Health Highlights: Feb. 23, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Teen Drivers' Marijuana Use Causes Concern

Teens who drive while high on marijuana appear to be a growing problem.

Pot smoking is up among teens and use of the drug among high school students is higher than it has been in three decades, finds new survey data compiled by Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) and the insurance industry, the Washington Post reported.

Survey results also show that 19 percent of teens said they'd driven a vehicle while stoned, and more than one-third said marijuana causes no distractions to their driving, according to the information released Wednesday.

"What keeps me up at night is that this data reflects a dangerous trend toward the acceptance of marijuana and other substances compared to our study of teens conducted just two years ago," Stephen Wallace, senior adviser for policy, research and education at SADD, told the Post.

Last week, the Governors Highway Safety Association said that teen highway deaths increased in the first half of 2011, reversing an eight-year downward trend.

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Male Y Chromosome Won't Vanish: Study

Men's Y chromosome may not wither away to nothing after all, according to a new study.

The male Y and female X chromosomes once had about 800 genes in common but the Y now carries just 19 of its ancestral genes, along with its male-determining gene, and is just a fraction of its original size, The New York Times reported.

This has led some scientists to wonder if the Y chromosome will eventually vanish and make human males a thing of the past.

But a new study suggests that the Y chromosome's gene-shedding is finished and it will shrink no more, The Times reported.

The study was published Wednesday in the journal Nature.

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State Can't Force Pharmacies to Sell Emergency Contraceptives: Judge

Washington state cannot force pharmacies to sell Plan B or other emergency contraceptives, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

State regulations require pharmacies to stock and dispense drugs for which there is a demand. The regulations were implemented in 2007 after reports that some women in the state were denied access to Plan B, the Associated Press reported.

A pharmacy and two pharmacists filed a lawsuit that said the rules infringed on their religious freedom. U.S. District Judge Ronald Leighton agreed with them.

The judge ruled that the intent of the state regulations was not to promote timely access to medicine, but to override religious objections by pharmacists who believe that emergency contraceptives have an effect that's similar to abortion, the AP reported.

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U.S. Releases Draft Strategy to Fight Alzheimer's Disease

Finding effective ways to treat Alzheimer's disease by 2025 is the main goal of the Obama administration's draft of a national strategy to fight the disease.

That could be a huge challenge. Current treatments only temporarily ease symptoms of Alzheimer's and efforts to develop better medications have been slow, the Associated Press reported.

The draft also recommends improved training and support for caregivers of loved ones with Alzheimer's, campaigns to raise awareness about the early warning signs of the disease, increased education for doctors and other health care providers, and improved early detection of Alzheimer's.

The draft was released Wednesday and is open for public comment through March. The final strategy will be released this year, the AP reported.

More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's or similar dementias and that number is expected to reach as many as 16 million by 2050.

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US health experts give nod to new obesity drug

More Americans died in 2007 of hepatitis C infection, which causes incurable liver disease, than from the virus that causes AIDS, US health authorities said this week.

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Health Highlights: Feb. 21, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Nutritional Guidelines Planned for School Vending Machines

Nutritional standards for vending machine products and other foods that students can buy outside of school cafeterias are expected to be introduced by the Obama administration within the next few weeks.

White House officials say students eat 19 percent to 50 percent of their daily food at school and they want to ensure that what students eat doesn't harm their health or make them fat, The New York Times reported.

Childhood obesity in the United States has more than tripled in the past 30 years, and school vending machines stocked with items such as soft drinks, potato chips and cookies have contributed to that problem, nutritionists say.

No details of the proposed nutritional standards have been released, but are likely to focus on reduced amounts of sugar, salt and fat, according to health advocates and snack food and soft drink industry representatives, The Times reported.

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Imported Drug Will Help Shortage of Cancer Drug Doxil: FDA

A drug called Lipodox will be imported from India in order to offset the shortage of the chemotherapy drug Doxil, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says.

Doxil -- which is used to treat ovarian cancer, multiple myeloma and AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma -- has been in short supply in the U.S. since last June. There are no generic versions of the drug, USA Today reported.

The FDA was expected to announce Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with Sun Pharma Global of India to temporarily import Lipodox. The agency has previously inspected the company.

The deal with address the Doxil shortage "for the foreseeable future," the FDA's Sandra Kweder told USA Today.

Doxil is one of 287 drugs that have been in short supply this year, says the University of Utah's Drug Information Service. There were 61 drugs in short supply in 2005, according to the FDA.

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Inhalable Caffeine Product to be Reviewed by FDA

The safety of an inhalable caffeine product called AeroShot will be reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency will also investigate whether the product can be labeled as a dietary supplement.

Aeroshot is sold in lipstick-sized canisters. A person puts one end of the canister in their mouth and inhales a fine powder that dissolves almost instantly. Each container contains 100 milligrams of caffeine powder, about equal to the amount in a large cup of coffee, the Associated Press reported.

New York U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer asked the FDA to review the safety and legality of Aeroshot, which went on sale late last month in New York and Massachusetts. It's also sold in France.

