In order to educate women about this important topic, Seventh Generation has teamed up with the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) and has dedicated September 1st, 2009 as “Let’s Talk… Period” Day. The goal is to educate women about ovarian cancer and to raise funds that will support this education.

Head to the  “Let’s Talk… Period” Day website on September 1st (tomorrow) and register your email address. For each person who registers, Seventh Generation will make a $1 donation to the OCRF, with an overall donation of $22,000 representing the women that will be diagnosed this year. The website offers useful information on ovarian cancer signs, symptoms, risk factors and prevention, plus plenty of videos about healthier female care products.

As a thank you for logging in and participating, Seventh Generation will be giving each registrant a coupon for their organic cotton tampons that are not bleached with chlorine, free of rayon and don’t contain added perfumes or dyes. See the video below to find out what’s in most tampons…

Post from: Blisstree

Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

There are many types of over-the-counter pain relievers available to the consumer, namely acetaminophen, ibuprofen (Advil) and ASA (Aspirin). And, for many people, they’re very effective. The problem is, who is monitoring how much of these medications they take and how often?

It must be safe!

“I can buy it off the shelf, it’s got to be safe.” Sound familiar? That’s the way many people think about medications they can just walk in and buy. That’s not always the case. Yes, the medication itself is usually safe for most people if taken in the right way, but that leaves a lot of “ifs” in there, doesn’t it?

A major problem with drugs like Tylenol is the damage they can do to your liver. This is why there are warnings on the labels not to take more than a certain amount over a certain time period. A warning that is easy to ignore.

What can happen?

Liver failure is what can happen. Overdosing on acetaminophen can result in your liver shutting down. Once the liver stops working, it generally doesnt’ begin again. This means, if you’re lucky, you’ll be a candidate for a liver transplant. If you’re not, you may die.

But the FDA said it’s safe.

It is safe – within those parameters. But, now, even an FDA panel is taking another look at the recommended maximum doses of acetaminophen. This is the result of thousands of cases of liver failure every year, and up to 200 deaths. They are recommending that the FDA lower the recommended daily doses.

What about other medications with acetaminophen?

There lies the rub. Other medications, namely cough and cold medicines, and flu medicines contain some amount of acetaminophen. What often happens is people take one of these medications and then a short while later, a Tylenol for a headache or for added relief. This is one of the most common ways of getting too much acetaminophen in your body.

What can we do?

Read labels. Read what is in them and how much you are allowed to take per day. Don’t go over that. Take into account the other medications you’re using. And, if the problem for which you’re aking the acetaminophen isn’t going away, you may consider trying another type or you should speak with your doctor.

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Images: Courtesy PhotoXpress.com, MorgueFile.com

Post from: Blisstree

Tylenol: How Much Is Too Much?

This week I received a Safety Communication from the FDA about stimulant medication to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) that concerned me. I know several children who take or have taken these meds. Their parents tell me they make a world of difference. My niece we medicated for the disorder, and my therapist believes I was among the undiagnosed children before the condition was a household name. I am fully aware that ADHD runs in families and my very active son could be affected.

Earlier this week, the FDA alerted consumers that it is continuing an ongoing review of ADHD meds because of reports of sudden cardiac death in healthy children. The events are part of a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. Because of the study’s limitations, the FDA urges parents not to stop a child’s stimulant medication based on this information and to discuss concerns about the use of these medications with the health care professional who prescribed the medications.

The study, which is funded by the FDA and the National Institute of Mental Health, compared the use of stimulant medications in 564 healthy children from across the United States who died suddenly, to the use of stimulant medications in 564 children who died as passengers in a motor vehicle accident. The study’s authors concluded that there may be an association between the use of stimulant medications and sudden death in healthy children.

The FDA raises concerns about the data content because of a number of factors: a significant lag time between dates when the deaths occurred and collection of the data; the difference in circumstances of death varied between family or caregiver; sudden, unexplained death in a child would be more likely to trigger a post-mortem inquiry into the cause of death than death due to blunt force trauma as a result of a motor vehicle collision; and there was a low frequency of stimulant use reported in both the study group and the control group.

The agency advises that any child who develops cardiovascular symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath or fainting during stimulant medication treatment should immediately be seen by a doctor.

The FDA is continuing to review the strengths and limitations of this and other epidemiological studies and the agency along with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality are sponsoring a large epidemiological study that will provide further information about the potential for risks associated with stimulant medication use in children. That data is expected to be completed in late 2009.

Photo, foxumon, stock exchg

Post from: Blisstree

FDA reviews link between ADHD meds, deaths

How?

The MedWatch program at the FDA is for anyone, from consumers to medical professionals. The mandate is to accept reports and complaints, investigate them, and advise the public of any problems or issues that result from the investigation.

MedWatch is the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) program for reporting serious reactions, product quality problems, therapeutic inequivalence/failure, and product use errors with human medical products, such as drugs and medical devices.

If, for some reason, you’re not comfortable or able to have your doctor fill out forms, you are more than welcome to do so on your own:

If you think you or someone in your family has experienced a serious reaction to a medical product, you are encouraged to take the reporting form to your doctor. Your health care provider can provide clinical information based on your medical record that can help us evaluate your report.

However, we understand that for a variety of reasons, you may not wish to have the form filled out by your health care provider, or your health care provider may choose not to complete the form. Your health care provider is NOT required to report to the FDA. In these situations, you may complete the Online Reporting Form yourself. You will receive an acknowledgement from FDA after we receive your report. You will be personally contacted only if we need additional information.

You can read more at the MedWatch site.

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Images: MorgueFile.com

Post from: Blisstree

Reporting Medical Problems to FDA

Thoratec Corp. has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration to use its HeartMate II heart pump to help advanced-stage heart failure patients survive while awaiting heart transplants.

Until now some heart transplant recipients were not able to receive pumps due to size and gender. The hopes for the new pump is it’s ease of implantation

via East Bay Business Times 

Post from: Blisstree

HeartMate II pump approved by FDA

Many times patients that are born with such congenital heart diseases as right ventricular outflow tract and they face many procedures and surgeries, which usually consist of opening the chest to replace the damaged valves.

“We were able to successfully implant the Edwards SAPIEN transcatheter heart valve percutaneously in the first three patients treated in this trial. All of the patients are recovering and are expected to go home today,” said Dr. Ziyad M. Hijazi, director of the Rush Center for Congenital and Structural Heart Disease, chief of the section of pediatric cardiology and professor in the departments of pediatrics and internal medicine at Rush University, Chicago.

The FDA had conditionally approved this in late 2007 and they are in hopes that these successes will help gain commercial approval to meet all patients needs. Exciting!!

via Science Daily

Post from: Blisstree

Non-invasive heart valve replacement- Wow!

The new findings suggest that there is many more healthful benefits that go along with the whole grains then what was first thought including…

• Reduce the risk for elevated blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, and weight gain
• Reduce LDL cholesterol during weight-loss
• Provide favorable changes in the physical characteristics of LDL cholesterol particles, making them less susceptible to oxidation (oxidation is thought to lead to hardening of the arteries.)
• Supply unique compounds that may lead to reducing early hardening of the arteries

Post from: Blisstree

Oatmeal Proves To Be More Beneficial In Lowering Cholesterol Than Originally Thought