Show Notes 09-06-15

Sunday show 09-6-15

V-J Day
On August 14, 1945, it was announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Since then, both August 14 and August 15 have been known as “Victory over Japan Day,” or simply “V-J Day.”
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Obama Pushes Solar Power--In Arctic Town That Sees Little Sun in Winter
President Obama promoted solar energy to residents of Kotzebue, an Alaskan town located 26 miles north of the Arctic Circle that gets less than six hours of sunlight for 34 days in early December through early January.
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Muslim flight attendant says she was suspended for refusing to serve alcohol
A Muslim flight attendant says she was suspended by ExpressJet for refusing to serve alcohol in accordance with her Islamic faith.
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Bruce Willis Shames Hollywood Liberals With Epic Gift to 500 Exhausted Firefighters
Although they are the exception and not the rule, there are good people in Hollywood who actually put their money where their mouths are and take care of those who are taking care of us.
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Police are calling for a Nationwide boycott of this major fast food chain, here's why
According to Dade County, Fla. authorities, employees at a local Arby’s restaurant refused to serve a police officer based on her profession.
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Man Who Wrote 14th Amendment Explains Who It Included… This Is Going to Devastate Liberals
Following the release of presidential candidate Donald Trump’s proposed immigration policies, a national debate has been sparked regarding the 14th Amendment to the Constitution and the idea of birthright citizenship.
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There Have Been More Jihadist Terror Cases in U.S. in 2015 Than in Any Year Since 9/11
The “Terror Threat Snapshot” for August 2015, released by the majority staff of the House Homeland Security Committee, states the terror threat level in America is high and “getting steadily worse,” and that there have been “more U.S.-based jihadist terror cases in 2015 than in any full year since 9/11.”
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Florida gun maker produces  assault rifle never to used by Muslim terrorists
A new assault rifle being manufactured in central Florida has drawn fire after the gunmaker branded it the “Crusader” and said it was designed “to never be used by Muslim terrorists.”
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Common myths about soda debunked
Soda has been a big part of American pop culture since the 1800s, when it was first marketed as a brain tonic to “invigorate the system” and cure headaches.
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The fiber myth: How much is too much?
High-fiber foods might as well come with a sticker saying, "Need to poop? Eat this." After all, that's pretty much what cereal commercials, doctors, and everyone else are saying. But, it turns out that fiber might actually be what's backing you up.
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Show Notes 08-06-2015

Thursday show 08-06-15

Weed: Good for the Bones?

Got pot? Marijuana might take a cue from the famous advertising slogan for milk. A new study suggests that weed might be good for the bones.

The compound cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD), which is a nonhallucinogenic chemical in marijuana plants, helps heal bone fractures, the research finds.

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Study: Spicy food may help you live longer

Adding a little spice to your life could make it last longer.

A Harvard study tracked people who ate spicy foods at least three to five times per week and compared their health to those who ate them less than once a week.

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Most States waiving work requirements for food stamps despite improving job numbers

Most states still are waiving work requirements for those on food stamps, raising concerns that despite an improving job market the Obama administration is feeding government dependency -- and all at the expense of taxpayers.

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States ask Obama administration to put power plant rules on hold

The campaign to stop President Barack Obama's sweeping emissions limits on power plants began taking shape Wednesday, as 16 states asked the government to put the rules on hold while a Senate panel moved to block them.

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Al Qaida urges: “Strike America in its own home”

The Yemen branch of al-Qaida has put out a call for terror attacks against Americans, saying lone wolf radicals ought to launch immediate strikes on U.S. soil.

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UN forum to focus on surging antisemitism

Fox News reports that a surge in anti-Semitic attacks by Muslims in France has sparked an “unprecedented” wave of immigration in Israel. And in the United Kingdom, Breitbart reports, anti-Semitism is on the rise as hate crimes have more than doubled over the last year.

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3D-Printed Spy Drones Could Be Built at Sea

A 3D-printed drone was recently launched from a British military warship and successfully flew to shore, a demonstration that could pave the way for futuristic spy drones that can be printed at sea.

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Bug Bots! These Insect-Inspired Robots Can Jump on Water

Swarms of robots inspired by water-hopping insects could one day be used for surveillance, search-and-rescue missions and environmental monitoring, researchers say.

