Most Popular Articles Tagged: Recall

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Pros and cons of the Pneumococcal Vaccine for Seniors

Know Your Risk Factors for the Disease as Well as the Vaccine

Image of a syringe and vial

photo taken by Brian Hoskins

Worried about the pneumococcal vaccine side effects? You are not alone. It has become a common practice for general practitioners to recommend the pneumococcal vaccine to seniors over age 65 as an added safeguard against pneumonia. This disease is caused by strep infections 25% of the time.  But is the pneumonia vaccine, as most people call it, always a good idea? Are there instances when the elderly patient would be better off without it? I investigated this adult vaccine to find out.

According to the Department of Health and Human Services, seniors are 2 to 3 times more likely to develop pneumonia, which is most common among nursing home patients with co-morbid conditions (patients otherwise sick with other illnesses as well). In these environments the use of antibiotics is more regular and sometimes ineffective. This is because virulent strains, other infectious and dangerous diseases like Pneumonia, MRSA, and Influenza can be life threatening to folks already weak and fragile. Experts believe that an adult vaccine for pneumonia, although not foolproof, can possibly protect these at-risk patients from deadly infections. …continue reading »


Quest Diagnostics admits to Inaccurate Vitamin D Lab Tests

Quest DiagnosticsAccording to the New York Times, if you’ve had your Vitamin D levels checked by Quest Diagnostics over the last two years, chances are your reading was inaccurately high, meaning you may in fact be deficient even if the results came out adequate.

According to Andrew Pollack of the Times:

The company, Quest Diagnostics, has already sent letters to thousands of doctors listing the patients who might have received “questionable” test results and is offering free retests. The company said it had fixed the problems.

The biggest concern right now is to accurately find patients who have had an erroneously high result. These folks are currently not taking vitamin D supplements when they should be. According to Pollack’s report, the Quest test results have typically been too high, although not in all cases. …continue reading »


Tribune Investigation finds Wellshire Farms Gluten-free products not Gluten-Free

In an exposé released today, staff writer for the Chicago Tribune, Sam Roe, reports that the Wellshire Kids Product line is tainted with unsafe amounts of gluten. The newspaper tested several products and found gluten in Gluten Free Chicken Corn Dogs, which tested at 116 ppm and 2,200 ppm, and Gluten Free Beef Corn Dogs which tested at 191 ppm and 1,200 ppm, and Gluten Free Chicken Bites which tested at 204 parts per million and 260 ppm.  According to Roe,

“Wellshire Farms provided the Tribune with its own testing results, conducted in the spring. Their results showed that the chicken bites tested at 200 ppm, chicken corn dogs 150 ppm, and beef corn dogs 120 ppm.”

…continue reading »


Halloween Trick-or-Treaters need to Beware of Chocolate Coins

melamine coinsSherwood brand Pirate’s Gold Milk Chocolate Coins, sold across Canada by Costco, and also in various dollar and bulk stores, is imported from China and contains melamine, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. This is the same chemical responsible for killing numerous babies in China and sickening thousands more.

On October 8 the Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued its warning when the candy tested positive for melamine.

For more information, visit: Canadian Food Inspection Agency – Consumer Advisory.