E. coli has been found in the irrigation water - POISON ON A PLATE

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Consumer News & Alerts | October 10, 2006 • Then there's Medicare ... Just when seniors thought they had it figured out, here comes a new round of confusing options for 2007, the lasting legacy of a Congress that tried harder to protect drug companies' profits than to look out for the welfare of the taxpayers who keep the slush flowing. STUDY FINDS BIASED STUDIES This is not exactly surprising but it's always good to see some numerical validation of common sense, as in a new study that finds -- horrors! -- when drug companies underwrite studies, they often get their money's worth. According to the authors, bias in drug trials is common and often favors the trial sponsor's product. To balance this effect, independent reviews are essential to ensure doctors and other health professionals have the information they need, said the authors.This study awakended pangs of nostalgia in your editor, who in an earlier life sat steaming in D.C. conference rooms as drug company flacks dictated word-for-word the "findings" that would soon be released by a supposedly respected seniors advocacy and research organization. It's why he has such a bad attitude about not-for-profit organizations (among other things). (Details to be published posthumously, so stay healthy and stay tuned).• Nutrition Journal Hid Contributors' Ties to Food Industry Ooops, here's another one. It turns out a paid consultant to the salt industry edited a supposedly scholarly supplement that pooh-poohed salt intake recommendations. PRICE ISN'T THE ONLY PROBLEM Yes, drugs are expensive and not having them can be bad. But getting the wrong drugs or the wrong dosage is even worse. It's a common problem. Pharmacists' errors kill thousands every year. Perhaps thousands of others go undetectd. In a recent Walgreens case, a drug-abusing pharmacist gave a 79-year-old gout patient medication that put him into a coma followed by kidney failure, finally killing him. The drug chain has been ordered to pay $31 million. POISON ON A PLATE First it was spinach, then carrot juice. Now it's lettuce that is being implicated as a possible health risk. No actual illness has been reported yet but E. coli has been found in the irrigation water used by a California lettuce farmer. A recall covers lettuce purchased in grocery stores Oct. 3-6 in Arizona, California, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. Since it was also sold to distributors in those states, chances are it was also served in restaurants.More health news ...• Smoke-Filled Cars the Next Battleground Researchers nail down evidence that secondhand tobacco smoke in cars is likely hazardous to children. Even when traveling at 40 miles per hour with the windows down, the level of dangerous pollution exceeded federal standards, the researchers found. • Doctors Agree: Drug Company Freebies Have Impact But doctors surveyed say it's other doctors that are likely to be influenced by free food, entertainment, trinkets, gadgets, trips, parties and, oh you know, that kind of thing. • New Allergy Vaccine Johns Hopkins researchers say they have developed an allergy vaccine that provides long-term relief after just six injections. (No, you don't take all six at once.)• Hooked on Food Researchers report with a straight face the startling discovery that food may be addictive. The white-coats used a device to monitor stomach-to-brain signals and found that ... well, you get the idea.TRAILING WHAT? We've heard of a trailing sea and even heard talk of trailing clouds of glory, but "trailing interest" is a new one. We're still not sure we understand it, but our Martin H. Bosworth explains that it's a device by which credit card customers can find themsleves still in debt even after they pay off the entire amount due. Bank of America seems to have perfected this arcane practice, as Bosworth tells it.A FEW MORE SCAMS & OUTRAGES• Qchex Con artists used company's service to raid consumers' checking accounts, feds charge.• Cramming Unauthorized charges placed on consumers' phone bills, Florida alleges.RECALLS Britax Child Safety Seat Craftsman, MTD, Troy-Bilt, Yard Machines Snow Throwers Agio Outdoor Gas Fire Pits FreeMotion Fitness Recalls Exercise MachinesABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER http://www.isertive.com/newsletter/.php?uid=q42254f390dac5