Food & Drug Safety

Certain chemotherapy drugs that can save a woman from breast cancer can also raise her risk of heart disease, according to a new study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology . The spike in heart disease comes primarily from chemotherapy medicines known as anthracyclines. "We always felt the benefit of saving lives were part of the accepted cost," said the lead researcher. More »

Over-the-counter cold medicines are dangerous for children under 6 and should not be used, a panel of health advisers reported to the FDA today. Many popular medicines, including Dimetapp, Triaminic, and Pediacare, have never been sufficiently tested on children under 12, the committee concluded. “The data that we have now is they don’t seem to work,” said one FDA expert. More »

A Nevada jury has tacked on an additional $99 million in punitive damages against the Wyeth pharmaceutical company after ruling in favor of three women who argued that the drug maker's hormone replacement therapy caused their breast cancer. That amount, added to compensatory damages determined last week, makes the total finding against the drug manufacturer $134.1 million. More »

Several drugmakers have recalled over-the-counter cough and cold products for infants over concerns about fatal overdoses, Reuters reports. Johnson & Johnson Wyeth and Novartis are among those recalling medicines; CVS said it will remove the products and generic equivalents. One professor took the criticism one step further: “There are really no good studies demonstrating that these medications work.” More »

The latest E. coli outbreak, which toppled Topps Meat and led to millions of recalled burgers, has stumped health agents. Muckrakers blame feedlots and abattoirs, saying bad animal diets increase infections when the meat mingles with innards, but others aren't so worried: "The reality is if you cook the meat you’ll never have a problem," says one industry consultant. More »

Fears of E. coli contamination drove Topps Meat Co. to recall 21.7 million pounds of frozen hamburger patties today. The recall affects all Topps products with a sell-by date between Sept. 25, 2007, and Sept. 25, 2008. More than two dozen people in eight states have reported infections, and yesterday the USDA shut down Topps’ meat grinding operation after finding unspecified safety problems. More »

Dole recalled bags of salad yesterday after some of the lettuce tested positive for E. coli in Canada. The bags of Hearts Delight salad were sold throughout the US and Canada and had an expiration date of Sept. 19. There have been no reports of illness, and Dole officials said they're working with US and Canadian health agencies to track any potential problems. More »

Following a series of high-profile toy recalls and international criticism over China's export standards, the the cost of merchandise bearing the "Made in China" is expected to rise at least 10% in the next year, the LA Times reports. "For American consumers, the big China sale over the last 20 years is over," says one economist. More »

President Bush accepted an invitation today from China’s president to attend next summer’s Olympics, a gesture that will likely anger human rights activists but may increase pressure on Beijing, the Times reports. In a 90-minute meeting in the eve of the APEC summit, Hu Jintao and Bush also discussed climate change and recalls of Chinese-made toys. More »

Four years after the FDA and other agencies sparked a drop in antidepressant use by labeling the meds a suicide risk for young people, a new study shows the results were exactly the opposite of what regulators intended. From 2003 to 2004, the suicide rate among people under 19 rose 14%, an unprecedented spike, the Washington Post reports. More »

Federal officials yesterday arrested the maker of an "herbal," non-prescription sex supplement, Vigor-25, for lacing the pills with the active ingredient in Viagra, reports Newsday . More than 4 million of the surprisingly effective pills have been sold on the internet and at health food stores, with a label listing hodiola rhizome, chinese yam, and cnidium fruit as ingredients, officials said. More »

Adding fuel to a long-simmering debate, a British study has found that additives in sweets and soft drinks can indeed produce hyperactivity and disruptive behavior in children. The findings were so dramatic that the British government is issuing guidelines warning parents of kids with behavioral problems to avoid foods containing the additives, the Guardian reports. More »

A California produce company is recalling over 68K pounds of bagged spinach after a sample taken from one of the company's packing plants tested positive for salmonella, the San Jose Mercury News reports. But Metz Fresh has likely averted a repeat of last year's contaminated spinach mess, corralling 90% of the potentially contaminated produce before it hit stores. More »

The hottest new trend to hit the food industry is the cage-free egg, laid by ostensibly happier chickens allowed the run of large barns, the NY Times reports. Mega-brands like Whole Foods and Ben and Jerry’s now use only cage-free eggs, and even Burger King is switching, but overheated demand is beginning to outstrip supply. More »

British officials are pursuing the possibility that latest outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease could be the result of sabotage, the Times reports. They've ruled out water leaks spreading the virus from a research lab to nearby farms,and have concluded that "release by human movement must be considered a real possibility," said a report prepared for Gordon Brown. More »

England is culling a second herd of cattle feared to have foot-and-mouth disease. The animals were showing symptoms on an unidentified farm within a restricted zone around the area southwest of London where the first outbreak occurred. Investigators were considering the possibility that a flood in July may have spread the virus. More »

An English research lab is the likely source of a recent outbreak of foot and mouth disease, the Guardian reports. British government officials believe a batch of experimental vaccine leaked and spread to a nearby farm. Scientists were tipped to the possible leak by the fact that the strain of the virus is not one that occurs naturally, but is a vaccine strain. More »

Congress is set to pass a law today that will give the federal FDA the same power over tobacco it has over drugs and medical devices. Identical bills in both houses, hailed by the American Lung Association as a "win for public health," would allow the government to regulate levels of tar, nicotine and other hazardous ingredients in new cigarette products. More »

In the wake of a drug recall by the Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche, tens of thousands of AIDS patients in the developing world no longer have access to lifesaving medicine. Last month, Roche announced a recall of the drug Viracept, after finding a hazardous chemical in some batches. But in many countries, no cost-effective substitute is available. More »

Federal officials have ordered a recall of certain brands of hot dog chili sauce after they were linked to four cases of botulism in Texas and Indiana. It's not clear how widely the brands were distributed, but the recall includes 10-ounce cans of Castleberry's, Austex and Kroger hot dog chili sauce with "best by" dates from April 30 through May 22, 2009 More »