In a recent conversation I was told that in 1986 “just” 900 variety of drugs were marketing to US consumers now the number is well over 8000. If you think your Doctor is fully versed on every drug… Dream On…  Please read the following Article I found that tells the story of why we have so much unneeded prescription drug use in the USA and why you need to learn to improve your health with diet and exercise.

Dale

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02/09/2009

Most of us often wish for easy solutions to our problems.  If we see that our clothes are getting tight, what is wrong with wishing for a harmless pill that will allow us to lose weight without changing our eating habits?  When we watch television, we see example after example of happy people who have lost 20, 40 or even 100 pounds by taking this or that pill.  However, most of us have learned that these pills don’t really work. Yet, they are on television for a reason—they sell enough products to pay for the costs and make a profit for the company promoting them.

Hope springs eternal in most of us.  We hope that this solution will be different.  Maybe this is why the diet pills keep selling on television.  Maybe this one will work. 

This attitude of consumers is also why the drug companies spent lots of money lobbying to get the Federal Drug Administration (“FDA”) to modify its rules regarding television advertising of prescription drugs.  They knew that they could sell more and more of their drugs—even if they weren’t needed and might actually do harm.  Sales, nothing else, was important.

For years their lobbying efforts were unsuccessful.  In fact, many of us remember when we could watch television with our children and not be asked to explain “erectile dysfunction” or “herpes” and then explain what the advertised drug does.  This changed in August of 1997.

DIRECT TO CONSUMER

Direct to consumer advertising (“DTC”) is the name given to advertising prescription drugs in magazines, newspapers and television.  Prior to 1997, the FDA rules said, “Advertisements promoting the medical use of prescription drugs must contain a “brief summary” of all important information about the advertised drug, including its side effects, contraindications and effectiveness.  In addition, advertisements broadcast over radio, TV or through telephone communications systems must include a “major statement” prominently disclosing all of the major risks associated with the drug.”

Prior to August of 1997, print advertisements for prescription drugs were able to meet the “brief summary” requirement by including the risk-related sections of drug labeling together with the advertising copy.  As the drug companies looked wistfully at the enormous marketing potential of television, they saw that there was no way to provide the required information about the drug in 30 second or one minute television ads. 

Did Congress act?  No, the FDA made the August 1997 rule change quietly and without consulting Congress or really anyone else.  Their change allowed the drug companies to “…include information about any major risks, as well as instructions for how consumers can easily obtain more detailed information about the drug’s approved uses and risks.”

FDA Lead Deputy Commissioner Michael J. Friedman, M.D was one of the driving forces behind this change long sought by the drug companies.  Dr. Friedman said in 1997, “Today’s action can help promote greater consumer awareness about prescription drugs.  By describing realistic standards for television advertising of prescription drugs, we hope to end the uncertainty which has plagued both consumers and industry about the use of this medium.  The FDA is committed to making sure that accurate and complete information is available to consumers.”

In the 1997 rule revision, the FDA “…presumes that the broadcast ad is truthful, not misleading, and contains information about the major health risks associated with the drug.

In lieu of providing a “brief summary,” the advertiser would have to provide a mechanism to ensure that consumers can easily obtain full product labeling.”  In other words it is enough to quickly list some of the side effects along with a toll-free phone number or web address or advise the listener to speak with a physician.

In her book, Our Daily Meds, Melody Peterson states, “Dr. Friedman soon left the agency. In 1998, President Clinton nominated Dr. Jane Henney  to be the next commissioner of the FDA, and Dr. Friedman resigned the  next year to become a senior vice  president at Searle, a subsidiary of  Monsanto, which had just  introduced a new pain pill.”

It is significant that the United States and New Zealand are the only two industrial nations that allow the drug companies to advertise on television in this fashion.

RESULT
 
According to the Government Accounting Office (report no. GAO-07-54, December 14, 2006):

“In the past decade, drug companies have quadrupled expenditures on ads aimed at consumers. Spending on direct-to-consumer advertising increased by 296.4% from 1997 to 2005, during which time spending on promotion to physicians increased by 86.0% and spending on pharmaceutical research and development increased by 103.3%.”

In an article entitled, Direct-to-Consumer Advertising of Prescription Drugs published in the August of 2007 issue of Journal Watch, Dr. Allan S. Brett, MD summarized the findings of his study of DTC advertising of prescription drugs on television.  Dr. Brett concluded that:

Total spending on DTC advertising in the U.S. increased from about $1 billion in 1996 to $4 billion in 2005; DTC advertising represented about 14% of drug company promotional expenditures in 2005.

The five single drugs with the highest expenditures for DTC advertising were Nexium, Lunesta, Vytorin, Crestor, and Advair.

From 2002 to 2006, DTC advertising was the target of one third to one half of letters sent by the FDA to drug companies regarding violations in regulations on drug promotion. Most citations were for DTC advertising that minimized risks or exaggerated effectiveness.

