Dr. Government

Widespread placebo prescriptions prompt debate over the ethics of overmedication

"Almost all UK GPs have at some point given a patient a treatment they don’t need. While few GPs gave sugar pills or saline injections (only 1% admitted to doing this on a regular basis), most had given what the paper called 'impure placebos'. These they defined as treatments that can be effective in some instances, but not for the suspected condition or not at the dose prescribed. More interestingly, the survey also asked the doctors’ opinions on the ethicality of such treatment. Doctors seemed more comfortable ethically with prescribing impure placebos. However, more than 90% thought prescribing either pure or impure placebos was unacceptable." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWidespread placebo prescriptions prompt debate over the ethics of overmedication

US issues health warning over mercury fillings [2008]

"Amalgam dental fillings – which contain the highly toxic metal mercury – pose a health risk, the world's top medical regulatory agency has conceded. After years of insisting the fillings are safe, the US government's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a health warning about them. It represents a landmark victory for campaigners, who say the fillings are responsible for a range of ailments, including heart conditions and Alzheimer's disease. The FDA is now reviewing its rules and may end up restricting or banning the use of the metal." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS issues health warning over mercury fillings [2008]

After ‘Tan Mom,’ New Jersey bans children from tanning beds, spray tans

"Under the new law, youth age 17 and older must have a parent or guardian present for an initial consultation with a tanning salon. It also bans children under 14 from getting spray tans in tanning salons. Governor Chris Christie said that while he does not favor government regulation of small business, the new law was important for protecting the safety of minors. Patricia Krentcil, who became known in tabloid stories as the "Tan Mom," denied exposing her daughter to a tanning session, and a grand jury opted not to indict her on charges of endangering the welfare of a child." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAfter ‘Tan Mom,’ New Jersey bans children from tanning beds, spray tans

U.S. launches new major anti-smoking campaign

"US health officials launched a hard-hitting offensive aimed at slashing the numbers of smokers across the country following the success of a similar campaign last year. The new campaign encourages smokers to kick the habit with a series of adverts spotlighting the wrenching personal stories of individuals battling smoking-related illnesses or diseases. The number of calls to health services doubled to around 200,000 during the 2013 campaign, which cost $54 million and lasted 12 weeks." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. launches new major anti-smoking campaign

First Lady Michelle Obama launches new campaign against childhood obesity

"First Lady Michelle Obama took her campaign against childhood obesity to a new level Thursday with a $150 million program to encourage more physical activity in American schools. Let’s Move! Active Schools builds upon the Let’s Move! initiative that the mother-of-two and wife of Barack Obama unveiled three years ago during the president’s first term in the White House. Funded by a public-private partnership, Let’s Move! Active Schools aims within five years to get 50,000 schools across the United States to provide at least one hour of physical activity per day to their youngsters." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFirst Lady Michelle Obama launches new campaign against childhood obesity

Sugar industry would wither without big government

"Without the Army Corps of Engineers' dredging and building, the cane growers wouldn't have the soil or the irrigation they need. Without Washington's decades of rigging the labor market, the companies wouldn't have had the workers they needed before mechanization. Now the industry says it deserves to be protected from foreign competition. And the growers are putting their profits behind the fight." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSugar industry would wither without big government

Diet soda tied to heart attack, stroke risks

"Diet soda may benefit the waistline, but a new study suggests that people who drink it every day have a heightened risk of heart attack and stroke. The study, which followed almost 2,600 older adults for a decade, found that those who drank diet soda every day were 44 percent more likely than non-drinkers to suffer a heart attack or stroke. The findings, reported in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, don’t prove that the sugar-free drinks are actually to blame. The findings do build on a few recent studies that also found diet-soda drinkers are more likely to have certain cardiovascular risk factors, like high blood pressure or high blood sugar." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDiet soda tied to heart attack, stroke risks

Diet sodas linked to higher risk of Type-2 diabetes in women

"Artificially-sweetened sodas have been linked to a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes for women than sodas sweetened with ordinary sugar, according to French research unveiled on Thursday. 'Contrary to conventional thinking, the risk of diabetes is higher with ‘light’ beverages compared with ‘regular’ sweetened drinks,' the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) said. The evidence comes from a wide-scale, long-term study, it said in a press release. Sugar-sweetened sodas have previously been linked with an increased risk of diabetes, but less is known about their artificially-sweetened counterparts." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDiet sodas linked to higher risk of Type-2 diabetes in women

Popular Artificial Sweetener Penetrating the Gulf Stream, UNC Wilmington Scientists Confirm [2011]

"While pouring the popular artificial sweeter sucralose into their morning coffees, University of North Carolina Wilmington Marine and Atmospheric Chemistry Research Laboratory (MACRL) researchers began to ponder, 'If only 10 percent of this is going to stay in our bodies, what happens to the other 90 percent?' This question led to the first scientific confirmation that sucralose is lingering in the Gulf Stream, the conveyor belt of water transport that circulates in the Atlantic Ocean from the coasts of North America to Europe, Africa and beyond." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPopular Artificial Sweetener Penetrating the Gulf Stream, UNC Wilmington Scientists Confirm [2011]

Here Come the Salt Police!

"Medical researchers at Harvard University have released a report which says that Americans eat too much salt. This is a follow-up report on an earlier report by the same team, authored by the same man with the unpronounceable name, which concluded that Americans eat too much sugar. The author of the report, predictably, called for the federal government to enact legislation to limit the intake of salt in processed foods. In other words, he wants to turn the federal government into the equivalent of Nanny Bloomberg. He doesn’t like sugar. He doesn’t like salt. And, most of all, he doesn’t like liberty." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHere Come the Salt Police!