“How Corporations and the Politicians they Fund are Fighting to Take Away our Legal Rights … and Convincing Us it’s for the Best.”

The speakers highlighted how corporations and conservative think tanks have framed personal injury law suits. Many people in America believe we are a nation of frivolous lawsuits – both in quantity and quality. Yet in reality, the number of lawsuits has been declining over the last 50 years. And if you would like to debate the quality of these suits, you better take it up with the system we have in place. Our elected system gives power to judges and juries who decides who gets what. So why all the complaining?

Propaganda produced by “you know who” has produced the image of lawyers as money-hungry sharks and injured people as whiners who are living irresponsibly. The campaign against lawsuits has been largely successful, yet now our tendency to buy into this propaganda may cost us our rights.

The Bush Administration wants to leave it up to the US Food and Drug Administration to approve our drugs and medical devices and forfeit give up our right to seek compensation through the courts if we are hurt. While some may argue that the FDA has rigorous tests that its products must pass before being put on the market, many companies slide through (some knowing the harm their product may cause, and others not).

If we take away the company’s fear of “getting sued,” what will be their motive to ensure that their product is completely safe? Not to say that everyone in these companies are evil, profit-seeking jerks; there are good people working there too who have a code of ethics and who believe safety comes first. These are the good people who use the possibility of a law suit as the hovering consequence of failing to take safety more seriously. Why would we, as consumers, want to take this argument away from them?

We ought to think about the rights we are relinquishing by doing away with our access to the courts, as well as our safety, which we are leaving up to drug companies and the imperfect FDA to decide.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="320" caption="Dennis Quaid testifies before Congress earlier this year"][/caption]

Take a look at Dennis Quaid, who says he has always thought of himself as a Republican. Even he is combating the process of preemption by giving testimony in Washington DC after a near-fatal overdose of heparin because of faulty labeling and medical devices that involved his newly-born twins. If Dennis Quaid is this concerned about what is going on with our legal system, we definitely should be!

Even worse is that these same problems continue to plague Texas hospitals, with a near fatal oversdose of heparin being given to 12 premies in a single Corpus Christi hospital last month.

~~Intern Anna

Ramai yang masih tidak sedar bahawa duduk terlalu lama di depan komputer atau bekerja selama berjam-jam secara pasif di atas kerusi akan membuat otot - otot tubuh kita terasa kaku, keras dan mata menjadi pedih. Malah selain keluhan ringan tersebut tersembunyi juga ancaman lain yang berisiko bagi kesehatan.

New Zealand Medic al Journal dalam edisi terbaru, melaporkan kajian dari Institut Penyelidikan Perubatan New Zealand menunjukkan bahawa pekerja pejabat yang menghabiskan masa terlalu lama duduk di meja masing-masing berisiko tinggi menghadapi masalah darah beku. Penyelidik mendapati, satu pertiga daripada pesakit yang dimasukkan ke hospital kerana mengidap -trombosis pembuluh darah vena (DVT) atau darah beku, adalah mereka yang menghabiskan masa berjam-jam mengadap komputer.

Penyakit Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) ini adalah disebabkan darah beku yang menyebabkan salur pembuluh darah terutamanya di bahagian peha danb betis tersumbat. Keadaan ini berlaku kerana aliran darah yang tidak baik hasil dari aktiviti yang pasif dan rehat yang berlebihan.

Hal ini akan diperburukkan apabila bilik yang diduduki berhawa dingin di mana udara yang sejuk itu mempercepatkan kadar pembekuan darah terutama di bahagian kaki.

Ketua penyelidik, Profesor Richard Beasley berkata sebahagian pekerja pejabat yang mengidap masalah itu duduk di depan skrin komputer selama lebih 10 jam sehari. Masalah ini biasanya dihadapi oleh pekerja dalam industri teknologi maklumat dan pusat panggilan.

Sekitar 34 peratus dari 62 sampel yang mengalami gumpalan darah adalah mereka yang dalam jangka waktu lama bekerja dengan duduk di kerusi, sementara 21 peratus penderita lainnya adalah terdiri dari mereka yang melakukan perjalanan jarak jauh menaiki kapalterbang, seperti disiarkan oleh AFP.

DVT itu sendiri merupakan menurut pakar kesihatan adalah pembentukan gumpalan darah nadi bahagian dalam, paling sering dijumpai di kaki. Gumpalan tersebut boleh pindah ke jantung, paru-paru atau otak dan bisa menyebabkan rasa sakit di dada, sesak nafas atau bahkan kematian akibat serangan jantung atau angin ahmar.

Pakar Perunding Paru-Paru, Institut Perubatan Respiratori, Dr Ashari Yunus berkata darah beku ini datang dari kaki, tetapi juga boleh berpunca daripada pembuluh darah di lengan, bahagian kanan jantung malah hujung kateter yang ditempatkan dalam pembuluh darah. Dalam kes yang sangat jarang berlaku, lemak atau tisu dari tumor atau kelompok bakteria mungkin boleh berkumpul di arteri paru-paru.