"I am worried about how a product like this impacts kids and teens, who are particularly vulnerable to overusing a product that allows one to take hit after hit after hit, in rapid succession," Schumer said, the AP reported.

AeroShot is safe and does not contain additives used to enhance the caffeine effect in energy drinks, according to inventor David Edwards, a Harvard biomedical engineering professor.

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US health experts give nod to new obesity drug

A new drug to treat advanced skin cancer, or metastatic melanoma, has been shown to nearly double average survival time in a study of more than 130 patients, researchers said Wednesday.

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Health Highlights: Feb. 21, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Nutritional Guidelines Planned for School Vending Machines

Nutritional standards for vending machine products and other foods that students can buy outside of school cafeterias are expected to be introduced by the Obama administration within the next few weeks.

White House officials say students eat 19 percent to 50 percent of their daily food at school and they want to ensure that what students eat doesn't harm their health or make them fat, The New York Times reported.

Childhood obesity in the United States has more than tripled in the past 30 years, and school vending machines stocked with items such as soft drinks, potato chips and cookies have contributed to that problem, nutritionists say.

No details of the proposed nutritional standards have been released, but are likely to focus on reduced amounts of sugar, salt and fat, according to health advocates and snack food and soft drink industry representatives, The Times reported.

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Imported Drug Will Help Shortage of Cancer Drug Doxil: FDA

A drug called Lipodox will be imported from India in order to offset the shortage of the chemotherapy drug Doxil, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says.

Doxil -- which is used to treat ovarian cancer, multiple myeloma and AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma -- has been in short supply in the U.S. since last June. There are no generic versions of the drug, USA Today reported.

The FDA was expected to announce Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with Sun Pharma Global of India to temporarily import Lipodox. The agency has previously inspected the company.

The deal with address the Doxil shortage "for the foreseeable future," the FDA's Sandra Kweder told USA Today.

Doxil is one of 287 drugs that have been in short supply this year, says the University of Utah's Drug Information Service. There were 61 drugs in short supply in 2005, according to the FDA.

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Inhalable Caffeine Product to be Reviewed by FDA

The safety of an inhalable caffeine product called AeroShot will be reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency will also investigate whether the product can be labeled as a dietary supplement.

Aeroshot is sold in lipstick-sized canisters. A person puts one end of the canister in their mouth and inhales a fine powder that dissolves almost instantly. Each container contains 100 milligrams of caffeine powder, about equal to the amount in a large cup of coffee, the Associated Press reported.

New York U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer asked the FDA to review the safety and legality of Aeroshot, which went on sale late last month in New York and Massachusetts. It's also sold in France.

"I am worried about how a product like this impacts kids and teens, who are particularly vulnerable to overusing a product that allows one to take hit after hit after hit, in rapid succession," Schumer said, the AP reported.

AeroShot is safe and does not contain additives used to enhance the caffeine effect in energy drinks, according to inventor David Edwards, a Harvard biomedical engineering professor.

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View the original article here

Health Highlights: Feb. 17, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

WHO Delays Decision on Controversial Bird Flu Studies

A decision on whether controversial research into H5N1 bird flu virus mutations should be published has been delayed by the World Health Organization.

After a two-day meeting in Geneva, it was decided that more discussions are needed to determine if it's safe to publish in full two research papers submitted to the journals Science and Nature, BBC News reported.

The papers describe how the H5N1 virus could relatively easily mutate into a strain that could spread rapidly among humans. There is concern that the information could be used by terrorists to trigger a deadly pandemic.

But some scientists say redacting some sensitive parts of the research would be an infringement of academic freedom, and some noted that some of the researchers have given presentations about their work at conferences and the details are already widely available, BBC News reported.

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Flu Season Officially Here: CDC

It's off to the slowest start in nearly 25 years, but the flu season is finally here, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Until now, there haven't been enough flu cases in the U.S. to signal the official start of the season, which usually begins in December or January and is half over by late February, the Associated Press reported.

CDC officials said Friday that California has had widespread flu cases for the last two weeks and Missouri has seen a sharp rise in reports of flu-like illness.

Officials don't know why the flu season started so late, but said it could be due to a number of factors. This is the latest start to a flu season since the 1987-88 season, the AP reported.

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Heart Attack Grill Owner Defends Artery-Clogging Menu

The owner of the Heart Attack Grill in Las Vegas is defending his artery-clogging menu after a customer suffered an apparent heart attack while devouring a 6,000-calorie Triple Bypass burger.

Speaking on "Fox and Friends" Friday morning, Jon Basso described his restaurant as "a place where you can live the way our Founding Fathers intended us to live, and that is by our own accord," FoxNews.com reported.

The restaurant features health warnings on the walls and staff are dressed in white coats and nurses hats to represent doctors and nurses. When patrons choose menu items such as a Bypass burger, Flatliner fries and buttermilk shakes, they're given surgical gowns to wear.

After a customer suffered an apparent heart attack on Saturday, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine sent a letter to Basso asking him to "declare moral bankruptcy" and close the Heart Attack Grill, FoxNews.com reported.

