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When roasted at 475 degrees, coffee beans are sometimes described as rich and full-bodied. But for the full-bodied person who is not so rich, unroasted coffee beans - green as the day they were picked - may hold the key to cheap and effective weight loss, new research suggests. In a study presented Tuesday at the American Chemical Society's spring national meeting in San Diego, 16 overweight young adults took, by turns, a low dose of green coffee bean extract, a high dose of the supplement, and a placebo.

The proposed weight-loss drug Lorcaserin, rebuffed in its bid for Food and Drug Administration approval last October, on Thursday won a recommendation of approval from the agency's advisory committee, a major step toward winning the FDA's go-ahead to enter the U.S. market. If the agency follows the advice of the panel of independent experts--which is common but not routine-- Lorcaserin would become the first new prescription weight-loss drug to go on the U.S. market since Orlistat (now marketed over-the-counter as Alli)

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday cautioned consumers against using quinine for leg cramps, warning that the drug could cause severe side effects, including death. Quinine, sold in this country under the brand name Qualaquin, is approved for treatment of uncomplicated malaria, but has a long history of use as a remedy for leg cramps, especially at night. In many countries, it is sold over the counter. Studies have shown that it can reduce the incidence of cramps by one-third to one-half but that as many as one in every 25 users can suffer serious side effects.

WASHINGTON - An experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis has caused death, strokes, nerve damage and abdominal bleeding and has no proven benefits for sufferers of the disease, the Food and Drug Administration warned Thursday. Known as liberation therapy, the treatment targets chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency - or CCSVI - a narrowing of the veins in the head and neck. It involves inserting balloons or stents into veins to widen them in an attempt to relieve the symptoms of MS. The FDA received reports in 2011 of a patient who died from bleeding in the brain after undergoing the treatment and another who was left permanently paralyzed by a stroke.

Asthma sufferers have long relied on inhalers for relief from wheezing or coughing attacks. But as of Dec. 31, Primatene Mist -- the only available over-the-counter asthma inhaler -- was taken off shelves because of its adverse effect on the environment. Other inhalers are available, but these require a doctor's prescription. Some people with asthma aren't happy about the change, but lung doctors and asthma specialists agree that Primatene Mist wasn't the best option for patients anyway.

WASHINGTON - An experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis has caused death, strokes, nerve damage and abdominal bleeding and has no proven benefits for sufferers of the disease, the Food and Drug Administration warned Thursday. Known as liberation therapy, the treatment targets chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency - or CCSVI - a narrowing of the veins in the head and neck. It involves inserting balloons or stents into veins to widen them in an attempt to relieve the symptoms of MS. The FDA received reports in 2011 of a patient who died from bleeding in the brain after undergoing the treatment and another who was left permanently paralyzed by a stroke.

The Food and Drug Administration plans to remove some unapproved prescription cough, cold and allergy medicines now sitting on store shelves, the agency announced Wednesday. The products, which may be inappropriately labeled for use by infants and young children, could pose an unnecessary risk because they haven't been tested for safety and efficacy, the FDA said. Some may have risky ingredients, and others -- marketed as 'timed release' -- may release active ingredients too slowly, too quickly or inconsistently.

An advisory committee's hearty 20-to-2 vote to recommend approval of the obesity drug Qnexa on Wednesday means it's highly likely the FDA will allow the medication to be marketed when the agency issues its final report later this year. If approved, Qnexa will be the first new prescription weight-loss medication in 13 years. But people looking for a quick way to lose five or 10 pounds may find Qnexa too troublesome to bother with. According to the manufacturer of the medication, Vivus Inc., and FDA officials, Qnexa should be carefully prescribed and patients should be closely monitored while on the drug.

WASHINGTON – Following a spike in reported complications, the Food and Drug Administration released an updated advisory Wednesday about a surgical mesh implanted in women to strengthen vaginal tissue that can become weakened, especially after childbirth. In its report, the FDA says a review of industry literature and the adverse event reports has shown little evidence that the device, which is implanted vaginally or abdominally, improves pelvic organ prolapse, where a woman's uterus, bladder, or rectum can slip out of place.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administrationapproved Stendra, a new drug to treat erectile dysfunction in men, on Friday. Like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, Stendra (generic name avanafil) is a pill, and is in a class of drugs called PDE5 inhibitors. These work by increasing blood flow to the penis. Patients can take Stendra as needed 30 minutes before sexual activity, the FDA said in a statement released Friday. One possible advantage of the new drug?  Vivus Inc., the company that markets Stendra, has claimed that it will provide erections in 15 minutes or less - in about half as much time as Viagra can.  Like other PDE5 inhibitors, Stendra is not recommended for men who take nitrates for chest pain, because taking both drugs can cause a rapid drop in blood pressure, the FDA said. Side effects reported during clinical trials of Stendra included headache and cold-like symptoms.  The National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse provides information about erectile dysfunction and its treatment at this website .

