Drug Companies Make BILLIONS Testing Adult Drugs on Kids

[Guest guest]

Drug Companies Make BILLIONS Testing Adult Drugs on Kids

By Rachel Zimmerman

 

Mary Robinson, a Philadelphia X-ray technologist, received $300 and a $50 gift

certificate to Toys " R " Us as an incentive to enroll her seven-month-old

daughter in a drug trial to treat a form of indigestion babies can get.

 

Merck & Co., the maker of the medicine, also received an incentive: about $290

million. That's the estimated revenue Merck will pocket from six months of

additional marketing exclusivity it won.

 

Its drug, Pepcid™, was slated to lose its patent protection last October,

opening the way to low-priced generic competition. But, as a reward for

conducting the first formal studies of Pepcid in infants, the federal government

has given Merck a half-year of extra protection from generics. And the gains are

even greater for some of the other companies rushing to take advantage of a 1997

law meant to encourage pediatric trials of adult medicines.

 

That law, by giving drug makers an incentive to test on children, is producing

important new prescribing information for pediatricians, the Food and Drug

Administration says. Labels have been changed on 14 drugs to reflect new data.

Some pediatricians are delighted with the results and are lobbying to extend the

law past its scheduled expiration at year end.

 

But a close look at the law shows that it is also producing an unintended

consequence: a drug-industry financial bonanza.

 

Stronger Sales

 

The studies required to gain six more months of marketing exclusivity are

relatively small and inexpensive, costing anywhere from $200,000 to $3 million.

But the extended exclusivity that results can be very valuable. It will boost

drug-company sales by more than $4 billion, by the Wall Street Journal's

calculations, which compare six months of sales while a drug has marketing

exclusivity against typical six-month sales of the drug after generic

competition hits. Generics typically knock a strong-selling brand-name drug's

sales down roughly 75%.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Benefits of Pediatric Testing

 

Here are six of the drugs granted extended marketing exclusivity under a 1997

law and estimates of how much extra revenue the extensions could produce.

 

Manufacturer/Drug

 

Type

 

One-Year Revenue*

 

6-Mo. Addition to Revenue**

 

Schering-Plough (Claritin™)

 

Antihistamine

 

$2.60 billion

 

$975 million

 

Eli Lilly (Prozac™)

 

Antidepressant

 

$2.21 billion

 

$831 million

 

Bristol-Myers Squibb (Glucophage™)

 

Diabetes

 

$1.73 billion

 

$648 million

 

Merck (Pepcid™)

 

Antiulcer/heartburn

 

$775 million

 

$290 million

 

Merck (Vasotec™)

 

Hypertensive

 

$850 million

 

$318 million

 

Bristol-Myers Squibb (Buspar™)

 

Antianxiety

 

$759 million

 

$284 million

 

 

 

 

 

 

The $4 billion of projected extra revenue is just for the first 26 drugs tested

under the program. About 200 proposals to test more drugs on children or infants

are pending at the FDA. If they get an FDA go-ahead, they could add $6 billion

more revenue to drug-company coffers, says Chris Milne of the Tufts Center for

Drug Development in Boston. And over the next 20 years, if the law remains in

effect, producers of brand-name drugs could gain added revenue of nearly $30

billion, according to an FDA analysis.

 

Big Ones First

 

As the numbers suggest, companies are first testing mainly their big-selling

drugs, where extended market exclusivity is a potent lure. Only now are some

companies moving to test lesser-selling drugs about which pediatricians have

long wanted data.

 

Critics complain that drug companies are sometimes gaining the six-month bonus

by testing drugs that treat conditions uncommon in children, such as arthritis,

ulcers and hypertension.

 

Another complaint is that the law sometimes lets companies win extra exclusivity

without doing much new testing. At the same time, the law does nothing to

promote child testing of drugs that are already off-patent or no longer marketed

by a sponsoring company. An example is dopamine hydrochloride, which neonatal

nurseries rely on to stabilize blood pressure in critically ill babies, but

which has never been subjected to formal pediatric trials.

 

Meanwhile, makers of generic drugs come out losers. They could lose $10.7

billion in sales over 20 years as a result of the six-month extensions, the FDA

estimates. The agency sees ill effects for retail pharmacies, too, because their

markup on brand-name drugs isn't as large as on generics. The six-month

extensions could cost pharmacies $4.9 billion in revenue over 20 years, the FDA

estimates.

 

Public-Health Cost

 

There is a public-health impact, as well. The longer a drug maker fends off

generic competition, the longer patients -- particularly the poor and the

uninsured -- will be burdened by premium prices for their medicines. The FDA

estimates that the incentive law will raise the cost of prescription drugs $695

million a year, or one-half of one-percent of the nation's $100 million annual

pharmaceuticals bill.

 

" Pediatric exclusivity has created a system of bribing companies into doing what

the government deems scientifically and medically necessary, " contends Abbey

Meyers, president of the National Organization for Rare Disorders.

 

'Win for Industry'

 

For their part, drug makers say they are being appropriately compensated for

meeting FDA requests under the 1997 law. They didn't seek this law. But since

its passage, pediatric trials have become a key part of strategies to squeeze

every dollar out of strong-selling drugs nearing patent expiration, some

drug-company executives acknowledge.

 

" I won't deny it's been a win for industry, " says Ian Spatz, Merck's executive

director of public policy.

 

The law arose from frustration by pediatricians and regulators who for decades

couldn't persuade drug companies to test many adult medicines on children.

Doctors often prescribed them anyway, cutting pills in half or grinding

medicines into applesauce, hoping to come up with doses for children that were

both safe and effective.

 

Between 70% and 80% of medicines have never been formally tested in a pediatric

population.

 

Attempts at requiring testing have been largely unsuccessful. Twenty years ago,

the FDA ruled that drug makers had to submit substantial safety and efficacy

evidence to label a medicine for use in children. The result, instead of more

pediatric trials, was more labels with disclaimers saying effectiveness in

children hadn't been established.

 

To the industry, testing drugs on children is risky and burdensome. You're

talking about a small population where you have to take a lot of care and pay a

great deal of attention to the design, documentation and monitoring and have

adequate staff resources to ask and answer the right questions.

 

The obstacles also include liability concerns and the challenge of getting

informed consent. And if a child in a clinical trial reacts badly, negative

publicity could batter the drug's sales in every age group.

 

Dr. Kessler, the former FDA commissioner, announced an FDA rule he hoped would

finally move the drug industry. It said that to get drugs labeled for use in

children, companies in many cases no longer had to conduct large, expensive

efficacy trials with children. They could do simpler tests to establish safety

and dosing ranges. Despite the relaxation, companies continued to forgo label

changes rather than pursue pediatric clinical trials.

 

With few options, Congress and regulators warmed to the notion of financial

incentives. " We were stuck. We had tried everything possible, every kind of

other incentive, and nothing worked, " says Dr. Kessler, now dean of Yale medical

school.

 

Congress took up a bill to give companies extended market exclusivity in return

for studying medicines in children. According to people involved in the effort,

lobbyists for the drug industry initially wanted five extra years of marketing

exclusivity, then two years and then one year, eventually agreeing to six

months.

 

Law's Flaws

 

The law's critics say it has loopholes that undermine a laudable intent, such as

allowing a financial benefit for studies that would probably be done anyway. For

instance, Eli Lilly & Co. is winning Prozac™ six more months of defense against

generics -- worth an estimated $831 million in added revenue -- by submitting a

clinical study that had already been completed in 1995, two years before the law

was passed, plus results of three studies that had already been initiated.

 

A Lilly spokesman, Ed West, says that while protocols for those three studies

had been written before the law passed, the final decision to proceed with them

came only after the financial incentive was in place.

 

He won't comment on the estimate of added sales. In any case, Lilly couldn't

have gained credit for the tests if the FDA hadn't let it. The agency interprets

the law as permitting a company to submit certain already-conducted tests -- and

gain more marketing exclusivity -- as long as the test results provide important

new data.

 

In other cases, companies are doing pediatric testing with drugs for conditions

that aren't common in juveniles. Consider Bristol Myers-Squibb Co.'s Glucophage™

for adult-onset diabetes and Merck's Vasotec™ hypertension pill. Both have

carried labels saying safety and effectiveness hadn't been established in

children. According to market-research firm IMS Health, of 24 million

Glucophage™ prescriptions in the U.S. in the past year, just 133,000 were

written by pediatricians.

 

For Vasotec™, the numbers were 11 million in all, 70,000 of them from

pediatricians. But makers of both drugs tested them in children and won extra

marketing exclusivity, potentially worth nearly $1 billion in added revenue.

 

Critics from the generic-drugs industry find another aspect of the incentive law

troubling. A predecessor company to GlaxoSmithKline won added exclusivity for

the ulcer drug Zantac™ by doing a study that gave an injectable form of it to

newborns with a condition called acid reflux. The tests didn't involve the

Zantac™ pill. But they yielded a six-month extension for that blockbuster pill

anyway, because the FDA interprets the law as applying to a drug's active

ingredient.

 

Even the FDA acknowledges that there are still some flaws in the process, which

begins when a company or the FDA expresses interest in a clinical trial. At that

point, the agency gives the company a written request for studies. In a majority

of cases, companies initially propose studies that are unacceptable to the FDA,

the agency's Dr. Murphy says, or the companies reject FDA-proposed studies as

too large and costly.

 

Some of the sharpest criticism is that companies use the law to extend their

exclusivity on hot-sellers, while often not testing other drugs that could help

children but aren't large revenue producers. The American Academy of Pediatrics

says there are still hundreds of drugs, on patent and off, that need to be

tested in certain age groups.

