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MORNING DISPATCH 11/19/08: Dour Docs, Cancer Causes, Dire Diabetes, Smoke Scams, and Dementia Dissension

U.S. faces mounting diabetes cost
A new study estimates that diabetes will soon cost the United States over $200 billion per year. "Diabetes is very expensive and the cost will only increase as more people develop the condition," Dr. Ross says. Dr. Whelan agrees, "The coming wave of diabetes cases, which is linked to increasing obesity rates, is going to be overwhelming for our healthcare system."

Dr. Kava points out that the increase in Type 2 diabetes will reach many corners of medicine: "It's going to affect the number of kidney dialysis patients, the number...

Many pharmaceutical companies continue to research obesity drugs, despite recent issues regarding side effects and halted experiments. "There's a lot of good research in this area going on behind closed doors, but it's not going to show its face for years," ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross says.

ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava thinks, "It's hard to find an effective weight-loss drug that doesn't have negative side effects" -- possibly because, as ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan says, "The human body doesn't want to lose weight. It wants to survive."

In an effort to defend itself against the prevailing opinion that its food is unhealthy, McDonald's began inviting mothers from across the country to get an inside look at how its food is made. Touring everything from a bun factory to the kitchen of a McDonald's restaurant, the moms saw that fast food is, indeed, real food.

Marion Nestle, an outspoken leader of the food police, predictably criticized the company and its volunteers. "Somebody must have figured out that what they [McDonald's] need is good PR on transparency. Those mothers are willing to be used for that purpose," she said. ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross says, "She's basically accusing the mothers of being conspirators, when they are just giving their opinion."

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Many pharmaceutical companies continue to research obesity drugs, despite recent issues regarding side effects and halted experiments. "There's a lot of good research in this area going on behind closed doors, but it's not going to show its face for years," ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross says.

ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava notes, "It's hard to find an effective weight-loss drug that doesn't have negative side effects" -- possibly because, as ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan says, "The human body doesn't want to lose weight. It wants to survive."

According to a new study, Finland's national screening program for colon cancer has been successful -- to some extent. Doctors screened 106,000 people between the ages of sixty and sixty-four for the disease by analyzing fecal samples for blood and were able to identify four out of ten cases of colon cancer.

While colonoscopies are a much more thorough method, ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross says, "screening for blood in the stool is much cheaper and less invasive. Patients over fifty should have a colonoscopy every five to ten years, but since it is possible to develop cancer in the interval between the tests, their doctors should screen for blood in the stool as a...

With food allergies receiving more attention, more children are being prescribed EpiPens, single-use shots of epinephrine that can counter severe allergic reactions resulting in anaphylaxis.

"The number of prescriptions for EpiPens has gone up 36% in four years, which is a huge increase," ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross says. "It may be due to an increase in the number of children with food allergies, but also to more doctors realizing that young people who have food allergies should have access to EpiPens." He assures us that the potentially life-saving devices are very easy to use in an emergency.

A new study shows that obese women who become pregnant after losing weight with the help of bariatric surgery have easier pregnancies and healthier babies than women who remain obese during pregnancy. But ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava thinks the article left out a vital piece of information: "It doesn't distinguish between gastric banding and gastric bypass surgeries, and there's a big difference in what happens to nutrient absorption after these types of surgeries -- which probably affects pregnancies," she says.

She raises a similar question regarding a study claiming that...

Yesterday was World Toilet Day , inspiring the Los Angeles Times to pose an interesting question: "If you had to live without toilets or electricity, which would you choose?" While ACSH staffers find the idea of life without electricity to be a dim prospect, we would certainly forgo its convenience in favor of all the public health benefits of toilets.

"Human waste is a major cause of disease, especially when it contaminates water supplies," ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan explains. Many cholera outbreaks in the nineteenth century were caused by that very problem, and their devastating effects inspired cities like London and New York to build sewers and...

The current issue of Newsweek chronicles the history of influenza with pictures and illustrations dating back to the eigheenth century. The slideshow of images is available online. "It really puts things in perspective," says ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan. "The flu is serious stuff and something we still need to worry about."

The flu kills 30,000 to 40,000 Americans every year, and as ACSH's Jeff Stier points out, "Most of those deaths are preventable through widespread use of the flu vaccine."

In response to the new CDC recommendation that school-age children receive an annual flu shot in order to reduce their chance of coming down with the illness as well as to stem the virus's spread to more...

Today marks the 33rd annual Great American Smokeout, sponsored by the American Cancer Society. Smokers are encouraged to give up cigarettes today to jumpstart the process of eventually quitting for good.

Resources to help smokers quit are available all over the country today -- for example, New York City is providing free nicotine gum and patches. We only wish they were handing out other harm reduction products as well -- such as snus and other smokeless tobacco products.

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