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In spite of the high use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among people age 50 or older,69 percent of those who use CAM do not talk to their doctors about it, according to a new survey conducted by AARP and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health. The survey examined conversations between patients and their physicians regarding CAM use.

CAM is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine. It includes such products and practices as herbal supplements, meditation, homeopathy, and acupuncture.

“We know that people 50 and older tend to be high users of complementary and alternative medicine, but this study was the first to explore gaps in communications regarding the use of CAM between patients and their physicians,” said Cheryl Matheis, AARP Director of Health Strategies. “Communication is important to ensure the wise use of all conventional and CAM therapies.”

Differences in communication practices across demographic groups were also found. Women were more likely than men to have discussed CAM use (26 percent versus 16 percent) and what types of therapies to use (70 percent versus 51 percent). In addition, people with incomes of $75,000 or more (31 percent) or $25,000 to $49,999 (25 percent) frequently discussed CAM use with doctors.

“An open dialogue between consumers and their physicians is critical to ensuring safe and appropriate integrated care,” said Margaret A. Chesney, Ph.D., NCCAM’s Deputy Director. “As the Federal Government’s lead agency for scientific research on CAM, NCCAM is especially committed to educating both consumers and health care providers about the importance of discussing the use of CAM and providing evidence-based information to help with health care decision-making.”

This telephone survey, administered to a nationally representative group of 1,559 people age 50 or older, revealed some reasons why doctor-patient dialogue is lacking. Respondents most often did not discuss their CAM use with doctors because the physicians never asked (42 percent); they did not know that they should (30 percent); or there was not enough time during the office visit (19 percent). Interestingly, men who had seen a doctor were more likely than women not to have discussed CAM because their doctors never asked (46 percent versus 38 percent).

Other highlights from the survey report include:
Dialogue Topics

* The topics most often discussed with doctors were the effectiveness of a CAM therapy (67 percent); what to use (64 percent); how a CAM therapy might interact with other medications or treatments received (60 percent); advice on whether to pursue a CAM therapy (60 percent); and safety of a CAM therapy (57 percent).

Prescription and Over-the-Counter Medication Use

* Nearly three-fourths of respondents said they take one or more prescription medications; in addition, 59 percent of respondents said they take one or more over-the-counter medications. Twenty percent of respondents reported taking more than five prescription medications.
* The high number of prescription and over-the-counter medications used by this group underscores the need for consumers and physicians to discuss all therapies, including CAM, to ensure safe, integrated care.

View a complete copy of the survey report

Posted under Health

January is Radon Action Month. Because families spend more time indoors during the winter months, January is a good time to test for this radioactive, invisible, and odorless gas.

According to EPA estimates, 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year are radon-related and about 2,900 of these deaths occur among people who have never smoked. Exposure to radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. and it is the number one cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.

Radon comes from the natural breakdown of uranium in soil, rock and water. It is harmless when dispersed into outdoor air. But when it becomes trapped inside buildings, it can be harmful at elevated levels. It typically moves up through the ground to the air in your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation. This means any home can have a radon problem, whether it is new or old, well-sealed or drafty, with or without basements.

Radon test kits are easy to use and inexpensive. They are available at any hardware store or home improvement center. For best results, EPA recommends that the radon test be conducted in the lowest livable level of the home, such as the basement, during the colder months of the year. Tests can also be taken during other times of the year if windows and doors have been closed for 12 hours prior to testing.

EPA recommends that houses with radon levels of four picocuries or more of radon should be vented to prevent accumulation of the gas indoors. A variety of methods can be used to reduce radon in homes. Sealing cracks and other openings in the foundation is a basic part of most approaches to radon reduction. EPA does not recommend the use of sealing alone to limit radon entry. Sealing alone has not been shown to lower radon levels significantly or consistently.

In most cases, a system with a vent pipe and fan is used to reduce radon. These “sub-slab depressurization” systems do not require major changes to your home. They prevent radon gas from entering the home from below the concrete floor and from outside the foundation.

The cost of making repairs depends on how your home was built and the extent of the radon problems. Most homes can be fixed for about the same cost as other common home repairs like painting or having a new hot water heater installed. The average price for a contractor ranges from $500 and $2,500.