 

In the mid-1990s, Dr. Kauffman pleaded in vain with Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. to

test its Toradol™ pain killer on children, and finally did such a study himself

-- finding the drug to be as effective as morphine for postsurgical pain, with

fewer narcotic side effects. But the manufacturer, a unit of Roche Holding Ltd.,

hasn't changed the label. A spokesman says Toradol™ is " not one of our promoted

products. "

 

The extra market exclusivity the law provides is especially valuable for

top-selling products. By conducting pediatric tests of Vasotec™, Merck fended

off generic competition for this blood-pressure drug for six more months last

year, gaining about an extra $318 million in revenue. After Vasotec's™ patent

and the six months of extra exclusivity finally expired in the fourth quarter,

the drug's U.S. sales fell 73%, Merck says.

 

Pepcid™ has been another big seller for Merck, and the company won an extension

through pediatric testing despite having already shown Pepcid was safe and

effective in children aged one to 16. Doctors could have given seven-month-old

Julia Robinson an off-label Pepcid™ prescription in the form of a liquid with a

cherry banana mint flavor. Instead, she became part of a clinical trial designed

to test a diluted version, after a doctor at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

recruited her mother.

 

" They explained that it hadn't been approved for kids under one and that's why

she had to be in the study in order to get it, " Mrs. Robinson says. Julia's

condition improved, but the trial found that in most infants, the diluted form

wasn't as effective. Despite those results, the FDA let Merck fend off generic

competition for an added six months for all forms of Pepcid™.

 

Merck says the study's findings were valuable data that simply wouldn't have

been produced without the six-month incentive.

 

Even Younger

 

Schering-Plough Corp. should receive one of the bigger boosts from the law -- an

estimated $975 million in extra revenue from Claritin™. U.S. sales of the

antihistamine last year were $2.6 billion. The drug is so important to

Schering-Plough that the company spent millions on lobbyists and political

donations in an effort to win special legislation extending its patents, which

start expiring in mid-2002.

 

That effort didn't succeed. But the company did get an extension of its

marketing exclusivity through the pediatric law -- even though Claritin™ was

already approved for children aged six and above and was being widely prescribed

for them. Pediatricians wrote 3.6 million Claritin™ prescriptions in the 12

months through November 1999.

 

Six extra months of protection from generics in a case like this upsets Carol

Ben-Maimon, chairwoman of the Generic Pharmaceutical Industry Association. " If

you're testing kids for valuable information, that's one thing, but if you're

testing them just to make another half billion, that's exploitation, " she says.

 

Schering-Plough spokesman William O'Donnell declines to comment on the

projection of added revenue for Claritin™. But he says the pediatric study, by

establishing that Claritin™ could be used safely in children under six and

setting a proper dose, " met the intent and spirit of the provision. "

 

At the FDA, Dr. Murphy acknowledges that a few companies will make " quite a lot

of money on this. " But, she says, " that's the price you pay. "

 

Wall Street Journal February 5, 2001

The Doors Of Perception: Why Americans Will Believe Almost Anything

Page 1 of 2 (Page 2, References)

 

by Dr. Tim O'Shea

 

We are the most conditioned, programmed beings the world has ever known. Not

only are our thoughts and attitudes continually being shaped and molded; our

very awareness of the whole design seems like it is being subtly and inexorably

erased.

 

The doors of our perception are carefully and precisely regulated. Who cares,

right?

 

It is an exhausting and endless task to keep explaining to people how most

issues of conventional wisdom are scientifically implanted in the public

consciousness by a thousand media clips per day. In an effort to save time, I

would like to provide just a little background on the handling of information in

this country.

 

Once the basic principles are illustrated about how our current system of media

control arose historically, the reader might be more apt to question any given

story in today's news.

 

If everybody believes something, it's probably wrong. We call that Conventional

Wisdom.

 

In America, conventional wisdom that has mass acceptance is usually contrived:

somebody paid for it. Examples:

 

Pharmaceuticals restore health

Vaccination brings immunity

The cure for cancer is just around the corner

When a child is sick, he needs immediate antibiotics

When a child has a fever he needs Tylenol

Hospitals are safe and clean.

America has the best health care in the world.

And many many more

 

This is a list of illusions, that have cost billions and billions to conjure up.

Did you ever wonder why you never see the President speaking publicly unless he

is reading? Or why most people in this country think generally the same about

most of the above issues?

 

How This Set-Up Got Started

 

In Trust Us We're Experts, Stauber and Rampton pull together some compelling

data describing the science of creating public opinion in America.

 

They trace modern public influence back to the early part of the last century,

highlighting the work of guys like Edward L. Bernays, the Father of Spin. From

his own amazing chronicle Propaganda, we learn how Edward L. Bernays took the

ideas of his famous uncle Sigmund Freud himself, and applied them to the

emerging science of mass persuasion.

 

The only difference was that instead of using these principles to uncover hidden

themes in the human unconscious, the way Freudian psychology does, Bernays used

these same ideas to mask agendas and to create illusions that deceive and

misrepresent, for marketing purposes.

 

The Father Of Spin

 

Bernays dominated the PR industry until the 1940s, and was a significant force

for another 40 years after that. (Tye) During all that time, Bernays took on

hundreds of diverse assignments to create a public perception about some idea or

product. A few examples:

 

As a neophyte with the Committee on Public Information, one of Bernays' first

assignments was to help sell the First World War to the American public with the

idea to " Make the World Safe for Democracy. " (Ewen)

 

A few years later, Bernays set up a stunt to popularize the notion of women

smoking cigarettes. In organizing the 1929 Easter Parade in New York City,

Bernays showed himself as a force to be reckoned with.

 

He organized the Torches of Liberty Brigade in which suffragettes marched in the

parade smoking cigarettes as a mark of women's liberation. Such publicity

followed from that one event that from then on women have felt secure about

destroying their own lungs in public, the same way that men have always done.

 

Bernays popularized the idea of bacon for breakfast.

 

Not one to turn down a challenge, he set up the advertising format along with

the AMA that lasted for nearly 50 years proving that cigarettes are beneficial

to health. Just look at ads in issues of Life or Time from the 40s and 50s.

 

Smoke And Mirrors

 

Bernay's job was to reframe an issue; to create a desired image that would put a

particular product or concept in a desirable light. Bernays described the public

as a 'herd that needed to be led.' And this herdlike thinking makes people

" susceptible to leadership. "

 

Bernays never deviated from his fundamental axiom to " control the masses without

their knowing it. " The best PR happens with the people unaware that they are

being manipulated.

 

Stauber describes Bernays' rationale like this:

" the scientific manipulation of public opinion was necessary to overcome chaos

and conflict in a democratic society. " Trust Us p 42

These early mass persuaders postured themselves as performing a moral service

for humanity in general - democracy was too good for people; they needed to be

told what to think, because they were incapable of rational thought by

themselves. Here's a paragraph from Bernays' Propaganda:

 

" Those who manipulate the unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible

government which is the true ruling power of our country. We are governed, our

minds molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested largely by men we have

never heard of.

 

This is a logical result of the way in which our democratic society is

organized. Vast numbers of human beings must cooperate in this manner if they

are to live together as a smoothly functioning society.

 

In almost every act of our lives whether in the sphere of politics or business

in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the

relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and

social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires that control the

public mind. "

 

Here Comes The Money

 

Once the possibilities of applying Freudian psychology to mass media were

glimpsed, Bernays soon had more corporate clients than he could handle. Global

corporations fell all over themselves courting the new Image Makers. There were

dozens of goods and services and ideas to be sold to a susceptible public. Over

the years, these players have had the money to make their images happen. A few

examples:

 

 

Philip Morris

 

Pfizer

 

Union Carbide

 

Allstate

 

Monsanto

 

Eli Lilly

 

tobacco industry

 

Ciba Geigy

 

lead industry

 

Coors

 

DuPont

 

Chlorox

 

Shell Oil

 

Standard Oil

 

Procter & Gamble

 

Boeing

 

General Motors

 

Dow Chemical

 

General Mills

 

Goodyear

 

 

 

The Players

 

Though world-famous within the PR industry, the companies have names we don't

know, and for good reason.

 

The best PR goes unnoticed.

 

For decades they have created the opinions that most of us were raised with, on

virtually any issue which has the remotest commercial value, including:

 

 

pharmaceutical drugs

 

vaccines

 

medicine as a profession

 

alternative medicine

 

fluoridation of city water

 

chlorine

 

household cleaning products

 

tobacco

 

dioxin

 

global warming

 

leaded gasoline

 

cancer research and treatment

 

pollution of the oceans

 

forests and lumber

 

images of celebrities, including damage control

 

crisis and disaster management

 

genetically modified foods

 

aspartame

 

food additives; processed foods

 

dental amalgams

 

 

 

Lesson #1

 

Bernays learned early on that the most effective way to create credibility for a

product or an image was by " independent third-party " endorsement.

 

For example, if General Motors were to come out and say that global warming is a

hoax thought up by some liberal tree-huggers, people would suspect GM's motives,

since GM's fortune is made by selling automobiles.

 

If however some independent research institute with a very credible sounding

name like the Global Climate Coalition comes out with a scientific report that

says global warming is really a fiction, people begin to get confused and to

have doubts about the original issue.

 

So that's exactly what Bernays did. With a policy inspired by genius, he set up

" more institutes and foundations than Rockefeller and Carnegie combined. "

(Stauber p 45)

 

Quietly financed by the industries whose products were being evaluated, these

" independent " research agencies would churn out " scientific " studies and press

materials that could create any image their handlers wanted. Such front groups

are given high-sounding names like:

 

 

Temperature Research Foundation

 

Manhattan Institute

 

International Food Information Council

 

Center for Produce Quality

 

Consumer Alert

 

Tobacco Institute Research Council

 

The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition

 

Cato Institute

 

Air Hygiene Foundation

 

 

American Council on Science and Health

 

Industrial Health Federation

 

Global Climate Coalition

 

International Food Information Council

 

Alliance for Better Foods

 

 

 

Sound pretty legit don't they?

