Guest guest Posted July 30, 2004 Report Share Posted July 30, 2004 > " HSI - Jenny Thompson " > <HSIResearch > Day-Old Fish > Thu, 29 Jul 2004 08:26:12 -0400 > > Day-Old Fish > > Health Sciences Institute e-Alert > > Thursday July 29, 2004 > > ************************************************************** > Dear Reader, > > Late at night, when things get quiet and just the > sounds of crickets > waft through the open windows, if you ever hear an > exasperated > howling in the distance, that's probably me as I > browse through > some of the day's latest health news. > > My most recent howling was prompted by a report on > some new > guidelines for the treatment of high-risk heart > patients. > > The updated guidelines come from the National > Cholesterol > Education Program (NCEP), so without even reading > the first word > you already know what they're going to say: Low LDL > cholesterol > has to be pushed even lower. > > NCEP is part of the National Heart, Lung and Blood > Institute, > which is part of the National Institutes of Health. > And the > guidelines have been endorsed by the American > College of > Cardiology and the American Heart Association. (The > guidelines > were published in a recent issue of Circulation – an > AHA > publication.) > > In other words: We're talking DEEP medical > mainstream here. > How deep? Way down deep where the drug money flows. > > > -------------------------- > > How low can you go? > -------------------------- > > > In 2001 the NCEP panel of experts said that heart > patients who are > at very high risk should do whatever it takes (that > is: take statin > drugs) to get their LDL cholesterol down to 100. > Now, after > reviewing five studies conducted since 2001, the > panel has revised > the ideal target for LDL. Now it needs to be 70! At > this rate, by the > year 2010 they'll be recommending an LDL of 10. > > Think I'm joking? Just wait six years. > > The new recommendations suggest that statin drugs > should be used > in nearly all high-risk patients whose LDL is over > 100. The lead > author of the guidelines – Dr. Scott Grundy – told > the Associated > Press that three years ago there were about 36 > million people " who > could benefit from drugs to lower their > cholesterol. " Dr. Grundy > guesses that the new guidelines might increase that > number by " a > few million. " > > So if you happen to be the executive of a large drug > company that > manufactures statin drugs... well! These new > recommendations are > like Christmas in July! But pharmaceutical execs > know that there's > no Santa Claus. And they know that big, beautiful > gifts don't just > magically appear under the tree. Someone has to put > them there. > > ------------------------------ > > Visions of sugarplums > ------------------------------ > > > The release of the NCEP guidelines was not > accompanied by a > financial disclosure statement for the panelists. > But just days after > the release, Newsday (a Long Island, NY, newspaper) > reported that > some of the panelists had ties to drug companies. In > response to a > call for disclosure, NCEP officials posted a > statement on their web > site. And the details are eye-opening, to say the > least. > > Pfizer is the maker of the statin Lipitor, the > world's best selling > drug. Seven of the nine NCEP panelists have > financial connections > to Pfizer. And five of them have served as > consultants to Pfizer. > Nice, huh? But if you think that smells fishy, it's > just the tip of the > day-old fish bin. > > Merck is the maker of Zocor, another very popular > statin. Seven of > the nine panelists have financial connections to > Merck. Four of > them have served as consultants to Merck. > > Only one of the panelists had no financial > connections to any drug > company. The other eight have received research > grants or > honoraria for speaking engagements from Bayer, Glaxo > Smith > Kline, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Novartis, and > more than > half a dozen other drug companies. And most of these > companies > manufacture statin drugs. > > Hear that howling in the distance? That's me. > > ------------------------------ > > No quarrels > ------------------------------ > > > The acting director of the National Heart, Lung and > Blood > Institute, Dr. Barbara Alving, defended the > panelists' drug > company connections, telling Newsday that the top > experts would > naturally have contact with companies that develop > drugs within > their fields of expertise. She said that individuals > who don't have > ties to