Mengapa pulmonari embolisme terjadi?

Manusia memiliki sepasang paru-paru. Darah secara konsisten dipam dari kanan jantung ke paru-paru dan kembali ke sebelah kiri jantung. Dalam paru-paru, darah mengambil oksigen dan mengeluarkan karbon dioksida, sisa metabolisme.

Arteri membawa darah yang kaya oksigen ke seluruh tubuh. Pembuluh darah pula membawa darah kurang oksigen kembali ke jantung. Darah beku yang terjadi dalam pembuluh darah boleh mengalir ke salur darah di kanan jantung sebelum masuk ke arteri paru-paru, di situ sekatan mungkin boleh berlaku.

Sekatan itu boleh terjadi pada arteri yang kecil tetapi paru-paru sangat ¡rapuh¢ kerana semua darah dalam tubuh melalui paru-paru setiap kali diedarkan. Kerap kali, darah beku berisiko untuk terbentuk dan tersebar ke seluruh bahagian paru-paru.

Simptom
Cepat penat
Mengah
Sakit dada
Denyutan nadi laju
Lemah di bahagian kaki
Kurang selera makan
Batuk
Nafas pendek sama ada dalam keadaan rehat atau aktif.

Cegahan
1. Stokin untuk mengelakkan berlakunya darah beku dalam saluran darah (deep vein thrombosis). . Ia berfungsi untuk mencengkam kulit dan mengempiskan vena supaya darah tidak bertakung
2. Perbanyakkan gerakan terutama di bahagian kaki
3. Elakkan meminum airbatu
4. ELakkan membuka hawa dingin terlalu sejuk
5. Sentiasa meminum air panas
6. Amalkan bersenam

Rawatan
Biasanya pesakit dirawat dengan ubat yang menghentikan dan memperlahankan darah beku seperti heparin dan warfarin. Kedua-duanya membantu mencegah darah beku sedia ada daripada menjadi besar dan menghentikan pembentukan darah beku yang baru..

Jika pulmonari embolisme yang dialami mengancam nyawa, biasanya doktor akan menyarankan terapi thrombolitik (mengeluarkan darah beku dari sistem tubuh dengan enzim yang bertindak memecahkannya

Cause of deaths in doubt after Sino-US blood thinner probe

BEIJING  -- The joint investigation by Chinese and US drug authorities has not found out the exact cause of the deaths said to be related to a substance in blood thinner exported from China to the United States, said the Ministry of Health here Friday.

...Both sides detected an ingredient called *Hypersulphated Chondroitin Sulphate from the heparin products exported to the United States by SPL's Changzhou factory but could not confirm whether the ingredient was to blame for the adverse reactions, Yan said.

*Hypersulphated Chondroitin Sulphate is a substance derived from pig cartilage.

Bengal farmers in potato protest

Angry farmers in the Indian state of West Bengal have been dumping their potato crop on roads in protest against poor prices.

Farmers say they are selling at a loss because a bumper crop and lack of storage facilities has led to a dramatic fall in prices.

They say a bumper potato crop has led to a huge surplus of more than 15,000 metric tones and there's not enough cold storage facilities in the state to preserve it for off-season sale when prices are better.

The price of potatoes has fallen across West Bengal this month by almost half - to around four to five rupees (12 US cents) a kilogram.

The farmers say they get only half that much - the rest is pocketed by middlemen who the government has so far failed to control.

Somalia pop stars take on tradition

What an inspiring group this is! I guess what with Angelina having the twins and Paris doing whatever it is that Paris does, there just isn't any space to devote to stories like this.

Deep in the heart of Little Mogadishu, a suburb in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, a pop group called Waayah Cusub (New Era) is causing a storm.

Frustrated with the traditional norms of living within the Somali community, which to a large extent restricts open expression; this group of young men and women are now using music to break the barriers.

Most of them are in their early twenties and have been living as refugees in Kenya for more than a decade.

..."We are not happy with what is happening back home, in fact we have recorded a thought-provoking song that we hope will bring our leaders back to their senses," Ms Jamma says.

The song, entitled Somalia, rebukes the country's leadership and warlords for causing the pain and destruction as they fight for power and challenges them to outline what they will do to restore order to the country.

The best places in the world to have cancer

Cuba? Women have a better chance of survival in Cuba? Sign me up. You don't suppose it could have anything to do with their health care program do you? Earlier detection...better survival? Nah...it couldn't be that simple or our mighty elected officials wouldn't have to be forced to come up with universal health care. There's also an interactive map with the story.

Women with cancer of the breast, colon or rectum have the best chance of survival if they live in Cuba. Algeria, in contrast, is one of the worst places to be if you have cancer.

Those are just two of many conclusions from a worldwide study comparing survival rates in nearly 2 million cancer patients.

In general, people in North America, Western Europe and other developed countries do better than people from Africa, South America and Eastern Europe.