 

Canned News Releases

 

As Stauber explains, these organizations and hundreds of others like them are

front groups whose sole mission is to advance the image of the global

corporations who fund them, like those listed on page 2 above.

 

This is accomplished in part by an endless stream of 'press releases' announcing

" breakthrough " research to every radio station and newspaper in the country.

(Robbins) Many of these canned reports read like straight news, and indeed are

purposely molded in the news format.

 

This saves journalists the trouble of researching the subjects on their own,

especially on topics about which they know very little. Entire sections of the

release or in the case of video news releases, the whole thing can be just

lifted intact, with no editing, given the byline of the reporter or newspaper or

TV station - and voilá! Instant news - copy and paste. Written by corporate PR

firms.

 

Does this really happen? Every single day, since the 1920s when the idea of the

News Release was first invented by Ivy Lee. (Stauber, p 22) Sometimes as many as

half the stories appearing in an issue of the Wall St. Journal are based solely

on such PR press releases.. (22)

 

These types of stories are mixed right in with legitimately researched stories.

Unless you have done the research yourself, you won't be able to tell the

difference.

 

The Language Of Spin

 

As 1920s spin pioneers like Ivy Lee and Edward Bernays gained more experience,

they began to formulate rules and guidelines for creating public opinion. They

learned quickly that mob psychology must focus on emotion, not facts. Since the

mob is incapable of rational thought, motivation must be based not on logic but

on presentation. Here are some of the axioms of the new science of PR:

 

technology is a religion unto itself

if people are incapable of rational thought, real democracy is dangerous

important decisions should be left to experts

when reframing issues, stay away from substance; create images

never state a clearly demonstrable lie

 

Words are very carefully chosen for their emotional impact. Here's an example. A

front group called the International Food Information Council handles the

public's natural aversion to genetically modified foods.

 

Trigger words are repeated all through the text. Now in the case of GM foods,

the public is instinctively afraid of these experimental new creations which

have suddenly popped up on our grocery shelves which are said to have DNA

alterations. The IFIC wants to reassure the public of the safety of GM foods, so

it avoids words like:

 

 

Frankenfoods

 

Hitler

 

biotech

 

chemical

 

DNA

 

experiments

 

manipulate

 

money

 

safety

 

scientists

 

radiation

 

roulette

 

gene-splicing

 

gene gun

 

random

 

 

 

Instead, good PR for GM foods contains words like:

 

 

hybrids

 

natural order

 

beauty

 

choice

 

bounty

 

cross-breeding

 

diversity

 

earth

 

farmer

 

organic

 

wholesome

 

 

 

It's basic Freudian/Tony Robbins word association. The fact that GM foods are

not hybrids that have been subjected to the slow and careful scientific methods

of real crossbreeding doesn't really matter. This is pseudoscience, not science.

Form is everything and substance just a passing myth. (Trevanian)

 

Who do you think funds the International Food Information Council? Take a wild

guess. Right - Monsanto, DuPont, Frito-Lay, Coca Cola, Nutrasweet - those in a

position to make fortunes from GM foods. (Stauber p 20)

 

Characteristics Of Good Propaganda

 

As the science of mass control evolved, PR firms developed further guidelines

for effective copy. Here are some of the gems:

 

dehumanize the attacked party by labeling and name calling

speak in glittering generalities using emotionally positive words

when covering something up, don't use plain English; stall for time; distract

get endorsements from celebrities, churches, sports figures, street people -

anyone who has no expertise in the subject at hand

the 'plain folks' ruse: us billionaires are just like you

when minimizing outrage, don't say anything memorable, point out the benefits

of what just happened, and avoid moral issues

 

Keep this list. Start watching for these techniques. Not hard to find - look at

today's paper or tonight's TV news. See what they're doing; these guys are good!

 

PAGE 2

 

 

The Doors Of Perception: Why Americans Will Believe Almost Anything

Page 2 of 2 (Page 1, References)

 

Science For Hire

 

PR firms have become very sophisticated in the preparation of news releases.

They have learned how to attach the names of famous scientists to research that

those scientists have not even looked at. (Stauber, p 201)

 

This is a common occurrence. In this way the editors of newspapers and TV news

shows are often not even aware that an individual release is a total PR

fabrication. Or at least they have " deniability, " right?

 

Stauber tells the amazing story of how leaded gas came into the picture. In

1922, General Motors discovered that adding lead to gasoline gave cars more

horsepower.

 

When there was some concern about safety, GM paid the Bureau of Mines to do some

fake " testing " and publish spurious research that 'proved' that inhalation of

lead was harmless. Enter Charles Kettering.

 

Founder of the world famous Sloan-Kettering Memorial Institute for medical

research, Charles Kettering also happened to be an executive with General

Motors.

 

By some strange coincidence, we soon have the Sloan Kettering institute issuing

reports stating that lead occurs naturally in the body and that the body has a

way of eliminating low level exposure.

 

Through its association with The Industrial Hygiene Foundation and PR giant Hill

& Knowlton, Sloane Kettering opposed all anti-lead research for years. (Stauber

p 92). Without organized scientific opposition, for the next 60 years more and

more gasoline became leaded, until by the 1970s, 90% of our gasoline was leaded.

 

Finally it became too obvious to hide that lead was a major carcinogen, and

leaded gas was phased out in the late 1980s. But during those 60 years, it is

estimated that some 30 million tons of lead were released in vapor form onto

American streets and highways. 30 million tons.

 

That is PR, my friends.

 

Junk Science

 

In 1993 a guy named Peter Huber wrote a new book and coined a new term. The book

was Galileo's Revenge and the term was junk science. Huber's shallow thesis was

that real science supports technology, industry, and progress.

 

Anything else was suddenly junk science. Not surprisingly, Stauber explains how

Huber's book was supported by the industry-backed Manhattan Institute.

 

Huber's book was generally dismissed not only because it was so poorly written,

but because it failed to realize one fact: true scientific research begins with

no conclusions. Real scientists are seeking the truth because they do not yet

know what the truth is.

 

True scientific method goes like this:

1. Form a hypothesis

2. Make predictions for that hypothesis

3. Test the predictions

4. Reject or revise the hypothesis based on the research findings

Boston University scientist Dr. David Ozonoff explains that ideas in science are

themselves like " living organisms, that must be nourished, supported, and

cultivated with resources for making them grow and flourish. " (Stauber p 205)

 

Great ideas that don't get this financial support because the commercial angles

are not immediately obvious - these ideas wither and die.

 

Another way you can often distinguish real science from phony is that real

science points out flaws in its own research. Phony science pretends there were

no flaws.

 

The Real Junk Science

 

Contrast this with modern PR and its constant pretensions to sound science.

Corporate sponsored research, whether it's in the area of drugs, GM foods, or

chemistry begins with predetermined conclusions.

 

It is the job of the scientists then to prove that these conclusions are true,

because of the economic upside that proof will bring to the industries paying

for that research. This invidious approach to science has shifted the entire

focus of research in America during the past 50 years, as any true scientist is

likely to admit.

 

Stauber documents the increasing amount of corporate sponsorship of university

research. (206) This has nothing to do with the pursuit of knowledge. Scientists

lament that research has become just another commodity, something bought and

sold. (Crossen)

 

The Two Main Targets Of " Sound Science "

 

It is shocking when Stauber shows how the vast majority of corporate PR today

opposes any research that seeks to protect

 

public health

the environment

 

It's a funny thing that most of the time when we see the phrase " junk science, "

it is in a context of defending something that may threaten either the

environment or our health.

 

This makes sense when one realizes that money changes hands only by selling the

illusion of health and the illusion of environmental protection. True public

health and real preservation of the earth's environment have very low market

value.

 

Stauber thinks it ironic that industry's self-proclaimed debunkers of junk

science are usually non-scientists themselves. (255) Here again they can do this

because the issue is not science, but the creation of images.

 

The Language Of Attack

 

When PR firms attack legitimate environmental groups and alternative medicine

people, they again use special words which will carry an emotional punch:

 

 

outraged sound science

 

junk science sensible

 

scaremongering responsible

 

phobia hoax

 

alarmist hysteria

 

 

 

The next time you are reading a newspaper article about an environmental or

health issue, note how the author shows bias by using the above terms. This is

the result of very specialized training.

 

Another standard PR tactic is to use the rhetoric of the environmentalists

themselves to defend a dangerous and untested product that poses an actual

threat to the environment. This we see constantly in the PR smokescreen that

surrounds genetically modified foods.

 

They talk about how GM foods are necessary to grow more food and to end world

hunger, when the reality is that GM foods actually have lower yields per acre

than natural crops. (Stauber p 173)

 

The grand design sort of comes into focus once you realize that almost all GM

foods have been created by the sellers of herbicides and pesticides so that

those plants can withstand greater amounts of herbicides and pesticides. (The

Magic Bean)

 

Kill Your TV?

 

Hope this chapter has given you a hint to start reading newspaper and magazine

articles a little differently, and perhaps start watching TV news shows with a

slightly different attitude than you had before.

 

Always ask, what are they selling here, and who's selling it? And if you

actually follow up on Stauber & Rampton's book and check out some of the other

resources below, you might even glimpse the possibility of advancing your life

one quantum simply by ceasing to subject your brain to mass media.

