March 8, 2013 (San Diego)- Bumble Bee Foods, LLC, has issued a voluntary recall on specific codes of 5-ounce Chunk White Albacore and Chunk Light Tuna products. The recall has been issued because the products do not meet the company’s standards for seal tightness.

Loose seals or seams could result in product contamination by spoilage organisms or pathogens and lead to illness if consumed.

March 2, 2013 (Washington, D.C.) – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently issued alerts or other safety information about a number of products, including metal-on-metal hip implants, which release metal particles into the bloodstream, sleep drugs that reduce morning alertness—especially in women, and a motion sickness drug packaged in error as an iron supplement.

Lori Abbott, California News Service

January 29, 2013 (San Diego)--The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved three new related products for use with diet and exercise to improve blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes: Nesina (alogliptin) tablets, Kazano (alogliptin and metformin hydrochloride) tablets, and Oseni (alogliptin and pioglitazone) tablets.

December 27, 2012 (San Diego) – Many lives have been saved by a personalized vaccine for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma cancer called BioVax ID. But inexcusably, BioVax ID, which has been around since 1994, remains unapproved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is unavailable to many patients.

The FDA says it denied a request for accelerated approval for this vaccine from the company, Biovest, because the vaccine does not fill an unmet need. But patients and patient advocates I've spoken to across the nation strongly disagree.

http://therenodispatch.blogspot.com/2012/12/cancer-vaccine-saves-lives-b...

Hundreds of drugs recalled, ranging from antibiotics to blood thinners, pain prescriptions to pediatric medications recalled

Update:  “Sharp Grossmont Hospital and any other entity of Sharp HealthCare does not purchase products from Ameridose, the pharmaceutical company that is linked to the drug recall,” spokesman Bruce Hartman has informed ECM.

October 31, 2012 (Washington D.C.)--The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that Ameridose, LLC, based in Westborough, Mass., is voluntarily recalling all of its unexpired products due to serious sterility concerns. The move follows 54 cases of fungal meningitis linked to steroid injections.

However, the drug recall is much broader, including hundreds of drugs in oral and inhalable forms as well as injectibles. The list includes many commonly used medications such as Ibuprofin, Acetaminophen, Lidocaine, Penicillin, Vancomycin, Oxytocin, Morphine, Vancomycin and Heparin, to name just a few.

View a complete list of all products subject to this recall here with more information at www.ameridose.com. Products from Ameridose can be identified by markings that indicate Ameridose by name or by its company logo. Despite the recall, doctors and healthcare professional have NOT been urged by the FDA to followup with patients who received these drugs, so check the list carefully to see if medications you have received may be on the list. Scroll down for more information.

E - The Environmental Magazine

Written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss

September 29, 2012 -- Dear EarthTalk: I’ve always suspected that perfumes and colognes must not be too healthy simply because of the way the smell of most of them bothers me. Am I correct? Is there information available on this issue?                                                        -- Lucinda Barry, Minneapolis, MN

September 22, 2012 (Washington, D.C.) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers not to use Intestinomicina, a drug product manufactured in El Salvador and marketed as a treatment for infectious diarrhea and acute gastrointestinal infections. Consumers who have purchased this product should immediately stop taking it and consult with a health care provider.

Intestinominica contains the prescription drug ingredient, chloramphenicol. Oral forms of chloramphenicol were formally withdrawn from the United States market in July 2012 due to the risk of serious and life threatening injuries.

Chinese imports suspected; FDA advises avoiding jerky treats

September 15, 2012 (Washington D.C)—The FDA has issued a report revealing that thousands of pet illnesses since 2007 have been linked to consumption of jerky pet treats.  Most complaints involve chicken jerky (treats, tenders, and strips), but others include duck, sweet potato, and treats where chicken or duck jerky is wrapped around dried fruits, sweet potatoes, or yams.

Product sold nationwide as thickener to mix with formula, breast milk

May 21, 2011 (Washington D.C.) -- The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is warning parents and caregivers to not feed SimplyThick to premature infants younger than 37 weeks. The product, a thickening agent for swallowing disorders, has been found to cause necrotizing enterocolitis, a life-threatening condition characterized by inflammation and death of intestinal tissue. At least two infants have died as a result, the FDA reports.

Parents, caregivers and health care providers should immediately stop administering the product to premature infants.

By Jeremy Los & Miriam Raftery

March 17, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)—As Japan’s nuclear crisis worsens, the European Union and some Asian nations are taking steps to protect their food supplies from Japanese imported foods and fish that may be contaminated by radiation.

“FDA will be examining both food products labeled as having originated in Japan or having passed through Japan in transit,” the U.S. Food & Drug  Administration said in the Bloomberg Businessweek article. “The same is true for raw ingredients.”

In a conference call today, Howard Backer, M.D., Associate Secretary of Emergency Preparedness for California Health and Human Services Agency, told ECM that the FDA is "screening all shipments that come from Japan for food products.  This is not new; for anti-terrorism reasons our ports already do screening of radioactivity for all containers."

September 29, 2010 (Washington D.C.) - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) today warned consumers to stop using all infant sleep positioners.

August 18, 2010 (Washington D.C.) – The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announces a four-fold increase in salmonella cases nationwide since May, including outbreaks in California and other states linked tocontaminated eggs. Wright County Egg of Iowa has recalled eggs distributed nationwide under the brand names Lucerne, Albertson, Mountain Dairy, Ralph’s, Boomsma’s, Sunshine, Hillandale, Trafficanda, Farm Fresh, Shoreland, Lund, Dutch Farms and Kemps.

 Device helps prevent blindness in patients with age-related macular degeneration

July 6, 2010 (Washington D.C). -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced it has approved the Implantable Miniature Telescope (IMT) to improve vision in some patients with end-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Surgically implanted in one eye, the IMT is a small telescope that replaces the natural lens and provides an image that has been magnified more than two times.

The Food and Drug Administration today alerted parents and caregivers that some liquid Vitamin D supplement products are sold with droppers that could allow excessive dosing of Vitamin D to infants. The FDA also advised manufacturers of liquid Vitamin D supplements that droppers accompanying these products should be clearly and accurately marked for 400 international units (IU). In addition, for products intended for infants, FDA recommends that the dropper hold no more than 400 IU.

Lead levels 10,000 times higher than legal level found
 

May 3, 2010 (Washington D.C.) --The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is advising consumers not to purchase nor consume Vita Breath, a dietary supplement manufactured by American Herbal Lab Inc. of Rosemead, Calif., and marketed at health fairs and on the Internet, because the product may contain hazardous levels of lead.

March 12, 2010 (Washington D.C.) -- Yesterday the U.S. Food & Drug administration listed 153 food items subject to  recall for hydrolyzed vegetable protein believed contaminated with salmonella.   The list includes boullion, dressing and dressing mixes, flavoring base and seasoning products, frozen foods, gravy mixes, prepared salads, ready-to-eat products,sauce and marinade mixes, snack foods, soups and soup mixes, dips and dip mixes.

 
Updated code to serve as model for state, city, county, tribal, territorial agencies and food industry

November 9, 2009 - Restaurant owners and others who serve food to the public will want to be aware of publication of a new FDA Food Code announced today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The document includes new rules for preparation of items such as hamburgers and leafy greens, as well as new  requirements for hygiene and educating employees about allergens.