Smell of fresh earth traced to bacteria genes

Everybody recognises the earthy smell of a field that's been freshly tilled, but how this smell forms has so far remained a mystery. A team at Brown University has now identified the bacterial genes responsible for the scent.

Agro-dementia: Why Romanian farmers are turning their backs on European money

Those readers who are not familiar with the complexities of Romanian society will be scratching their heads when reading that less than 3% of available European funds available to subsidise and develop agriculture were taken up in 2007.  The reader will become more perplexed when informed that at least 40% of Romania’s population live in rural areas and are dependant upon subsistence farming.

Add to the confusion the fact that Romania has some of the best agricultural land in Europe. To take the reader to the point of questioning his sanity add for some spice the fact that Romania imports, wheat, corn, poultry, pork, onions and garlic the imported food bill exceeding € 2.5 Bn!

Unemployment forces refugees back to Iraq

I can't imagine making that choice. Keep them in your thoughts & prayers.

Iraqi refugees are facing an uncertain life in Iraq over unemployment in Denmark.

Many of the 100 Iraqi interpreters and aid workers granted asylum in Denmark last year are choosing to return to Iraq.

The Iraqis, who had worked for the Danish military in Iraq, arrived in Denmark with their families last July when the army withdrew its troops. The government granted them asylum for fear they could face reprisals from insurgent groups for working with coalition forces.

Weak dollar makes American cars a bargain: Imported cars are often half the price of similar European

models

Big car lovers are in seventh heaven these days. Thanks to the weak dollar, importers are bringing in more and more high-end American vehicles, often ones that are no longer in production.

'Figuring in the Danish excise system, the dollar is valued at around 4.2 kroner,' said Ulrik Høyer of US Autocenter in Karlslunde, south of Copenhagen. 'That means we can sell the cars at prices that allow buyers to live out their boyhood dreams.'

Many of the American cars being purchased are already available on the European market. For example, the Chrysler Crossfire - built in Germany - would normally cost around 800,000 kroner new in Denmark. But imported from the US it has a sticker price of 550,000 kroner.

]]> http://lentaing.wordpress.com/?p=43 Wed, 16 Jul 2008 22:33:11 +0000 lentaing http://lentaing.wordpress.com/?p=43 just as i was about to post a follow up on other ways you can help, i came across this article on the nytimes homepage regarding how the red cross has been putting patients in danger from "deficient blood" products. here are some choice quotes:

"The problems, described in more than a dozen publicly available F.D.A. reports — some of which cite hundreds of lapses — include shortcomings in screening donors for possible exposure to diseases; failures to spend enough time swabbing arms before inserting needles; failures to test for syphilis; and failures to discard deficient blood.

In some cases, the lapses have put the recipients of blood at risk for diseases like hepatitis, malaria and syphilis.
...
"Patients who get blood transfusions tend to be pretty sick," Dr. Healy said. "If they spike a fever post-transfusion, no one is likely to suspect that the blood caused it."

With the reports of tainted heparin coming from china earlier this year, it seems that if your disease doesn't kill you, then some other person's incompetence will. as a patient, i have enough to worry about--like my little infected pinky toe. i'd like to trust that the blood or drugs that i'm getting won't kill me...my pinky toe is enough of a killer. but what is really scary is that if someone dies from a blood transfusion, the blood is probably the last place the doctors will look--that is IF they look. come on people, oy vey!

so before you give blood make sure that you've avoided malarial mosquitoes, have not traveled to ebola-land, and have protected yourself when having sex. i'll be watching over your shoulders :)

The error in the dosage of the medicine, used to flush intravenous lines to prevent blood clots from forming, was discovered Sunday night by hospital nurses who noticed abnormalities in lab tests, said Spohn CEO Bruce Holstein. They discontinued its use immediately and gave newborns who needed it different medications.

Two babies have been released since the discovery was made and the others were being monitored carefully. Holstein told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that the babies' reactions to the overdoses varied, and he did not know details about effects.

Pharmacy operations were halted temporarily Monday. He said the error was believed to have happened in the pharmacy when the medicine was mixed.

Last fall this same situation happened at the Los Angeles Hospital Dennis and Kimberly Quaid's twins were being looked after.

Although the babies have both recovered, the couple filed a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company that makes the drug citing that medication errors occurred due to product labeling. Their suit also claimed that each year there’s 1.5 million medication errors in America.

Nicht nur das Hirnödem ist rückläufig, sondern heute morgen fiel uns beim Eintragen der Werte in die Patientenkurve auf, dass die tatsächliche Atemfrequenz über der vom Gerät vorgegebenen liegt (Beatmungsform: BIPAP). Nach kurzer Rücksprache mit dem behandelnden Arzt stellten wir dann auf CPAP um, was sich dann bis zum Schichtwechsel auch ohne Komplikationen durchführen ließ.

Ansonsten... gibt`s eigentlich recht wenig. Melde mich dann wieder.