drug companies, " are probably not the > experts in the field. " > > Hmm. I wonder how Dr. James Cleeman felt when he > read that? > > Dr. Cleeman – coordinator of the NCEP – is the only > panelist with > no financial ties to any drug companies. So in Dr. > Alving's > estimation, Dr. C. apparently doesn't qualify as an > expert. But in > my opinion he's a stand-up guy for resisting an > all-expense-paid > first-class ticket on the drug company gravy train. > > But that doesn't mean that Dr. Cleeman is on the > right track. > Addressing the initial lack of financial disclosure, > Dr. Cleeman > dismissed it as procedural blip, a simple oversight > that doesn't > compromise the recommendations of the panel. Dr. > Cleeman told > WebMD that the public shouldn't be diverted from the > importance > of lowering LDL cholesterol, adding that, " Nobody is > quarreling > with the substance of the message. " > > Nobody!? Does he mean nobody on the panel? Or nobody > at the > NCEP? Or nobody at Pfizer? He certainly can't mean > that nobody > AT ALL quarrels with the message. Because there are > many who > quarrel long and loud with the basic concept that > low cholesterol is > the primary key to heart health. Because it isn't. > It's not even > close. In fact, there is a lot of evidence that the > real danger is > letting your cholesterol get too low. > > > > This you won't believe > > > > In an e-Alert next week, I'll take a look at the > " substance of the > message, " of the recommendations – and we'll get > some dissenting > views. > > We'll also hear again from Dr. Cleeman who made a > comment > about cholesterol that's nothing less than > flabbergasting, especially > coming from the coordinator of the National > Cholesterol Education > Program. And we'll check in with HSI Panelist Allan > Spreen, > M.D., for some tips on ways to address high-risk > heart problems > naturally. > > Stay tuned. > > ************************************************************** > ...and another thing > > Broccoli pizza? > > Don't laugh. It might save your life. > > In the e-Alert " Home Grown " (7/27/04), I told you > about an Italian > study that found the risk of heart attack reduced by > more than 50 > percent among subjects who ate about 14 ounces of > pizza each > week. > > Of course, the lycopene in the tomato sauce provides > the healthy > pizza ingredient that helps prevent heart problems > and cancer. > Now... add some broccoli and you've got a health > powerhouse, > according to research that will be published later > this year in the > Journal of Nutrition. > > Knowing that both tomatoes and broccoli contain > cancer-fighting > compounds, researchers at the University of Illinois > at Urbana fed > rats a combination of tomatoes and broccoli. Another > group of rats > was fed tomatoes, but no broccoli, while another > group ate > broccoli, but no tomatoes. Finally, a fourth group > ate food that > contained the isolated cancer-fighting nutrients in > tomatoes and > broccoli. > > The result: Rats that ate tomatoes and broccoli > combined had > significantly less prostate tumor growth than rats > on any of the > other diets. > > Of course, further research is required to find out > if tomatoes eaten > with broccoli will provide the same health benefits > for humans. > But one thing is certain: a slice of broccoli pizza > couldn't do any > harm (unless you're allergic to broccoli, as I am – > drats!). But it > might do a lot of good. > > To Your Good Health, > > Jenny Thompson > Health Sciences Institute > > ************************************************************** > Sources: > " Implications of Recent Clinical Trials for the > National Cholesterol > Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III > Guidelines " > Circulation, Vol. 110, No. 2, 7/13/04, > circ.ahajournals.org > " New Guidelines for Heart Disease Patients " The > Associated > Press, 7/12/04, msnbc.com > " Statin Recommenders' Drugmaker Ties " Delthia Ricks, > Newsday, > 7/20/04, newsday.com > " Development of the Adult Treatment Panel III > Update " National > Cholesterol Education Program, nhlbi.nih.gov > " Government Group's Drug Ties Not Disclosed " Salynn > Boyles, > WebMD, my.webmd.com > " Plant Food combo Offers Higher Cancer Protection " > NutraIngredients.com, 7/19/04, nutraingredients.com > > Copyright ©1997-2004 by www.hsibaltimore.com, > L.L.C. > The e-Alert may not be posted on commercial sites > without > written permission. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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