 

That's right - no more newspapers, no more TV news, no more Time magazine or

Newsweek. You could actually do that. Just think what you could do with the

extra time alone.

 

Really feel like you need to " relax " or find out " what's going on in the world "

for a few hours every day? Think about the news of the past couple of years for

a minute.

 

Do you really suppose the major stories that have dominated headlines and TV

news have been " what is going on in the world? " Do you actually think there's

been nothing going on besides the contrived tech slump, the contrived power

shortages, the re-filtered accounts of foreign violence and disaster, and all

the other non-stories that the puppeteers dangle before us every day?

 

What about when they get a big one, like with OJ or Monica Lewinsky or the

Oklahoma city bombing? Do we really need to know all that detail, day after day?

Do we have any way of verifying all that detail, even if we wanted to? What is

the purpose of news?

 

To inform the public? Hardly. The sole purpose of news is to keep the public in

a state of fear and uncertainty so that they'll watch again tomorrow and be

subjected to the same advertising.

 

Oversimplification? Of course. That's the mark of mass media mastery -

simplicity. The invisible hand. Like Edward Bernays said, the people must be

controlled without them knowing it.

 

Consider this: what was really going on in the world all that time they were

distracting us with all that stupid vexatious daily smokescreen? Fear and

uncertainty -- that's what keeps people coming back for more.

 

If this seems like a radical outlook, let's take it one step further:

 

What would you lose from your life if you stopped watching TV and stopped

reading newspapers altogether?

 

Would your life really suffer any financial, moral, intellectual or academic

loss from such a decision?

 

Do you really need to have your family continually absorbing the illiterate,

amoral, phony, uncultivated, desperately brainless values of the people featured

in the average nightly TV program? Are these fake, programmed robots " normal " ?

 

Do you need to have your life values constantly spoon-fed to you?

 

Are those shows really amusing, or just a necessary distraction to keep you from

looking at reality, or trying to figure things out yourself by doing a little

independent reading?

 

Name one example of how your life is improved by watching TV news and reading

the evening paper.

 

What measurable gain is there for you?

 

Planet of the Apes?

 

There's no question that as a nation, we're getting dumber year by year. Look at

the presidents we've been choosing lately. Ever notice the blatant grammar

mistakes so ubiquitous in today's advertising and billboards?

 

Literacy is marginal in most American secondary schools. Three fourths of

California high school seniors can't read well enough to pass their exit exams.

(SJ Mercury 20 Jul 01)

 

If you think other parts of the country are smarter, try this one: hand any high

school senior a book by Dumas or Jane Austen, and ask them to open to any random

page and just read one paragraph out loud. Go ahead, do it. SAT scales are

arbitrarily shifted lower and lower to disguise how dumb kids are getting year

by year.

 

At least 10% have documented " learning disabilities, " which are reinforced and

rewarded by special treatment and special drugs. Ever hear of anyone failing a

grade any more?

 

Or observe the intellectual level of the average movie which these days may only

last one or two weeks in the theatres, especially if it has insufficient

explosions, chase scenes, silicone, fake martial arts, and cretinesque dialogue.

 

Radio? Consider the low mental qualifications of the falsely animated corporate

simians they hire as DJs -- they're only allowed to have 50 thoughts, which they

just repeat at random.

 

And at what point did popular music cease to require the study of any musical

instrument or theory whatsoever, not to mention lyric? Perhaps we just don't

understand this emerging art form, right? The Darwinism of MTV - apes descended

from man.

 

Ever notice how most articles in any of the glossy magazines sound like they

were all written by the same guy? And this guy just graduated from junior

college? And yet he has all the correct opinions on social issues, no original

ideas, and that shallow, smug, homogenized corporate omniscience, which enables

him to assure us that everything is going to be fine...

 

All this is great news for the PR industry - makes their job that much easier.

Not only are very few paying attention to the process of conditioning; fewer are

capable of understanding it even if somebody explained it to them.

 

Tea In the Cafeteria

 

Let's say you're in a crowded cafeteria, and you buy a cup of tea. And as you're

about to sit down you see your friend way across the room. So you put the tea

down and walk across the room and talk to your friend for a few minutes.

 

Now, coming back to your tea, are you just going to pick it up and drink it?

Remember, this is a crowded place and you've just left your tea unattended for

several minutes. You've given anybody in that room access to your tea.

 

Why should your mind be any different? Turning on the TV, or uncritically

absorbing mass publications every day - these activities allow access to our

minds by " just anyone " - anyone who has an agenda, anyone with the resources to

create a public image via popular media.

 

As we've seen above, just because we read something or see something on TV

doesn't mean it's true or worth knowing. So the idea here is, like the tea, the

mind is also worth guarding, worth limiting access to it.

 

This is the only life we get. Time is our total capital. Why waste it allowing

our potential, our personality, our values to be shaped, crafted, and limited

according to the whims of the mass panderers?

 

There are many important issues that are crucial to our physical, mental, and

spiritual well-being. If it's an issue where money is involved, objective data

won't be so easy to obtain. Remember, if everybody knows something, that image

has been bought and paid for.

 

Real knowledge takes a little effort, a little excavation down at least one

level below what " everybody knows. "

 

References

 

 

 

 

 

 

DR. MERCOLA'S COMMENT:

 

As I said in February when I posted an earlier piece on Trust Us We're Experts:

 

One of the reasons I write this newsletter is to provide you, the reader, with

the truth so you can weed through much of the nonsense that the media throws at

you.

 

I know that it is difficult to do and that is one of the main reasons for the

newsletter. This book will help explain the details of how the media deceives

you through the manipulation of PR by the large corporations who do not have

your best interest at heart.

 

My goal is to change the entire system. The way that will be done is through the

Internet, which is the world's cheapest printing press. By passing this

newsletter on to as many of your friends and relatives as possible along with a

strong endorsement to , you will play a major role in helping to lift

the veil of deceit that these corporations try to hide the truth with.

 

We can change the traditional paradigm and in the process save hundreds of

thousands of people from premature death and disability.

 

Related Articles:

 

 

How The Media Deceives You About Health Issues

by Tate Metro Media

 

Think about how many times you've heard an evening news anchor spit out some

variation on the phrase, " According to experts .... " It's such a common device

that most of us hardly hear it anymore. But we do hear the " expert " - the

professor or doctor or watchdog group - tell us whom to vote for, what to eat,

when to buy stock. And, most of the time, we trust them.

 

Now ask yourself, how many times has that news anchor revealed who those experts

are, where they get their funding, and what constitutes their political agenda?

If you answered never, you'd be close.

 

That's the driving complaint behind Trust Us, We're Experts, a new book

co-authored by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton of the Center for Media and

Democracy.

 

Unlike many so-called " experts, " the Center's agenda is quite overt - to expose

the shenanigans of the public relations industry, which pays, influences and

even invents a startling number of those experts.

 

The third book co-authored by Stauber and Rampton, Trust Us hit bookstore

shelves in January.

 

There are two kinds of " experts " in question--the PR spin doctors behind the

scenes and the " independent " experts paraded before the public, scientists who

have been hand-selected, cultivated, and paid handsomely to promote the views of

corporations involved in controversial actions.

 

Lively writing on controversial topics such as

 

dioxin

bovine growth hormone

genetically modified food

 

makes this a real page-turner, shocking in its portrayal of the real and

potential dangers in each of these technological innovations and of the " media

pseudo-environment " created to hide the risks.

 

By financing and publicizing views that support the goals of corporate sponsors,

PR campaigns have, over the course of the century, managed to suppress the

dangers of lead poisoning for decades, silence the scientist who discovered that

rats fed on genetically modified corn had significant organ abnormalities,

squelch television and newspaper stories about the risks of bovine growth

hormone, and place enough confusion and doubt in the public's mind about global

warming to suppress any mobilization for action.

 

Rampton and Stauber introduce the movers and shakers of the PR industry, from

the " risk communicators " (whose job is to downplay all risks) and " outrage

managers " (with their four strategies--deflect, defer, dismiss, or defeat) to

those who specialize in " public policy intelligence " (spying on opponents).

 

Evidently, these elaborate PR campaigns are created for our own good. According

to public relations philosophers, the public reacts emotionally to topics

related to health and safety and is incapable of holding rational discourse.

Needless to say, Rampton and Stauber find these views rather antidemocratic and

intend to pull back the curtain to reveal the real wizard in Oz.

 

Metro Media: What was the most surprising or disturbing manipulation of public

opinion you reveal in your book?

 

John Stauber: The most disturbing aspect is not a particular example, but rather

the fact that the news media regularly fails to investigate so-called

" independent experts " associated with industry front groups. They all have

friendly-sounding names like " Consumer Alert " and " The Advancement of Sound

Science Coalition, " but they fail to reveal their corporate funding and their

propaganda agenda, which is to smear legitimate heath and community safety

concerns as " junk-science fear-mongering. "

 

The news media frequently uses the term " junk science " to smear environmental

health advocates. The PR industry has spent more than a decade and many millions

of dollars funding and creating industry front groups which wrap them in the

flag of " sound science. " In reality, their " sound science " is progress as

defined by the tobacco industry, the drug industry, the chemical industry, the

genetic engineering industry, the petroleum industry and so on.

 

Metro Media: Is the public becoming more aware of PR tactics and false experts?

Or are those tactics and experts becoming more savvy and effective?

 

Stauber: The truth is that the situation is getting worse, not better. More and

more of what we see, hear and read as " news " is actually PR content.

 

On any given day much or most of what the media transmits or prints as news is

provided by the PR industry.

