New Type of Latex Glove Cleared.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/latexglove042508.html

Device Identifies Fatty Deposits in Coronary Arteries.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/arteries050108.html

Combating Antibiotic Resistance.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/antibiotics050108.html

Strengthening Beef Safety.
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/beefsafety042508.html

Salmonella Illnesses May be Linked to Recalled Cereal. http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/cereal041408.html

Reason for recall: tablets may contain twice the approved level of active ingredient .

http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/actavis04_08.html

Reason for recall: product may contain milk protein not declared on label

http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/whitewave04_08.html

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it has received 22 complaints of the upper ball joint separating on either of the front wheels. The problem can lead to the front wheel collapsing, which can disable the vehicle or cause the driver to lose control.

The investigation involves more than 300,000 2002 and 2003 model year Liberty 4X4 SUVs.

Max Gates, a Chrysler spokesman, said Monday the automaker was continuing its investigation. Chrysler has received 74 complaints, but no reports of any accidents or injuries tied to the problem.

Most of the drivers who filed complaints have said the joints separated at speeds of under 20 miles per hour, according to NHTSA. But the government said it received five complaints of the separations happening at speeds of 40 mph or more, including one at 75 mph.

Seven of the separations occurred while the driver was pulling into the flow of traffic and two others happened while the driver was trying to make a left-hand turn across the flow of traffic.

One of the drivers who filed a complaint said they almost got hit by an oncoming truck. Another driver said the front right wheel collapsed while making a turn, causing the vehicle to swerve into a ditch and narrowly missing striking a telephone pole.

NHTSA has upgraded the investigation to an engineering analysis to " assess the scope, frequency and safety consequences of the alleged defect," the agency said in a report on its Web site.

The Food and Drug Administration needs more inspectors and a comprehensive computer database to better track products entering the United States from a growing number of drug manufacturers, brokers and distributors, a top drug safety official told lawmakers Wednesday.

The FDA focuses its inspections on domestic companies, with about 1,200 inspections conducted annually in the United States. Meanwhile, only about 300 foreign facilities are inspected each year. The latter number amounts to only about 10 percent of the firms shipping prescription drugs or their ingredients into the U.S., said Dr. Janet Woodcock, acting director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

The small number of foreign inspections seemed particularly relevant Wednesday as a result of concerns about the blood thinner Heparin. Two weeks ago, the drug was linked to four deaths and adverse reactions in about 350 patients. Millions of patients take the drug every year to avoid potentially life-threatening blood clots.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., chairman of an appropriations panel responsible for funding the FDA, said the agency had not inspected a Chinese factory that may be a source of problems with Heparin, which is manufactured by Baxter Healthcare Corp. She noted that the FDA intended to inspect the manufacturer of an ingredient in the drug, but apparently inspected the wrong factory, and the wrong firm was entered into the FDA's database. She called the case embarrassing, but more than that, it helped demonstrate the FDA's " myriad failures under the Bush administration." She described the agency's work as motivated by ideology and hampered by incompetence.

Lawmakers continually asked Woodcock what additional resources she needed. She was often hesitant to provide specifics, but if she could get more resources, the top two priorities would be to hire more investigators and upgrade the agency's computer systems, she said.

FDA officials said the president's 2009 budget recommended enough funding for an additional 31 full-time employees, on top of the 232 investigators now in the field, but they also acknowledged that substantially all of the money would come from higher user fees that have not yet been approved.

Lawmakers asked Woodcock to level with them about exactly how many more investigators should be hired, so they could potentially provide the money needed. But she said that number depends upon a variety of factors, including how often it's determined that foreign firms should be inspected.

" You're putting me in an awkward position," Woodcock said at one point.

" It's very painful not to get these answers," said Rep. Sam Farr, D-Calif.

In November, the Government Accountability Office found the FDA doesn't know how many foreign firms are actually subject to inspection. The agency has a list of 3,249 firms that it uses to prioritize which ones should be inspected. But at the current rate of inspection, it would take the FDA over 13 years to go through each firm on its list. The agency also cannot say how many foreign firms have never been inspected.

DeLauro noted that funding for foreign inspections has fallen nearly 30 percent under the Bush administration even though the number of firms to be inspected has increased. She called the agency negligent. But Woodcock said the FDA was still the gold standard that other countries tried to model. She said a series of well-publicized drug-safety problems over the years can be partly attributed to the agency getting much better at finding problems.

Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., said he disagreed with DeLauro's description of the agency. He said it was his impression that the FDA has struck the proper balance between safety and getting drugs to the market that can help patients.

" I don't think there is a safety crisis in America," Kingston said.

