Based on the popularity of my recent posting on meds, I offer the following for your reading pleasure…
Category Archives: Pharmaceuticals
Meds Aren’t Always The Answer
My late father-in-law practiced psychiatry in the Midwest, and was—by any standard—brilliant. For one thing, he never received a grade lower than “A” from grammar school, all the way through his medical education… Continue reading
Posted in Health, Medicine, Pharmaceuticals, Psychology, Public health miscellany
Tagged meds, psychiatry
Rise in ADHD cases is due to marketing
“The 53 percent increase in the diagnosis of ADHD in the past 10 years cannot be explained on the basis of genetics or any other biological discovery that would permit a valid diagnosis.” Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
Bad blood of research: Do human experimenters take the ‘informed consent’ requirement seriously?
A psychiatrist recommends a patient for a University of Minnesota antipsychotic clinical trial — even though one week earlier the psychiatrist recommended the patient be involuntarily committed. The patient subsequently committed suicide, possibly but not certainly because of the medication. Question: How could patient possibly have provided “informed consent” to participate in the clinical trial? Continue reading
Posted in Human testing, Pharmaceuticals
Study: Aspirin increases risk of age-related macular degeneration
A very small study — with very little credibility. Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
Humanitarian: Bloomberg to limit painkillers in hospitals
In the olden days, “you did have to suffer a little bit.” Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
First Antibiotic-Resistant Gonorrhea Cases Detected in North America
Meanwhile, BigPharma is researching how to get antidepressants classified as vitamins. Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
Ind. hospital fires 8 workers who refused flu shot
The flu shot is a crapshoot… it may or may not work, even when the vaccine matches with the predominant virus. Continue reading
Posted in Influenza, Pharmaceuticals
BigPharma pushes anti-depressants for grief
Is transient sadness really a medical condition? Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
Asthma inhaler bill fails — in House!
The bill to put back on store shelves Primatene Mist failed in the House yesterday by a vote of 229-182. Big Pharma apparently convinced enough Republicans that asthma inhalers ought to be less accessible and more expensive.
Posted in Ozone depletion, Pharmaceuticals
Latest stupid vitamin D study
While there is no shortage of phony baloney “natural” remedies out there, there is also a tendency for mainstream allopathic medicine to dismiss—out of hand—any claims made for non-prescription remedies. And, since the drug companies own most of the medical journals, such put-downs appear in the “scholarly” literature from time to time. Continue reading
Bigger Role for Tamoxifen?
Should breast cancer survivors double the length of time they take tamoxifen for only a potentially small chance of avoiding recurrence? Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals
Monday’s medical myth: you need eight hours of continuous sleep each night
We’re often told by the popular press and well-meaning family and friends that, for good health, we should fall asleep quickly and sleep solidly for about eight hours – otherwise we’re at risk of physical and psychological ill health. Continue reading
How to get drug companies to put needs before profits
Oh this is such a superficially attractive idea – and so seriously stupid. Either we all pay a lot of additional taxes for basic medical research or we allow companies the potential for big profits commensurate with the risk investors are underwriting (and since basic medical research involves enormous costs to bring a new drug to market – and many more failures than successes – that necessarily means mind-boggling profits must be on offer to make the risk worthwhile). Don’t be seduced by the siren call of altruistic medicine – it basically means no medicine. Seriously bad idea. Continue reading
You know it’s really silly season when they recycle: Skin cream: killing you softly?
In the book, Slow Death by Rubber Duck Rick Smith turns himself into a human science experiment. He lathers himself with shampoos and shaving creams, all in the sweetly-scented spirit of chemical exposure. To phthalates, that is. Continue reading
Posted in Chemophobia, Cosmetics, Pharmaceuticals, Phthalates, Plastics
Yet another statin promo: Cholesterol drugs also good for low-risk patients
DRUGS to lower cholesterol should be prescribed far more widely because they significantly cut the rate of heart attacks and strokes even in low-risk patients, researchers say. Continue reading
Why antibiotics are losing the war against bacteria
“As bacteria become ever more resistant to drugs, world health experts fear a future without antibiotics“
An excellent case for making pharmaceutical development more profitable and less risky. Continue reading
Code for pharmaceutical industry ‘falls short’
Pharmaceutical companies will be required to disclose more details about their financial ties to doctors under a revised self-regulatory code, but they have resisted calls to name doctors individually or reveal how much they pay them. Continue reading
Flushed drugs risk to health
LARGE quantities of illicit and prescription drugs are being flushed down toilets. And they are starting to risk people’s health, a UniSA study has found. Continue reading
Posted in Pharmaceuticals, Water pollutiuon
Readers misled about link between Prozac-laced water and autism
In a story on Bloomberg.com, Drew Armstrong reports on a study with fish that found antidepressants and other medications that contaminate some drinking water supplies may be linked to autism. By quoting and paraphrasing only the lead researcher, the story projects a one-sided view of the study and fails to put it into context in the larger field of environmental links to autism. Continue reading
Posted in Autism, Pharmaceuticals