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Muslim Brides Undergoing Painful Vaginal Surgery to 'Re-virginize' for Wedding Nights

It seems like you can regain virginity...

From FNC:

On her wedding night, Aisha Salim will hand her blooded sheets to her in-laws as proof of her virginity, according to a story in The Daily Telegraph of Australia.

But there’s one problem. Being a modern English university graduate, she is far from the traditional untouched Muslim bride.

Like most woman her age, Salim has smoked, drank, had sex and even lived with one of her past boyfriends.

However, if the devout Muslim family of her soon-to-be husband – or even her own family – knew this, she could be murdered.

Aisha has opted to have her virginity surgically restored in a delicate but painful surgery called hymenoplasties -- where the hymen is re-created from the already torn tissue, or a new membrane is inserted.

"If my husband cannot prove to his family that I am a virgin, I would be hounded, ostracised and sent home in disgrace,” Salim told England’s Daily Mail.

“My father, who is a devout Muslim, would regard it as the ultimate shame. The entire family could be cast out from the friends and society they hold dear, and I honestly believe that one of my fanatically religious cousins or uncles might kill me in revenge, to purge them of my sins. Incredible as it may seem, honour killings are still accepted within our religion.

"Ever since my family arranged this marriage for me, I've been terrified that, on my wedding night, my secret would come out. It has only been since my surgery last week that I've actually been able to sleep properly. Now, I can look forward to my marriage."

Salim is far from alone in seeking such drastic -- and almost barbaric -- surgery.

The rise in Islamic fundamentalism has seen 24 women in the U.K. have the procedure between 2005 and 2006.

You can't make this stuff up! Hopefully they won't circumcise her as well....

Technorati Tags: world news, Islam, revirginization, hymenoplasties

Virus Starts Like a Cold But Can Turn Into a Killer

I know it is WaPo, but it is not political so we can use it. This is just a heads up to see your doctor if your symptoms do not go away and start getting worse.

From WaPo:

Infectious-disease expert David N. Gilbert was making rounds at the Providence Portland Medical Center in Oregon in April when he realized that an unusual number of patients, including young, vigorous adults, were being hit by a frightening pneumonia.

"What was so striking was to see patients who were otherwise healthy be just devastated," Gilbert said. Within a day or two of developing a cough and high fever, some were so sick they would arrive at the emergency room gasping for air.[snip]

Gilbert alerted state health officials, a decision that led investigators to realize that a new, apparently more virulent form of a virus that usually causes nothing worse than a nasty cold was circulating around the United States. At least 1,035 Americans in four states have been infected so far this year by the virus, known as an adenovirus. Dozens have been hospitalized, many requiring intensive care, and at least 10 have died.[snip...]

"This virus has the capability of causing severe respiratory illness in people of all ages, regardless of their medical condition," said John Su, a disease investigator for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention based in Texas, where the largest outbreak is tapering off at an Air Force base after 10 months. Other outbreaks have been reported in Washington state and South Carolina, along with a single case in an infant in New York City.

"What people need to understand is that there is a virus out there that can make you very, very sick," Su said. "If you have a bad cold and your symptoms keep getting worse, go see your doctor. This is nothing to be necessarily alarmed about. But it is important to be aware that this bug is out there."

"Infectious agents have the capacity to mutate and change form, and from time to time, either genuinely new agents appear or old agents appear in new guises," said William Schaffner, an infectious-disease expert at Vanderbilt University. "This appears to be another one of those emerging infections that has taken on genetic material or mutated so that it is now more virulent than it used to be."

The virus, which spreads like those that cause flu or colds, raises many questions: Why has it suddenly become more common? Why is it apparently more dangerous? How often does it make people seriously ill? Who is most vulnerable? Is the threat growing or fading?

"We don't know why it's associated with these severe cases," said Dean D. Erdman, who is studying the virus at CDC headquarters in Atlanta. "We don't know whether it's going to become a bigger problem in the future or whether we'll see more outbreaks of severe disease. These are all questions we're trying to answer."

There are 51 known strains of adenovirus, ubiquitous germs that cause many illnesses, including colds, pinkeye, bronchitis, stomach flu and a respiratory infection called boot camp flu that has long plagued soldiers. But adenovirus infections rarely have been life-threatening, especially for healthy young adults.

The new adenovirus is a variant of a strain known as adenovirus 14. First identified in Holland in 1955, it has caused sporadic outbreaks in Europe and Asia. No outbreaks, however, had ever been documented in the Western Hemisphere.

