Who knew botulism could be so awesome? Botox is Allergan’s cash cow, earning the pharmaceutical company $1.3 billion last year alone. The funny thing about the toxin—originally developed as a biological weapon—is it works for a lot of “off-label” uses as well (like treating anal fissures and preventing hair loss), and Allergan says that non-cosmetic applications could be an even bigger market because health insurers will help pay for the treatments. Likely upcoming FDA-approved treatments: stroke-induced muscle spasms, chronic migraines, and enlarged prostates.
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By 4.9.09
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Peanut distributor refuses to recall peanuts On March 23rd the FDA advised consumers to dispose of any peanut or peanut containing products made or distributed by Westco or Westcott that they find in their homes. That same day it requested a formal recall of all Westco and Westcott products containing peanuts from PCA, and a few days later it requested access to some of its distribution records, but Westco refused to cooperate. [Consumer Reports]
By 4.8.09
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Do you suffer from premature ejaculations? Waitdon’tanswertha—oh too late. Just know that help may be on the way, with the first topical spray proven in medical studies to delay the magic moment six times longer than without. It’s been approved for use in Great Britain but doesn’t have FDA approval in the US yet—although NBC News says we’ll likely see it here in the next couple of years. Update: Consumer Reports says the spray isn’t really all that after all. [MSNBC] (Photo: wili_hybrid)
After Decade-Long Delay, House Tells FDA To Regulate Tobacco
By 4.4.09
The House this week voted to empower the FDA to regulate tobacco, just in case people still smoke even after new taxes push the cost of cigarettes to over $9 per pack and the recession bankrupts everyone. Under the measure, which passed 298-112, the FDA would be able to set nicotine levels, control cigarette advertising, and require companies to provide a full list of cigarette ingredients. As usual, the killjoys in the Senate may force the House to smoke a light version of the cigarette bill…
Pistachios Recalled For Salmonella
By 3.31.09
The FDA recalled three different kinds of pistachios this week for salmonella. [Consumer Reports Safety Blog] (Photo: ?o??ƒx™)
Judge Orders F.D.A. To Make Plan B Available To 17-Year-Olds
By 3.28.09
Great news, 17-year-olds! A federal judge has ruled that you can now avoid accidental babies by partaking in the emergency contraceptive wonder that is Plan B. Back in 2006, the Food and Drug Administration limited the contraceptive to women 18 and over, and ordered pharmacists to hide the drug behind their counters away from other common contraceptives. Judge Edward Korman ruled this week that the agency’s decision was based on politics not science, and that it constituted an unacceptable public health buzzkill.
Zencore Plus Recalled Because You Might Die
By 3.20.09
Activate descending slide whistle: Bodee LLC is recalling boner pill Zencore Plus because if you use it and take organic nitrates you might die. The interaction between the benzamidenafil and the organic nitrates can cause a “life-threatening” risk of a sudden and large drop in blood pressure, the FDA said in a press release, while noting that the probability of such an interaction occurring is unknown.
End Pre-Emption, Support The Medical Device Safety Act
By 3.18.09
Two recent Supreme Court cases on federal pre-emption have made a mess of tort law, confusing and endangering consumers by holding that a patient who is injured by a dangerous drug can sue the manufacturer, but a patient injured by a dangerous medical device cannot. How this happened, and what to do about it, inside.
Obama Announces Plans To Make Food Safe For Human Consumption
By 3.15.09
President Obama this week declared war on the Chinese Poison Train, announcing that the FDA will receive $1 billion in new funds for modern testing labs and additional food safety inspectors. Inspecting less than 5% of our food processing plants is apparently a “hazard to public health, and “it is unacceptable.” So what’s really behind the new policy shift? No, it’s not those melamine murders or salmonella outbreaks. It’s seven-year-old first daughter Sasha Obama!
By 3.12.09
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Our food safety problems have been solved! [The Onion]
Help! This Email Says Various Cold Medicines Will Kill Me!
By 3.10.09
A friend of ours recently got an email forward about the cold medicine ingredient phenylpropanolamine (and its unpleasant tendency to increase the risk of hemorrhagic stroke in women), so she sent it to us for a little “mythbusting.” The email (and its accompanying list of cold medicines and weight loss aids) is alarming, but outdated.
By 3.10.09
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Don’t eat Queso Fresco Fresh Cheese Mexican style soft cheese and Queso Cotija Molido Mexican style grated cheese manufactured and distributed by Peregrina Cheese Corp. It might be full of Listeria monocytogenes, which can cause severe headaches, nausea, diarrhea, or miscarriages.
By 3.9.09
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Worried about toxic makeup? The Environmental Working Group has a database with safety ratings on more than 25,000 personal-care products. [Skin Deep]
Glaucoma Drug Might Grow Lashes, Or Turn Your Blue Eyes Brown
By 3.6.09
Latisse, a new drug that promises longer, fuller lashes, started out as Lumigan, a glaucoma drug. Now’s been approved by the FDA to treat “inadequate” eyelashes, but there are some pretty crazy possible side effects. Like permanent changes to your eye color.
No More BPA Baby Bottles In US?
By 3.6.09
Philips Avent, the nation’s largest seller of baby bottles, announced today that it will voluntarily stop selling bottles containing the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA). Attorneys general from Connecticut and New Jersey had written a letter to several bottle makers asking them to stop, and the Washington Post says the six largest baby bottle manufacturers in the country have voluntarily complied.
Woman Finds Tiny Mammal Vertebra In Peanut M&M
By 3.5.09
A woman in Atlanta bit into a blue peanut M&M and discovered a tiny, blackened bone, probably from a nut obsessed animal who crept into the M&M to eat the peanut, then died of remorse. A Mars rep told the customer it was probably just a peanut twig. Whatever; by our estimations, this animal is most likely smaller than a peanut M&M, but has a comically wide and very short neck. Hmm, maybe we should instead ask an expert to deduce where this bone came from, which is what the customer did.
Supreme Court Rules For Injured Consumer In Big Pharma Case
By 3.4.09
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of Diana Levine in Wyeth v. Levine. Levine, a musician, had her arm amputated when an anti-nausea drug was improperly administered in her artery, and sued the manufacturer for failing to warn of the risks on the drug’s label. Wyeth claimed that her case was pre-empted by federal law.
Tainted Peanut Butter Problems Will Go On For Some While, Says FDA
By 2.27.09
Our sister blog at ConsumerReports.org notes that “current salmonella outbreak caused by tainted peanuts could drag on for as long as two years,” according to the FDA. The Peanut Corp of America may be history, but because peanut butter has such a long shelf life, and because they’re still adding products to the recall list, there may be food items lurking in pantries across the U.S. that are loaded with disease-causing peanuty badness.