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt on Friday said that Chinese bureaucracy has delayed plans to establish FDA offices in three cities -- Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou -- that would monitor exports of food, medications, medical devices and other consumer products to the U.S., the Associated Press reports. Leavitt said that the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs must formally approve the plans, after which the agency will begin the process of approval of diplomatic visas for the 13 FDA employees who will staff the offices.

Read entire story here.

Additional offices are also planned for another leading exporter of pharmaceticals, India, where

"There are 90 to 100 FDA-inspected facilities there producing mostly drugs and medical devices," adding, "I expect that number to grow. The connection between the U.S. pharmaceutical industry and India is real and expanding. We just need to be there."

These additional inspections offices are a welcome but perhaps insufficient solution to the US outsourcing of more and more of its drug raw materials and generic compounds.

Prior Posts:

Congress Investigates Tainted Heparin

FDA Addressing Tainted Heparin — Finally

Updated: Plant pinned as source of fatal drug reactions unlicensed by Chinese

Ново изследване показва, че нискомолекулни хепарини потискат растежа на тумори. Развитието на нови кръвоносни съдове ( ангиогенеза ) е необходимо за раковите клетки, за да си набавят необходимите вещества от кръвта. Този процес стимулира репродукцията на тези клетки.

Използването на нискомолекулни хепарини ( Low-Molecular-Weight Heparins/LMWHs ) e показало, че увеличава живота при раково болни пациенти, но в същото време намалява способността на кръвта да се съсирва Горепосочените резултати за удължаването на живота са останали без стабилно научно обяснение.

Новото изследване тества хипотезата, че неутрализирането на факторите, които спомагат за растежа на кръвоносните съдове, ще предотврати ангиогенезата и това би довело до смърт на тумора. Един такъв растежен фактор е така наречения FGF ( Fibroblast Growth Factor ). Тази хипотеза е била тествана с моделна група тумори, които имали силно развити кръвоносни съдове и е била третирана с различни количества хепарин и нискомолекулни хепарини ( LMWHs ). За сравнение е използвана друга туморна група, която имала голямо количество кръвоносни съдове, но не била третирана с препарати.

Изследователският екип докладвал, че LMWHs взаимодействат със сигналните пътища за растежа на кръвоносни съдове, като значително блокирали ( инхибирали ) растежа на тумори. В края на експеримента необработваната проба доразвила стабилна съдова система, а третираната с нискомолекулни хепарини загинала.

„Това изследване свидетелства, че нискомолекулните хепарини отделят и отстраняват съдовите растежни фактори, в случая FGF, далеч от техните рецептори и намаляват растежа на туморната съдова система.” казва Д-р Уонг. Учените твърдят, че хепарините са навлезли в клиничната практика. Те се надяват, че заради противотуморните им ефекти ще започне бързото им приложение и това ще доведе до благоприятни последствия за пациентите.

Цитокините са особени вещества ( хормони ), чрез които клетките си „общуват”. Специално чрез така наречените ангиогенни цитокини се дава сигнал за образуването на нови кръвоносни съдове, а нискомолекулните хепарини имат интересното свойство да „обезвреждат” тези вещества.

„Нискомолекулните хепарини ( LMWHs ) блокират растежа на тумори чрез отнемането на ангиогенните цитокини” - това заглавие било презентирано на 13-ти април 2008 на ежегодния конгрес на Aмериканската асоциация за ракови изследвания, проведен в Сан Диего. Чрез продължаване на изследователската си дейност учените се надяват да издигат още много подобни заглавия.

Michael Wong, MD, PhD, FRCPC

“Low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) inhibit tumor growth through the sequestration of angiogenic cytokines”
Abstract # 1071
Embargoed until Sunday, April 13 – 1pm PST
Poster Section 12, Exhibit Hall B-F, San Diego Convention Center

David Barboza wrote in the NY Times:

Much of China’s production of raw heparin begins in homes and tiny factories, where teams of three to five people transform pig intestines into a dry substance that is eventually sold to major pharmaceutical companies.

Is it really revelatory that someone, anyone, might stand up at one point and say, you know what? I am so fucking tired of drying out chitlins for those privileged fucks. And then they'd slip a little oversulfated chondroitin sulfate into the bag instead, and there you go. Counterfeit heparin is so not a surprise, is it?

I think that as long as globalization continues, we should become adjusted to these kinks in the chain. Even shiny you, can't really appeal to the compassion in others, by demanding that they slave over a chitlin drying thing all day, and then climb underneath it to sleep at night. When you factor in the compensation for this effort, which is pennies... you need a strategy. Solution?