Some regions of the U.S. have seen life-expectancy rates stagnate or even decline, particularly for women, even as most Americans have seen their life spans lengthen, according to a new county-by-county study by researchers at Harvard University.
The declines weren't strongly associated with race or income, and instead appeared to cluster primarily in certain regions: Appalachia, the Deep South and stretches of the Mississippi River basin, the researchers said.
" It's not just that it's unequal, it's that some people are getting worse off," said Majid Ezzati, an associate professor of international health at Harvard University who was the lead author of the study.
The authors said it is unclear why particular locations saw life expectancy stagnate or worsen. But they said it is likely that more areas, and more men, will see life-expectancy gains slow, stop or backslide as chronic conditions associated with obesity and smoking become more widespread.
The study examined death statistics for nearly every county in the U.S. between 1961 and 1999, the most recent year available at the time the study began. It was funded in part by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and published online in PLoS Medicine, a peer-reviewed online journal of the nonprofit Public Library of Science.
While Americans of all regions saw life-expectancy gains from 1961 to 1983, many counties saw this measure stagnate in the later years of the study, and 191 counties saw statistically significant declines.
Women nationally saw life expectancy rise by 1.28 years from 1983 to 1999, to about 79.6 years. But women in southwestern Virginia's Pulaski County, for example, saw life expectancy decline by 5.8 years, to about 78 years.
Men nationally saw life expectancy rise 3.1 years to 74.1 years, but in Danville, Va., life expectancy fell 2.5 years, to 68.5.
Many areas with the worst showings saw income gains during the time that life expectancies fell. Migration -- for instance, healthy people leaving unhealthy counties -- was unlikely to skew results, the researchers said.
The main culprits were chronic diseases, including diabetes, lung cancer, and congestive heart failure. Christopher Murray, a coauthor of the study and director of the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, called the findings both discouraging and encouraging, since the causes are often preventable or treatable.
Researchers said they don't think poor access to health care can be blamed for all of the declines in life expectancy. " Even if everyone were insured, we'd still be seeing most of the pattern that we're seeing here," Dr. Murray said.

Babies fed canned formula from plastic bottles may be getting a double dose of a potentially harmful chemical, consumer watchdogs warn.

Baby bottles made of clear, hard polycarbonate plastic and the epoxy lining of formula cans both contain bisphenol A, or BPA, a hormone-disrupting chemical linked in animal studies to breast and prostate cancer, infertility, diabetes, early puberty and other health problems.

" Babies have dual exposure from contaminated bottles and contaminated formula," said Anila Jacob, a senior scientist with the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy group in Washington, DC.

Fears of toxic baby products exploded Friday, when the Canadian government announced that in 60 days it would ban the import and sale of baby bottles made with BPA and may also forbid the use of BPA in formula cans.

Canadian Health Minister Tony Clement said scores of studies suggest BPA can put infants up to 18-months-old at risk of " behavioral and neural symptoms later in life."

The chemical is known to leach into a bottle's contents - especially when heated or washed with boiling water.

" Oh, my God. If chemicals are getting into the milk, I'll definitely look for an alternative to protect my baby," said new dad Glenn Gatti, an Upper West Side art director. He and his wife, Angie, use a heating device to warm plastic bottles of formula for their 3-month-old daughter, Violet.

" It's scary, and another thing new parents have to worry about," said Jennifer Brous, a stay-at-home mom from Forest Hills, Queens, who began using plastic bottles after breast-feeding her and husband Josh's 5-month-old daughter, Ellie. " We will both look into a safer bottle, because Ellie is the most important thing in our lives."

The US Food and Drug Administration has not deemed BPA unsafe, but another federal agency, the National Toxicology Program, last week acknowledged " concern" about BPA's health risks.

Retail giant Wal-Mart said it already sells " BPA-free" baby bottles - and plans to stop selling those with the chemical.

" We expect our entire assortment of baby bottles to be BPA-free sometime early next year," a Wal-Mart spokesman said.

Other retailers are expected to follow suit.

The Work Group for Safe Markets, a coalition of US public-health and environmental groups, issued a study last year that found popular brands such as Avent, Disney/The First Years, Dr. Brown's, Evenflo, Gerber and Playtex leached BPA when heated or when warm liquid was poured into them.

Another study last year by the Environmental Working Group said baby-formula makers Nestlé , Similac, Enfamil and PBM all admitted using BPA in the linings of their metal cans. The study found canned formula could expose infants to more BPA than bottles.

The American Chemistry Council, a trade group, insisted that baby bottles and sport bottles made with BPA pose no health risk but agreed further study was needed.

