10 June, 2011

7 Tips for Cleaning Fruits, Vegetables

Federal health officials estimate that nearly 48 million people are sickened by food contaminated with harmful germs each year, and some of the causes might surprise you.

Although most people know animal products must be handled carefully to prevent illness, many don’t realize that produce can also be the culprit in outbreaks of foodborne illness. In recent years, the United States has had several large outbreaks of illness caused by contaminated fruits and vegetables—including spinach, tomatoes, and lettuce.

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Glenda Lewis, an expert on foodborne illness with the Food and Drug Administration, says fresh produce can become contaminated in many ways. During the growing phase, fruits and veggies may be contaminated by animals, harmful substances in the soil or water, and poor hygiene among workers. After produce is harvested, it passes through many hands, increasing the contamination risk. Contamination can even occur after the produce has been purchased, during food preparation, or through inadequate storage.

FDA says to choose produce that isn’t bruised or damaged, and make sure that pre-cut items—such as bags of lettuce or watermelon slices—are either refrigerated or on ice both in the store and at home. In addition, follow these recommendations:

  • Wash your hands for 20 seconds with warm water and soap before and after preparing fresh produce.
  • Cut away any damaged or bruised areas before preparing or eating.
  • Gently rub produce while holding under plain running water. There’s no need to use soap or a produce wash.
  • Wash produce BEFORE you peel it, so dirt and bacteria aren’t transferred from the knife onto the fruit or vegetable.
  • Use a clean vegetable brush to scrub firm produce, such as melons and cucumbers.
  • Dry produce with a clean cloth or paper towel to further reduce bacteria that may be present.
  • Throw away the outermost leaves of a head of lettuce or cabbage.

Lewis says consumers should store perishable produce in the refrigerator at 40 degrees or below.

This article appears on FDA's Consumer Updates page, which features the latest on all FDA-regulated products.

Prevent Clostridium difficile Infection

 

Photo: An senior man with a healthcare professional

If you visit friends or family in a nursing home, take steps to prevent Clostridium difficile.

Photo: A healthcre professional pushing a woman in a wheelchairAre you planning to visit your loved one in a nursing home? With National Nursing Home Week (May 10-16, 2009) upon us, many people may be visiting their loved ones soon or speaking with them on the telephone. What many people may not know is that their loved ones are at risk for Clostridium difficile infection (CDI, also known as C. diff), particularly if they are elderly and taking antibiotics for another infection. CDI is an infection that causes diarrhea and more serious intestinal conditions and it can even be fatal. It is important to be aware of CDI and to tell your loved ones about it, because CDI can be prevented.

What is CDI?

CDI is a bacterial infection that causes diarrhea and more serious intestinal conditions, such as colitis. People who get CDI are usually elderly and taking antibiotics for another infection. They also are usually patients in hospitals or residents in nursing homes.

Clostridium difficile bacteria are found in the feces of an infected person. Other people can become infected if they touch items or surfaces that are contaminated with the bacteria and then touch their mouth.

CDI can be treated by a healthcare provider with a 10-day course of antibiotics that specifically treats CDI. More serious cases of

CDI may require hospitalization or surgery.

Photo: Washing hands

 

How Can CDI Be Prevented?

CDI can be prevented by washing your hands with soap and warm water. Patients in hospitals and residents in nursing homes should wash their hands very often and try to avoid touching surfaces, especially in bathrooms. Patients and their families also should remind healthcare workers to clean their hands before and after caring for a patient or resident.

If you are visiting your loved one in a hospital or nursing home, please be sure to wash your hands too to help prevent the spread of CDI and other infectious diseases.

FDA: Treatment with angiotensin receptor blockers for high blood pressure does not increase risk of cancer

 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced that a group of medications used to control high blood pressure, called angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), do not increase the risk of developing cancer in patients using the medications.

In July 2010, the FDA reported that a safety review of ARBs would be performed after a published study found a small increased risk of cancer in patients taking an ARB compared to those patients not taking an ARB. 