Let them know how we really roll. Hey, Chinese produer of raw materials for life-saving drugs? I'm losing my home to a mortgage foreclosure. Save me. Hey, Ms Chitlin drier and your miniature 'team' of 'helpers' (a.k.a. children)? I'm laid off from my job, with no money in the bank. Save me. Hey guys! I'm sick as hell with no insurance. Can I owe-ski for the magic chitskis? And finally, the reddest of red flags waves from lovely Santa Barbara, California, where 67 year old white women are allowed to sleep in their cars in gender-specific lots, in lieu of sleeping in homes. Hey Chitlin skinner. Wanna save a decent human being from a life devoid of-- uh, never mind.

It probably won't work, but it is undeniably informative.

Photo by Bridgette Blair

Taking a mislabeled drug or using a defective medical device is a dangerous thing. Just ask actor Dennis Quaid and his wife, Kimberly.

In November 2007, their newborn twins were given a massive overdose of Heparin, an anticoagulant drug. The twins were supposed to receive another drug that would ease the intravenous administration of antibiotics. Why were they given the wrong medication? The two drugs’ labels were similar. Baxter Healthcare Corp., the manufacturer of both drugs, was aware of the problem – in 2006, the same confusion over the labeling of Heparin caused the death of three infants at an Indianapolis hospital. Baxter relabeled Heparin to avoid this confusion before the Quaid twins were born. But here’s the shocker: The company didn’t recall the drug stock with the confusing label, so it remained on pharmacy shelves and was eventually injected into the twins.

The twins survived, barely.

Dennis Quaid made his way to the Hill this morning to tell his and his wife's story at a Congressional hearing, and Public Citizen attorney Brian Wolfman accompanied them as part of their legal counsel. (Wolfman, director of the Public Citizen Litigation Group and a preemption expert, has written an article about preemption and why its proponents are wrong in TRIAL Magazine.)

The FDA, along with drug and medical device manufacturers, claim that if a drug or device has received market approval, it’s preempted from lawsuits, even if it’s defective or mislabeled. Essentially, the companies think FDA approval cuts off Americans’ access to the courts, regardless of how negligently companies design their products or whether doctors and the public receive information on product hazards. The Supreme Court is about to decide whether to side with these companies, or whether to allow lawsuits over drugs and devices.

The Quaids are not alone in their story. About 100,000 U.S. patients die each year because of medical errors in hospitals.

“If [people] are denied access to our courts, they will have no compensation for their injuries, and society will lose one of the most effective incentives for safer drugs,” Quaid said in his testimony.

Read the full transcript of Quaid’s testimony on Public Citizen’s Web site. You can also get more information on unsafe and ineffective drugs, as well as rules for safer drug use, at www.worstpills.org.

]]> http://popsquire.wordpress.com/?p=478 Wed, 14 May 2008 17:56:26 +0000 russell wetanson http://popsquire.wordpress.com/?p=478 Dennis Quaid is testifying before Congress today about the overdose of Heparin given to his newborn twins in November. He says that the overdose was "a chain of events of human error" and that the "first link in that chain was Baxter," the pharmaceutical company that manufactures the drug.

Although he has always believed that frivolous lawsuits are a problem in this country, he says that his experience has made him realize that "courts are often the only path that families have that are harmed by drug companies' negligence." Click here to watch a clip of his testimony.

Popsquire's perspective...

Yes, Dennis, frivolous lawsuits are a problem. However, the definition of "frivolous" can be very subjective. Like you, many people have been damaged by others' action or inaction. As you now realize, the court system may be the only way to address the damage or fix a problem.

Popsquire will keep you posted as this story develops.

Remember a couple of years ago how the FDA warned Americans not to buy prescription drugs from Canada because they might be "contaminated by terrorists?" I'm not making that up: That was the official announcement of an FDA spokesperson, and it was part of their fear strategy for enforcing a monopoly on U.S. consumers so that Big Pharma could continue engaging in rampant price fixing.

The implication in that warning is that drugs purchased in the United States are therefore safer, correct? What the FDA didn't tell anyone, however, is that most pharmaceuticals purchased in the United States are manufactured outside the U.S.; many from China or Puerto Rico. So they're not even made in the U.S. anyway, and drug companies are simply importing them from other countries just like a consumer might do if she drove across the border and bought her medications in Canada or Mexico.

But hold on: The FDA actually used to run full-page magazine ads warning consumers about the dangers of drugs being contaminated if they were bought from Mexico, Canada or -- God forbid -- the Internet! Those drugs were dangerous, the FDA warned us, because they were not subjected to rigorous quality control requirements. The implication in that warning, of course, is that brand-name pharmaceuticals sold in the U.S. at U.S. pharmacies must therefore NOT be contaminated.

Enter the blood-thinning drug Heparin. This blood-thinning drug, made by Baxter International, was recently discovered by consumers to have been manufactured in China. Worse yet, the quality controls in China were so low that this FDA approved, brand-name prescription drug was apparently deliberately contaminated with an adulterated chemical that has now resulted in the death of dozens of consumers in the United States. Sound familiar? It's precisely the scenario dreamed up by the FDA to warn consumers away from pharmaceuticals purchased in Canada, Mexico or elsewhere. But guess what? It turns out that brand-name, FDA-approved prescription drugs sold at monopoly prices right here in the United States are adulterated too!