The level of FDA staffing dedicated to review of DTC advertising has not kept pace with the recent increase in DTC advertising.

DTC has led to the manipulation of information in ways that subtly overstate the drug’s benefits, indications, and target populations.

All of us intuitively know that television commercials always show the most ideal situation. The people presented tell us about how all of their problems were solved by taking a drug. They imply that now their lives are what we dream our lives could be. 

But you ask, is this not the same thing that the companies selling diet pills do?  Yes, but except in rare cases, taking these diet drugs doesn’t create other serious health problems or cost society millions of dollars. 

Vioxx was popularized mainly by the image of Dorothy Hamill lacing up her skates and gliding over the ice despite her osteoarthritis, all because of Vioxx.  Merck had to take Vioxx off the market because even while the commercials were running, they were receiving alarming reports that the millions of patients who responded to the ad and demanded their doctors prescibe Vioxx were risking stroke or serious heart problems.

CONCLUSION

Few things better illustrate the extent that the FDA has come under the control of the drug companies than the DTC changes in 1997.  While some of the drug company spokespeople have stated that anyone attacking their misleading television advertisements are attacking free speech, this is a silly argument.  It is unlikely that any court would refuse to uphold an action by the FDA that required a complete statement of the risks of these dangerous drugs.  It would not prohibit television advertising but allow it, only if the drug companies met the same requirements of pre-August 1997 law.

What can we do?  We can contact our U.S. Representative and two U.S. Senators and demand that the rules in effect prior to August of 1997 be required for DTC advertising.  It is only if enough of us make our feelings known and demand change that we will see a change. 

At Novus Medical Detox Center we take pride in helping people safely and more comfortably withdraw from some of these drugs promoted shamelessly by the drug companies.  We help people with OxyContin addiction, Vicodin addiction, Percocet addiction, and methadone addiction and help them withdraw from any unneeded antidepressants and benzodiazepines. 

If you know anyone that wants to take the first step toward freedom from these dangerous drugs, please tell them about Novus.

NOTE: This information is provided for general educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute (i) medical advice or counseling, (ii) the practice of medicine, health care diagnosis or treatment, or (iii) the creation of a physician patient or clinical relationship.  If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem or that this information may be useful to you or others, please consult with your health care provider before applying any information from our articles to your personal situation or to the personal situation of others.

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From: http://media.novusdetox.com/dependence.php?include=138402

Antiquated thinking posits that you shouldn’t mix work and play. But the truth is, your personal interests have a lot to do with your success, particularly if you’re in an idea-centric field — which means just about every job that has problems which require creative thinking.

It’s no coincidence some of the most profound and popular scientists are also musicians: Albert Einstein played the violin. Numerous bios of Steve Jobs cite his schooling in calligraphy as a driving factor for why the early Mac computers were so far ahead in terms of graphics. Think about what skills you have that aren’t officially job responsibilities, but get applied nonetheless.

Do this fun exercise:

1. On the left-hand side of a piece of paper, write a list of your favorite career moments
2. Beside it on the right, write a list of your hobbies and activities off the job
3. Draw circles around something in the left column that happened because of something on the right, and join them with a line

The connections are now much clearer. By recognizing how various parts of you falsely appear miles apart but are actually adjacent in their applicability, you stand a much higher chance of succeeding at what’s important.

Every person who takes up running has been confronted by a “helpful” critic who is more than happy to reel off the reasons running will ruin your life. Here’s a look at three questionable claims about running and health:

1. Running will give you a heart attack or other heart problems. It is true that exercise temporarily raises the odds of a heart attack while you’re mid-workout, but doing it consistently reduces that risk over the long haul, leading to a net benefit. Going for a run most days of the week is doing far more good than bad for your heart.

2. Running will ruin your bones and joints. A study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found no evidence of accelerated rates of osteoarthritis among long-distance runners. Weight-bearing exercise like running helps stave off osteoporosis by maintaining bone mineral density.

3. Running will kill you before your time. According to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, running and other vigorous exercise in middle age is associated with a longer life. Not only that, it will make your later years more pleasant by reducing disability.

The human brain went through two enormous evolutionary changes — one in size, followed by an even more important one in cognitive ability. Your brain consumes huge amounts of calories and exhibits incredible prowess. In fact, your brain’s roaring metabolism, possibly stimulated by early man’s invention of cooking, may be the main factor behind our most critical cognitive leap, new research suggests.

About 2 million years ago, the human brain rapidly increased its mass until it was double the size of other primate brains. Some believe this is because humans started to eat better food. But then, about 150,000 years ago, a different type of spurt happened — those big brains suddenly got smart. Humans started innovating, invented many new tools, and started creating art and perhaps religion.