 

It's off press releases, the result of media campaigns, heavily spun and

managed, or in the case of " video news releases " it's fake TV news - stories

completely produced and supplied for free by former journalists who've gone over

to PR. TV news directors air these VNRs as news. So the media not only fails to

identify PR manipulations, it is the guilty party by passing them on as news.

 

Metro Media: What's the solution for the excesses of the PR industry? Just more

media literacy and watchdog organizations like yours? Or should the PR industry

be regulated in some way?

 

Stauber: In our last chapter, " Question Authority, " we identify some of the most

common propaganda tactics so that individuals and journalists and public

interest scientists can do a better job of not being snowed and fooled. But

ultimately those who have the most power and money in any society are going to

use the most sophisticated propaganda tactics available to keep democracy at bay

and the rabble in line.

 

There are some specific legislative steps that could be taken without stepping

on the First Amendment. One is that all nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations -

charities and educational groups, for instance - should be required by law to

reveal their institutional funders of, say, $500 or more.

 

That way when a journalist or a citizen hears that a scientific report is from a

group like the American Council on Science and Health, a quick trip to the IRS

Web site could reveal that this group gets massive infusions of industry money,

and that the corporations that fund it benefit from its proclamations that

pesticides are safe, genetically engineered food will save the planet, lead

contamination isn't really such a big deal, climate change isn't happening, and

so on.

 

The public clearly doesn't understand that most nonprofit groups (not ours, by

the way) take industry and government grants, or are even the nonprofit arm of

industry.

 

Detroit Metro Times February 6, 2001

 

 

 

 

 

 

DR. MERCOLA'S COMMENT:

 

One of the reasons I write this newsletter is to provide you, the reader, with

the truth so you can weed through much of the nonsense that the media throws at

you.

 

I know that it is difficult to do and that is one of the main reasons for the

newsletter. This book will help explain the details of how the media deceives

you through the manipulation of PR by the large corporations who do not have

your best interest at heart.

 

My goal is to change the entire system. The way that will be done is through the

Internet, which is the world's cheapest printing press. By passing this

newsletter on to as many of your friends and relatives as possible along with a

strong endorsement to , you will play a major role in helping to lift

the veil of deceit that these corporations try to hide the truth with.

 

We can change the traditional paradigm and in the process save hundreds of

thousands of people from premature death and disability.

 

 

The Doors Of Perception: Why Americans Will Believe Almost Anything

References

 

Stauber & Rampton, " Trust Us, We're Experts " , Tarcher/Putnam 2001

 

Ewen, Stuart PR!: A Social History of Spin 1996 ISBN: 0-465-06168-0 Published by

Basic Books, A Division of Harper Collins

 

Tye, Larry The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays and the Birth of Public

Relations Crown Publishers, Inc. 2001

 

King, R Medical journals rarely disclose researchers' ties Wall St. Journal, 2

Feb 99.

 

Engler, R et al. Misrepresentation and Responsibility in Medical Research New

England Journal of Medicine v 317 p 1383 26 Nov 1987

 

Black, D PhD Health At the Crossroads Tapestry 1988. revanian Shibumi 1983.

 

Crossen, C Tainted Truth: The Manipulation of Fact in America 1996.

 

Robbins, J Reclaiming Our Health Kramer 1996.

 

O'Shea T The Magic Bean 2000 www.thedoctorwithin.com.

 

Inhibitory effect of conjugated dienoic derivatives of linoleic acid and

beta-carotene on the in vitro growth of human cancer cells CANCER LETT.

(Ireland) , 1992, 63/2 (125-133)

 

Inhibition of Listeria monocytogenes by fatty acids and monoglycerides APPL.

ENVIRON. MICROBIOL. (USA) , 1992, 58/2 (624-629)

 

Fatty acids and monoglycerides were evaluated in brain heart infusion broth and

in milk for antimicrobial activity against the Scott A strain of Listeria

monocytogenes. C(12:0), C(18:3), and glyceryl monolaurate (monolaurin) had the

strongest activity in brain heart infusion broth and were bactericidal at 10 to

20 microg/ml, whereas potassium (K)-conjugated linoleic acids and C(18:2) were

bactericidal at 50 to 200 microg/ml. C(14:0), C(16:0), C(18:0), C(18:1),

glyceryl monomyristate, and glyceryl monopalmitate were not inhibitory at 200

microg/ml.

 

The bactericidal activity in brain heart infusion broth was higher at pH 5 than

at pH 6. In whole milk and skim milk, K-conjugated linoleic acid was

bacteriostatic and prolonged the lag phase especially at 4degreeC. Monolaurin

inactivated L. monocytogenes in skim milk at 4degreeC, but was less inhibitory

at 23degreeC. Monolaurin did not inhibit L. monocytogenes in whole milk because

of the higher fat content. Other fatty acids tested were not effective in whole

or skim milk. Our results suggest that K-conjugated linoleic acids or monolaurin

could be used as an inhibitory agent against L. monocytogenes in dairy foods.

 

Recognition of cervical neoplasia by the estimation of a free-radical reaction

product (octadeca-9,11-dienoic acid) in exfoliated cells CLIN. CHIM. ACTA

(NETHERLANDS) , 1987, 163/2 (149-152) lar ratio between a diene-conjugated

linoleic-acid isomer (18 : 2(9,11)) and the parent linoleic acid (18 : 2(9,12)),

both esterified as phospholipids, was significantly different in exfoliated

cells from normal cervices and from cervices with colposcopic and cytological

evidence of precancer. The measurement may provide a simple and perhaps improved

alternative to cytological screening.

 

Feeding conjugated linoleic acid to animals partially overcomes catabolic

responses due to endotoxin injection BIOCHEM. BIOPHYS. RES. COMMUN. (USA) ,

1994, 198/3 (1107-1112)

 

The ability of conjugated linoleic acid to prevent endotoxin-induced growth

suppression was examined. Mice fed a basal diet or diet with 0.5% fish oil lost

twice as much body weight after endotoxin injection than mice fed conjugated

lineoleic acid. By 72 hours post injection, mice fed conjugated linoleic acid

had body weights similar to vehicle injected controls; however, body weights of

basal and fish oil fed mice injected with endotoxin were reduced. Conjugated

linoleic acid prevented anorexia from endotoxin injection. Splenocyte

blastogenesis was increased by conjugated linoleic acid.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (9,11- and 10,12-octadecadienoic acid) is produced in

conventional but not germ-free rats fed linoleic acid J. NUTR. (USA) , 1994,

124/5 (694-701)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is an anticarcinogen in several model animal

systems. Conjugated linoleic acid occurs naturally in food and is present at

higher concentrations in products from ruminant animals. Given that certain

rumen microorganisms produce CLA from free linoleic acid, we studied the effect

of feeding free or esterified linoleic acid on tissue CLA a 5% (wt/wt) corn oil

control diet alone or supplemented with 5% free linoleic acid or 8.63% corn oil

(equivalent to 5% linoleic acid in triglyceride).

 

Germ-free rats were fed autoclavable nonpurified diet alone or supplemented with

5% free linoleic acid. Analyses of CLA concentrations were performed on lipids

extracted from liver, lung, kidney, skeletal muscle and abdominal adipose

tissue, and on liver phospholipid and neutral lipid fractions. Tissue CLA

concentrations were higher in conventional rats fed free linoleic acid (the

major isomers were cis-9, trans-11 and trans-9, cis- 11) than in control

animals.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid concentrations in free linoleic acid-fed rats were

maximal at 4 wk, and levels were 5-10 times higher than those of controls.

Elevated CLA concentrations were also observed in liver phospholipid and neutral

lipid fractions. In contrast, CLA concentrations in the tissues of germ-free

rats were not affected by diet. Feeding the corn oil-fortified diet to

conventional rats did not increase CLA concentration in the tissues. We conclude

that the intestinal bacterial flora of rats is capable of converting free

linoleic acid (but not linoleic acid esterified in triglycerides) to cis-9,

trans-11 and trans-9, cis-11 CLA isomers.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid and atherosclerosis in rabbits ATHEROSCLEROSIS

(Ireland) , 1994, 108/1 (19-25)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) consists of a series of positional and geometric

dienoic isomers of linoleic acid that occur naturally in foods. CLA exhibits

antioxidant activity in vitro and in vivo. To assess the effect of CLA on

atherosclerosis, 12 rabbits were fed a semi-synthetic diet containing 14% fat

and 0.1% cholesterol for 22 weeks. For 6 of these rabbits, the diet was

augmented with CLA (0.5 g CLA/rabbit per day). Blood samples were taken monthly

for lipid analysis.

 

By 12 weeks total and LDL cholesterol and triglycerides were markedly lower in

the CLA-fed group. Interestingly, the LDL cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio

and total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio were significantly reduced in

CLA-fed rabbits. Examination of the aortas of CLA-fed rabbits showed less

atherosclerosis.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid is a growth factor for rats as shown by enhanced weight

gain and improved feed efficiency J. NUTR. (USA) , 1994, 124/12 (2344-2349)

 

We studied the effect of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) on rat development and

growth. Primigravid female Fischer rats were fed control or CLA- supplemented

(0.25% or 0.5% CLA) diets during gestation and/or lactation. Conjugated linoleic

acid was incorporated into milk fat and tissue lipids proportional to the level

of CLA fed and the duration of CLA feeding. Conjugated linoleic acidas

incorporated into fetal and neonatal tissues; it did not affect litter size nor

induce apparent abnormalities.

 

To the contrary, feeding CLA to the dams during gestation and lactation improved

the postnatal body weight gain of pups (P & lt; 0.05), measured on d 10 of

lactation. Pups that continued to receive the CLA-supplemented diet after

weaning had significantly greater body weight gain and improved feed efficiency

relative to control animals (P & lt; 0.05).