Three astonishing facts about brand-name pharmaceuticals

So far, then, there are three astonishing facts that have come out of this recent news about Heparin:

Fact #1: Most U.S. prescription drugs aren't even made in the U.S.

Fact #2: Many U.S. prescription drugs are made in China, a country widely known to have the lowest quality control standards in the world.

Fact #3: U.S. drug companies don't even run quality control checks on the drugs they import from China!

That third fact should send a chill up your spine. What it means is that U.S. drug companies contract with cheap, low-end Chinese chemical factories to manufacture their drugs at something like two cents a pill (which they can mark up to $20 a pill or more...), and then they import these Chinese-made pills and don't even test them before selling them to U.S. consumers!

If it wasn't for the fact that so many Americans have now died from this, the whole thing would be quite hilarious. Why? Because the FDA and Big Pharma are always running around touting how "safe" their products are while screaming about how dangerous herbs and supplements are. And yet nutritional supplement companies test their ingredients for contaminants with far greater frequency than drug companies. That Heparin contamination flap would never have happened to an honest nutritional supplement company because they're always testing their raw materials -- especially if they buy materials from China, which is known all over the world as the Capitol of Contamination!

Big Pharma, it seems, just skips that step. Whatever the Chinese throw into their pill bottles, U.S. drug companies just buy it and pass it on to patients and consumers without bothering to test the pills before selling them. Wow. Talk about trading safety for profits...

So much for the "safety" of Big Pharma's drugs sold in the United States, huh? This isn't something you hear in Big Pharma's TV ads, is it? "Buy Vytorex. Made in China! Never tested for contaminants! Take at your own risk!"

Did you know that the FDA has not inspected 93% of the factories that manufacture pharmaceuticals outside the U.S.? You can read more details on that in my article entitled Heparin Blood Thinner Drug Linked to Sudden Deaths; Cheap Ingredients Imported from Chinese Chemical Factory HERE

As it turns out, many of the pharmaceuticals manufactured for U.S. drug companies are contaminated with bizarre things like metal parts from the gears of processing machines, flecks of paint from factory walls, and who knows what else. The safety standards are so incredibly low for pharmaceuticals that cheap, low-cost manufacturers in China and elsewhere can apparently put almost anything in the drugs, and nobody ever checks the quality anyway. These drugs are rushed right from the cheap Chinese factories to pharmacy shelves in the United States where gullible consumers -- comforted by the FDA's proclamations of quality and safety -- swallow these pills and die.

How China could poison half the U.S. population

Now, remember the fictional terrorist plot I mentioned above that the FDA used to try to scare Americans away from buying pharmaceuticals from Canada? Well what if we someday have a military conflict with China, and the Communist leaders of that country decide to attack the American people through their pharmaceuticals? It would be a very simple matter for Chinese authorities to intentionally adulterate the drugs with mildly toxic ingredients or even biological agents (infectious diseases) that would sicken American consumers and start to spread through the population.

Since many drugs manufactured in China are not tested for contaminants, nobody in America would even have a clue! People would just pop their antidepressants, erection drugs, cholesterol drugs, heart medications and other pills, only to find that a few days later they were either sick or dead. With so many "American" drugs manufactured in China, our nation is vulnerable to a massive contamination attack.

Think about that the next time you pop a pill from Big Pharma. Do you really know where that pill came from? Do you really know whether it was ever tested? Chances are, it was made in China or Puerto Rico, under highly unsanitary factory conditions, and was never even tested before you bought it.

Drugs aren't safe just because they're not contaminated

You know what's really hilarious in all this news about contaminated drugs like Heparin? These drugs aren't even safe when they're NOT contaminated! Even if you remove all the adulterated chemicals that are killing people, and even if you get rid of all the factory machine parts being found in pills, and the paint and other physical contaminants from the factory floor, then you're still left with a pill made with synthetic, non-natural chemicals that can kill you anyway!

Blood thinners, for example, are literally made with rat poison. That's the proper recipe! Yes, rat poison. It's a chemical that's been used for over a hundred years to kill rats by causing them to bleed to death internally. Reduce the dosage to a non-fatal amount, pop it into a capsule, then get the FDA to approve the deadly chemical as "safe" and you know have a medication suitable for humans! People who take blood thinners are literally poisoning themselves with rat poison. That is no exaggeration.

So -- here's the funny part -- if Big Pharma starts checking its drugs for contaminants, it has to be very careful because even the main ingredients are contaminants! There are certain chemical contaminants that they don't want in the drugs (chemicals that will kill you overnight), but other chemical contaminants that they DO want in the drugs (chemicals that will keep you in a state of disease for decades). Virtually all pharmaceuticals, technically speaking, are chemical contaminants. If you really remove all the dangerous chemicals from most pharmaceuticals, you'd be left with empty capsules.