TOP VETS GIVE LIFE SAVING TIPS AND TOP TOXINS TO AVOID

New York, NY - Whether you and your pet are at home or out for a daily walk, potentially toxic substances are everywhere and sometimes all too tempting and tasty for curious pets. From sugar-free gum to common household plants, top toxins are everyday items you may never suspect and can cause serious illnesses and even death in pets. To honor National Poison Prevention Week 2008, specialty veterinarians from NYC Veterinary Specialists offer useful advice on how to keep pets poison free year-round.

&ldquo As an emergency veterinarian, I receive an abundance of calls about dogs and cats that have eaten something suspicious. Naturally, this causes pet owners to panic. We've actually found that what people think will be most harmful, may not be. Surprisingly, it's been the least suspected household items, like sugar-free gum, that may be most harmful,&rdquo says Dr. David Bessler, a Senior Emergency Clinician at NYC Veterinary Specialists in Manhattan.

So, how can pet parents know what's harmless and what isn't?

According to The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals© , in 2007, the ASPCA's Animal Poison Control Center (APCC) in Urbana, Ill. Managed more than 130,000 cases. People everywhere called the APCC's 24-hour hotline with both emergency and non-emergency inquiries.

Top poisoning cases reported consisted of the following common household goods and products:

1. Prescription Drugs: With approximately 89,000 calls received, medications such as painkillers, cold and flu preparations and antidepressants topped the list. According to Dr. Benjamin Davidson, a Critical Care Specialist at NYC Veterinary Specialists, " Pet owners often make the mistake of giving human medications to their pets. Some of the common pain relievers used in people are actually toxic to cats and dogs or need to be dosed differently. I recommend that all pet owners check with their family veterinarian before giving any medications to their pets."

2. Bug and Pest Control Products: &ldquo Some poisons and bait products give off a smell that often lures pets. This is why they work so well on rats and other pests. They can even be sweet to the taste. Pets are drawn to these substances and are curious about them,&rdquo adds Dr. Bessler. " We have seen a number of cases of poisonings of illegally imported toxins disguised as brown grains. These harmful toxins are used to kill rodents and cockroaches. The actual chemical is called Aldicarb and causes neurologic, gastrointestinal and occasionally cardiac issues. When they are used, they should be hidden from pets. If your pet does consume some of this toxin, please contact your family veterinarian immediately. Prompt treatment can be lifesaving," urges Dr. Davidson.

3. Common Household Plants and Seasonal Plants: According to the APCC, In 2007, common household plants such as lilies, azaleas and kalanchoe, were the subject of more than 8,000 calls to the poison center. Rhododendron, sago palm, and schefflera plants also make the list. &ldquo With Easter around the corner, be sure to keep Easter lilies and Tulips away from pets, especially from cats,&rdquo says Dr. Bessler. &ldquo Lilies are considered to be highly toxic to cats even in small amounts they can produce life-threatening kidney failure, even if they ingest just a tiny amount.&rdquo Tulips contain toxins, which can cause intense gastrointestinal irritation, drooling, loss of appetite, depression of the central nervous system, convulsions and cardiac abnormalities.

4. Cleaning Products: Common products such as bleaches, detergents and disinfectants can be extremely harmful for pets. In addition to gastrointestinal distress, irritation to the skin, eyes or respiratory tract may be possible if a pet gets into these types of products. &ldquo Many cleaning products can cause extreme irritation to the eyes and even corneal ulceration. This includes household cleaning products (bleaches, mopping solutions, counter top and window sprays) as well as personal cleaning products (shampoos, perfumes, lotions). Just as with people, the eye should be copiously rinsed with saline (but tap water works in a pinch) and the pet should be taken to a veterinarian to look for ulceration,&rdquo says Dr. Jennifer Welser, board certified veterinary ophthalmologist and Co-Medical Director of NYC Veterinary Specialists.

&ldquo Always keep the ASPCA Poison Control Center's hotline (1-888-426-4435) and your general veterinarian's number handy in case of emergency. When in doubt, always call your family veterinarian,&rdquo adds Dr. Bessler.

HOW A QUICK REACTION SAVED ONE DOG'S LIFE:
An accidental pet poisoning can happen to anyone, even a veterinarian. Board certified specialty veterinarian and a Medical Director of NYC Veterinary Specialists, Dr. Jennifer Welser's own dog suffered from poisoning. Read how her quick reaction and some expert care saved her dog's life:

&ldquo Every morning I walk my two black Labrador-mix dogs, Chaos and Cuppy, along the Hudson River Parkway in Manhattan. As non-discriminate eaters, I am accustomed to my dogs eating many not-so-appealing items off the streets of NYC. Not so long ago, Cuppy munched on something off of the walkway. Almost immediately, I saw the classic green/blue color of rat poison frothing out of her mouth. After a quick investigation to find the source, I was surprised to see there were piles of rat poison crammed down a hole on the side of the path. I stuck my hand inside Cuppy's mouth and scooped out a couple of handfuls of the deadly poison.