Basso has no plans to close the restaurant and lashed out against critics.

"There are intrusive busy-body groups that want to take away our right to have a simple hamburger, a coke, some fries and enjoy our lives the way we want to," he said.

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FDA Panel to Consider New Diet Pill

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel will meet next week to discuss whether to recommend approval of a diet pill called Qnexa.

The drug is a combination of two FDA-approved drugs, the stimulant phentermine and the anticonvulsant topiramate. In 2010, the FDA rejected Qnexa due to concerns about the risks of birth defects and cardiovascular problems, The New York Times reported.

However, many obesity doctors use a regulatory loophole to prescribe phentermine and topiramate off-label in order to suppress appetite in overweight patients.

Qnexa was developed by the company Vivus, which will present additional data at the FDA's advisory panel meeting on Wednesday. The FDA will have until April 17 to consider the panel's recommendation and make a decision about the drug, The Times reported.

It's been 13 years since a new prescription diet pill was approved by the FDA.

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Powered Toothbrush Could Cause Choking, Serious Injuries: FDA

Problems with the brush head on all models of Arm & Hammer Spinbrush powered toothbrushes have caused choking and serious injuries, according to reports received by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

While turned on, the device's brush head has either "popped off" or broken off in the user's mouth or near the face, causing cuts to the mouth and gums, chipped or broken teeth, swallowing and choking on the broken pieces, and injuries to the face and eyes.

Until 2009, the Spinbrush line was sold as the Crest Spinbrush, the FDA said.

The agency advised consumers to inspect the Spinbrush for any damage or loose brush bristles prior to using. Do not use the brush if there is any damage or loose brush bristles.

Make sure the headpiece is connected properly to the handle of the brush and test the brush outside of the mouth before use. Do not use the brush if the connection between the headpiece and the handle feels loose or if the headpiece easily detaches from the handle.

Do not bite down on the brush while brushing. Supervise children and adults who need assistance when using the Spinbrush, the FDA said.

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Health Highlights: Feb. 15, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Heart Attack Grill Diner May Have Suffered Heart Attack

The Heart Attack Grill in Las Vegas seemed to live up to its name after a customer suffered what may have been a heart attack.

Amateur video shows paramedics wheeling a man out of the restaurant on Saturday evening. Restaurant workers said it appeared the man had a heart attack, the Associated Press reported.

When a waitress told him a customer eating a Triple Bypass burger was sweating and shaking, grill owner Jon Basso thought it was a joke. Basso told a TV station that he heard the man is recuperating.

Details about the man's name and his medical condition weren't released, the AP reported.

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Consumer Guide Reveals Toxicity of Vehicle Interiors

The Honda Civic, Toyota Prius and Honda CR-Z have the least toxic interiors, while the Mitsubishi Outlander has the most toxic passenger compartment, according to a new report by the Michigan-based Ecology Center.

The nonprofit group's guide notes that vehicle makers are reducing their use of toxic chemicals, and the industry leaders have eliminated hazardous flame retardants and PVC (polyvinyl chloride), USA Today reported.

The Ecology Center's fourth consumer guide on the topic says that 60 percent of new vehicle interiors are made without brominated flame retardants and 17 percent are PVC-free.

Chemicals used in vehicle interiors have been associated with health problems such as allergies, impaired learning and liver toxicity, USA Today reported.

"Vehicle interiors contain a unique cocktail of hundreds of toxic chemicals that off-gas in small, confined spaces," said Jeff Gearhart, research director at the Ecology Center. "Since these chemicals are not regulated, consumers have no way of knowing the dangers they face. Our testing is intended to expose those dangers and encourage manufacturers to use safer alternatives."

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Traces of Lead Found in 400 Lipsticks: FDA Analysis

In news that is sure to dampen the spirit of romance on Valentine's Day, an analysis from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has found that 400 of the most popular lipsticks in the United States contain traces of lead.

The lipsticks involved are made by major cosmetic firms, and include such widely known brands as L'Oreal, Maybelline and Cover Girl, according to the analysis. The results confirm an earlier review, but on a greater scale and at higher lead levels, the Washington Post reported.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a consumer group, has been pushing for limits on lead levels in lipsticks for years but the FDA has balked, saying the levels detected do not pose a safety risk to women, the Post reported.

"Lipstick, as a product intended for topical use with limited absorption, is ingested only in very small quantities," the agency said on its website. "The lead levels we found are within the limits recommended by other public health authorities for lead in cosmetics, including lipstick."

Products sampled in 2010 had average concentrations of 1.11 parts per million, close to the average of 1.07 parts per million in a smaller survey the FDA conducted in 2007, according to the agency website.

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Satisfied Patients Aren't Always Healthier: Study

A satisfied patient isn't necessarily a healthier patient, according to a new study.

The research included almost 52,000 Americans who were followed for an average of 3 1/2 years. They were asked to rate their satisfaction with the care they received from their doctors and their health outcomes were then tracked by the University of California, Davis researchers, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Compared with patients who were least-satisfied with their healthcare, those who were most satisfied used more prescription drugs, made more doctor's office visits, and were more likely to have one or more hospital stays, according to the study published online Monday in the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.