 

Cows' milk fat components as potential anticarcinogenic agents Journal of

Nutrition (USA) , 1997, 127/6 (1055-1060)

 

The optimum approach to conquering cancer is prevention. Although the human diet

contains components which promote cancer, it also contains components with the

potential to prevent it. Recent research shows that milk fat contains a number

of potential anticarcinogenic components including conjugated linoleic acid,

sphingomyelin, butyric acid and ether lipids. Conjugated linoleic acid inhibited

proliferation of human malignant melanoma, colorectal, breast and lung cancer

cell lines.

 

In animals, it reduced the incidence of chemically induced mouse epidermal

tumors, mouse forestomach neoplasia and aberrant crypt foci in the rat colon. In

a number of studies, conjugated linoleic acid, at near-physiological

concentrations, inhibited mammary tumorigenesis independently of the amount and

type of fat in the diet. In vitro studies showed that the milk phospholipid,

sphingomyelin, through its biologically active metabolites ceramide and

sphingosine, participates in three major antiproliferative pathways influencing

oncogenesis, namely, inhibition of cell growth, and induction of differentiation

and apoptosis.

 

Mice fed sphingomyelin had fewer colon tumors and aberrant crypt foci than

control animals. About one third of all milk triacylglycerols contain one

molecule of butyric acid, a potent inhibitor of proliferation and inducer of

differentiation and apoptosis in a wide range of neoplastic cell lines. Although

butyrate produced by colonic fermentation is considered important for colon

cancer protection, an animal study suggests dietary butyrate may inhibit mammary

tumorigenesis.

 

The dairy cow also has the ability to extract other potential anticarcinogenic

agents such as beta- carotene, beta-ionone and gossypol from its feed and

transfer them to milk. Animal studies comparing the tumorigenic potential of

milk fat or butter with linoleic acid-ricless tumor development with dairy

products.

 

Suppression of voltage-gated L-type Ca2+ currents by polyunsaturated fatty acids

in adult and neonatal rat ventricular myocytes Proceedings of the National

Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (USA) , 1997, 94/8

(4182-4187)

 

Our recent data show that in cardiac myocytes polyunsaturated fatty acids

(PUFAs) are antiarrhythmic. They reduce I(Na), shorten the action potential,

shift the threshold for excitation to more positive potentials, and prolong the

relative refractory period.

 

In this study we use patch-clamp techniques in whole-cell mode and confocal Ca2+

imaging to examine the effects of PUFAs on the voltage-gated L-type Ca2+ current

(I(Ca,L)), elementary sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-release events (Ca2+-sparks),

and (Ca2+)(i) transients in isolated rat ventricular myocytes. Extracellular

application of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; C20:5 n - 3) produced a prompt and

reversible concentration-dependent suppression of I(Ca,L).

 

The concentration of EPA to produce 50% inhibition of I(Ca) was 0.8 microM in

neonatal rat heart cells and 2.1 microM in adult ventricular myocytes. While the

EPA induced suppression of I(Ca,L), it did not significantly alter the shape of

the current-voltage relation but did produce a small, but significant, negative

shift of the steady-state inactivation curve.

 

The inhibition of I(Ca,L) was voltage- and time-dependent, but not use- or

frequency-dependent. Other PUFAs, such as docosahexaenoic acid, arachidonic

acid, linolenic acid, linoleic acid, conjugated linoleic acid, and

eicosatetraynoic acid had similar effects on I(Ca,L) as EPA. All-trans-retinoic

acid, which had been shown to suppress induced arrhythmogenic activity in rat

heart cells, also produced a significant inhibition of I(Ca,L).

 

The saturated stearic acid and sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-release underlie many

cardiac arrhythmias, we examined the effects of EPA on I(Ca,L) and Ca2+-sparks.

While EPA suppressed both, it did not change the temporal or spatial character

of the Ca2+-sparks, nor did it alter the ability of I(Ca,L) to trigger Ca2+-

sparks. We conclude that PUFAs may act as antiarrhythmic agents in vivo in

normal and Ca2+-overloaded cells principally because they reduce Ca2+ entry by

blocking I(Ca,L).

 

Furthermore, PUFAs act directly to decrease I(Na) and I(Ca,L), but indirectly to

reduce the (Ca2+)(i) transients and (Ca2+)(i)-activated membrane current.

Although a negative inotropic action is associated with application of PUFAs, it

is clear that by reducing I(Ca,L), I(Na) and Ca2+-sparks, PUFAs can reduce

spontaneous extrasystoles in the heart. The mechanisms by which PUFAs act are

discussed.

 

Effects of dietary conjugated linoleic acid on lymphocyte function and growth of

mammary tumors in mice Anticancer Research (Greece) , 1997, 17/2 A (987-993)

 

We studied the effects of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) on lymphocyte function

and growth of a transplantable murine mammary tumor. In experiment 1, eig(n =

8/group) were fed 0.1%, 0.3% or 0.9% CLA for 3 or 6 wk. Lymphocyte

proliferation, interleukin-2 production and lymphocyte cytotoxicity were

assessed using splenic lymphocytes. Plasma CLA concentrations increased in a

dose-dependent manner with CLA feeding.

 

Lymphocyte proliferation in mice fed 0.3% and 0.9% CLA was enhanced in

phytohemagglutinin-induced but not in concanavalin A- or

lipopolysaccharide-stimulated cultures. Production of IL-2 also was stimulated

by CLA. In contrast, CLA had no effect on lymphocyte cytotoxicity.

 

In experiment 2, mice (n = 20/treatment) were fed the same diets for 2 wk before

being infused with 1 x 106 WAZ-2T metastatic mammary tumor cells into the right

inguinal mammary gland. Tumor volume and latency were recorded for 45 d. Dietary

CLA did not affect mammary tumor growth. Tumor latency, tumor incidence and

tumor lipid peroxidation activity also were unaffected by CLA. Body weight and

feed intake were similar among treatments.

 

Therefore, dietary CLA modulated certain aspects of the immune defense but had

no obvious effect on the growth of an established, aggressive mammary tumor.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid suppresses the growth of human breast adenocarcinoma

cells in SCID mice Anticancer Research (Greece) , 1997, 17/2 A (969-973)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which is mainly derived from dairy products, has

been shown both in vitro and in animal models to have strong anti-tumor

activity. Particular effects were observed on the growth and metastatic spread

of transplantable mammary tumors.

 

In this study, we examined the effect of dietary CLA on the growth of human

breast adenocarcinoma cells in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Mice

were fed 1% CLA for two weeks prior to subcutaneous inoculation of 107 MDA-MB468

cells and throughout the wth by 73% and 30% at 9 and 14 weeks post-inoculation,

respectively. Moreover, CLA completely abrogated the spread of breast cancer

cells to lungs, peripheral blood, and bone marrow. These results indicate the

ability of dietary CLA to block both the local growth and systemic spread of

human breast cancer via mechanisms independent of the host immune system.

 

Lymphatic recovery, tissue distribution, and metabolic effects of conjugated

lioleic acid in rats Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry (USA) , 1997, 8/1

(38-43)

 

Apparent lymphatic recovery of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in rats was

considerably lower than for linoleic acid, approximately 55% versus 80% for 24

hr, although the distribution in lymph lipoproteins was similar. Not all the CLA

constituents were recovered equally, and more tt-isomers were recovered than ct-

or tc-isomers in relation to the composition of CLA given.

 

When rats were fed CLA or linoleic acid at the dietary level of 1% for 2 weeks,

there were detectable differences in the incorporation of CLA in various

tissues, and adipose tissue and lung contained the highest proportion, whereas a

limited amount was incorporated into the brain. In general, 9c, 11t/9t,11c

isomers were the predominant CLA followed by tt-isomers. Also, CLA was

differently incorporated into individual phospholipids in the liver. No effects

were observed on serum and liver lipid levels, but the concentration of

prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in serum anhe for mer was statistically significant. CLA

did not increase tissue TBA values. Thus, the metabolic effect of CLA may not be

attributed to a single entity.

 

Proliferative responses of normal human mammary and MCF-7 breast cancer cells to

linoleic acid, conjugated linoleic acid and eicosanoid synthesis inhibitors in

culture Anticancer Research (Greece) , 1997, 17/1 A (197-203)

 

Potential mechanisms for the stimulation or inhibition of cell growth by

linoleic acid (LA) and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) were investigated by using

eicosanoid linoleic acid (CLA) were investigated by using eicosanoid synthesis

inhibitors.

 

Normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMEC) and MCF-7 breast cancer cells were

incubated in serum-free medium supplemented with LA or CLA and cyclooxygenase

(indomethacin; INDO) or lipoxygenase (nordihydroguaiaretic acid; NDGA)

inhibitors. Linoleic acid stimulated the growth and (3H)thymidine incorporation

of normal HMEC and MCF-7 cancer cells, while CLA was inhibitory. Supplementation

with LA increased intracellular lipid peroxide concentrations in normal HMEC and

MCF-7 cancer cells, whereas CLA did not affect lipid peroxide formation.

 

Normal HMEC and MCF-7 cells supplemented with LA and INDO or NDGA resulted in

growth inhibition. The treatment of normal HMEC with CLA and INDO or NDGA, and

MCF-7 cells with CLA and INDO stimulated cell growth. However, the addition of

CLA and NDGA to MCF-7 cells resulted in synergistic growth suppression

suggesting that CLA effects were mediated through lipoxygenase inhibition.

 

Although NDGA was more inhibitory of cell growth in the presence of LA or CLA

than INDO, growth was associate with both prostaglandin and leukotriene

production. Additional studies are warranted to elucidate the mechanism(s)

whereby LA or CLA affect breast cell growth.