But then Gilbert started seeing patients like Joseph Spencer, 18, a high school varsity swimmer who was suddenly racked by fever, chills and vomiting.

"At first I thought it was just the flu," Spencer said. "But then it was the worst feeling I ever had. I felt so miserable. I really felt like I was dying."

Spencer's mother took him to the emergency room, where he was placed in intensive care, sedated and put on a respirator. "Even then, we told the family we didn't think he was going to survive," Gilbert said.

The teen spent 18 days in the hospital and was able to return home. But after weeks of bed rest and physical therapy, he remains short of breath and weak, and he is having memory problems.

"I don't know if I'll ever be fully recovered," Spencer said. "I never imagined anything like this would ever happen to me."

Spencer was not even the sickest. Of the 30 patients Oregon officials identified as having the virus, seven died. "That's an incredibly high mortality rate," Gilbert said.

At about the same time, health officials learned of another outbreak affecting four residents of a nursing home in Washington state, including one person who died, as well as a far larger outbreak at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. At least 579 recruits have been infected since February at the base, including at least 24 who had to be hospitalized. One recruit, Paige Villers, 19, of Norton, Ohio, died after getting mononucleosis and the virus.

"All of a sudden out of nowhere she just got sick," said Villers's mother, Michelle. "She thought it was just something she needed to fight off. But instead of getting better, she just got worse and worse."

Another 220 cases later turned up at other Texas military bases, along with about 200 more cases at the Marine Corps' Parris Island installation in South Carolina.

Investigators also determined that an otherwise healthy 12-day-old girl who died in Manhattan in May 2006 had been infected with the same strain.

A genetic analysis of the microbe at the CDC revealed that the currently circulating version of the virus is slightly different from the original 1955 strain, suggesting the microbe had mutated in some way to make it more virulent. [snip...]

The CDC reported the emergence of the virus and 362 cases on Nov. 16, but additional infections have since occurred in Texas and the report did not include the South Carolina patients.

In Oregon, further testing has shown that the virus now accounts for more than half of all adenovirus infections. "That's shocking," said Paul Lewis, a state health investigator. "It went from being imperceptible to being the majority."

Technorati Tags: health, virus, deadly virus, adenovirus

AMA to vote on "internet/video-game addiction" as medical condition

The Sun-Sentinel reports that the AMA will vote on making internet/video game addiction a medical condition. Which means, This will get passed off to the Psychiatric community. Yup, you read that right, little Johnny will be going to the shrink for being overly into playing video games. Hey parents! Turn off the dang box! What we have is a lack of Parenting, not a medical problem. This is ridiculous and now the medical community is enabling bad parenting. Doctor Spock was the worse thing to happen to this country when it comes to parenting. If time out doesn't get er done than it is time to up the anti and yes, spanking is necessary some times. Stop releasing your little monsters on th rest of the world! Your kid does not need you to be their friend, they need you to be their parent! Got it?

Technorati Tags: news, parenting, medical, AMA, video games, psychiatric

Man with rare tuberculosis tells his tale

This stuff is just going to get worse...

From the International Herald Tribune:

A man with a form of tuberculosis so dangerous that he is under the first U.S. government-ordered quarantine since 1963 has described how he took one trans-Atlantic flight for his wedding and honeymoon and another because he feared for his life.

Hundreds of health officials around the world are now scrambling to track down passengers who were seated near the man, said Julie Gerberding, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on Wednesday.

"There are two aspects to this," Gerberding said. "One is, is the patient himself highly infectious? Fortunately, in this case, he's probably not. But the other piece is this bacteria is a very deadly bacteria. We just have to err on the side of caution."

Health officials said that the man had been advised not to fly and that he knew he could expose others when he boarded the jets from Atlanta to Paris, and later from Prague to Montreal.

The man, however, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that doctors had not ordered him not to fly and had only suggested that he put off his long-planned wedding in Greece.

He knew that he had a form of tuberculosis and that it was resistant to first-line drugs, but he did not realize it could be so dangerous, he said.

"We headed off to Greece thinking everything's fine," said the man, who declined to be identified because of the stigma attached to his diagnosis.

