Archive for the ‘Consumer Awareness’ Category

The Yolks On Us : 500 Million eggs recalled for salmonella contamination

There are dozens of carton labels that manufacturers can use. Some are meaningful, but others are just ways to confuse consumers into thinking they’re buying eggs from wholesome and happy chickens. :

cage-free, organic, free-range, free-roaming, natural, pastured, omega-3 enriched, certified humane, United Egg Producers certified

Link to glossary of different egg marketing terms and what they mean … and more importantly don’t.

Link to egg brands affected by the August 2010 recall

(Just goes to show the egg industry is not all it’s cracked up to be).

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FDA Warns of Muscle and Kidney damage from high dosage Zocor

Muscle Injury Risk With Higher Zocor Doses, Certain Other Drugs

Based on review of data from a large clinical trial and data from other sources, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a warning on March 19, 2010 about an increased risk of muscle injury in patients taking the highest approved dose of the cholesterol-lowering medication, Zocor* (simvastatin) 80 mg, compared to patients taking lower doses of simvastatin and possibly other drugs in the “statin” class.

The FDA also warned that mixing Zocor with certain other drugs also increases patients’ risk of muscle injury, including the rare but serious complication known as rhabdomyolysis. Rhabdomyolysis can sometimes result in fatal kidney damage.

“Other drugs” includes incidental exposure to niacin-containing products as innocent as breakfast cereal.

The combination products Vytorin and Simcor also contain simvastatin, the active ingredient in Zocor. Zocor is a member of the class of drugs known as statins. All statin drugs carry a risk of muscle damage, but new data suggest that this risk may be particularly high for the 80 milligram dose of Zocor.

The data come from the SEARCH study, in which muscle damage was seen in nearly 1% of patients taking the 80 milligram dose of Zocor but in only 0.02% of patients taking the 20 milligram dose of Zocor.

Rhabdomyolysis was rare in the SEARCH study. It happened in only 11 of 6,031 patients (0.02%) in group taking the 80 milligram dose of Zocor, but was not seen in patients taking the 20 milligram dose.

Source : FDA

As always, consult your physician before altering your prescribed medication routine.

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Tips to save $$$ at the grocery store

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), it is a common misconception that a healthy meal plan must be costly and consist of high-priced specialty foods.

The ADA offers these tips to save money and help cost-conscious consumers navigate the grocery store shelves:

  • Boneless cuts are often better buys, since you are not paying for the weight of the bone. Think of cost per edible serving rather than cost per pound. Turkey has 46% edible meat per pound, while chicken has 41%.
  • There is no nutritional difference between brown and white eggs. Choose white eggs since they cost less.
  • Vegetables frozen in butter sauce cost twice as much as plain frozen vegetables — and they have more calories.
  • Instead of buying small containers of yogurt, buy a quart and separate it into 1-cup servings yourself.
  • Avoid individually packaged snacks. Reap significant savings with a do-it-yourself approach.
  • Price fruits with an eye on the cost per edible serving. If you are paying by the pound, you will be paying for the inedible seeds and rinds.
  • If fresh fruit is too expensive, buy frozen or canned fruit packed in water. If you buy fruit canned in syrup, rinse it before eating.
  • Use nonfat dry milk for drinking, cooking and baking. It is inexpensive and has a long shelf life.
  • Make your own cooking spray by putting vegetable oil in a spray bottle.
  • Cook your own hot cereal to save money. Regular or quick-cooking oats are much less expensive than instant oats.
  • Dry beans triple in volume when they are soaked and cooked. A 1-pound bag will make six 1-cup servings.
  • When buying fresh greens by weight, be sure to shake off the excess water before you put them in your cart. It is amazing how much water can be hidden in between the leaves.
  • The costs of special “dietetic or diabetic” foods are high and not necessary.

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    Continue To Avoid Any Type Of Dental Metal In Your Mouth

    Take A Bite Out Your Dentists Hide

    Hold out for finding a dentist that uses metal-free zirconia implants which have been used in Europe and South America for a while now.

    Traditional metal dental implants and fillings release metal ions into your mouth 24 hours a day. This chronic exposure may trigger inflammation, allergies, and autoimmune disease in susceptible individuals. They are a precursor to disease.

    Cases of intolerance to metal implants, even the newer ones made of titanium, have been reported. The removal of any incompatible dental material has resulted in reduced metal sensitivity and long-term health improvement in the majority of patients.

    Zirconia is a New Alternative to Titanium Implants

    In recent years, high-strength ceramic implants have become attractive alternatives to titanium implants, and some current research has focused on the viability of materials such as zirconia (the dioxide of zirconium, a metal close to titanium on the periodic table).

    Metal-free zirconia implants have been used in Europe and South America for years, but they have only recently become available in the U.S.

