"This was worse than labor" read the opening line of an Associated Press piece yesterday. What caused this mother of two such pain was not the repeated slamming of her fingers in a car door or an accidental fall on her tailbone. She was recalling her recent experience with the foodborne bacterial pathogen, salmonella. The source of the outbreak, which has afflicted over 300 individuals in five states, is not one of the usual suspects.
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Those Americans who crave being taken care of by the government will be comforted by the latest from Medicare: Obesity is no longer banned from the list of illnesses covered by our national health insurance program for the elderly and disabled. The "disease-ification" of America continues its march...
Click here to read the rest of Dr. Gilbert Ross's counterpoint column from the Daily News.
A July 26 Los Angeles Times article by Johanna Neuman about the Center for Science in the Public Interest notes ACSH's take on them:
A June 24 article by Daniel Moreau noted that the Naderite NYPIRG (New York Public Interest Research Group) is repeating the groundless fears over arsenic-based compounds in playground equipment, but the article quoted ACSH's Jeff Stier for perspective:
[Stier] described the possibility of arsenic poisoning from playgrounds as a "nonissue."
"You can't get AIDS from shaking someone's hand," Mr. Stier said. "Likewise, you can't get cancer from playing on pressure-treated wood -- unless you're eating or sucking the wood.
These are good times for those who grow and sell organic foods. But there may be trouble in paradise.
The December 8 Associated Press article "Groups to Seek Voluntary Halt to Companies' PVC Use" includes a contrary view from ACSH:
The president of the American Council of Science and Health, Dr. Elizabeth Whelan, said there is "no evidence that these chemicals pose any risk to humans."
Former President Bill Clinton's heart disease and its treatment have been in the headlines of late, and no wonder: heart disease due to atherosclerosis (fatty deposits also containing cholesterol) is the leading killer of Americans, with a death toll of over one-million annually. But for many of us in his age range, the reasons we are so interested are complex: aside from humane concern for his health, we also think: if heart disease can sneak up on an apparently healthy and robust ex-president, who among us is immune?
As the candidates vie for an edge in the tight race for the presidency, campaign members should be especially cautious about making statements that could make them vulnerable to attack by the opposition. Last week, in an irresponsible remark perhaps meant less to inspire hope than to gain partisan advantage, Democratic Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards handed the Bush campaign such an opportunity by exaggerating the pace of stem cell research.
This letter by ACSH Nutrition Director Dr. Ruth Kava was published in the October 31, 2004 New York Times Magazine in response to an article by Michael Pollen about American vs. French food fetishes:
Your amusing description of past and present American food phobias didn't go far enough. The present fear of genetically modified crops has fueled support for organically produced foods. One hundred years from now, Americans may view this penchant for supposed purity as strangely as we now view the discredited theories of Fletcher and Kellogg.
A November 13, 2004 Star Tribune article, "Summary of Vice President Dick Cheney's Heart Problems" recently reported that Cheney suffered four heart attacks in 1978, 1984, 1988, and 2000 -- with a history of heart surgery and treatment since the last heart attack. Just this month Cheney was admitted to the hospital because of concerns about his heart due to shortness of breath.
In June, we noted that a picture of Presidential candidate John Kerry riding a motorcycle while not wearing a helmet was featured on the front page New York Times.
Recently The Lancet posted a correspondence titled, "Lupin flour anaphylaxis (http://www.thelancet.com/journal/vol365/iss9467/abs/llan.365.9467.revie…)." It was followed the next day with a BBC posting titled, "Lupin flour 'poses allergy risk'" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4419709.stm). Since then, there has been a deathly media silence.
Editors Note:
Associate Director Jeff Stier presented the following message as a guest on Dayside with Linda Vester on the Fox News Channel.
Later in the day, Medical Director Dr. Gilbert Ross communicated this message in a separate appearance on Fox News.
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An April 6 article by Associated Press writer Libby Quaid about labeling of foods quotes ACSH Advisor Fergus Clydesdale, Ph.D.:
The makers of the butter-like spread Take Control had clinical studies showing it lowers cholesterol. But until they got approval from the Food and Drug Administration, they couldn't put it on the label.
"They had to say something like, 'Maintains healthy levels of cholesterol,'" said Fergus Clydesdale, a food science professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst who headed the study.
The often-claimed "right to know" -- now being espoused by anti-biotech activists seeking the location of biotech testing areas -- cannot be fully understood without the related principle, the "need to know."
This piece appeared in National Review Online.
The FDA has its heavy regulatory hand on almost one quarter of the nation's economy, so its leadership is of deep concern to all Americans, not merely those involved in public health. Recently, President Bush nominated Lester Crawford as permanent FDA commissioner. Although Crawford has been acting chief of the agency for much of the past four years, everyone is wondering what his approach will be now that he's the boss.
In addition to your nuanced counsel on dealing with the crescendo of dire warnings about various drugs ("The Painkiller Panic", Dec. 23), another factor that should be considered in the precipitous withdrawal of Vioxx and the untoward panic about various pain-relievers is the vast potential of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs) in the chemoprevention of cancer.
Rheumatologists (such as myself) had been aware for many years of preliminary reports of reduced rates of various cancers (notably colorectal cancer) among arthritis patients on long-term NSAIDs.
A January 3, 2005 column called "Group Lists Top Unfounded Health Scares of 2004" by Andi Atwater on www.News-Press.com recounts ACSH's report The Top Ten Unfounded Health Scares of 2004:
For immediate release
New York, New York -- February 2, 2005. The American Council on Science and Health today warned of the serious and negative health implications of our nation's current fixation with removing "carcinogens" -- trace levels of chemicals that at high dose cause cancer in laboratory rodents -- from the food, water and general environment.
New York, NY -- February 2005. The American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) is pleased to announce the release of an updated version of its publication The Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis is a progressive bone disorder that weakens bones and can result in multiple debilitating fractures. It is a major health threat in the United States; ten million Americans, most of them women, already have the disease, and millions more are at risk.
Superstitions -- closely held beliefs lacking any scientific support -- have been around for ages. They promise empowerment: if you take some pre-emptive action (avoid broken mirrors, black cats, or ladders) you can dodge dire consequences. True, there is no evidence that such actions protect you, but just in case, you take a few extra steps to avoid the ladder. After all, you never know.
Superstitions prevail in our high-tech era. Take for example the common practice of using the results of high-dose rodent cancer tests to predict which substances might cause human cancer.
A March 24, 2005 report on MSNBC's show Countdown, as part of MSNBC's "Faith in America" week, discussed faith healers and included ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross on a skeptical note:
[REPORTER MONICA] NOVOTNY (voice-over): But not everyone believes. Dr. Gilbert Ross says while some may be healed, their cures can be explained.
An April 20, 2005 article by Kristen Greencher notes reactions to the federal government's new food pyramid nutrition guidelines, including the reaction of ACSH's Director of Nutrition, Dr. Ruth Kava:
This article appeared on MedicalProgressToday.com.
This article appeared in the May 1, 2005 New York Daily News, paired with an opposing argument from Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest:
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