This was despite the fact that patients most satisfied with their healthcare were in better overall physical and mental health, the Times reported.

The study also found that the most satisfied patients were more likely to die within a few years than those who were least satisfied.

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Drug Company Warns About Fake Avastin

Counterfeit vials of the cancer drug Avastin are being distributed in the United States, according to the maker of the medicine used to treat colon, lung, kidney and brain cancer.

The fake products do not contain the key ingredient in Avastin, warned Roche's Genentech unit, the Associated Press reported.

Drugs labeled with the lot numbers B86017, B6011 and B6010 are believed to be fake, the company said. The counterfeit products do not have Genentech printed on the packaging.

Doctors who believe they have received counterfeit Avastin should contact the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or Roche, the AP reported.

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Artificial Hip Rejected by FDA Sold in Other Countries

Johnson & Johnson continued to market an artificial hip in other countries after the Food and Drug Administration in 2009 denied approval for the product to be sold in the United States based on a review of company safety studies.

The DePuy orthopedic division of Johnson & Johnson also continued to sell a similar model of articular surface replacement (ARS) device in the United States after the FDA rejected the other model, The New York Times reported.

Both models had an all-metal hip socket cup that experts say was faulty in design. Both models were recalled in August 2010 amid reports of high rates of premature failure.

The two implants were on the market for about eight years and used in about 93,000 patients worldwide, about one-third of them in the U.S., according to The Times.

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Research Reveals How Aspirin May Slow Cancer's Spread

New research reveals how aspirin and other anti-inflammatory medications might slow the spread of cancer.

Although this effect has been known by scientists, the biological mechanisms were not understood, Fox News reported Tuesday. The breakthrough research, reported in the Feb. 14 issue of Cancer Cell, was conducted by experts at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia.

Study co-author Tara Karnezis told Fox News that tumors secret proteins and compounds called growth factors, which draw blood and lymphatic vessels to the tumor that enable its spread.

"But a group of drugs reverse the widening of the supply line and make it hard for the tumor to spread -- at the end of the day that's what kills people," Karnezis told Fox News. "This discovery unlocks a range of potentially powerful new therapies to target this pathway in lymphatic vessels, effectively tightening a tumor's supply lines and restricting the transport of cancer cells to the rest of the body."

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FDA Warns Health Officials About Counterfeit Cancer Drug

The FDA announced on Tuesday that a counterfeit version of the drug Avastin has made its way into the U.S. market. Doctors, hospitals, and pharmacists are being urged to check their supply of the drug to make sure it was manufactured by Roche Group partner Genentech, the maker of the real Avastin.

What is Avastin?

Avastin is a "designer drug" created to treat cancer by isolating a protein known as vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, according to Genentech. VEGF helps the body create new blood vessels, which in a person with cancer, can help feed the cancerous cells. By blocking VEGF, Avastin theoretically can "starve" cancer cells and kill them off, according to NPR.

Avastin has only been approved to help treat certain kinds of cancers, including colorectal, brain, kidney, and lung cancer. It was initially approved late last year for treating breast cancer as well, but the FDA withdrew the approval while it is re-evaluating the drug's effectiveness in treating advanced cases of the disease.

How did the FDA find out about the counterfeit?

CNN reports that the FDA tracked purchases made from Quality Specialty Products, which in the U.S. appears to also go under the moniker Montana Health Care Solutions. The company is alleged to have been sourcing counterfeit drugs from overseas distributors and then selling them to U.S. practitioners.

Genentech themselves tested the suspected counterfeit version of the drug and found it to be not merely repackaged but fraudulent. Some 19 different potential buyers have been identified. The FDA warned all of them individually about the counterfeit drug before releasing a more general press statement on Tuesday.

Is the counterfeit version dangerous?

Yes, in that it is missing the active ingredient bevacizumab, the key component in the real Avastin medication. Therefore, anyone who has been treated with the counterfeit would not have been getting needed cancer therapy. Roche and Genentech released a statement on Tuesday giving details on how to identify fake medications, as well as warning practitioners that the counterfeit should not be considered either safe or effective.

Does the FDA know if anyone has actually been given the counterfeit?

Not at this time. The path of the counterfeit drug once it hit American shores is still being investigated, according to MSNBC. Because the agency is still unsure just how much of the counterfeit was purchased and distributed, the FDA hasn't been able to determine whether anyone was actually administered the faux treatment.

Vanessa Evans is a musician and freelance writer based in Michigan, with a lifelong interest in health and nutrition issues.

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Health Highlights: Feb. 14, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Traces of Lead Found in 400 Lipsticks: FDA Analysis

In news that is sure to dampen the spirit of romance on Valentine's Day, an analysis from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has found that 400 of the most popular lipsticks in the United States contain traces of lead.