To learn more about how to receive a discounted radon home test kit or for more information about radon, and how to contact your state radon office or call 1-800-SOS-Radon

Posted under Health

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to use two unapproved drug products that are being marketed as dietary supplements for weight loss. Emagrece Sim Dietary Supplement, also known as the Brazilian Diet Pill and Herbathin Dietary Supplement may contain several active ingredients, including controlled substances, found in prescription drugs that could lead to serious side effects or injury.

Both products are made in Brazil by Fitoterapicos (also spelled Fytoterapicos) and Phytotherm Sim. FDA has increased its efforts to prevent the importation of these products by issuing an alert to its field personnel. Import Alerts are used to advise FDA field personnel about certain imported products that should not enter the United States.

Consumers are advised not to use the Emagrece Sim and Herbathin products and to return them to the suppliers. There may be other manufacturers or suppliers of imported Emagrece Sim and Herbathin, and consumers should exercise caution in using any of these imported products.

“There are dangers to consumers who purchase diet pills that contain drugs of unknown origin and quality,” said Dr. Steven Galson, Director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “These products are not approved by FDA and if people experience side effects, it is difficult to trace problems and for physicians to treat them.”

Emagrece Sim and Herbathin are labeled as “dietary supplements”, but they contain prescription drugs, including several controlled substances that, if not used properly as prescribed by a physician, can be harmful. They contain chlordiazepoxide HCl (the active ingredient in Librium), and fluoxetine HCl (the active ingredient in Prozac). Chlordiazepoxide HCl (Librium) is used to relieve anxiety and to control the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. It may be habit forming, and can cause drowsiness and dizziness and impair the ability to drive. Fluoxetine HCl (Prozac) is an anti-depressant medication used to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and bulimia. It has been linked to several serious drug interactions and certain serious adverse events, including suicidal thinking and behaviors in pediatric patients, anxiety and insomnia, and abnormal bleeding. These drugs should only be taken by patients who are under the supervision of a health care provider.

Emagrece Sim and Herbathin were also found to contain Fenproporex, a stimulant that is not approved for marketing in the United States. Fenproporex is converted in the body to amphetamine, and as a result has been noted to show up in urinalysis as a positive test for amphetamines.

Emagrece Sim and Herbathin are sold in packages containing one bottle of Formula 1 capsules and one bottle of Formula 2 capsules. Both products are available in five levels (Levels 1-5), and the product labels instruct consumers to begin with Level 1 and continue to the higher levels until they lose the desired amount of weight. Emagrece Sim also has a “Weight Stabilizer” package containing Formula 1 and Formula 2 capsules, to be used after the desired weight loss has been achieved.

The products are offered for sale on the Internet. They are also imported and distributed by Emagrece Sim Laboratories, Inc., Miami, FL., and Herbathin, Inc. (dba EMIEX Corp), Miami, Florida. FDA is aware of commercial imports of these products and individuals importing them for personal use.

FDA urges consumers, health care providers, and caregivers to cease using and dispose of these products and report any adverse events related to these products to MedWatch, the FDA’s voluntary reporting program at 1-800-FDA-1088; by FAX at 1-800-FDA-0178; by mail to MedWatch, Food and Drug Administration, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD, 20857-9787; or online at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm.

Posted under Health

The states of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, along with U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have analyzed hundreds of samples of fish and shellfish from the waters affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

To date, the data show no reason for concern about consuming seafood from the Gulf region due to the hurricanes. The samples were analyzed for chemical and microbiological contaminants that could have been introduced by the hurricanes. The extensive seafood tissue sampling occurred in an area from the estuaries of New Orleans to Gulf Shores, AL. The sampled areas included Lake Pontchartrain, Mississippi Sound, Mobile Bay as well as the offshore areas of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Additional monitoring is currently in progress and results will be announced as they become available.

While many oyster harvest areas have been tested and re-opened, other areas remain closed until routine sampling by existing state regulated Molluscan Shellfish Programs determines that oyster harvesting can resume. Current data from analyses of fish and other shellfish from these areas show no reason for concern.

Health officials advise that consuming raw seafood always poses a potential risk from bacterial and viral contamination. This risk can be reduced by thoroughly cooking seafood.

As always, fishermen should avoid catching seafood in areas with visible oil sheens or slicks, and should only harvest live seafood. Consumers should follow proper sanitary practices when handling and preparing seafood for consumption. Also, health officials advise that following simple guidelines is appropriate when preparing fish and seafood at any time, not only after a storm event. These guidelines include keeping seafood cold until ready to cook and thoroughly cooking seafood. Consumers can further reduce risk by not eating the skin or organs, such as crab “fat”. It is also recommended that broiling, grilling or poaching fish are healthy, low-fat methods of cooking.