Research suggests that increased access to calories spurred these cognitive advances. The extra calories may have come from the first hearths. Cooking, by breaking down fibers and making nutrients more readily available, is a way of processing food outside the body. Eating cooked meals would have lessened the energy needs of the human digestion system, thereby freeing up calories for the brain.

Nearly half of cancer patients in England are being forced to cut back on food or heating in order to pay for their prescriptions drugs. Almost two-thirds miss out on simple leisure activities, like family days out, to cope with their medication costs.

A survey of nearly 500 cancer patients in England found that 44 percent were struggling to cope with drug costs.

Prescription charges were eliminated in Wales in 2007, and will be phased out in Scotland by 2011. Northern Ireland has frozen its charges while it considers whether to abolish them entirely. In England, however, the government has ruled out any move towards free prescriptions.

Even when your budget is tight, you never want to skimp when it comes to your health. Fortunately, there are ways to get well and stay that way for less.

1. Reduce Your Need for Allergy Meds

Don’t keep stacks of books and magazines, stuffed animals, decorative pillows and other “dust-mite breeding grounds” in the bedroom. Dust mites are the leading cause of indoor, year-long allergies. If outdoor pollens set off your allergies, close your windows and turn on a fan. If you’re a jogger, jog in the evening when pollen counts are lower, and when you get home, remove your clothes immediately and shower to get rid of the pollen that has attached itself to your clothes, skin and hair. And don’t let your pet sleep in your room or in your bed.

2. Substitute Honey for Antibiotic Cream

Raw, unprocessed honey — the kind you buy at the farmers’ market or in the health food section of the grocery store — can also be used to treat mild skin infections and burns. In fact, when compared with over-the-counter creams, honey might be even more effective for small burns. Most anti-bacterial creams stick to the skin as well as the gauze, causing further irritation when the gauze is lifted. Honey is partially absorbed by the fragile, puffy skin, providing a slippery membrane between the flesh and the bandage.

3. Go to Sleep Early

Researchers have long reported that six to eight solid hours of lights out is critical for optimal brain functioning and a healthy immune system. But stay away from sleeping pills and painkillers — they may knock you out at bedtime, but the flat, dreamless sleep they induce does not generally provide the healing and repair your mind and body craves.

4. Work Out At Home

Who needs to pay hundreds of dollars to work out at a gym? Why not rent exercise DVDs, or make your living room a yoga studio a few nights out of the week? The only thing you risk losing is the camaraderie you can find at the gym. But that’s easy to re-create at home. Invite a few friends over, pool your tape collection, set realistic goals and make a commitment to stick to the plan.

5. Take Advantage of Free Screenings

If you have a history of skin cancer or have a suspicious mole, you really need to make a habit of getting your skin checked for skin cancer — insurance or no insurance. The American Center for Dermatology has partnered with dermatologists across the country to offer free screenings. Just go to www.melanomamonday.org to find a convenient location. Free blood pressure machines in pharmacies and malls can be located through www.lifeclinic.com/locator/search.asp, and free mammograms are offered by government or local programs in a number of states.

Should you throw moldy bread in the trash, or just trim around the green spot? Can Sunday’s leftovers be Friday’s meal?

Scientists have developed methods to detect spoilage, but until these are available on a mass scale, food science and safety experts have some tips.

First — slimy, stinky, spotty or chunky changes in food don’t mean very much in terms of safety. It may not taste good, that doesn’t mean it’s going to make you sick. That’s because there’s a difference between what food scientists call spoilage bacteria and pathogens.

Spoilage bacteria form into slimy films on lunch meat, soggy edges on vegetables or stinky chicken. But the pathogens that do make you sick are odorless, colorless and invisible.

Since consumers can’t count on looks or smell, instead use the rule of four: no more than four days at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or 4 degrees centigrade. (Freezing fresh food at zero degree Fahrenheit will keep it safe indefinitely.) Temperature can slow or stop bacterial growth of either the pathogens or the spoilage variety. Forty degrees Fahrenheit buys people three days for safety with raw chicken and ground beef, three days with cuts of beef and lamb, and four days for leftovers.

Allowing anything to go above the cold 40 degrees along the way from store to frying pan can make the difference between illness and safety — and about 25 percent of refrigerators in the U.S. are kept at too high a temperature for safety. Be sure to check yours.

Accentia Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ABPI) announced today that the Company has filed its Quarterly Report (Form 10-Q) with the SEC, reporting the results of its operations, including consolidated results with its majority-owned subsidiary, Biovest International, Inc. (OTCBB:BVTI), for its third fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2008.

“I think it’s important for the American people to understand we’re not going to drill our way out of this problem. It’s also important to recognize if you start drilling now you won’t see a drop of oil for ten years, which means it’s not going to have a significant impact on short-term prices.” – U.S.

NeoPharm, Inc. (NASDAQ: NEOL), today announced its second quarter 2008 financial results.