The top ten disturbing facts about the pharmaceutical industry's quality control problem

In summary, be sure to remember these ten facts about the pharmaceutical industry and its quality control failures:

Fact #1: Most pharmaceuticals sold in America are NOT made in America. Drug companies routinely try to hide this fact.

Fact #2: Many brand-name pharmaceuticals are contaminated with adulterated chemicals, metal shavings from factory machine parts, or other undesirables.

Fact #3: Many brand-name drugs are NOT tested for contaminants before being sold to consumers in the U.S., Canada and other countries.
Fact #4: The FDA does not inspect most factories that make drugs outside the U.S. (93% are never inspected)

Fact #5: There is no law requiring drug companies to state their drugs are "Made in China."

Fact #6: Even when pharmaceuticals are not contaminated with deadly chemicals, they're still often made with other deadly chemicals that are intentionally part of the recipe!

Fact #7: The FDA's response to the Heparin contamination discovery reveals the agency to be a pack of bumbling idiots who have no grasp whatsoever on quality control. They only discovered the drug contamination AFTER people started dropping dead.

Fact #8: If you take pharmaceuticals, you are playing a form of Big Pharma's Russian Roulette with your life. There is no guarantee that any pill you take is safe or that it has ever been tested for contamination.

Fact #9: The pharmaceutical industry has deceived consumers by implying that drugs bought in the U.S. are somehow safer than drugs purchased in Canada, Mexico or elsewhere.

Fact #10: There are fewer inspections required for imported pharmaceuticals than there are for imported orchids!

Remember, too: Nobody in the drug industry -- not the FDA, not Big Pharma, nobody! -- has ever tested the long-term safety of using multiple prescription drugs in combination. These chemical cocktails of two, five or a dozen prescription drugs are extremely toxic to the liver, kidneys and other organs, and there is zero scientific evidence showing them to be safe for long-term combined consumption by consumers.

And finally, consider this: Big Pharma is now pushing the Supreme Court to grant the industry blanket immunity for all pharmaceuticals, a move that would immediately lift any and all testing requirements and quality control measures since the drug companies would no longer be liable for what's in their pills! See this story for more details

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About the author: Mike Adams is a natural health researcher and author with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He has authored and published thousands of articles, interviews, consumers guides, and books on topics like health and the environment, reaching millions of readers with information that is saving lives and improving personal health around the world. Adams is a trusted, independent journalist who receives no money or promotional fees whatsoever to write about other companies' products. In 2007, Adams launched EcoLEDs, a maker of energy efficient LED lights that greatly reduce CO2 emissions. He also founded an environmentally-friendly online retailer called BetterLifeGoods.com that uses retail profits to help support consumer advocacy programs. He's also a veteran of the software technology industry, having founded a personalized mass email software product used to deliver email newsletters to subscribers. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and practices nature photography, Capoeira, Pilates and organic gardening. He's also author of numerous health books published by Truth Publishing and is the creator of several consumer-oriented grassroots campaigns, including the Spam. Don't Buy It! campaign, and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. He also created the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the ending of corporate control over medicines, genes and seeds. Known on the 'net as 'the Health Ranger,' Adams shares his ethics, mission statements and personal health statistics at www.HealthRanger.org

MIT Professor Ram Sasisekharan described the chemical structure of the contaminant, known as oversulfated chondroitin sulfate (OSCS), and states that steps can be taken to screen batches of heparin that have been adulterated by the rogue substance.

Sasisekharan also led another team that showed exactly how OSCS triggers a severe allergy-type reaction that lowers blood pressure and can be life-threatening. This report appears today in New England Journal of Medicine's online edition.

The NEJM's article includes a fascinating history of how the contaminant was identified and the effects on the heparin-using public and a case story of a 63-year-old woman who recovered from exposure to the contaminating substance after heparin was given to her from a source not associated with the contamination.

Presented in the public interest by Griffith Publishing

]]> http://pillsandpotions.wordpress.com/?p=9 Thu, 01 May 2008 16:19:04 +0000 hodicom http://pillsandpotions.wordpress.com/?p=9 The offending component of heparin that is blamed for scores of deaths in the US has been traced to Changzhou SPL, a company registered in China as a manufacturer of chemicals, not drugs.

The Wall Street Journal reported on March 10, 2008, that another company in China, Shenzhen Hepalink, provides the active ingredient for heparin used in kidney dialysis and other "large dose" applications. The report states that Shenzhen Hepalink follows strict guidelines for protecting the ingredient from contamination. The implication is that that patients have no fears if they are taking heparin in large quantities because the medicine came from a reliable source.

The offending active ingredient is "oversulfated chondroitin sulfate," which originates in the cartilage of animals. Medpage gives an easy-read explanation of how the compound triggers inflammation in two separate pathways, causing death and how it was possible for screening methods not to identify the substance.

In summary, the compound is a "long sugar" molecule with a chemical structure that resembles the heparin so closely that standard tests did not detect it.