For more information, contact the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (Kathleen Golden, 1-888-293-7020), the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (Robbie Wilbur, 601-961-5277), the Alabama Department of Public Health (Dr. Neil Sass, 1-800-201-8208) or U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Eryn Witcher 202-564-4355).

Posted under Health, Uncategorized

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer today announced that his office obtained a restraining order against a Long Island man who operated several Internet scams that bilked consumers out of thousands of dollars.

Jeffrey A. Augugliaro of Malverne in Nassau County, was served with a lawsuit alleging that he and his associates set up an Internet-based business known as “People Helping People” which solicited donations for a phony charitable organization Augugliaro created called “American Cancer Aid Foundation.” Donors were told that contributions to the organization would be used for cancer prevention research and that contributors would receive two free airline tickets, worth up to $1,600, that could be used to fly anywhere in the world.

The lawsuit charges that none of the money solicited was ever used for cancer research, but instead was pocketed by Augugliaro and his associates. Furthermore, there were no free airline tickets, and consumers received nothing for their donations.

Similar offers of free airline tickets were promoted on other websites operated by Augugliaro, www.massmarketingprogram.com and www.jamvo.com, both of which allegedly marketed the tickets to business owners as a way to attract new customers. The lawsuit claims that thousands of consumers were defrauded by these scams, including a cancer patient who hoped to use the free airline tickets to fly to a hospital for her cancer treatments.

In addition to the charity scam, Augugliaro created Brixdale, an Internet-based company, www.brixdale.com., that promoted a so-called “inverse mortgage” program. Consumers were promised that by allowing Brixdale to take control of the electronic transfers of their monthly mortgage payments, consumers could not only pay off an entire 30-year mortgage in full, but could also easily make a quarter of a million dollars, all in a matter of months. The lawsuit alleges that Brixdale is simply an illegal pyramid scheme, which survives by participants recruiting more and more participants, and that the promised economic benefits are never realized.

Pending a hearing on the lawsuit, the court barred Augugliaro and the other defendants from operating their businesses, ordered them to shut down their websites and froze approximately one million dollars in bank accounts held by the defendants. Through the lawsuit, Spitzer seeks to permanently shut down the businesses and websites, and require respondents to pay restitution to consumers, as well as penalties and costs.

Spitzer cautions consumers against signing up for offers on the Internet that seem too good to be true, or getting involved in schemes promising that the consumer can “get rich quick” in exchange for recruiting others to join the scheme.

Individuals seeking to file a complaint against any of Augugliaro’s companies are encouraged to contact the Attorney General’s consumer help line at (800) 771-7755 or visit his web site at www.oag.state.ny.us.

Posted under Health

The Environmental Protection Agency released a new study this week showing that water supplies on 17.2% of 169 randomly selected aircraft were contaminated with “total coliform bacteria”.

Media outlets were quick to react. The Miami Herald ran an article January 20 highlighting the finding that planes in Miami tested worse than any other U.S. airport. The Denver Post also jumped on the bandwagon, leading their article with “Asking for bottled water or a canned drink aboard an airliner might be best for now.” More than 400 media outlets had picked up the story within 24 hours of the EPA’s announcement.

The Air Transport Association, an industry trade group, has released its own statement declaring aircraft water safe. A spokesperson for the association said, “Once again, the EPA chose to include samples from aircraft lavatories, which are essentially public restrooms, where there’s a high potential for cross-contamination of samples. We’re also concerned that many of the samples came from international carriers that the agency does not regulate.”

The EPA seemed to agree with the association, stating in its own FAQ section that “The presence of total coliform, in and of itself, is not indicative of a health risk. Coliform bacteria will not likely cause illness. However, the presence of coliform bacteria in drinking water indicates that other disease-causing organisms (pathogens) may be present in the water system.”

For now, treating water on an aircraft as one would any shared and public water supply seems the best course of action. Since most airlines serve bottled water, worried consumers may want to skip asking for ice. The EPA also recommends this course of action, stating, “Passengers with suppressed immune systems or others concerned should request bottled or canned beverages while on the aircraft and refrain from drinking tea or coffee that does not use bottled water.”

Posted under Health, Safety, Travel