Although research has shown that asbestos can cause cancer and other harmful illnesses and the federal government has sought to limit and even ban its use, yet another sizable judgment in a tainted talc case and the discovery of the substance in a popular cosmetics line shows how America’s oversight and regulation of risky materials….
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Johnson & Johnson hid knowledge of talc’s taint with asbestos, reports say
Johnson & Johnson, now facing thousands of lawsuits asserting ties between its famed baby powder and patients’ cancers, has campaigned for decades to keep from wide public view information that its talc was tainted with asbestos, a naturally occurring substance and an established cause of some cancers, news media reports say. Reuters news service published its….
Continue ReadingNo surgery is free of risks or complications, as breast reconstruction study reminds
Cancer and surgery — it’s little wonder that even the most resilient patients can buckle a bit when their doctors talk to them about these two issues together and urgently. That’s why new research may be valuable to women with breast cancer, providing them with better evidence-based insight about challenges in their reconstructive options. The….
Continue ReadingLasik surgery: a study in medical risks, complications, lack of official followup
Caveat emptor, federal officials are reminding patients anew about an eye surgery that tens of millions of Americans already have undergone and all too many may believe ── wrongly ── is all but risk-free. In fact, significant numbers of the 9.5 million Americans who had laser-assisted operations, the so-called Lasik procedure, may show vision improvements,….
Continue ReadingPresident O? Let’s first look hard at her role in hyping health humbug
Oprah Winfrey’s recent rousing broadcast speech — both in accepting an entertainment industry group’s lifetime achievement award and denouncing sexism and sexual harassment in Hollywood — also opened the door to a reconsideration of how this talented, smart, accomplished, powerful, and wealthy celebrity icon long has helped to foster a barrage of health and medical….
Continue ReadingIt’s not a stretch: Avoid those over-use boo-boos, older yogis are warned
For seniors who may be rushing to squeeze in a few more pretzel-twisting sessions to ease their stress from a hectic holiday season, this is a gentle reminder: Take it easy with the yoga. It can be good for you, but don’t overdo it or you may hurt yourself. The Washington Post reported that the….
Continue ReadingSome straight dope on pot products, soy foods, essential oils, stem cell hype
Let’s give them their just deserts and dispatch them with alacrity. In this week’s hokum alert: The federal Food and Drug Administration couldn’t make it clearer: Companies pushing products with cannabis in them can’t make unfounded claims about their use in treating or “curing” cancer. It’s just rubbish. The agency ordered the makers of dozens….
Continue ReadingElmo and George Washington University get caught up in researcher-PR hype
Elmo and the Colonials won’t make it as a new Saturday morning hit cartoon show. But the colorful characters might play a tangential part in some important lessons for consumers and some supposedly serious institutions on preserving the public trust in published, medical-scientific research. Healthnewsreview.org, a nonprofit and independent watchdog of health information, rightly has….
Continue ReadingPlastic surgery patients don’t need surgeons who are social media clowns
Social media have become a “circus” for some plastic and cosmetic surgeons to clown around in unprofessional ways, including: videos in which one doctor has cradled fat removed from a tummy-tuck like an infant and put a baby face on it using a Snapchat filter. Other costumed surgeons have posted visual displays of themselves dancing….
Continue ReadingPediatricians may be the Rx for rising tide of tats, piercings, scars in youths
Could pediatricians accomplish what many parents cannot? Can they talk to rebellious youths about the body adornments that are all the rage now, and get kids to consider the health risks and long-term issues surrounding trendy tattoos, piercings, and body scarring? In case you’ve fallen like Rip Van Winkle into a long doze or you’re….
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