Screening practices are quickly being modified so that future adulterants will be more readily detected and kept from distribution.

The interesting point being made by scientists is that it is highly unlikely that the contaminant developed naturally. Instead, it seems to have been deliberately manufactured and shipped for insertion into the heparin compound.

More information about this development:

UPI: Germany recalls heparin made with an active ingredient from China

News about the heparin probe from Associated Press WorldStream; recalls in 6 countries

Q&A by FDA on heparin sodium injections from Baxter

(This blog comes to you from Griffith Publishing, a book writing, editing, design and production service)

Baxter International Inc. said its blood thinner heparin, linked to 81 deaths, appears to have been deliberately contaminated.

The drug's main ingredient was contaminated before reaching the Chinese factory of Baxter's supplier, Scientific Protein Laboratories, executives of both companies testified at a U.S. House hearing today.

The Food and Drug Administration suspects the contamination was deliberate, though there isn't proof, according to the agency.

Baxter recalled heparin, used to prevent blood clots, in January of this year after reports of harmful side effects. Since January 2007, 81 people have died after allergic reactions, the FDA said on April 21. Tainted heparin made by other drugmakers has been found in more than a dozen countries since Baxter's recall, and regulators have said they don't know how it was introduced.

Read Entire Story

Chinese officials have denied that the tainted raw materials was produced in a plant that the FDA inspectors failed to inspect due to a confusion with the name of the facility.

Scientific Protein, majority owned by American Capital Strategies Ltd., started to inspect its suppliers of raw heparin and stopped when the Chinese government ``took over,'' Strunce said. The ingredient is derived from pig intestines and originates in workshops in China.

The FDA says the contaminant can lead to deaths. The Chinese government has publicly disputed that, saying the side effects haven't been reported in all countries where the contaminant was found.

After testimony from the families of the victims was heard, the committee concluded with the recommendation that more money be appropriate to the FDA for more foreign inspections. Additionally the committee members expressed concern over the alleged intentional contanmination of the materials by the Chinese manufacturer.

``Our investigations have revealed an FDA woefully lacking in the personnel, effective policies, and the will at the highest level to perform the duties entrusted to it by the Congress and the American people,'' said Representative John D. Dingell, a Michigan Democrat, during the hearing.

Representative Michael Burgess, a Republican from Texas, also raised alarm that heparin appeared to have been intentionally contaminated.

He called the contamination ``thuggery'' and ``thievery'' and said it was an ``knife in the back'' of the American public.

Increased reliance on foreign sources for raw drug material by US Drug Manufacturers is a mandate for more vigilant safeguards by both the FDA and the companies themselves.

Past Posts:

Updated: Plant pinned as source of fatal drug reactions unlicensed by Chinese

FDA Addressing Tainted Heparin — Finally

]]> http://bigghettomess.wordpress.com/2008/04/30/the-government-thinks-people-are-trying-to-kill-you/ Thu, 01 May 2008 04:15:58 +0000 sgamer http://bigghettomess.wordpress.com/2008/04/30/the-government-thinks-people-are-trying-to-kill-you/ Tainted: FDA Believes Heparin Contamination Was Intentional

yes, that's right kids, we have an arm of the government actually looking out for your best interests, and hunting the people that poison our medicine down, assuming they did it intentionally. I wonder if they have information that we don't on this? I'm sure they do, its the FUCKING GOVERNMENT.

• Baxter's CEO, Robert Parkinson, just came out today with the news that it's believed their blood-thinner Heparin was deliberately contaminated. You will recall that the drug is being manufactured in Chi-nah - the same Chi-nah that was bent on killing our beloved fur-kids? When is Congress going to get serious about firing the head of FDA? He's proven he can not run the department on a daily basis AND testify to Congress on the department's inadequacy on a weekly basis! Check out FDA's website for all the safety alerts and recalls. Just make sure you've already eaten.

• Soldiers who need special waivers to get into the Army because they're "loose canons" face court-martial more often. Gee, does that make sense? Bad behavior = court martial? (/sarcasm) BUT - they also get promoted more often than the good guys. Hmm.. does that make sense? DAMN STRAIGHT IT DOES!! You need these bad apples. Who else is willing to break our laws and carry out the damning no-no's forbidden by Geneva Convention and other higher commissions on human rights? The Army's New Thinking Apparatchik apparently thinks the lowest common denominator of squzzballs who have criminal records should serve our country - AND MAKE US PROUD OF OUR ARMY AGAIN! BTW, this information hasn't been released to the public - you ought to send a thank-you note to AP who obtained a copy of this study. You should have gotten a clue about the direction the Army was taking with their lame-ass slogan 'AN ARMY OF ONE'. I have this image of the "enemy" thinking they're up against one dude, all decked out with the newest weaponry - a helicopter strapped to his back - heading in their general direction eager to jitzu them into the evening stew. Hey! Someone's responsible for turning our young men into Arnie (sounds like Army..get it?) Terminators.