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This past weekend -- a few days after ACSH's annual staff party at the beach -- I took a car service back to New York. It was relatively early Sunday morning, but the Garden State Parkway was packed -- although traffic was moving. We were not on the parkway more than thirty minutes when I saw an alarming site: three deer feeding on the grass, inching closer to the highway, apparently ready to sprint into moving traffic. Over the years, we have seen deer on the parkway before -- but never in a cluster, and never so close to moving cars.

Health advice abounds these days, instructions on what to eat, what to wear (or not), what pills to take or avoid, and how much sun to expose oneself to all supposedly based on scientific research. Reliance on reports of scientific evidence can sometimes be tricky, however, especially when those reports come from preliminary or otherwise unsubstantiated experiments and observations. In addition to these, though, several examples of supposedly solid, "everyone knows" advice come to mind, advice that may not be as solid as once thought.

The New York Times Science section yesterday discussed the class of pharmaceuticals commonly called "statins." These drugs all reduce blood cholesterol levels, particularly the form of cholesterol called LDL, the "bad" cholesterol responsible for narrowing the arteries supplying blood to the heart and brain. Such cholesterol-containing deposits, known as atheroma, lead to heart attacks and strokes if not treated, either by drugs (such as statins) or interventions such as angioplasty or bypass surgery.

The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed an amendment allowing Americans to buy prescription drugs from Canada and unspecified "other countries," a seeming reversal of current law. I say seeming because in fact this amendment is likely to be eliminated when the House and the Senate meet to coordinate the final form of the bill. Nevertheless, politicians and pundits seem to be in agreement: drug importation is an idea whose time is at hand, if not this year, then next.

Who was quoted in a Sunday newspaper trying to reassure people by saying the following?
"The key thing to remember is that all the products are well within the set safety limits and they are absolutely safe."
A) The spokesperson for a pesticide trade association.B) The spokesperson for a chemical company.C) The spokesperson for an organic food company.D) The spokesperson for a major multinational food company.

For several years, ACSH has been warning consumers that "natural" products such as herbal supplements are neither well regulated nor intrinsically safe. In our publication on potential supplement-drug interactions as well as on this site, we have noted actual and potential problems with such products.

Dear CBS News,
Imagine our surprise: in the same CBS Health Watch website section as an article that scares parents away from having their children vaccinated against preventable diseases, CBS also posted an Associated Press article urging the exact opposite course of action. What's a parent to do?

A large-scale study published this month in the journal Clinical and Experimental Allergy warns us about the dangers of a product sold in stores throughout the country. The U.S.-based trade association promoting the sale of this significant food allergen even has an entire section on their webpage promoting its health benefits.
Most frightening, they seem to be promoting their product to children!

A reaction to Dr. Elizabeth Whelan's piece on importing drugs from Canada (to add your own comments on this or other pieces, sign up at right):
Dr. Whelan:
An excellent and persuasive op-ed!

ACSH congratulates the New York Times (and health columnist Jane E. Brody) for putting the health risks faced by children in perspective.

You may recall hearing recently that the scare about French fries and cancer was nothing to worry about after all. This March 11 article explains why we shouldn't worry about the low levels of acrylamide we consume in foods. Not bad, given that ACSH's peer-reviewed report saying the same came out in February 2002.

Celebrity-worship and deference to authority sometimes overcome people's ability to think scientifically and rationally. ACSH's Jeff Stier has written about how celebrities influence research funding, for instance. Celebrity and authority can also be used to sell ideas the public wouldn't otherwise accept.

Last week we cheered the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for challenging the makers of quack weight loss supplements for children.
This week, the FTC's chairman deserves another honorable mention, this time, for standing up to the Center for Science and the Public Interest and its allies who seek to ban television commercials for "junk food" directed at children.

"British Study Sees Scant Value in Alzehimer's Drug Aricept," according the New York Times headline. Indeed, the latest study, which asked whether Aricept is a cost-efficient treatment in the British government-sponsored system, confirms what we already knew: we need better Alzheimer's medicines.

CBS 2's Cindy Hsu reports many dentists are now selling a retainer that helps people eat less and quotes ACSH's Dr. Ruth Kava:
"This device, if it slows people down, makes them take smaller bites. It could help," says Dr. Ruth Kava from the American Council on Science and Health.
But Dr. Kava says you don't need to spend big bucks on wiring your mouth shut.

That's the paradox noted in a June 30 article by J.M. Hirsch, but he also notes:
Ruth Kava of the American Council of Science and Health said recently that data such as these indicate that despite a flood of nutrition advice, people may actually understand very little about healthy eating.

A June 24 article by Daniel Moreau noted that the Naderite NYPIRG (New York Public Interest Research Group) is repeating the groundless fears over arsenic-based compounds in playground equipment, but the article quoted ACSH's Jeff Stier for perspective:
[Stier] described the possibility of arsenic poisoning from playgrounds as a "nonissue."
"You can't get AIDS from shaking someone's hand," Mr. Stier said. "Likewise, you can't get cancer from playing on pressure-treated wood -- unless you're eating or sucking the wood.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the author of a 1994 bill that protects dietary supplement makers while putting consumers at unnecessary risk, said recently that he is willing to consider making herbal supplement manufacturers report adverse side effects of their wares. In return, Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., has dropped an amendment to a defense bill that would require companies that sell supplements on military bases to report side effects.

Two stories appeared in the news recently that tried create alarm about modern therapeutic methods -- but had the opposite effect on me, and should on you too.

We noted in May that antioxidant vitamins may sometimes be harmful for the heart. In June, we reported that vitamin C use was linked to arthritis.

As we start 4th of July weekend, we have many concerns--terrorism threats, unsafe fireworks, risks of fatalities on the highway. But one concern should be subject to scientific monitoring: the weather. And we should get accurate information.
Severe weather can threaten life and health. Risks of tornadoes, intense rain, flood, thunderstorms, and hurricanes are of concern to all of us.

Yesterday the Pentagon announced plans to up its anthrax and smallpox vaccination efforts for American forces and essential civilian contractors in the Middle East. Officials at the Pentagon explained that the decision was motivated by an increase in vaccination supplies, not an increased threat level though their concerns about a biological or chemical attack persist.

For over twenty years, eggs have been considered dietary demons by many because of their high cholesterol content. Since high levels of cholesterol in the blood have been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, the thinking was that limiting dietary cholesterol by limiting egg consumption would be a step in the right direction. Current dietary recommendations are to restrict cholesterol intake to 300 milligrams per day one large egg yolk contains about 213 milligrams to decrease the risk of heart disease.

Members of the ACSH staff this week attended a continuing education seminar for health professionals on the subject of preparedness for biological, chemical, and nuclear emergencies. The seminar was based on an excellent publication prepared for the Medical Society of the State of New York, which reviewed salient facts about a full spectrum of potential terrorism agents including smallpox, anthrax, ricin, plague, and sarin.

Editor's note: Posted just prior to July 4, 2002, this article still has useful safety reminders for this year's celebrants.
As befits any birthday, Americans will celebrate this July 4 with food, music, pageantry, and, of course: fireworks!
Who cannot remember the thrill of their first fireworks display, the childish wonder that is rekindled each Fourth? Indeed, many would argue that fireworks are what make this holiday special.