The pharmaceutical industry is desperate to find ways of justifying the use of statins and the most recent attempt relates to breast cancer. According to press reports, a cardiologist, Rahul Potluri, at Aston University has discovered that women with a high level of cholesterol in their blood also have an increased risk of developing breast […]
Compared with the population as a whole, those with a high Vitamin D status have almost 90% less diabetes. This is the remarkable result obtained in a study initiated by Grassroots Health, which is dedicated to understanding the role of Vitamin D and promoting its benefits (1). It is responsible for D*action, which is an
The Science Media Centre describes itself as: “an independent press office helping to ensure that the public have access to the best scientific evidence and expertise through the news media when science hits the headlines”(1). A recent briefing by the Centre covered the proposal by NICE to extend the use of statins to a much
I well remember all the hype surrounding the publication of the NACNE (National Advisory Committee on Nutrition Education) report in the early 1980s (1). The main thrust of this was that the national diet had deteriorated to such an extent that it was responsible for the relatively high level of chronic diseases, especially heart disease
After deliberating for 6 years we finally have the draft report on carbohydrates (1). In view of the current concern about the effects of sugar on health, there is likely to be considerable interest in the findings. The report consists of a comprehensive evaluation of the available scientific evidence which provides information on the role
89. Draft Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) Report on Carbohydrates Read More »
In an article entitled “The shape we’re in” Guardian health editor Sarah Boseley presents “ten shocking facts about Britain’s health crisis” which claim to be the truth about obesity (1). Unfortunately she simply re-hashes the stale old arguments and false information, which is why we are in such a mess. There is no doubt that
Devra Davis spent 20 years working on this book to find out why so little progress had been made in combating cancer despite the huge amount of resources directed at research in USA. In reality, things have actually deteriorated. In the USA and in England one in every two men and one in every three
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) was recently accused of offering substantial sums as bribes in order to facilitate sales of their products in China. This is not the first time the drug company has encountered problems because of behaviour which fails to match up to the highest standards of corporate social responsibility. In 2007 Steven Nissen and Kathy
If drugs are to be effective and safe to use, it is axiomatic that the regulatory process has the power, resources and competence to be capable of validating all the information which has to assessed before official approval can be granted. Genuine doubts have frequently been expressed which indicate that the regulation of drugs is
Now that the Pfizer attempt to take over Astra Zeneca has failed it is relevant to take a detailed look at the drug companies. In particular we need to know what exactly they achieve in terms of improving standards of public health and the costs involved. In fact it is not necessary to dig very
84. Time to put the Drug Companies under the Microscope Read More »