 

Conjugated linoleic acid modulates hepatic lipid composition in mice Lipids

(USA) , 1997, 32/2 (199-204)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a chemoprotective fatty acid that inhibits

mammary, colon, forestomach, and skin carcinogenesis in experimental animals. We

hypothesize that the ubiquitous chemoprotective actions of dietary CLA in

extrahepatic tissues are dependent upon its role in modulating fatty acid

composition and metabolism in liver, the major organ for lipid metabolism.

 

This study begins to evaluate the role of CLA in lipid metabolism by determining

the modulation of fatty acid composition by CLA. Female SENCAR mice were fed

semipurified diets containing 0.0% (Diet A), 0.5% (Diet B), 1.0% (Diet C), or

1.5% (Diet D) CLA (by weight) for six weeks. Mice fed Diets B, C, and D

exhibited lower body weights and elevated amounts of extractable total lipid in

livers compared with mice fed diets without CLA (Diet A).

 

Analyses of the fatty acid composition of liver by gas chromatography revealed

that dietary CLA was incorporated into neutral and phospholipids at the expense

of linoleate in Diets B, C, and D; oleate increased and arachidonate decreased

in neutral lipids of CLA diet groups. In addition, increasing dietary CLA was

associated with reduced linoleate in hepatic phospholipids. In an in vitro

assay, CLA was desaturated to an unidentified 18:3 product to a similar extent

as linoleate conversion to gamma- linolenate (9.88, and 13.63%, respectively).

 

These data suggest that CLA may affect metabolic interconversion of fatty acids

in liver that may ultimately result in modified fatty acid composition and

arachidonate-derived eicosanoid production in extrahepatic tissues. In addition

to determining how dietary CLA modulates eicosanoid synthesis, further work is

needed to identify enzymatic products that may result from desaturation of CLA.

 

Dietary conjugated linoleic acid modulation of phorbol ester skin tumor

promotion Nutrition and Cancer (USA) , 1996, 26/2 (149-157)

 

The fatty acid derivative conjugated dienoic linoleate (CLA) has been shown to

inhibit initiation and postinitiation stages of carcinogenesis in several

experimental animal models. The goal of the present study was to determine the

role of increasing levels of dietary CLA in mouse skin tumor promotion elicited

by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA).

 

Mice were fed control (no CLA) diet during initiation, then switched to diets

containing 0.0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, or 1.5% (wt/wt) CLA during skin tumor promotion by

TPA. Body weights of mice fed 0.5%, 1.0%, or 1.5% CLA were similar to each other

but were significantly lower (p & lt; 0.05) than weights of mice fed no CLA

(0.0%) throughout promotion. A reduction in papilloma incidence was observed in

mice fed 1.5% CLA from Weeks 8 to 24 compared with mice fed diets containing

0.0-1.0% CLA (p & lt; 0.05).

 

Twenty-four weeks after tumor promotion was begun, diets containing 1.0% and

1.5% CLA inhibited tumor yield (4.94 and 4.35 tumors/mouse, respectively)

compared with diets without CLA (0.0% CLA, 6.65 tumors/mouse, p & lt; 0.05) or

0.5% CLA (5.92 tumors/mouse, p & lt; 0.05). These data indicate that CLA inhibits

tumor promotion in a manner that is independent of its anti-initiator activity.

Further studies are warranted in identifying cellular mechanisms that are likely

to be involved with the antipromoter effects of CLA.

 

The efficacy of conjugated linoleic acid in mammary cancer prevention is

independent of the level or type of fat in the diet Carcinogenesis (United

Kingdom) , 1996, 17/5 (1045-1050)

 

The objective of the present study was to investigate whether the

anticarcinogenic activity of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is affected by the

amount and composition of dietary fat consumed by the host. Because the

anticancer agent of interest is a fatty acid, this approach may provide some

insight into its mechanism of action, depending on the outcome of these fat

feeding experiments. For the fat level experiment, a custom formulated fat blend

was used that simulates the fatty acid composition of the US diet.

 

This fat blend was present at 10, 13.3, 16.7 or 20% by weight in the diet. For

the fat type experiment, a 20% (w/w) fat diet containing either corn oil

(exclusively) or lard (predominantly) was used. Mammary cancer prevention by CLA

was evaluated using the rat dimethylbenz(alpha)anthracene model. The results

indicated that the magnitude of tumor inhibition by 1% CLA was not influenced by

the level or type of fat in the diet. It should be noted that these fat diets

varied markedly in their content of linoleate.

 

Fatty acid analysis showed that CLA was incorporated predominantly in mammary

tissue neutral lipids, while the increase in CLA in mammary tissue phospholipids

was minimal. Furthermore, there was no evidence that CLA supplementation

perturbed the distribution of linoleate or other fatty acids in the phospholipid

fraction. Collectively these carcinogenesis and biochemical data suggest that

the cancer preventive activity of CLA is unlikely to be mediated by interference

with the metabolic cascade involved in converting linoleic acid to eicosanoids.

 

The hypothesis that CLA might act as an antioxidant was also examined. Treatment

with CLA resulted in lower levels of mammary tissue malondialdehyde (an end

product of lipid peroxidation), but failed to change the levels of

8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (a marker of oxidatively damaged DNA). Thus while CLA

may have some antioxidant function in vivo in suppressing lipid peroxidation,

its anticarcinogenic activity cannot be accounted for by protecting the target

cell DNA against oxidative damage.

 

The finding that the inhibitory effect of CLA maximized at 1% (regardless of the

availability of linoleate in the diet) could conceivably point to a limiting

step in the capacity to metabolize CLA to some active product(s) which is

essential for cancer prevention.

 

Dietary modifiers of carcinogenesis Environmental Health Perspectives (USA) ,

1995, 103/SUPPL. 8 (177-184)

 

Dietary components express a wide range of activities that can affect

carcinogenesis. Naturally occurring substances in foods have been shown in

laboratory experiments to serve as dietary antimutagens, either as

bioantimutagens or as desmutagens. Dietary desmutagens may function as chemical

inactivaters, enzymatic inducers, scavengers, or antioxidants

 

.. Dietary components may also act later in the carcinogenic process as tumor

growth suppressors. Examples of dietary factors acting in each of these stages

of carcinogenesis are presented, and potential anticarcinogens such as the

carotenoids, tocopherols, phenolic compounds, glucosinolates, metal-binding

proteins, phytoestrogens, and conjugated linoleic acid are discussed. individual

foods typically contain multiple potential anticarcinogens. Many of these

substances can influence carcinogenesis through more than one mechanism.

 

Some substances exhibit both anticarcinogenic and carcinogenic activity in

vitro, depending on conditions. Epidemiologic research indicates that high fruit

and vegetable consumption is associated with lower cancer risk. Little research

has focused on the effects of single substances or single foods in man.

Realization of the potential of foodborne substances to reduce the human burden

of cancer will only be achieved with better measurement of dietary exposures and

funding of muitidisciplinary research in this area commensurate with its

importance.

 

Effects of C18 fatty acid isomers on DNA synthesis in hepatoma and breast cancer

cells Anticancer Research (Greece) , 1995, 15/5 B (2017-2021)

 

The influence of geometrical isomerism on the growth regulatory effects of 18

carbon unsaturated fatty acids on the incorporation of (3H)thymidine into DNA

was studied in 7800NJ rat hepatoma and T47D human breast cancer cells. 9 cis, 12

cis linoleic acid was more inhibitory than the trans 9, trans 12 isomer

(linolelaidic acid). The monounsaturated cis isomer. In contrast to published

studies on the proliferation of breast cancer cells, we observed conditions in

which linoleic acid was more inhibitory than conjugated linoleic acid for

thymidine incorporation into DNA.

 

Increasing the concentration of 38 mg/ml greatly diminished inhibitory effects

and favored stimulatory effects on hepatoma and breast cancer cells. The results

suggested that the growth inhibitory and stimulatory effects of C18 unsaturated

fatty acids on cancer cells are influenced by geometrical isomerism and the

ratio of the albumin to fatty acid concentrations

 

Effect of timing and duration of dietary conjugated linoleic acid on mammary

cancer prevention Nutrition and Cancer (USA) , 1995, 24/3 (241-247)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a minor fatty acid found predominantly in the

form of triglycerides in beef and dairy products. Previous work by Ip and

co-workers showed that free fatty acid-CLA at less than or equal to1% in the

diet is protective against mammary carcinogenesis in rats. The present study

verified that the anticancer activities of free fatty acid-CLA and

triglyceride-CLA are essentially identical.

 

This is an important finding, because it rules out a nonspecific free fatty acid

effect. In terms of practical implication, we can continue the in vivo research

with the less-expensive free fatty acid- CLA without compromising the

physiological relevance of the data. A primary objective of this report was to

investigate how the timing and duration of CLA feeding might affect the

development of mammary carcinogenesis in the methylnitrosourea (MNU) model. We

found that exposure to 1% CLA during the early postweaning and pubertal period

only (from 21 to 42 days of age) was sufficient to reduce subsequent

tumorigenesis induced by a single dose of MNU given at 56 days of age.

 

This period incidentally corresponds to a time of active morphological

development of the mammary gland to the mature state. In contrast to the above

observation, a continuous intake of CLA was required for maximal inhibition of

tumorigenesis when CLA feeding was started after MNU administration, suggesting

that some active metabolite(s) of CLA might be involved in suppressing the

process of neoplastic promotion/progression.