The Food and Drug Administration warned Friday that doctors should not prescribe and patients should not use the hepatitis C drug Victrelis (boceprevir) and the anti-HIV drug ritonavir at the same time because such use reduces the effectiveness of both drugs. Patients already using the two drugs simultaneously should not stop taking them without consulting their doctor, however, the agency cautioned. Ritonavir, a protease inhibitor, is commonly used to boost the effectiveness of other protease inhibitors and is found in Reyataz (atazanavir/ritonavir)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administrationapproved Stendra, a new drug to treat erectile dysfunction in men, on Friday. Like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra, Stendra (generic name avanafil) is a pill, and is in a class of drugs called PDE5 inhibitors. These work by increasing blood flow to the penis. Patients can take Stendra as needed 30 minutes before sexual activity, the FDA said in a statement released Friday. One possible advantage of the new drug?  Vivus Inc., the company that markets Stendra, has claimed that it will provide erections in 15 minutes or less - in about half as much time as Viagra can.  Like other PDE5 inhibitors, Stendra is not recommended for men who take nitrates for chest pain, because taking both drugs can cause a rapid drop in blood pressure, the FDA said. Side effects reported during clinical trials of Stendra included headache and cold-like symptoms.  The National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse provides information about erectile dysfunction and its treatment at this website .

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's proposal for voluntary guidelines that would wean livestock off  growth-inducing antibiotics left foodies and public health officials disappointed this week. “Nonbinding recommendations are not a strong enough antidote to the problem,” argued Rep. Louis Slaughter (D-N.Y.). Avinash Kar, public health staff attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, replied to the news with a statement equivalent to an eye roll: “We've essentially had a voluntary measure in place for 35 years since FDA first acknowledged the risks of using antibiotics in livestock feed, and we have seen the use of antibiotics grow exponentially in that period.” Food Politics' Marion Nestle was also frustrated: “I'm guessing this is the best the FDA can do in an election year,” she lamented , saying the proposal looked more like a “direct challenge to drug companies and meat producers to clean up their acts” than a real solution.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday that it will ask livestock producers, drug companies and veterinarians to curb the use of antibiotics to promote growth in food-producing animals - a widespread practice that has been shown to create drug resistance in microbes.  The presence of such “superbugs,” as they're sometimes called, threatens public health because if they sicken humans, they can be impossible to treat....

The U.S. Food and Drug Administrationannounced Friday that it will not ban the use of bisphenol A, also known as BPA, in food packaging. [For the record: In an earlier version of this post, the Natural Resources Defense Council was misidentified as the National Resources Defense Council. ] In a 12-page letter,David H. Dorsey, FDA acting associate commissioner for policy and planning, wrote that the the Natural Resources Defense Council, which had petitioned the agency to change its regulations on use of the chemical, had not provided sufficient scientific evidence to change the current regulations.

On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration rejected a petition from the Natural Resources Defense Council asking for a ban on the chemical bisphenol-A, or BPA, saying that scientific studies cited in the group's petition “failed to provide sufficient data … to revoke regulations permitting the use of BPA in food contact materials.” BPA is a chemical that mimics estrogen in the body.  It is often used to make and line food containers and...

Watching Alzheimer's disease steal away the memory, talents and very selves of its victims is hard enough for the people who love them. Now, a new pill formulated by a respected pharmaceutical company and approved by the Food and Drug Administration will do little to help most patients and will bring misery to some, say two medical investigators. The drug, Aricept 23 mg, is no more effective on the whole than the disappointing ones already on the market - but is more likely to cause gastrointestinal problems, wrote Drs. Steven Woloshin and Lisa Schwartz of Dartmouth Medical College in an article published Thursday in the medical journal BMJ. The new formulation was devised to serve commercial objectives, they say, and was approved despite a poor showing in company-sponsored tests.

The U.S. temporarily halted shipments of imported orange juice from all countries and said it would destroy or ban products containing even low levels of a banned fungicide. The imports will be held while they're tested and may be sold if levels are below trace amounts, the Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday. The fungicide, linked in studies to a higher risk of liver tumors in animals, was found in trace amounts last month in products from Brazil, which produces almost 1 in 6 glasses of orange juice consumed in the U.S., according to CitrusBR, an export industry association.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Friday that it would not ban the use of bisphenol A, also known as BPA, in food packaging but said it would continue research on the health effects of the widely used chemical. Although it rejected a petition by an environmental group to outlaw the compound in food and beverage containers, the agency did not close the door on future regulation. "This is not a final safety determination on BPA," FDA spokesman Douglas Karas said. "There is a commitment to doing a thorough evaluation of the risk of BPA. " Scientists are still working to determine what effects BPA, which mimics estrogen in the body, has on human health once ingested.

The Food and Drug Administration must address the use of antibiotics in livestock, a federal judge in New York has ruled in a lawsuit, a signal that the FDA may soon ban the practice due to longstanding public health concerns. The ruling favors a coalition of plaintiffs including the Natural Resources Defense Council, which filed suit last May in a bid to push the FDA to exert more control over agricultural use of penicillin and tetracycline, two popular antibiotics used in feed to protect chickens, pigs and cattle from disease and speed their growth.