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Consumer Health Digest #07-32
August 21, 2007
Current # of subscribers: 11,824
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FDA warns against using red yeast rice products.
The FDA is warning consumers not to buy or eat
three red yeast rice products promoted as dietary
supplements for treating high cholesterol. FDA
testing has revealed the products contain
lovastatin, the active pharmaceutical ingredient
in Mevacor, a prescription drug approved as a
treatment for high cholesterol. [FDA warns
consumers to avoid red yeast rice products
promoted on Internet as treatments for high
cholesterol. FDA news release, Aug 9, 2007]
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2007/NEW01678.html Although lovastatin is a very useful drug, it is
not suitable for self-medication and the amount
in dietary supplements is not standardized. The
FDA also ordered the marketers (Swanson
Healthcare Products, Inc. and Sunburst
Biorganics) to stop promoting and selling the
products. During the past ten years, the agency
has issued similar orders to at least six other
companies.
###
"Quackometer" site develops.
The Quackometer Web site provides help in judging
whether information sources are trustworthy. The
quackometer
http://www.quackometer.net/?page=quackometer counts words in web pages that quacks tend to
use; the more such words, the more quackery is
suspected. The Quackometer QuackSafeWeb Search
Engine
http://www.quackometer.net returns matches
from about 50 sites and blogs that are known to
supply reliable information about quackery,
quacks, medical fraud, and health-related
pseudoscience. Andy Lewis, who manages the
Quackometer site, notes that "Wikipedia is also
not included, as after consideration, its
articles on quack related subjects often suffer
from the "BBC fallacy" that the truth is found in
a balance of opinions.
###
Hulda Clark criticism posted.
The daughter of a deceased cancer patient has
written a vivid account of her mother's
experience with Hulda Clark, the unlicensed
naturopath whose book Cure for All Cancers states
that all cancers can be cured within 5 days.
Shortly after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma
(a bone cancer), the mother refused standard
treatment and went to Clark's Mexican clinic
instead. The article describes how, after more
than a month, Clark pronounced that the mother
was cured and advised her not to get an MRI
because because even though her malignancy had
been killed it would take time for the tumor to
reduce in size. Several weeks later, an MRI
showed that during Clark's treatment, the tumor
grew to two-and-a-half times its initial size.
[Chavez P. How Hulda Clark victimized my parents.
Cancer Treatment Watch, Aug 11, 2007]
http://www.cancertreatmentwatch.org/victims/ponzanelli.shtml###
Dubious test promoter loses chiropractic license.
The Web site of the Nutrition Wellness Center of
Sarasota, Florida, states that its proprietor,
James H. Martin, is a "retired chiropractic
physician who has been in practice for over 30
years." It fails to mention, however, that his
"retirement" involved permanently relinquishing
his chiropractic license rather than facing
charges by a patient who had accused him of
fraud. Martin and his clinic offer NutraScan
Bio-Resonance testing, which is said to examine
urine and saliva for "over 550 known toxicants,
including chemicals and heavy metals, pesticides,
dyes, parasites, bacteria, molds, viruses and
fungi." Based on the results and a questionnaire,
prospective patients are advised to undergo
"zapping" with a dubious low-voltage electrical
device and to purchase expensive dietary
supplements. In 2002, a young woman complained to
the state attorney general that she had spent
thousands of dollars for worthless tests and
treatments. In 2006, although he denied
wrongdoing, Martin voluntarily relinquished his
license rather than have the board judge the
patient's complaint. [Barrett S. NutraScan:
Another test to avoid. Quackwatch, Aug 20, 2007]
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Tests/nutrascan.html###
"Age-management specialist" ordered to curb advertising.
Philip S. Czekaj, M.D. and the Texas State Board
of Medicine have entered into an agreed order
under which Czekaj was assessed an administrative
penalty of $500.
http://www.casewatch.org/board/med/czekaj.pdf Czekaj operates the Genesis Medical Spa in San
Antonio, Texas, which, in 2006, advertised that
in addition to being board certified. Czekaj was
trained and certified by the Cenegenics Institute
in the field of age management medicine. (The
site also defined age management medicine as "a
proactive approach that utilizes hormone
modulation and nutritional supplementation to
help prevent disease and minimize the effects of
aging.") The board became concerned that
prospective patients might conclude that Czekaj
was certified in "cenegenics" or "age management
medicine" instead of emergency or preventive
medicine in which he is actually certified.
Cenegenics and age-management medicine are not
medically recognized specialties
###
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Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Board Chairman, Quackwatch, Inc.
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