The lipsticks involved are made by major cosmetic firms, and include such widely known brands as L'Oreal, Maybelline and Cover Girl, according to the analysis. The results confirm an earlier review, but on a greater scale and at higher lead levels, the Washington Post reported.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a consumer group, has been pushing for limits on lead levels in lipsticks for years but the FDA has balked, saying the levels detected do not pose a safety risk to women, the Post reported.

"Lipstick, as a product intended for topical use with limited absorption, is ingested only in very small quantities," the agency said on its website. "The lead levels we found are within the limits recommended by other public health authorities for lead in cosmetics, including lipstick."

Products sampled in 2010 had average concentrations of 1.11 parts per million, close to the average of 1.07 parts per million in a smaller survey the FDA conducted in 2007, according to the agency website.

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Research Reveals How Aspirin May Slow Cancer's Spread

New research reveals how aspirin and other anti-inflammatory medications might slow the spread of cancer.

Although this effect has been known by scientists, the biological mechanisms were not understood, Fox News reported Tuesday. The breakthrough research, reported in the Feb. 14 issue of Cancer Cell, was conducted by experts at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia.

Study co-author Tara Karnezis told Fox News that tumors secret proteins and compounds called growth factors, which draw blood and lymphatic vessels to the tumor that enable its spread.

"But a group of drugs reverse the widening of the supply line and make it hard for the tumor to spread -- at the end of the day that's what kills people," Karnezis told Fox News. "This discovery unlocks a range of potentially powerful new therapies to target this pathway in lymphatic vessels, effectively tightening a tumor's supply lines and restricting the transport of cancer cells to the rest of the body."

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Female Sexual Enhancement Supplement Recalled

A female sexual enhancement supplement called RegenArouse is being recalled after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration analysis of the product confirmed the presence of tadalafil, a drug (brand name Cialis) used to treat male erectile dysfunction.

The presence of tadalafil makes RegenArouse an unapproved drug that may pose a threat to consumers because it may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels, the FDA said.

People with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or heart disease often take nitrates.

The nationwide recall is for RegenArouse, lot number 130100, a pink capsule sold individually in foil packets, expiration date 12/5/2013, UPC code 816860010079. The product was sold over the Internet to consumers in the U.S. and Puerto Rico between Nov. 29, 2011 and Feb. 10, 2012.

Consumers with the recalled product should return any unused product to Regeneca Inc. for an exchange or full refund, the FDA said.

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Rare Brain Disease Strikes Two People in California

Two cases of a rare and fatal brain disease are being investigated by the Marin County Department of Public Health in California.

One woman is dead and another sick after developing Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The two cases are thought to be unrelated, ABC News reported.

"We have no evidence that suggests a causal linkage between the suspect cases nor is there any evidence to suggest a risk in [the] food supply," the health department said in a statement.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease occurs in about one in a million people each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The cause in most cases is unknown, but a small number of cases are inherited, ABC News reported.

Some cases -- called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease -- are linked to mad cow disease. That's been ruled out in one of the Marin County cases and officials suspect the second case is also unrelated to mad cow disease.

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Immune Cells Use Unique Method to Fight HIV: Study

Some types of immune cells resist HIV by denying the AIDS-causing virus the building blocks of life, according to a new study.

Because viruses cannot replicate on their own, they have to take over other cells and use them to produce new viruses, BBC News reported.

The international team of researchers found that some immune system cells destroy their own raw materials in order to stop HIV. The study appears in the journal Nature Immunology.

Experts said it's not clear whether this type of defense could be harnessed for HIV therapy, BBC News reported.

View the original article here

Health Highlights: Feb. 13, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Female Sexual Enhancement Supplement Recalled

A female sexual enhancement supplement called RegenArouse is being recalled after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration analysis of the product confirmed the presence of tadalafil, a drug (brand name Cialis) used to treat male erectile dysfunction.

The presence of tadalafil makes RegenArouse an unapproved drug that may pose a threat to consumers because it may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels, the FDA said.

People with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or heart disease often take nitrates.

The nationwide recall is for RegenArouse, lot number 130100, a pink capsule sold individually in foil packets, expiration date 12/5/2013, UPC code 816860010079. The product was sold over the Internet to consumers in the U.S. and Puerto Rico between Nov. 29, 2011 and Feb. 10, 2012.

Consumers with the recalled product should return any unused product to Regeneca Inc. for an exchange or full refund, the FDA said.

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Cancer Drug Shortage Threatens Children's Lives

A shortage of the childhood leukemia drug methotrexate in the United States means that hospitals across the country may run out of the medicine within the next two weeks.

If that happens, cancer doctors and federal officials say that hundreds and perhaps thousands of children will be at risk of dying from a largely curable disease, The New York Times reported.

Methotrexate is used to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), which is most common in children ages 2-5. One of nation's largest suppliers of injectable preservative-free methotrexate was Ben Venue Laboratories. But in November, the company suspended operations at its plant in Bedford, Ohio due to what it called "significant manufacturing and quality concerns."