Frantically, I raced to work (NYC Veterinary Specialists) with both dogs. Dr. Marion Pattillo, a staff emergency doctor, began the treatment of rat poison ingestion. Cuppy was given apomorphine to induce vomiting and proceeded to vomit three large piles of poison, more than enough to kill her! She was force fed activated charcoal to prevent any systemic absorption of the poison. Baseline blood work was taken and Cuppy was put on an IV fluid supplementation for the day. Although she was able to come home with me that night, we were back in a couple of days for a blood recheck. Luckily, her blood work was fine and thankfully, Cuppy never showed any clinical signs of poison intoxication. I feel very fortunate to have recognized she consumed a poison and that I sought immediate and expert care for her. What you don't know can hurt you (or in this case your pet). Thank you to all my colleagues at NYC Veterinary Specialists for saving Cuppy!&rdquo

Dr. Jennifer Welser is a Board Certified Veterinary Ophthalmologist and Medical Co-Director at NYC Veterinary Specialists and Cancer Treatment Center in New York City.

Dr. David Bessler is a Senior Emergency Clinician at NYC Veterinary Specialists and Cancer Treatment Center in New York City.

Dr. Benjamin Davidson is a Critical Care Specialist at NYC Veterinary Specialists and Cancer Treatment Center in New York City.

ABOUT NYC VETERINARY SPECIALISTS:
Opened in the fall, 2006, NYC Veterinary Specialists was founded with the concept of providing a superior level of patient and client care through close cooperation with the family practitioner. In addition to referral appointments, the hospital is open 24 hours a day for case transfers by the family practitioner and after-hours emergencies. NYC Veterinary Specialists serves as an extension of the general practice. Their specialized services include Behavior, Cardiology, Critical Care, Dermatology, Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Oncology/Radiation, Ophthalmology, Radiology and Surgery.

NYC Veterinary Specialists is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and is located in Manhattan at 410 W. 55th St. between 9th and 10th Avenues, across the street from the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre. For further information, please visit www.nyc-vs.com

Organic Pet Products Click Here: Wholistic Pet Products

Find the Latest Drug Product and Safety Information
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/druginfo041108.html

A Guide to Drug Safety Terms at FDA
http://www.fda.gov/consumer/updates/drugterms041108.html

http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2008/NEW01819.html

Eating too much junk food may contribute to cancer, dementia, stroke and other diseases through lack of vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients in the diet, according to a new theory.
Professor Bruce Ames, of the Children's Hospital of Oakland Research Institute in California, believes that many common disorders associated with aging can be traced in part to poor diet earlier in life.
Research that he presented to the American Association for the Advancement of Science conference in Boston yesterday suggested that taking regular multivitamin supplements could protect against some bad effects of micronutrient deficiencies.
This idea is contradicted by other studies that have shown little benefit to health in taking vitamin and mineral supplements, suggesting that they are no substitutes for a balanced diet rich in fruits and vegetables.
Ames emphasized that his idea was theoretical, and he accepted that much more work into the effects of supplements was needed to provide sound medical advice.
He said shortages of 15 micronutrients, including magnesium and vitamin D, had been associated with greater levels of DNA damage to cells and a raised risk of cancers.
Fifty-six percent of Americans obtained less than the recommended daily amount of magnesium from their diets, 12 percent consumed insufficient zinc, and most African-Americans in vitamin D, which is mainly synthesized by exposure to sunlight and is often lacking in people with dark skin who are living at their higher latitudes.
&ldquo Most of the world's population, particularly the poor, has inadequate intake of one or more micronutrients that a varied and balanced diet should provide,&rdquo he said.
&ldquo Social concern is low because no overt pathology has been associated with these levels of deficiency.&rdquo
Whereas serious vitamin or mineral deficiencies has symptoms, such as scurvy for vitamin C and rickets for vitamin D, mild shortages generally had none.
Ames said it was possible that the body compensated for such shortages by rebalancing metabolism, so that individuals stayed alive for the short term at the cost of their long-term health.
&ldquo The consequences of this homoeostatic response are, for example, DNA damage [future cancer], adaptive immune dysfunction [future disease], and mitochondrial decay [future cognitive dysfunction and accelerated aging],&rdquo he said.
&ldquo Much evidence supports this idea that micronutrient shortages accelerate aging.&rdquo

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