    Zirconia implants are highly biocompatible to the human body and exhibit minimum ion release compared to metallic implants.

    Moreover, zirconia ceramics have been successfully used in orthopedic surgery to manufacture ball heads for total hip replacements.

    Given that titanium dental implants can induce metal sensitivity, inflammation, autoimmunity, and malignant tumors, while zirconia implants are metal-free but just as durable, why invite chronic metal exposure?

    Your body would surely benefit from choosing the biocompatible, ceramic dental implant over the standard, titanium metal implant.

    Click here for the full article.

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    Over the teeth, past the gums

    Researchers from two Australian dental schools reviewed a variety of research projects that investigated the effects of alcohol on oral health. One of those sources included more than 3,200 subjects in a trial that indicated daily mouthwash use might be a significant risk factor for head and neck cancer.

    The Australian study concluded: “There is now sufficient evidence to accept the proposition that alcohol-containing mouthwashes contribute to the increased risk of development of oral cancer.”

    (more…)

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    Posted in Consumer Awareness, WC Douglass | 1 Comment »

    When Pigs Fly . . . Swine Flu

    Published on The Health Gazette

    Natural Antivirals

    Research suggests certain natural foods may be as effective against virus H5N1 as commercial antivirals.

    A Biology teacher from Australia, Stephen Jones, has done extensive research into the H5N1 virus and has compiled a list of natural foods that are effective against it and others that are detrimental.

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    It’s All A Matter of Balance – Understated Quote of the Day

    Important Cod Liver Oil Update

    For years, cod liver oil as been forced on us as children and touted as a dietary supplement to support healthy vitamin D levels. Recent findings could be interpreted that it may not serve you as well as previously believed.

    Cod liver oil contains vitamins D and A in addition to healthy omega-3 fats. These vitamins are essential for most everyone who cannot get regular sun exposure year-round.

    But more recent research has discovered that the ratios of these two vitamins may be of paramount importance in order to extract optimal health benefits, and unfortunately, modern cod liver oil does not supply these vitamins in healthy ratios to each other.

    (more…)

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    Not So Contrarian : Drink Only Water to Wash Down Drugs and Viagra

    New reasons to avoid grapefruit and other juices when taking certain drugs.

    Over the past three years succeedingly more specific studies have come out that basically saying certain drugs should not be taken with grapefruit juice.

    New research shows that it’s probably best to avoid washing down drugs with ANY type of fruit juice.

    (more…)

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    12 Food Additives to Avoid

    If you search the Internet on this subject, the consensus would suggest these additives to your food should be closely watched and limited. If you hear it enough from different sources, there’s the strong possibility that the warnings should be heeded. Read ingredient labels closely and do your own due diligence.

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    Catch A Wave – Not Just For Surfers Anymore . . And Not As Much Fun

    Electromagnetic fields (EMF) exist all around us, emanating from power lines and transformers, antennas, televisions and microwaves. Wi-Fi is a type of radio wave, operating at either 2.4 or 5 gigahertz which is higher than the radio waves on which appliances like cellular phones or televisions operate. This allows for the transmission of large amounts of data, e.g. for laptop computers, but as a result Wi-Fi radio waves emit greater electromagnetic fields than appliances like televisions and microwaves.

    Experts argue back and forth on whether these waves are harmful or not. Studies on cell phone use over time have not far proved a connection between electromagnetic radiation (EMR) and cancer or brain tumors for instance, but it is suggested that it often takes much longer, as much as twenty years for results to show up in clinical studies.

    EMF and EMR have been pointed to in connection with Alzheimers, autism, the disappearance of bees, brain tumors, and disrupting bird migrations, among many other things. We have yet to understand our own human electromagnetic condition and energy fields, so an awareness of potential disruptions to our health from a variety of EMF and EMR sources is something to be aware of, and not just have our collective heads in the sand.

    The number of mobile phone users worldwide soared to over 3.3 billion by the end of 2007, a total penetration rate of 49 percent. That’s half the world’s population !

    Africa showed the greatest increase, and more than two-thirds of all cell phone subscribers now come from developing countries. Cell phones account for nearly 90 percent of all telephone use in Africa. India and China added 154 million and 143 million new subscribers respectively.

    The global annual average growth rate for cell phone subscribers currently stands at 22 percent. However, subscriptions to mobile phone plans increased at a rate of 39 percent annually in Africa between 2005 and 2007, and the rate of increase in Asia over the same period was 28 percent.

    For a real eye opener, go to http://antennasearch.com for locations of antennas and towers in your neighborhood. This poster found 119 antennas and 53 towers within a four mile radius of my home in Jacksonville, Florida, a community that is surburban bordering on rural.

    Results from antennasearch.com

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