"This is a crisis that I hope the FDA's hard work can help to avert," Dr. Michael P. Link, president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, told The Times. "We have worked very hard to take what was an incurable disease and make it curable for 90 percent of the cases. But if we can't get this drug anymore, that sets us back decades."

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Rare Brain Disease Strikes Two People in California

Two cases of a rare and fatal brain disease are being investigated by the Marin County Department of Public Health in California.

One woman is dead and another sick after developing Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The two cases are thought to be unrelated, ABC News reported.

"We have no evidence that suggests a causal linkage between the suspect cases nor is there any evidence to suggest a risk in [the] food supply," the health department said in a statement.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease occurs in about one in a million people each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The cause in most cases is unknown, but a small number of cases are inherited, ABC News reported.

Some cases -- called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease -- are linked to mad cow disease. That's been ruled out in one of the Marin County cases and officials suspect the second case is also unrelated to mad cow disease.

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Immune Cells Use Unique Method to Fight HIV: Study

Some types of immune cells resist HIV by denying the AIDS-causing virus the building blocks of life, according to a new study.

Because viruses cannot replicate on their own, they have to take over other cells and use them to produce new viruses, BBC News reported.

The international team of researchers found that some immune system cells destroy their own raw materials in order to stop HIV. The study appears in the journal Nature Immunology.

Experts said it's not clear whether this type of defense could be harnessed for HIV therapy, BBC News reported.

View the original article here

Health Highlights: Feb. 10, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

FDA Warns About Handheld Dental X-Ray Units

Some handheld dental X-ray units sold online are potentially unsafe and should not be used by dentists or veterinarians, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns.

The devices -- which could expose the user and patient to unnecessary and potentially harmful X-rays -- are sold online by manufacturers outside the United States and directly shipped to U.S. customers.

The FDA was alerted about the issue by the Washington State Department of Health, which tested a handheld dental X-ray unit purchased online and found that it did not comply with X-ray performance standards.

To date, no adverse events associated with the devices have been reported, said the FDA, which is investigating the extent of the problem and alerting state regulatory authorities, dental professional groups, and other health organizations about the safety risks.

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New Heparin Production Guidelines Issued by FDA

Draft guidelines for the safe production of the blood thinner heparin were released Friday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Four years ago, contaminated heparin from Baxter International caused allergic reactions in patients and dozens of deaths, Agence France-Presse reported.

Heparin is used to prevent blood clots in millions of patients undergoing kidney dialysis and heart surgery.

The new guidelines are meant for companies that use crude heparin to make drugs and medical devices. The FDA said there is a 60-day review and comment period before the guidelines take effect, AFP reported.

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FDA Issues Guidelines for Review of Lower-Priced Biotech Drugs

Draft guidelines for reviewing the first lower-priced "biosimilar" versions of biotech drugs was released Thursday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Biotech drugs are high-tech medications that cost the United States billions of dollars a year. The new FDA guidelines follow a decades-long effort to lower the price of the drugs, the Associated Press reported.

The specialty cancer drug Avastin is an example of a biotech drug. It costs more than $100,000 a year.

Under the Obama administration's health care overhaul, the FDA was ordered to created a system for approving biosimilar versions of biotech drugs. The agency will accept comments on the draft guidelines for 60 days before finalizing them, the AP reported.

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More Than Half of U.S. Dogs and Cats Too Fat: Survey

Fifty-five percent of adult cats and 53 percent of dogs in the United States are overweight or obese, according to a survey of veterinarians conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention.

That works out to 88.4 million overweight or obese cats and dogs, CBS news reported.

Twenty-two percent of owners with fat dogs and 15 percent of those with fat cats believed their pets were "normal weight," the survey found. APOP founder Dr. Ernie Ward referred to that lack of awareness as the "fat pet gap."

"In simplest terms, we've made fat pets the new normal," he said in a written statement, CBS News reported.

The survey also found that 93 percent of pet owners realize pet obesity is a problem.

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Tassimo Single-Cup Brewers Recalled

Nearly two million Tassimo single-cup brewers have been recalled in the United States and Canada after reports of the appliances spraying hot liquid, coffee grounds or tea leaves onto people.

There have been 140 reports of such problems with the brewers, including 37 cases in which people suffered second degree burns, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Associated Press reported.

The plastic T-disc that holds the coffee or tea in the appliance can burst while brewing, the CPSC said.

About 835,000 Tassimo single-cup brewers are being recalled in the U.S. and 900,000 are being recalled in Canada. The CPSC also said four million packets of Tassimo espresso T-discs are being recalled after 21 reports of problems, the AP said.

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Dozens Ill in N.J. University Outbreak

Norovirus is the suspected cause of an outbreak at Rider University in New Jersey that's resulted in about 40 students being taken to hospitals.

The university said the students from the school's Lawrenceville campus were taken to hospitals late Wednesday night. As of Thursday, some of the students had been discharged and returned to campus, CNN reported.

A similar outbreak began a week ago at nearby Princeton University and is still underway.

"We are coordinating treatment information with that university. We have also informed neighboring institutions," Rider said on its website, CNN reported.

