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FDA warns consumers not to purchase or use Arrow Brand Medicated Oil & Embrocation

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today warned consumers not to purchase or use a product called "Arrow Brand Medicated Oil & Embrocation," also labeled as "Aceite Medicinal La Flecha (Spanish) or "箭嘜驅風油 (Mandarin)." The product is potentially toxic and contains two substances, methyl salicylate and camphor, which are poisonous when ingested.

29 May 2010

Scientists offer low-cost solutions to reduce arsenic in drinking water

An estimated 60 million people in Bangladesh are exposed to unsafe levels of arsenic in their drinking water, dramatically raising their risk for cancer and other serious diseases, according to the World Health Organization.

28 May 2010

VBI researchers establish new tree of life for gamma-proteobacteria

A new "tree of life" has been constructed by researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech for the gamma-proteobacteria, a large group of medically and scientifically important bacteria that includes Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, and other disease-causing organisms.

18 May 2010

Australian TGA approves Acetadote for treatment of paracetamol poisoning

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Phebra Pty Ltd. today announced that Acetadote® (acetylcysteine) Injection has been granted regulatory approval for marketing and sale in Australia. Acetadote, an injectable drug used to treat acetaminophen (paracetamol) overdose, was approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), the government agency responsible for regulating drugs and medical devices in Australia.

12 May 2010

Vita Breath may contain hazardous levels of lead, warns FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is advising consumers not to purchase nor consume Vita Breath, a dietary supplement manufactured by American Herbal Lab Inc. of Rosemead, Calif., and marketed at health fairs and on the Internet, because the product may contain hazardous levels of lead.

3 May 2010

Jefferson Medical College surgeon uses artificial liver assist device as bridge to transplantation

Cataldo Doria, M.D., Ph.D., Nicoletti Family Professor of Transplant Surgery at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, and director of the Division of Transplantation at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is the first transplant surgeon in the United States to use a new totally artificial liver assist device as a bridge to transplantation.

27 Apr 2010

Nicotine poisoning linked to weight gain

A new study links nicotine poisoning with weight gain, and concludes tha active smokers, not only those who stop, put on more weight than non-smokers. After four years of analysis in the University of Navarra, those who put on least weight were those who had never smoked.

23 Apr 2010

First Edition: April 22, 2010

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz, working in collaboration with USA Today, writes about the Money Follows The Person program: "Richard Hasselbach and Deborah Kadlec met in a nursing home and dreamed of a life together outside its walls. Their health conditions made living on their own a challenge: Hasselbach, 63, is disabled from a stroke and lost a leg to a blocked artery. Kadlec, 52, has multiple sclerosis. They both use wheelchairs and need help with chores such as bathing, cooking and remembering to take their medicines.

22 Apr 2010

Need for better understanding potential dangers of prescription painkillers

In response to a study published in the April issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine called "Hospitalizations for Poisoning by Prescription Opioids, Sedatives, and Tranquilizers," the Waismann Method of Opiate Detoxification is urging Americans to take measures to better understand and recognize the potential dangers and addictive nature of prescription painkillers.

22 Apr 2010

Study: Tobacco company's nicotine pellet can lead to accidental nicotine poisoning in children

A tobacco company's new, dissolvable nicotine pellet--which is being sold as a tobacco product, but which in some cases resembles popular candies--could lead to accidental nicotine poisoning in children, according to a new study from the Harvard School of Public Health, the Northern Ohio Poison Control Center, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration.

19 Apr 2010

Escherichia coli cases drop in 2009

As per a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) a 12 % drop in rates of Escherichia coli (E.coli) infection has been noted in 2009 as compared to statistics for 2008. This is being seen by federal health officials as a sign that the new food safety measures are effective. Most of the pathogens under study are from the bacteria family like E.coli 0157, salmonella, campylobacter, listeria and vibrio. It was found that food poisoning rates for the most common pathogens have changed little from statistics collected in 2004.

16 Apr 2010

Complicating doctors' work: Prescription drug scams and excessive paper work

News outlets examine two issues affecting doctors' work: patients fraudulently seeking prescriptions and overwhelming paper work.

12 Apr 2010

Prescription overdoses are second leading cause of unintentional deaths in US

"Unintentional poisoning is now the second leading cause of unintentional death in the US," reports Dr. Jeffrey H. Coben of West Virginia University School of Medicine in Morgantown. Among people 35 to 54 years old, unintentional poisoning surpassed motor vehicle crashes as the leading cause of unintentional death in 2005.

6 Apr 2010

Prescription drug abuse reaches epidemic proportions

Poisoning is now the second leading cause of unintentional injury death in the U.S. While several recent high-profile Hollywood celebrity cases have brought the problem to public attention, the rates of unintentional poisoning deaths have been on the rise for more than 15 years.

6 Apr 2010

Older Americans susceptible to fatal injuries

The risk of dying from injuries is increasing for Americans ages 65 and older according to a new report from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Center for Injury Research and Policy.

6 Apr 2010

Bile secretions in small intestine send signals to disease-causing gut bacteria

Bile secretions in the small intestine send signals to disease-causing gut bacteria allowing them to change their behavior to maximize their chances of surviving, Montana State University research associate Steve Hamner told the Society for General Microbiology during its spring meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland.

1 Apr 2010

Renowned expert to present latest research on gut microbes at EICC

Trillions and trillions of bacteria live in the human gut. The thought of all these invisible inhabitants inside you might be yucky, but without them we would not be here at all. Which microbes reside in our gut? Are they harmful? Where do they come from? What do they actually do deep in our bowels? Do pre- or pro- biotics affect them?

25 Mar 2010

Campylobacter cells can survive with biofilm protection

In research published in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, IFR researchers have found that Campylobacter will readily form a biofilm under laboratory conditions, and that, when the bacteria were left in air, they respond to these stressful conditions by more rapidly forming this biofilm.

25 Mar 2010

Study offers new insight on how human brain makes moral judgments

A new study from MIT neuroscientists suggests that our ability to respond appropriately to intended harms - that is, with outrage toward the perpetrator - is seated in a brain region associated with regulating emotions.

25 Mar 2010

On World Water Day, news outlets examine U.N. reports on water, sanitation conditions worldwide

"Human beings are flushing millions of tonnes of solid waste into rivers and oceans every day, poisoning marine life and spreading diseases that kill" 1.8 million children each year, according to a U.N. report (.pdf) released on Monday, Reuters reports.

23 Mar 2010