He flew to Paris on May 12 aboard Air France Flight 385. While he was in Europe, the health authorities reached him with the news that further tests had revealed his TB to be a rare, "extensively drug-resistant" form, far more dangerous than he knew. They ordered him into isolation, saying he should turn himself over to Italian officials.

Instead, the man flew from Prague to Montreal on May 24 aboard Czech Air Flight 0104, then drove into the United States. He told the newspaper he was afraid that if he did not get back to the United States he would not get the treatment he needed to survive.

He is now at Grady Memorial Hospital, in Atlanta, in respiratory isolation.

With the free travel, immigration, both legal and illegal, Diseases that have been wiped out in the USA are reappearing. This seems like a new form of resistant TB, but illegal aliens from south of the border have already brought TB and resistant TB back to the U.S. along with other diseases and bed bugs.

Now to get to another point his story points out. If our health care system is so bad and Europe.s socialized medicine is so good, why did he go to such great lengths to get back to the USA? Well, in his own words: " he was afraid that if he did not get back to the United States he would not get the treatment he needed to survive." Yup, and every Dem running for President wants to FIX our failing health system, careful folks...

Technorati Tags: news, health care, democrats, TB, resistant tuberculosis, socialism,

Is the government cheating our soldiers?

This is a disturbing story about wounded soldiers being discharged under Chapter 5-13, meaning diagnosed with personality disorder. It gets them discharged faster, but they lose any disability benefits they would have been entitled to. Also, if they got a re-enlistment bonus they have to pay back part of it, for the portion of their enlistment they do not finish. I don't trust the source, the Nation, but the story seems legit. It is a very long article, but I am asking you to go read it and contact your elected cockroaches if you are as upset as I am.

Hat tip: Double Barreled Opinions

Technorati Tags: military, benefits, news, politics, war, justice, 5-13, discharge

FDA Wants to regulate juice?

I have already commented, this is absolutely ridiculous!


Dear Reader,

Here’s a good one: Imagine vegetable juice is a drug.

Crazy thought, isn’t it? And yet, this is exactly what FDA officials are thinking. And I’m not speaking hypothetically. They really are thinking: “If vegetable juice is reclassified as a drug, it will be ours to regulate.”

“But why stop at vegetable juice?”

You can bet they’re thinking that too.

--------------------------------------------
Getting juiced
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In the e-Alert “This Is It” (4/16/07), I told you about the FDA plan to impose harsh new regulations on dietary supplements (vitamins, minerals, and herbs), and even food products that might be used to treat health problems.

The proposed guidelines appear in a document posted on the FDA web site. And here’s what the document has to say about vegetable juice: “If the juice therapy is intended for use as part of a disease treatment regimen instead of for the general wellness, the vegetable juice would also be subject to regulation as a drug.”

Do you drink lots of orange juice when you come down with a cold? Under the new guidelines, orange juice would be considered a drug.

Do you find relief from arthritis pain when you take chondroitin and glucosamine? That would be considered drug use.

Do you take curcumin (a component of curry) to help inhibit cancer tumor growth? Again: drug use.

One of the worrying aspects of these guidelines is that they’re vague and poorly written. And fuzzy language will work entirely in favor of the FDA when it comes time to interpret the guidelines. HSI Panelist Jon Barron listed these problems that are likely to unfold if the guidelines are adopted:

* More confusion
* More cost
* Less access to health
* Denial of freedom of access

You can read all of Jon’s comments in his blog at www.jonbarron.org.

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An unexpected gift?
--------------------------------------------

In recent days a new wrinkle has developed concerning the deadline the FDA set for accepting comments about the proposed guidelines.

Last week, the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) informed the FDA of an error found in the Federal Register notice that set April 30, 2007 as the deadline for comments. The original draft guidance appeared in the Federal Register on February 27, 2007, along with this note: “Comments and suggestions regarding this draft document should be submitted within 90 days of publication in the Federal Register of the notice announcing the availability of the draft guidance.”

In a letter to the FDA, an attorney for the AHPA noted that this would put the actual deadline at May 29, 2007, offering the public much more time to submit comments regarding the new guidelines. Unfortunately there’s been no response yet from the FDA about whether the deadline will be extended, so for the moment we have to assume that the deadline for comments is less than a week away. (If that deadline is extended, I’ll let you know about it as soon as we get word.)

In the meantime, it’s time to raise our voices.