 

The role of phenolics, conjugated linoleic acid, carnosine, and pyrroloquinoline

quinone as nonessential dietary antioxidants Nutrition Reviews (USA) , 1995,

53/3 (49-58)

 

Oxidative reactions have been implicated in the development of numerous diseases

including atherosclerosis and cancer. Oxidation t in loss of membrane integrity

and function, inactivation of enzymes, modification of lipoproteins, and

chemical alteration of DNA. Active oxygen species, transition metals, reducing

agents, and enzymes such as lipoxygenase are all involved in the catalysis of

oxidative reactions.

 

Since lipid oxidation catalysts and active oxygen species are ubiquitous to all

biological systems and since lipid oxidation products can enter the body via

oxidized foods, numerous endogenous antioxidant systems have been developed.

Endogenous antioxidant systems include antioxidant enzymes, free radical

scavengers, and metal chelators. The purpose of this review is to examine the

potential of nonessential dietary components that inhibit oxidative reactions in

foods and biological tissues.

 

Dietary conjugated linoleic acid reduces plasma lipoproteins and early aortic

atharosclerosis in hypercholasterolemic hamsters Artery (USA) , 1997, 22/5

(266-277)

 

Conjugated linoleic acid is a collective term used to designate a mixture of

positional and geometric isomers of linoleic acid in which the double bonds are

conjugated. Unlike linoleic acid, there is a paucity of information regarding

the effect of dietary conjugated linoleic acid on plasma lipoproteins and aortic

atherosclerosis.

 

Therefore, fifty hamsters were divided into five groups of ten and fed O

(Control), 0.06 (LOW), 0.11 (MEDIUM), and 1.1(HIGH) en% conjugated linoleic acid

or 1.1 en% linoleic acid. Blood samples were taken at 4, 8 and 11 weeks for

plasma lipid analyses and for plasma tocopherol assay at sacrifice. Animals fed

the conjugated linoleic acidcontaining diets collectively had significantly

reduced levels of plasma total cholesterol, non-high density lipoprotein

cholesterol, (combined very low and low density lipoprotein) and triglycerides

with no effect on high density lipoprotein cholesterol, as compared to CONTROLs.

 

Linoleic acid-fed animals relative to CONTROLs also had reduced plasma total

cholesterol, non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycarides, but

only the latter was statistically significant. Compared to the CONTROL group,

plasma tocopherol/total cholesterol ratios determined from plasma pools for the

LOW, MEDIUM and HIGH conjugated linoleic acid and linoleic acid groups were

increased by 48%, 48%, 86% and 29%, respectively, suggesting a

tocopherol-sparing effect, at least for the conjugated linoleic acid treatment.

Morphomatric analysis of aortas revealed less early atherosclerosis in the

conjugated linoleic acid and linoleic acid-fed hamsters compared to the CONTROL

group.

 

 

Evidence of a Science Bending Group Within the CDC?

Commentary by Teresa Binstock

 

As summarized by Rosie Waterhouse's news item, a transcript of the CDC's secret

meeting about thimerosal effects indicates that a small group within the CDC

acknowledges major flaws within its initial study of the autism epidemic's link

to vaccinal ethylmercury.

 

Despite this awareness, this small but influential group within the CDC (i.e.

the group that enacted the fatally flawed " study " ) has touted and continues to

use the study's " conclusions " -- e.g. on the webpages of the American Academy of

Pediatrics (spring, 2000) and at the recent Institute of Medicine (IOM) hearing

(July 16, 2001).

 

What the CDC's secret meeting transcript conveys is that the study's data about

autism were insufficient. As a result, conclusions about rates of autism in the

pediatric cohort from several HMOs in the study are fictional. Yet invalid

findings do not stop this CDC group from continuing to disseminate misleading

conclusions.

 

Importantly, as indicated by reporters' rhetoric in recent Boston Globe and

Lancet articles about the IOM hearing, a tradition of respect for the CDC

enables the phony conclusions to be presented as if valid.

 

Paragraphs that follow are an attempt to set forth a summary of what this " rogue

group " within the CDC has achieved and continues to achieve. The seriously

flawed CDC " study " -- initially distributed as RL Davis et al, spring 2000 --

had at least three major flaws:

 

The HMO data had major under-reporting of autism;

Data analysis by Davis et al did not include susceptible subgroups likely to

be more affected by injected ethylmercury;

Davis et al relied upon the EPA's " safe " limit for methylmercury, which had

been derived in relation to gradually ingested mercury and which, therefore,

minimized the fact that during the 1990s human infants and toddlers had been

injected with bolus doses of ethylmercury, which persisted in their bodies

during a post-vaccinal, extended pulse of cytokines, which alter permeability of

intestinal tissue and of the blood-brain barrier.

 

These several factors -- and others identified by analysts, e.g., Thomas Kurt,

MD -- indicate that the rate of autism " documented " by Davis et al was an

extreme under-representation of the actual rates of autism among children within

the HMOs whose data Davis et al utilized.

 

Despite these flaws the CDC's rogue team has continued to distribute and utilize

the flawed data and the misleading conclusions derived.

 

The CDC's rogue team has stated and continues to state that an association with

autism was not found. Note: this statement is inaccurate and is quite different

from what the CDC ought be stating, namely, that the study design was inadequate

for evaluating a link between thimerosal (TMS; 49.6% ethylmercury by weight) and

the increased incidence of autism.

 

Yet despite the flawed study, the CDC's team continues to tout the study's

" conclusions " as if valid, which they are not!

 

At the IOM hearing (7.16.01), the CDC presented summaries of its " Phase 1 and

Phase 2 " studies (i.e. several versions of what had been called RL Davis et al,

spring of 2000) as if the Phase 1 and Phase 2 studies had had valid

methodologies and had thereby derived valid conclusions about autism and

thimerosal.

 

In fact, during the hearing, the CDC appeared content to convey the impression

that conclusions from the Phase 1 and Phase 2 studies were legitimate. At the

IOM hearing, the impression conveyed by the U Washington presenter was that

there was no need to study what had already been found to be non-existent.

 

In my opinion, this requires a severe leap of faith.

 

Even Alice in Wonderland might pause incredulously. The CDC acknowledges (off

the record and in secret meetings) that the Phase 1 and Phase 2 Davis et al

studies were seriously flawed in regard to autism, yet the CDC is happy to

proceed with a Phase 3 study that omits autism -- because, so we were told,

there was no finding of an autism/thimerosal study in the Phase 1 and Phase 2

studies.

 

In other words, despite the fact that the CDC's Davis et al methodology was

fatally flawed in regard to autism and thimerosal, the CDC's rogue team and

their U of Washington allies seem quite willing to continue diverting attention

away from the substantial likelihood that physician-injected ethylmercury has

been an etiologic factor in many cases of autism and related disorders.

 

If ADHD, Tourette's, PDD, and PDD/NOS are added, then the number of children

adversely affected by physician-injected thimerosal is potentially huge. At the

IOM hearing, presenter Mark Blaxill summarized epidemiological similarities

between autism's increase and the increased use of vaccines containing TMs

 

He also expressed dismay that the CDC group most responsible for developing and

encouraging TMs-injections into neonates (via the HepB vaccine) is the group

that also has been conducting and superintending studies intended to evaluate

the relationship between autism and injected-ethylmercury.

 

Given the 1990s history of injecting thimerosal and the recent history of

CDC-led " studies " about thimerosal, the CDC's conflict of interest is clear.

 

The actions by the CDC's rogue team appear to be masking and diverting attention

away from thimerosal's adverse effects in hundreds of thousands of children.

 

Excerpts from the CDC's secret meeting -- obtain via the Freedom of Information

act -- were presented to IOM by representatives of SafeMinds. As an official

submission to the hearing, the SafeMinds letter to IOM is to be posted on the

IOM website -- as will other materials that implicate thimerosal injections as

having damaged many of America's children (and those in other countries too).

 

Having the CDC team that developed and encouraged early infant injections with

TMs also be running studies about TMs is akin to having Al Capone investigate

the liquor business in 1930s Chicago.

 

That the CDC's conflict of interest is having a real effect is seen in five

factors:

 

The CDC continues to trumpet the Phase 1 and Phase 2 conclusions as if valid,

which they are not;

The CDC continues to utilize the EPA's so-called " safe " limit for ingested

organic mercury despite the fact that vaccinal ethylmercury was injected;

The CDC continues to perform data analysis while ignoring the fact that some

children are more susceptible to adverse sequelae from bolus exposures to toxic

metals;

The CDC is allowing a major " Phase 3 " study to proceed without autism as a

focus;

The CDC's rogue team uses its organization's prestige as a lever whereby the

flawed conclusions autism/thimerosal conclusions of Davis et al are presented as

if acceptable and useful -- e.g. in allowing Phase 3 to omit autism.

 

At the IOM hearing, an autism-parent suggested that the HMO data utilized by the

CDC ought be analyzed by professionals selected by trusted autism organizations.

Not surprisingly, the CDC's Dr. Chen -- apparently a leading actor in the

development and use of the HepB for neonates and infants -- took the microphone

and offered reasons why independent analysis ought not occur.

 

After the meeting, Beth Clay -- assistant to Congressman Dan Burton -- commented

that the CDC seems quite ready to allow new " outsiders " to view the HMO data so

long as the CDC selects who those outside experts are. In my opinion, outside

analysis of the CDC's primary data for Davis et al ought occur; and the analysts

ought be persons not within and not hand-picked by the CDC.

 

Furthermore, the CDC's conflict of interest already has a track record of

diverting attention away from the link between injected ethylmercury and autism.

A solution is needed to the CDC's conflict of interest. By continuing to misuse

Davis et al conclusions -- the CDC's rogue team continues to shape public

opinion and near-future research regarding the link between thimerosal and

autism.

 

Families for Early Autism Treatment (FEAT)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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