Norovirus causes symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.

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Health Highlights: Feb. 10, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

FDA Warns About Handheld Dental X-Ray Units

Some handheld dental X-ray units sold online are potentially unsafe and should not be used by dentists or veterinarians, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns.

The devices -- which could expose the user and patient to unnecessary and potentially harmful X-rays -- are sold online by manufacturers outside the United States and directly shipped to U.S. customers.

The FDA was alerted about the issue by the Washington State Department of Health, which tested a handheld dental X-ray unit purchased online and found that it did not comply with X-ray performance standards.

To date, no adverse events associated with the devices have been reported, said the FDA, which is investigating the extent of the problem and alerting state regulatory authorities, dental professional groups, and other health organizations about the safety risks.

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New Heparin Production Guidelines Issued by FDA

Draft guidelines for the safe production of the blood thinner heparin were released Friday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Four years ago, contaminated heparin from Baxter International caused allergic reactions in patients and dozens of deaths, Agence France-Presse reported.

Heparin is used to prevent blood clots in millions of patients undergoing kidney dialysis and heart surgery.

The new guidelines are meant for companies that use crude heparin to make drugs and medical devices. The FDA said there is a 60-day review and comment period before the guidelines take effect, AFP reported.

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FDA Issues Guidelines for Review of Lower-Priced Biotech Drugs

Draft guidelines for reviewing the first lower-priced "biosimilar" versions of biotech drugs was released Thursday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Biotech drugs are high-tech medications that cost the United States billions of dollars a year. The new FDA guidelines follow a decades-long effort to lower the price of the drugs, the Associated Press reported.

The specialty cancer drug Avastin is an example of a biotech drug. It costs more than $100,000 a year.

Under the Obama administration's health care overhaul, the FDA was ordered to created a system for approving biosimilar versions of biotech drugs. The agency will accept comments on the draft guidelines for 60 days before finalizing them, the AP reported.

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More Than Half of U.S. Dogs and Cats Too Fat: Survey

Fifty-five percent of adult cats and 53 percent of dogs in the United States are overweight or obese, according to a survey of veterinarians conducted by the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention.

That works out to 88.4 million overweight or obese cats and dogs, CBS news reported.

Twenty-two percent of owners with fat dogs and 15 percent of those with fat cats believed their pets were "normal weight," the survey found. APOP founder Dr. Ernie Ward referred to that lack of awareness as the "fat pet gap."

"In simplest terms, we've made fat pets the new normal," he said in a written statement, CBS News reported.

The survey also found that 93 percent of pet owners realize pet obesity is a problem.

-----

Tassimo Single-Cup Brewers Recalled

Nearly two million Tassimo single-cup brewers have been recalled in the United States and Canada after reports of the appliances spraying hot liquid, coffee grounds or tea leaves onto people.

There have been 140 reports of such problems with the brewers, including 37 cases in which people suffered second degree burns, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Associated Press reported.

The plastic T-disc that holds the coffee or tea in the appliance can burst while brewing, the CPSC said.

About 835,000 Tassimo single-cup brewers are being recalled in the U.S. and 900,000 are being recalled in Canada. The CPSC also said four million packets of Tassimo espresso T-discs are being recalled after 21 reports of problems, the AP said.

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Dozens Ill in N.J. University Outbreak

Norovirus is the suspected cause of an outbreak at Rider University in New Jersey that's resulted in about 40 students being taken to hospitals.

The university said the students from the school's Lawrenceville campus were taken to hospitals late Wednesday night. As of Thursday, some of the students had been discharged and returned to campus, CNN reported.

A similar outbreak began a week ago at nearby Princeton University and is still underway.

"We are coordinating treatment information with that university. We have also informed neighboring institutions," Rider said on its website, CNN reported.

Norovirus causes symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain.

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View the original article here

Health Tip: Coping With Migraines During Pregnancy

US researchers have begun a groundbreaking trial to test the potential of umbilical cord blood transplants, a kind of stem cell therapy, to treat and possibly reverse hearing loss in infants.

View the original article here

Health Highlights: Feb. 8, 2012

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

U.S. Teen Pregnancy Rate at 40-Year Low

The teen pregnancy rate in the United States reached a 40-year low in 2008 after falling 42 percent from its peak in 1990, according to a Guttmacher Institute study released Wednesday.

The pregnancy rate was 68 per 1,000 girls ages 15-19 in 2008, compared with 117 per 1,000 in 1990. The birthrate among teens fell from 61.8 to 40.2 births per 1,000 teens between 1991 and 2008, a 35 percent drop, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The abortion rate among teen girls decreased 59 percent from a peak of 43.5 per 1,000 in 1988 to 17.8 per 1,000 in 2008, the study said.

It also found that teen pregnancies fell among teens in all racial and ethnic groups since 1990, with decreases of 50 percent for whites, 48 percent for blacks, and 37 percent for Hispanics, the Journal Constitution reported.