First, I strongly urge you share this e-Alert with your friends and family members who value our right to make our own healthcare choices, unimpeded by absurd regulations that would restrict food consumption in the same way drugs are restricted.

You can find the full text of the FDA document at this link: http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/DOCKETS/98fr/06d-0480-gld0001.pdf

And you can use this link to submit your comments (be sure to note Docket No. 2006D-0480, and the title of the document: “Draft Guidance for Industry on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Products and Their Regulation by the Food and Drug Administration”): http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/oc/dockets/comments/COMMENTSMain.CFM?EC_DOCUMENT_ID=1451&SUBTYP=CONTINUE&CID=&AGENCY=FDA

In addition, we also need to let our representatives in Washington know that we strongly resist this attack on our healthcare freedom. You can find the names and e-mail addresses for your congressmen at this web site: congress.org.

And you can be sure, as always, that we here at HSI will be watching this one closely so we can fill you in on further developments.

Technorati Tags: food, health, news, fda, natural, remedies, remedy, herbs, juice

Board: Pharmasists Must Fill Prescriptions

People that fight this pill are being too radical...

From The Las Vegas Sun:

Druggists who believe "morning-after" birth control pills are tantamount to abortion can't stand in the way of a patient's right to the drugs, state regulators have decided.

In a unanimous vote Thursday, the state Board of Pharmacy ruled that drug stores have a duty to fill lawful prescriptions despite an individual pharmacist's personal objections to any particular medication.

Pharmacists or drug stores that violate the rules could face discipline from the board, which has the power to revoke state licenses.

The Washington State Catholic Conference and Human Life Washington, an anti-abortion group, predicted a court challenge, saying the rule wrongly forces pharmacists to administer medical treatments they consider immoral.

"I don't think pharmacists who adhere to traditional moral precepts are going to allow their conscience to be overrun by the Board of Pharmacy," said Dan Kennedy, Human Life's chief executive. {snip]

Sold as Plan B, emergency contraception is a high dose of the drug found in many regular birth-control pills. It can lower the risk of pregnancy by as much as 89 percent if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

Some critics consider the pill related to abortion, although it is different from the abortion pill RU-486 and has no effect on women who already are pregnant.

The federal Food and Drug Administration made the morning-after pill available over the counter to adults in August.

Under the new state rule, pharmacists with personal objections to a drug could opt out by getting a co-worker to fill an order. But that would only apply if the patient is able to get the prescription in the same pharmacy visit.

Pharmacies would be required to order new supplies of a drug if a patient asks for something that is not in stock.

Pharmacists are also forbidden to destroy a prescription or harass patients, rules that were prompted by complaints from Washingtonians, chairwoman Rebecca Hille said.

The rule will take effect in mid-June, Health Department spokesman Jeff Smith said.

It is not abortion, it PREVENTS pregnancy. It is noting more than a high dose birth control pill. I know radical right to lifers and the Catholic Church is against birth control, but everyone else who is against abortion should be for this pill; it will lower abortion use! Some times I just don't understand people. This should be supported by right to lifers, not fought.

As to the pharmacists, shame on them. Doctors prescribe medicine, not pharmacists. If a Doctor prescribes a medication it is your job to dispense it, unless the doctor made a mistake medically and the medicine will do harm to the patient. If the government makes it over the counter then you dispense it if asked. If you cannot handle that, find a new job.

This is worse than Muslims refusing to take people in their cabs and not ringing up pork products. Now we have Christian right to lifers supporting the pharmacists refusing service, that is sad. It is the same problem, but at least they are not refusing medicine! Although I am sure they would if they were pharmacists.

If your religion is not compatible with your job, get a new job.

Plastic Baby Bottles May be Harmful

Oh, isn't this just wonderful...

From the San Francisco Chronicle:

Glass baby bottles, replaced decades ago by unbreakable plastic, are making such a comeback that parents can't get their hands on them.

Online and brick-and-mortar retailers report a run on glass baby bottles in recent weeks that they say was spurred by reports that the most common type of plastic in baby bottles may leach a toxic chemical. [snip]

Independent tests done for The Chronicle and reported in November found bisphenol A, a chemical that mimics estrogen, in a baby bottle and several toys. Bisphenol A is also found in the lining of food cans, some anti-cavity sealants for teeth, and electronics.

Then, in late February, Environment California, an advocacy group, released a report titled "Toxic Baby Bottles" that drew intense national media coverage.

