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Consumer Health Digest #10-45
November 11, 2010Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by
Stephen Barrett, M.D., with help from William M. London, Ed.D. It
summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement
actions; news reports; Web site evaluations; recommended and
nonrecommended books; and other information relevant to consumer
protection and consumer decision-making.
###
FDA proposes new tobacco warning strategy. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has unveiled a
comprehensive tobacco control strategy that includes a proposed rule
for conspicuous warning statements and graphic images for cigarette
packages and advertisements. [HHS announces new tobacco strategy and
proposed new warnings and graphics for cigarette packs and
advertisements. FDA. HHS press release, Nov 10, 2010]
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2010pres/11/20101110a.htmlThe proposed statements are:
WARNING: Cigarettes are addictive.
WARNING: Tobacco smoke can harm your children.
WARNING: Cigarettes cause fatal lung disease.
WARNING: Cigarettes cause cancer.
WARNING: Cigarettes cause strokes and heart disease.
WARNING: Smoking during pregnancy can harm your baby.
WARNING: Smoking can k ill you.
WARNING: Tobacco smoke causes fatal lung disease in nonsmokers.
WARNING: Quitting smoking now greatly reduces serious risks to your health.
The proposed rule is posted at
http://www.chsourcebook/articles/proposed_warnings.pdfPublic comment on 36 proposed images will be accepted through January 9, 2011.
http://www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#documentDetail?R=0900006480b87423The current schedule calls for the FDA to make the final selection by
June 22nd and require cigarette packages to display the new warnings
by October 22nd. The proposed images are posted to the FDA Web site.
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act gives the FDA
the authority to regulate the manufacture and marketing of tobacco
products. The act requires that the warnings occupy at least the top
half of the panels front and rear panels of each cigarette package
and at least 20% of all cigarette ads. The proposed images include a
coffin, a man having a heart attack, and a terminal cancer patient
who is bald and is lying in bed.
The New York Times has reported that several tobacco companies are
stepping up efforts to fight restrictive marketing rules overseas.
[Wilson D. Cigarette giants in a global fight on tighter rules. New
York Times, Nov 13, 2010]
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/14/business/global/14smoke.html?partner=rss&emc=rss###
Court upholds $48 million damage award against infomercial scammers.A federal appeals court has upheld a decision in favor of the Federal
Trade Commission. In 2008, the U.S. District Court for the District
of Massachusetts found that Donald W. Barrett, Robert Maihos, and
their two companies had deceptively claimed Supreme Greens and Coral
Calcium could treat, cure, or prevent cancer, heart disease,
diabetes, arthritis and other diseases. In 2009, the court ordered
Barrett, Maihos, and their two companies-Direct Marketing Concepts,
Inc. and ITV Direct, Inc.-to pay $48.2 million. The district court
also barred them from making unsubstantiated claims about any health
product or billing consumers or charging their credit or debit cards
on an ongoing basis without their consent. [Appellate court upholds
order requiring promoters of Supreme Greens and Coral Calcium dietary
supplements to pay $48.2 million for deceptive ads. FTC news release,
Oct 29, 2010]
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/10/dmc.shtmDespite his legal difficulties, Barrett recently began airing a
misleading infomercial for a high-dosage vitamin D supplement. Many
people may benefit from taking supplementary vitamin D. However, the
dosage should be based on proven value and should depend upon how
much is needed. Barrett's infomercial overstates the potential
benefits, exaggerates the need, promotes a high dosage that is not
supported by current evidence, downplays the possibility of adverse
effects, and offers a "free lifetime supply" that costs considerably
more than similar products available elsewhere. [Barrett S. Donald
Barrett's "free vitamin D" is overhyped and overpriced. Infomercial
Watch, Nov 12, 2010]
http://www.infomercialwatch.org/reports/free_vitamin_d.shtml###
Meta-analysis examines stroke risk with Vitamin E supplements.Researchers at Harvard Medical School have examined the relationships
between cerebrovascular accidents (strokes) and vitamin E
supplementation. To do this, they searched for randomized,
placebo-controlled trials with a year or more of follow-up
investigating the effect of vitamin E on stroke. Nine trials were
included, with a total of 118,765 participants (59,357 randomized to
vitamin E and 59,408 to placebo). In hemorrhagic stroke, an artery
ruptures so that blood flows into the surrounding brain tissue and
compresses it. In ischemic stroke, blood supply is cut off by
blockage (usually due to a blood clot) within an artery that supplies
part of the brain. The researchers concluded:
**Vitamin E increased the risk for hemorrhagic stroke by 22% and
reduced the risk of ischemic stroke by 10%.
**This translates into one additional hemorrhagic stroke for every
1,250 individuals taking vitamin E, in contrast to one ischemic
stroke prevented per 476 individuals taking vitamin E.
**This differential risk pattern is obscured when looking at the
total incidence of stroke.
**Given the relatively small risk reduction of ischemic stroke and
the generally more severe outcome of hemorrhagic stroke,
indiscriminate widespread use of vitamin E should be cautioned
against.
[Schurks M and others. Effects of vitamin E on stroke subtypes:
meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. British Medical
Journal, Nov 4, 2010]
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21051774###
Detox footpad marketers curbed.A federal judge has approved a stipulated agreement under which the
marketers of Kinoki Foot Pads-Yehuda Levin and his company, Xacta
3000, Inc.-are barred from promoting or selling any dietary
supplement, food, drug, or medical device, and from helping others do
the same. [At FTC's request, judge imposes ban on marketers of
"detox" foot pads: Advertising claimed "ancient Japanese secret"
could treat medical conditions. FTC news release, Nov 4, 2010]
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/11/xacta.shtmIn 2009, the FTC charged the marketers with falsely claiming that
when applied to the soles of the user's feet at night, the pads would
remove toxins, metabolic wastes, heavy metals, and chemicals from the
body; treat headaches, depression, parasites, fatigue, insomnia,
diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure, cellulite, and a weakened
immune system; and cause weight loss. The defendants agreed to a
judgment of $14.5 million, which represents the total revenues from
the sale of the pads. However, based on their inability to pay, the
entire judgment is suspended but will become due if they are found to
have misrepresented their financial condition. For additional
information about the foot pads, see
http://www.devicewatch.org/reports/kinoki.shtml###
Request for help from Dr. Stephen BarrettIn June, Doctor's Data filed suit against Dr. Barrett because it
didn't like what he wrote about them on Quackwatch and in this
newsletter. The events leading up to the suit are described at
http://www.quackwatch.org/14Legal/dd_suit.html Contributions to his
defense fund can be made by mail or through
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/donations.html###
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--
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Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Consumer Advocate
Chatham Crossing, Suite 107/208
11312 U.S. 15 501 North
Chapel Hill, NC 27517
Telephone: (919) 533-6009
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http://www.ihealthpilot.org (guide to reliable information)
http://www.insurancereformwatch.org (under construction)
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http://www.mlmwatch.org (multi-level marketing)
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http://www.nccamwatch.org (under construction)
http://www.nutriwatch.org (nutrition facts and fallacies)
http://www.pharmwatch.org (under construction)
http://www.ncahf.org (National Council Against Health Fraud Archive)
http://www.chsourcebook.com (consumer health sourcebook)
Editor, Consumer Health Digest
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/chd.htmlDonations to help support Quackwatch can be made through PayPal or by mail.
See:
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/donations.html-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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