Last night almost the entire ACSH staff trekked down to Times Square to see a preview of Thank You for Smoking, based on the Christopher Buckley novel (a very humorous one indeed) about Nick Naylor, the smokesman -- er, spokesman -- for the tobacco industry's pseudo-scientific research arm.
We all enjoyed it and laughed at the debates among the lobbyist characters over which of their industries killed more people -- cigarettes, alcohol, or guns. Clearly, as the tobacco rep argued, his industry won hands down. No debate there!
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Since late 2003, birds in over a dozen nations in Asia and at least seven nations in Europe have been struck by H5N1 "avian influenza" or "bird flu." Since 2003, there have been 175 confirmed cases of H5N1 transmission from birds to humans in Cambodia, Indonesia, China, Thailand, Turkey, Iraq, and Vietnam.
An FDA panel did the right thing yesterday in recommending that multiple sclerosis (MS) drug Tysabri be put back on the market.
A February 17, 2006 article by Karen Matthews in The Repository quotes ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava:
(As of March 1, 2006) the entry about Rachel Carson's founding environmentalist and anti-chemical book Silent Spring on the online encyclopedia Wikipedia contained a section about "Criticism" of Carson's negative opinion of the pesticide DDT, including a quote from ACSH's Todd Seavey:
Nick Naylor, master lobbyist for Big Tobacco in the just-released film Thank You For Smoking, is adept at making lemonade out of lemons. His creativity in twisting logic and reality is breathtaking -- but that may be the essence of the lobbyist's job.
Sir,
With reference to your report, "Infection milder but more widespread, study finds" (January 10), the new study from Vietnam and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, which concludes that there are far more human cases of mild H5N1 avian influenza than World Health Organisation tallies suggest, does not warrant rethinking the current bird flu paradigm or viewing H5N1 as a lesser threat.
Aside from the preliminary nature of these findings, two important methodological limitations in the study should be noted.
A January 29, 2006 "Blog On!" column by Dawn Eden described avowedly skeptical and counter-skeptical blogs, noting ACSH's own HealthFactsAndFears.com:
This article appeared in the Washington Legal Foundation's March 10, 2006 Legal Opinion Letter (Vol. 16, No. 7).
An MSN Money article by Jay MacDonald about the cost of cigarettes and lesser vices included comments from ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava:
Alcohol, long reviled as "demon rum," has been enjoying a new respectability lately thanks to medical studies that show that a little tippling can be good for the heart.
A June 8 article by Chantelle Janelle on the site of NBC 10 in South Carolina quotes ACSH president Dr. Elizabeth Whelan on summer insects:
"But they can also be dangerous. Bugs are what we call vectors, vectors of disease, they can make you sick"...
This letter appeared in the Science section of the New York Times.
To the Editor:
This letter appeared in the Washington Times.
Dr. Richard N. Atkins argues that early detection of prostate cancer saves lives, that all men should have an annual PSA test to detect prostate cancer, and that those of us who oppose the test do so because of concern about the costs associated with biopsies, which may be necessary following a finding of elevated PSA ("No more prostate excuses," Op-Ed, Friday).
Such arguments obscure some basic facts:
Three April 1, 2006 pieces on the Heartland Institute site mention ACSH, one on pesticides...
The proposal [to mandate that farmers warn surrounding towns when using pesticides] and its demise raised the issue of "junk science." Gilbert Ross, medical director of the American Council on Science and Health, criticized the Washington proposal prior to the decision as having "absolutely no basis in scientific fact."
A National Review online roundtable about bird flu included this comment from ACSH's Dr. Whelan.
A June 12, 2006 article by John Johnston notes skepticism about the value of spiral CT scans as an early-detection method for lung cancer:
However, the screening jury is still out for Dr. Elizabeth Whelan.
Whelan, president of the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) said, "despite evaluations of many different screening techniques involving hundreds of thousands of individuals, there is no evidence that such screening prevents deaths from lung cancer."
Foods and beverages containing sugar substitutes are widely used in the United States and other countries; they offer attractive dietary options for people who are trying to limit calorie intake and/or reduce the risk of tooth decay.
A May 1, 2006 article on the website of CBS 4 in Miami quotes Michael Jacobson of Center for Science in the Public Interest, ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava, and others on the topic of artificial sweeteners:
Dr. Ruth Kava, of the American Council on Science and Health says they provide a sweet ride without the guilt trip.
A series of articles by Dr. Henry Miller in TCSDaily.com (excerpted on Galen.org) and LegalNews.TV on Oct. 4, 2006 and the Washington Times on Oct. 5 cited ACSH's report Countefeit Drugs: Coming to a Pharmacy Near You:
See the updated 2009 version of this report by clicking here.
New York, NY – August 24, 2006. Counterfeit drugs are a real and growing threat to global health, and have even jeopardized the security of the American drug supply, according to a new report by the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH).
Forbes.com on September 22, 2006 and numerous other outlets carried a story about cosmetics safety from HealthDay by E.J. Mundell that cited ACSH:
A September 20, 2006 article by Kimberley Jace contrasts real vs. imagined or exaggerated dangers, starting a long list with a nod to ACSH:
What else is risky? The American Council on Science and Health (ACSH.org), a consumer education consortium, weighs in on these dangers.
Perceived danger: School shootings.
Students bring guns to school and kill classmates and teachers as they did at Columbine High School in Colorado.
Real danger: Reckless behavior.
Experts on dental health fraud suspect that over a billion dollars a year is spent on dubious, unnecessary, and poor-quality dentistry. Dental diseases are among the most common ailments in the United States, accounting for over $70 billion in bills.
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