When heated, five of the most popular brands of polycarbonate -- the clear, shatterproof plastic used in baby bottles -- leached bisphenol A at levels that have been found to cause harm in laboratory animals, Environment California found.

Even at low levels, bisphenol A has been linked to abnormalities in the mammary and prostate glands and the eggs of laboratory animals, scientists say. Animal tests also show bisphenol A can speed up puberty and add to weight gain, and may cause changes that can lead to breast and prostate cancer. [snip]

Gee,this might explain why kids are going through puberty and earlier ages, don't you think? This might be contributing to with the child obesity problem, don't you think?
Well let's see what the industry has to say...

Makers of polycarbonate bottles and industry representatives say parents have been alarmed unnecessarily about a product that meets federal standards and has been in widespread use for more than 25 years. And some questioned using glass bottles.

"I think parents are arguably being misled into buying products that may not be as safe," said Steve Hentges, a spokesman for the American Chemistry Council, which represents manufacturers of bisphenol A -- sometimes known as BPA -- and other chemicals.

It's irrefutable that glass can shatter, Hentges said. But there is "no scientific basis to conclude that BPA is something to be concerned about ... at the extremely low levels that people might be exposed to from use of consumer products."

Of course, there is nothing to worry about...

FDA Warns Again About Arsenic in Mineral Water

Mineral water is good for you...

From the FDA:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is re-issuing its warning to consumers not to drink "Jermuk" brand mineral water due to the risk of exposure to arsenic, a toxic substance and a known cause of cancer in humans. The agency is providing this information again to consumers due to an expansion of the recall initiated by the products' importers and distributors. "Jermuk" water is imported from Armenia and distributed under different labels in California. Five brands of these products have been recalled since March 7.

The latest recall, which was initiated on March 16 by the product's distributor, Andreas Andreasyan DBA Arnaz & Nelli Co., North Hollywood, CA., is for "Jermuk Natural Mineral Water Fortified with Gas from the Spring". This product is additionally labeled as "Produced by Sam-Har Co. Republic of Armenia" and "Exclusive Distributor in USA: Arnaz & Nelli Inc., CA 91605".

Although arsenic is a well known human poison, there is little chance that someone would become seriously ill after consuming the recalled products over a brief period of time (days to weeks). However, it is likely that the person would experience nausea, abdominal pain and possibly vomiting, which are indicators of arsenic toxicity.

FDA has sampled the contents of 500 milliliter (mL) green glass and/or plastic bottles of all of these brands and found they contained 454-674 micrograms of arsenic per liter of water. FDA's standard of quality for bottled water allows no more than 10 micrograms per liter.

The agency is investigating whether other bottle sizes or types of packaging contain similarly tainted products, and will continue working to remove all such bottled water from the market.

There have been no illnesses reported at this time. Consumers who drank this water and have concerns are encouraged to contact their health care provider.

FDA may provide additional updates as more information becomes available.

The following products were recalled on March 7:

• "Jermuk Original Sparkling Natural Mineral Water Fortified With Natural Gas From The Spring". The product is in glass bottles and is additionally labeled as "2006 Jermuk Mayr Gortsaran CJSC" and "Imported by: Zetlian Bakery Inc." The importer and distributor is Zetlian Bakery, Inc., Pico Rivera, CA.
• "JERMUK,1951, NATURAL MINERAL WATER, JERMUK MAYR GORTSARAN CJSC." The product is in plastic bottles which are additionally labeled as "Imported by: Zetlian Bakery Inc." The importer and distributor is Zetlian Bakery, Inc., Pico Rivera, CA.
• "Jermuk Sodium Calcium Bicarbonate and Sulphate Mineral Water". The product is additionally labeled as "Bottled by ARPI Plant, Republic of Armenia" and "Exclusive US importer and distributor: Importers Direct Wholesale Co., Los Angeles, CA". The product is being recalled by Importers Direct Wholesale Company, Los Angeles, CA.
• "Jermuk, Natural Mineral Water Sparkling". The product, recalled on March 7 is additionally labeled as "Bottled by Jermuk Group CJSC" and "Sale Agent Kradjian Importing Co. Inc." in Glendale, CA. The product is being recalled by Kradjian Importing Company, Glendale, CA.

FDA Launches Web Page Warning Against Buying Accutane

I went to the FDA looking for more info on the pet food recall and found some important info...

