This is where we’re going… And I love it!
FDA Finally Targets Dental Amalgam
January 28, 2011 By 15 Comments
At the end of the two-day hearing to evaluate the safety of amalgam, the FDA’s own scientific panel – including neurologists, toxicologists, epidemiologists, and environmental health specialists – told the agency to stop amalgam use in children, pregnant women, and hypersensitive populations.
After reviewing the available scientific studies and the presentations of researchers, experts, dentists, and injured consumers, the scientists concluded that – contrary to the claims of the FDA’s in-house dentist Susan Runner – amalgam is not safe for everybody.
According to the panel, the FDA’s amalgam risk assessments were not adequate to protect hypersensitive adults, children, and unborn babies. Repeatedly, panel members expressed their concern about amalgam use in children. Pediatric neurologist Dr. Suresh Kotagal of the Mayo Clinic summed it up for the entire panel:
“There is really no place for mercury in children.”
Other panelists went on to explain that dental mercury is like lead. The panel urged the FDA to quickly contraindicate amalgam for these vulnerable populations and insisted that the FDA provide consumers with labeling containing clear warnings.
Sources:
Reuters.com December 15, 2010
Big Pharma Sticks It To You!
October 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Canada’s pharmaceutical industry and the European Union have been quietly lobbying for changes that could give brand-name drugs several years more patent protection here — and potentially add hundreds of millions of dollars to Canadian medication costs annually.
The EU has reportedly proposed the measures be included in a landmark free-trade agreement now being negotiated between the jurisdictions, with the fifth round starting last week in Ottawa.
The changes would delay the entry of cheaper, generic copies of medication onto the market, but brand-name companies and some provinces say the measures are needed to restore fairness to the complex patent system, and generate more drug research in Canada.
The generic industry, however, is voicing outrage at the proposals, insisting they will do nothing positive for Canada.
“This would be a nasty piece of policy if it went through,” said Jim Keon, head of the Canadian Generic Pharmaceutical Association.
“We have to move away from a policy that discourages innovation and encourages copying,” said Russell Williams, CEO of Canada’s Research-based Pharmaceutical Companies, the chief industry trade group.
Mr. Williams should take a long hard look at himself in the mirror! His industry should be raked over the coals for anti-trust behaviour. Big Pharma is so afraid of the natural food industry that they appear to be pressuring regulatory agencies to legislate the supplement industry out of existence.
People need to respond by making choices that will make them health and well. There is no money in healthy people. The best thing we can all do to put these leeches out to field is all get nice and healthy.
I realize that this will never happen. There are people who are just incapable of helping themselves or incapable of making good lifestyle choices. For them, we will always need the services of Big Pharma. What I object to is Big Pharma acting and behaving like it is the only player in the game. I think we need to elect people who will make sure that drugs related to health and wellness can only be developed within a non profit model. Tax incentives for corporate investors for sure… but no more of this ”board of directors” crap with a total focus on profits. People must come ahead of profits.
This Genetically Modified “Healthy Food” Killed Baby Rats in Three Weeks
October 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Arpad Pusztai
Biologist Arpad Pusztai had more than 300 articles and 12 books to his credit and was the world’s top expert in his field.
But when he accidentally discovered that genetically modified (GM) foods are dangerous, he became the biotech industry’s bad-boy poster child, setting an example for other scientists thinking about blowing the whistle.
In the early 1990s, Dr. Pusztai was awarded a $3 million grant by the UK government to design the system for safety testing genetically modified organisms (GMOs). His team included more than 20 scientists working at three facilities, including the Rowett Institute in Aberdeen, Scotland, the top nutritional research lab in the UK, and his employer for the previous 35 years.
The results of Pusztai’s work were supposed to become the required testing protocols for all of Europe. But when he fed supposedly harmless GM potatoes to rats, things didn’t go as planned.
Within just 10 days, the animals developed potentially pre-cancerous cell growth, smaller brains, livers, and testicles, partially atrophied livers, and damaged immune systems. Moreover, the cause was almost certainly side effects from the process of genetic engineering itself. In other words, the GM foods on the market, which are created from the same process, might have similar affects on humans.
With permission from his director, Pusztai was interviewed on TV and expressed his concerns about GM foods. He became a hero at his institute — for two days.
Then came the phone calls from the pro-GMO prime minister’s office to the institute’s director. The next morning, Pusztai was fired. He was silenced with threats of a lawsuit, his team was dismantled, and the protocols never implemented. His Institute, the biotech industry, and the UK government, together launched a smear campaign to destroy Pusztai’s reputation.
Eventually, an invitation to speak before Parliament lifted his gag order and his research was published in the prestigious Lancet. No similar in-depth studies have yet tested the GM foods eaten every day by Americans. [Read more...]
Antioxidants Reduce Chemotherapy Side Effects in Children
September 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment
A large percentage of children undergoing treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia have inadequate intakes of antioxidants and vitamin A, according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. As a result of the study, researchers noted that “lower intakes of antioxidants are associated with increases in the side effects of chemotherapy.”
“Chemotherapy leads to an increase in reactive oxygen species, which stresses the antioxidant defense system,” study authors noted. “This study was conducted to investigate the effect of therapy on antioxidant intakes in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the relation between dietary antioxidant intakes and plasma antioxidant concentrations, and the relation between the incidence of side effects due to treatment and antioxidant intake.”
A team of researchers observed the effects of antioxidants on 103 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia who were on chemotherapy. The subjects were given vitamin E, total carotenoids, beta-carotene and vitamin A in amounts that were 66%, 30%, 59% and 29% of the recommended daily allowance, respectively, or of the amounts specified in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Plasma micronutrient concentrations, dietary intakes and incidence of side effects were assessed at baseline, at three months and again at six months.
After six months, children who took more vitamin C had fewer therapy delays, less toxicity and fewer days in-hospital. Subjects who took more vitamin E had fewer infections. Greater consumption of beta-carotene reduced the risk of chemotoxicity. Lower intake of the antioxidants, however, tended to increase chemotherapy side effects.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 79(6):1029-1036, 2004