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Ulcer, Acid Reflux Drugs May Raise Risk of Diarrhea: FDA

A widely-used class of stomach acid-suppressing drugs used to treat conditions such as stomach ulcers and acid reflux disease may be associated with an increased risk of clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (CDAD), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.

These types of drugs are called proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and include brand name drugs such as Nexium and Prilosec, as well as generic drugs. A diagnosis of CDAD should be considered for patients taking PPIs who develop diarrhea that does not improve, the FDA said.

Clostridium difficile is a type of bacteria that can cause watery stool, abdominal pain and fever. Patients with the condition can develop more serious intestinal problems.

The FDA said it is working the drug makers to include information about the increased risk of CDAD on the labels of PPIs. The agency is also reviewing the risk of CDAD in people who take histamine H2 receptor blockers, another class of drugs used to treat conditions such as ulcers and acid reflux disease.

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Walmart Introduces New Healthy Food Standards, Labels

Walmart said Tuesday it will introduce new standards to identify and label healthy foods for consumers.

Beginning this spring, bright green labels with the words Great for You will appear on the company's own Great Value and Marketside food items and on signs around displays of fresh fruits and vegetables, The New York Times reported.

Walmart also plans to allow other brands to use the label on products that meet the criteria and they won't have to pay a licensing fee.

"This is not meant to lecture our customers," Leslie A. Dach, Walmart's executive vice president for corporate affairs, told The Times. "They can buy a dessert when they want to. But when they want to buy a cracker, we can help them steer them to a healthier cracker if that's what they're looking for."

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FDA Should Review Inhaled Caffeine Product: Senator

A new lipstick-sized tube that gives an inhaled shot of caffeine should be reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, a senator says.

AeroShot went on sale last month in Massachusetts and New York. It costs $2.99 for a single unit and can be bought at convenience, liquor and online stores. Each canister contains 100 milligrams of caffeine powder, about the amount in a large cup of coffee, the Associated Press reported.

N.Y. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer says he fears young people will use AeroShot as a club drug so that they can drink until they drop. He wants the FDA to review the product.

An FDA spokeswoman would not comment on the matter and told the AP the agency will respond directly to Schumer.

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White House Aims to Ease Religious Groups' Concerns About Contraception Rule

Obama administration officials say they're looking at ways to ease religious groups' concerns about a new rule that would require all health insurance plans -- including those offered by Catholic universities and charities -- to offer free birth control to women.

For example, some religious-affiliated institutions may be allowed to offer side insurance plans that are not directly paid for by the institution, The New York Times reported.

However, White House officials insisted that President Obama will not reverse his decision that employees at religious-affiliated institutions receive access to birth control.

Despite vocal opposition from Roman Catholic bishops and some Catholic institutions, Obama administration officials noted that recent polls show the majority of Catholics in the United States favor the new contraceptive rule, The Times reported.

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More Autism-Friendly Musicals on Broadway

Autism-friendly performances of the Broadway musicals "Mary Poppins" and "The Lion King" will be offered this spring and fall.

The specially designed matinee showings of "Mary Poppins" on April 29 and "The Lion King" on Sept. 30 were arranged by the nonprofit Theatre Development Fund, which focuses on providing access to live theater, the Associated Press reported.

The Fund received enthusiastic responses after a pilot project last October that featured an autism-friendly performance of "The Lion King."

"It went so much better than any of us had hoped," Victoria Bailey, the Fund's executive director, told the AP. "The value of being able to go to the theater as a family with kids on the autism spectrum and their siblings in an environment that felt safe was huge."

View the original article here

Health benefits of 1,000 bottles of red wine in a pill?

Some experts say that for red wine lovers to see health benefits of resveratrol, a compound purported to add years to your life, they'll need to guzzle excessive quantities of the stuff. But now a new study suggests that a class of drugs can offer the benefits of mega doses of resveratrol, equivalent to drinking something akin to 1,000 bottles of red wine.

Published in the journal Cell on February 3, researchers discovered that a class of drugs being tested as treatments for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases can offer the same health benefits as buckets of red wine, without of course the boozy aftereffects.

These drugs, known as phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE4) inhibitors, were found to mimic the protein-blocking effects of resveratrol while also producing all the similar health benefits of the compound, including potentially preventing obesity and improving blood sugar level stabilization.

The research "reveals a novel utility for this class of drugs that hasn’t been explored before," said study researcher Dr. Jay H. Chung, chief of the Laboratory of Obesity and Aging Research at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in the US.

The study was conducted on mice, so researchers are planning to test one of the drugs, rolipram, on obese people with insulin resistance.

In the meantime, you can rely on one glass of red wine containing about 1 mg of resveratrol. Supplements contain 15 to 500 mg per capsule. Currently, there is no consensus on the safe and effective daily dosage of resveratrol, and supplements are to be avoided by pregnant or breastfeeding women.

The Mayo Clinic defines moderate drinking as two glasses of wine a day for men and one glass a day for women.

Simply eating red grapes with the skin on has been suggested as one way to get resveratrol without consuming alcohol. Other foods that contain resveratrol include peanuts, blueberries, and cranberries.

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