News & Features

August, 2008

August, edition of M.D. Pharmacy's monthly newsletter. Articles regarding your medications, their safety, and the politics behind the price you pay for them. Please share this with your neighbors.

Lack of sunshine vitamin may cloud survival odds.

New research linking low vitamin D levels with deaths from heart disease and other causes bolsters mounting evidence about the "sunshine" vitamin's role in good health. Patients with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D were about twice as likely to die from any cause in the next eight years than those with the highest levels. Vitamin D is naturally created by the body when exposed to sunlight, or is available as additives to such items as Calcium supplements and milk, as well as in many fish liver oils. Further, it is well known that vitamin D greatly enhances the absorption of Calcium by the bloodstream. (Archives of Internal Medicine)

Imported counterfeit drugs on the rise.

According to the Pharmaceutical Security Institute, an international not-for-profit corporation dedicated to improving prescription drug security, the number of counterfeit drugs seized in 2007 increased by 24%. This included illicit versions of 403 different prescription drugs from 99 countries. Among the most popular copied drugs is Viagra, but hundreds of other popular drugs were also found to be counterfeit. Counterfeits often find their way into this country thru internet and mail-order suppliers. The illegally produced counterfeits are often worthless look-alikes, and sometimes dangerous substitutions or overdoses. (U.S. Pharmacist e-CONNECT)

FDA warns against fake cancer cures.

The FDA sent warning letters to 23 U.S. companies and two foreign individuals marketing a wide range of products fraudulently claiming to prevent and cure cancer. The FDA is also warning consumers not to purchase these products, which include tablets, teas, tonics, black salves, and creams sold under various brand names, containing ingredients such as bloodroot, shark cartilage, coral calcium, cesium, ellagic acid, Cat's Claw, an herbal tea called Essiac, and various mushroom varieties. Though promotions of bogus cancer "cures" have long been a problem, the internet has provided a mechanism for them to flourish. The warning letters are an important step to ensure that consumers do not become the victims of false "cures" that may cause greater harm to their health, and delay or prevent them from seeking valid medical treatment. (United Press International)

Drug may be the first to treat the common cold.

Researchers at St. Louis University say they have discovered that a smallpox drug might also target the adenovirus, which not only causes the common cold, but also several severe upper-respiratory infections. There are currently no drugs to treat adenovirus infections in large part because there has been no animal model in which to test drug candidates, a key prerequisite before testing in humans. Now the SLU scientists report two breakthrough findings: an animal model suitable for testing (in this case using Syrian hamsters), and a drug that successfully attacks the adenovirus in the animals. The scientists said their findings might lead to the first human testing of a drug to specifically treat adenovirus infections. (United Press International)

Estrogen linked to benign breast lumps.

One type of hormone therapy after menopause, estrogen plus progestin, is already well-known to increase the risk of breast cancer. But a major study of women able to use estrogen alone (those who have undergone hysterectomies) didn't find that link. New research however, finds that those estrogen-only users doubled their chance of getting non-cancerous breast lumps. That's a concern not only because of the extra biopsies and worry those lumps cause, but because a particular type – called benign proliferative breast disease – is suspected of being a first step toward developing cancer 10 years or so later. Even though the lumps usually turn out to be benign, microscopic examinations find that there are different types, from simple fluid-filled cysts to what's known as proliferative breast disease because it's made of growing cells. Women in the tests are still being tracked, allowing scientists to eventually tell if the benign breast problems were a signal of trouble to come. (Associated Press)

The pharmacists and staff at M.D. Pharmacy, your neighborhood pharmacy.

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