For this safety review, the FDA evaluated 31 randomized clinical trials, comparing patients taking an ARB to patients not taking an ARB, looking for the incidence of cancer. 
“The FDA has completed its review of controlled trial data on more than 155,000 patients randomized to ARBs or other treatments--the largest evaluation of such data to date--and finds no evidence of an increased risk of cancer in patients who take an ARB,” said Mary Ross Southworth, Pharm. D., deputy director for safety in the Division of Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

ARBs are medications used alone or in combination with other medications to treat high blood pressure and other heart-related conditions. A complete list is available in a Drug Safety Communication issued today.
Brand names include:
• Atacand (candesartan)
• Avapro (irbesartan)
• Benicar (olmesartan)
• Cozaar (losartan)
• Diovan (valsartan)
• Micardis (telmisartan)
• Teveten (eprosartan)
• Several combination drug products

Sustained elevated blood pressure (hypertension) increases the risk of death, heart attacks, stroke, heart failure and kidney failure. That is why it is important to keep blood pressure at normal levels. There are many treatments available to control elevated blood pressure and ARBs are an important group of such treatments. 

The FDA has determined that any concern about a relationship between ARB use and development of cancer has been resolved by this analysis. People currently taking any antihypertensive medication should not stop taking it without talking to their health care professional first.

Adverse events associated with ARB medications should be reported to the FDA MedWatch program at www.fda.gov/medwatch.

For information:

Drug Safety Communication: Safety review update of angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and cancer

Angiotensin Receptor Blockers (ARBs) Information

The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.

07 June, 2011

CPhI Worldwide, Leading Pharmaceutical Networking Event

CPhI Worldwide, Leading Pharmaceutical Networking Event

Join us 25 - 27 October in Messe Frankfurt, Germany for CPhI Worldwide 2011, the world's leading pharmaceutical networking event with 28,500 attendees from 140 countries. Meet face-to-face with international pharma companies, stay informed about the latest industry trends and remain one step ahead of a constantly changing pharma market. Make sure you are there and ready for business!
CPhI WW - A pharma ingredients network like no other

02 June, 2011

Saliva is effective in screening for CMV infection in newborns, says NIH-funded research

 

Swabbing a newborn’s mouth for saliva can be used to quickly and effectively screen for cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, a leading cause of hearing loss in children, says research in the June 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) found saliva correctly identified every baby born with the infection when liquid samples were used, and 97.4 percent of babies when the samples were dried. The research was funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), part of the National Institutes of Health.

"Most babies infected with CMV don’t show symptoms at birth," said James F. Battey, Jr., M.D., Ph.D., director of the NIDCD. "It’s important for us to develop diagnostic tools to screen babies for congenital CMV infection so that those who test positive can be monitored for possible hearing loss and, if it occurs, provided with appropriate intervention as soon as possible."

CMV is the most common infection passed from a mother to her unborn child. Of the 20,000-30,000 infants who are born infected with CMV each year, roughly 10-15 percent are at risk for developing hearing loss.

The multicenter research project, led by UAB researchers Suresh Boppana, M.D., and Karen Fowler, Dr.P.H., was seeking to find the most effective screening test for CMV infection in newborns. In an earlier study, the scientists had concluded that a dried blood spot, such as that taken using the common heel stick technique, detected only 30-40 percent of babies with CMV infection, and was therefore not an effective screening tool. A screening method should have at least 95 percent accuracy, or sensitivity, in order to be considered effective.

Nearly 35,000 infants in the well baby nurseries of seven U.S. hospitals were enrolled in the study between June 2008 and November 2009. Mouth swabs were taken when the infants were roughly 1 day old; the swabs were sent to UAB for testing. For the initial phase of the trial, the saliva samples were stored in solution; for the second phase, the swabs were air dried.

To conduct the screening, the researchers used a high-throughput molecular diagnostic procedure called real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis and compared their results to the standard method for detecting CMV infection in newborns, known as the rapid culture method. Rapid culture, though highly accurate, involves a lengthy incubation and testing procedure, and is therefore not conducive to a widespread screening program.

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