From the FDA:

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is launching a special Web page to warn consumers about the dangers of buying isotretinoin (Accutane) online. Isotretinoin is a drug approved for the treatment of severe recalcitrant nodular acne that does not respond to antibiotics. Improperly used, isotretinoin can cause severe side effects, including birth defects. Serious mental health problems have also been reported with isotretinoin use.

The Web page, http://www.fda.gov/buyonline/accutane, will be positioned as a search result on Google and other search engines when a consumer initiates an online search for the drug under any one of its four names (Isotretinoin is sold under the brand name of Accutane and in generic versions called Amnesteem, Claravis, and Sotret.) The web page warns that the drug "should only be taken under the close supervision" of a physician or a pharmacist, and provides links to helpful information, including ways to check that drugs purchased online come from legitimate pharmacies.

"This Web page is yet another step we're taking to ensure the safe use of a drug that can provide significant health benefits when used properly, but that can also cause very serious side effects if used without supervision of a health professional," said Steven Galson, M.D.,M.P.H., Director, FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

FDA Announces Voluntary Withdrawal of Pergolide Products

Just a heads up...

From the FDA:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today announced that manufacturers of pergolide drug products, which are used to treat Parkinson’s disease, will voluntarily remove these drugs from the market because of the risk of serious damage to patients’ heart valves.

The products being withdrawn are Permax, the trade name for pergolide marketed by Valeant Pharmaceuticals, and two generic versions of pergolide manufactured by Par and Teva. Pergolide is in a class of medications called dopamine agonists and is used with levodopa and carbidopa to manage the symptoms (tremors and slowness of movement) of Parkinson’s disease.

In 2006, an estimated 12,000 patients received prescriptions for pergolide from retail pharmacies in the United States. Patients taking pergolide should contact their doctors to discuss alternate treatments. Patients should not stop taking the medication, as stopping pergolide abruptly can be dangerous.

There are alternative therapies available for Parkinson’s disease, including three other dopamine agonists that have not been associated with valvular heart disease. The removal of pergolide products is not expected to adversely affect patient care because of the alternative therapies available.

Tests show Tony Snow's cancer has returned

Man this is tough news...

From the AP:

The colon cancer that Tony Snow successfully battled two years ago has returned and spread to the presidential spokesman's liver, the White House said Tuesday.

President Bush, making a brief statement to reporters in the Rose Garden, struck an optimistic tone that echoed how aides said Snow was feeling. The president spoke with Snow early Tuesday, and said he looks forward to the day that his spokesman "comes back to the White House and briefs the press corps on the decisions that I'm making."

"His attitude is, one, that he is not going to let this whip him, and he's upbeat. My attitude is that we need to pray for him, and for his family," Bush said. "And so my message to Tony is, 'Stay strong; a lot of people love you and care for you and will pray for you.' "

Doctors determined the growth was cancerous, and also found during the surgery that his cancer had metastasized, or spread, to his liver, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

She said Snow is comfortable and feeling fine after his surgery and has pledged to aggressively fight the disease with an as-yet-to-be-determined chemotherapy treatment course. He will be in the hospital recovering from the surgery, a major procedure, for about a week.

"He said he's going to beat it again," Perino said in an emotional morning briefing with White House reporters. "When I talked to him, he was in very good spirits."...snip

How long they survive depends on how much of the liver is affected, and how many other parts of the body are, too.

In a small proportion of patients, the liver cancer is contained to a small enough area that it can be cut out. If surgery is not an option, doctors may try to limit the cancer's spread through the liver with radiofrequency ablation, using radiofrequency energy to blast the tumors.

Chemotherapy is a mainstay when the cancer has spread to more than one site, with the hope of controlling, even shrinking, tumors to prolong life.

Chemotherapy can turn cancer into something people can live with, said Dr. James Watson, the attending surgeon at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. "In this day and age, a diagnosis of a recurrence of colon cancer is far from a death sentence," he said.

To have to fight Cancer once is bad enough, but twice? He never appeared to have regained his vitality from his first fight with cancer. He never put the weight back on, so I am worried.

This has been some week, since Mrs John Edwards announced that her breast cancer, which she also thought she beat, also announced her cancer had moved to her bones. Her cancer is incurable, but treatable. Of course, the treatments are very expensive, but the Edwards can afford it.