (snus) as a means of harm reduction, and the FDA's deliberation of a ban on menthol.
ACSH's Drs. Elizabeth M. Whelan and Gilbert Ross have written to the Food and Drug Administration to say that regulating or banning the ingredients in cigarettes probably won't decrease their toxicity. The text of their letter:
To: Dr. Lawrence Deyton, Director
FDA Center for Tobacco Products
Cristi L. Stark, M.S.
Senior Regulatory Health Project Manager
May 26th, 2010
Subject: ACSH additional submission re: cigarette ingredients
Dear Dr. Deyton and Ms. Stark:
In March, the FDA advised against the use of GSK’s Rotarix vaccine against the rotavirus — a gastrointestinal virus that kills over half a million children under five worldwide each year — after researchers found trace amounts of DNA from a benign pig virus in the vaccine. Recently, the only other rotavirus vaccine, Merck’s RotaTeq, was found to contain DNA from the same virus and another virus.
A meta-analysis of data reported on food allergies was published today in The Journal of the American Medical Association as part of a large project organized by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. According to the report, despite the fact that 30 percent of the population believe they have food allergies, the true incidence of food allergies is only about 8 percent for children and less than 5 percent for adults.
A study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association concludes, “Between 1994 and 2005, there was a decrease in CHD [coronary heart disease] mortality rates in Ontario that was associated primarily with trends in risk factors and improvements in medical treatments, each explaining about half of the decrease.”
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition indicates that normal dietary amounts of omega-3 fatty acids especially from fish are sufficient for reducing the risk of heart disease, and additional supplementation is not likely to provide additional benefit.
Sunday's New York Times featured a front-page article by Michael Moss discussing the food industry’s efforts to avoid regulatory limits on the salt content of processed foods: “By all appearances, this is a moment of reckoning for salt. High blood pressure is rising among adults and children. Government health experts estimate that deep cuts in salt consumption could save 150,000 lives a year.”
A report published in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) like AstraZeneca’s Nexium and Prilosec — which treat inflammation of the esophagus, gastroesophageal reflux disease, ulcers and several other conditions by suppressing acid production in the stomach — can raise the risk of fractures in post-menopausal women and are associated with an increased risk of an uncommon bacterial infection in ho
The President's Cancer Panel's recent report linking cancer to environmental chemicals is a scientific travesty based on a number of false premises, ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan argues in an article for NRO's Critical Condition blog.
Times they are a-changin and the FDA is becoming more aware of this as they reconsider a rule implemented in 1983 that prohibits men who have had sex even once with another man since 1977 from donating blood. Originally put into practice due to fears that HIV would contaminate the blood supply, the rule now seems outdated with the current availability of more accurate testing to screen for HIV.
The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs recently approved a bill requiring the VA to expand veterans' access to chiropractic care at VA medical centers the House is expected to vote on the bill this week.
According to ACSH s Jeff Stier, taxpayers should be concerned because they may soon have to pay for chiropractic care for veterans a troubling development, since overall, chiropractry is not part of mainstream medicine.
Whether you are traveling around the world or relaxing at home, a safe, healthy vacation will add to your enjoyment. Here are some health and safety tips to keep in mind when planning your summer vacation.
ACSH received deafening criticism from some of our friends regarding our handling of the Not Empty Noise story yesterday, in which we wondered why the European Union isn't warning spectators at World Cup soccer games about the dangers of possible hearing loss from plastic horns known as vuvuzelas. Stier explains, We should have expressed more skepticism towards the referenced hearing loss study, as many of you rightly advised. However, we did not intend to give a free ride to that study.
The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the governing national organization responsible for accrediting medical education courses, recently announced a troubling new policy prohibiting physicians and researchers employed by the pharmaceutical industry from participating in medical education presentations or meetings, citing conflict of interest considerations.
He who laughs hardest, laughs last, and ACSH staffers shared a hearty chuckle this morning over a study indicating that free-range chickens in Taiwan have an average of 5.7 times higher levels of dioxin than their counterpart caged hens.
A randomized trial published today in The Lancet assesses the risk of adverse gastrointestinal effects — mainly bleeding — in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis patients associated with treatment using celecoxib (Celebrex) in a head-to-head comparison trial versus diclofenac (a commonly used non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) plus the stomach-protecting omeprazole (Prilosec).
Pagination
ACSH relies on donors like you. If you enjoy our work, please contribute.
Make your tax-deductible gift today!