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AAPRA
I. Important
news about conventional drugs
01 14 07
1. Warning about Phenylpropanol amine (PPA) in over the counter
drugs from US FDA.
All drugs
containing PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE are being recalled.
You may want to try calling the 800 number listed on most
drug boxes and inquire about a REFUND Please read this
CAREFULLY. Also, please pass this on to everyone you know.
STOP TAKING anything containing this ingredient. It has been
linked to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain)
among women ages 18-49 in the three days after starting use
of medication. Problems were not found in men, but the FDA
recommended that everyone (even children) seek alternative
medicine.
The following medications contain Phenylpropanolamine:
Acutrim Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant
Acutrim Plus Dietary Supplements
Acutrim Maximum Strength Appetite Control
Alka-Seltzer Plus Children's Cold Medi cine
Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold medicine (cherry or or ange)
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold Medicine Original
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold &Cough Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold &Flu Medicine
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold &Sinus Effervescent
Alka Seltzer Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine
BC Allergy Sinus Cold Powder
BC Sinus Cold Powder
Comtrex Flu Therapy &Fever Relief
Day &Night Contac 12-Hour Cold Capsules
Contac 12 Hour Caplets
Co ricidin D Cold, Flu &Sinus
Dexatrim Caffeine Free
Dexatrim Extended Duration
Dexatrim Gelcaps
Dexatrim Vitamin C/Caffeine Free
Dimetapp Cold &Allergy Chewable Tablets
Dimetapp Cold &Cough Liqui-Gels
Dimetapp DM Cold &Cough Elixir
Dimetapp Elixir
Dimetapp 4 Hour Liquid Gels
Dimetapp 4 Hour Tablets
Dimetapp 12 Hour Extentabs Tablets
Naldecon DX Pediatric Drops
Permathene Mega-16
Robitussin CF
Tavist-D 12 Hour Relief of Sinus &Nasal
Co ngestion
Triaminic DM Cough Rel! ief
Triaminic Expectorant Chest &Head
Triaminic Syrup ! ! Cold &am p; Allergy
Triaminic Triaminicol Cold &Cough ...
I just found out and called the 800# on the container
for Triaminic and they informed me that they are voluntarily recalling the
following medicines because of a certain ingredient that is causing strokes
and seizures in children:
Orange 3D Cold &Allergy Cherry (Pink)
3D Cold &Cough Berry
3D Cough Relief Yellow 3D Expectorant
They are asking you to call them at 800-548-3708 with
the lot number on the box so they can send you postage for you to send it
back to them, and they will also issue you a refund. If you know of anyone
else with small children,
PLEASE PASS THIS ON. THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF!
DO PASS ALONG TO ALL ON YOUR MAILING LIST so people are informed. They can
then pass it along to their families.
To confirm these findings please take time to check the
following:
http://www.fda.godrug/infopage/ppa/
PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO YOUR CHILDREN IN CASE THEY GIVE IT TO THEIR
CHILDREN OR TO FRIENDS WHO HAVE CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN.
II. News about regulating Ayurvedic Medicine of India (AMI)
1.
Doctor Calls for Licensing U.S. Ayurvedic Physicians
By Francis C. Assisi
http://www.indolink.com/displayArticleS.php?id=041006053715
10 April 2006 -- As ayurveda rapidly gains ground in the United States, Lakshmi Chandra Mishra wants to make sure that not just
anyone can practice the holistic Indian medical tradition — only those who
are licensed
Writing
in a recent issue of The Journal of Indian American Physicians, Dr. Mishra,
Director, Ayurvedic Health Care Center, Rockville, MD, says students trained in the US are drastically under-qualified
to practice Ayurveda; so, there is an urgent need
for the regulation of Ayurveda in the USA.
There
are around 20-odd ayurveda training institutes in
the US, most of which offer short-term
courses. And since ayurvedic medicine is
currently unregulated in the United States, no license is required for a
physician to practice Ayurveda
According
to Mishra, “since Ayurveda is not regulated in
the US, the training and the minimum
admission standards are not regulated by any government body. Thus,
requirements vary from 100 to 600 lecture and practicum hours. As a result,
the competence of graduates also vary. It is apparent that students trained in
the US are drastically under-qualified
to practice Ayurveda.”
That’s
compared to the situation in India, home of Ayurveda,
where the Ayurvedic training program developed
and regulated by the Central Council of Indian Medicine (CCIM) requires a
total of 2,860 lecture hours, the 700 practicum hours and one year
internship leading to a 4 1/2-year Bachelor of Ayurvedic
Medicine and Surgery (BAMS).
Mishra
proposes "The home of ayurveda is India, and that's where it developed
for the last thousands of years. So I'm taking that as the model," he
says.
According
to Mishra, a campaign for regulation is ongoing in Maryland, USA. He is proposing that a licensing
system ought to include four and a half years of education followed by a
year of internship in a hospital. This is similar to the program followed
by the 200-odd ayurveda medical colleges in India.
Mishra
says the U.S. public should be guaranteed a
practitioner with sufficient competence in the same manner that they have
this guarantee for a conventional medical practitioner. “Unqualified
practitioners undermine the safety of the patient may provide less than
optimum treatment, produce a delay in proper treatment, and, jeopardize the
growth of the medical system.”
A Scientific Case For Ayurvedic Medicine
The
following subjects are integral parts of Ayurvedic
treatments. Data regarding their efficacy is presented below each
subject. For complete references of these studies, see the References
section of this website.
Subject:
Yoga. Yoga means union.
While the common view may be that yoga involves the union between body and
mind or body, mind and spirit. Ayurveda
views yoga as the union between the Jivatman and Paramatman (between one's individual consciousness and
the universal consciousness).. Therefore Yoga
refers to a certain state of consciousness as well as to methods that help
one reach that goal or state of union with the divine and is often
advocated by Ayurvedic treatments (see above) (Nikki's Nest).
Research: Indian and Western literature both
detail studies that suggest that student's in yoga classes showed improvement
in fitness measures such as flexibility, strength, equilibrium, and stamina
(Jharote, 1973 op cit. National,
1996). Data also demonstrates that measurements of metabolic rate,
oxygen exchange, lung capacity, and red and white blood cell counts are associated
with general yoga training and, in some cases, with specific yoga postures
(Gopal et al., 1974 op cit.
National, 1996). A recent pilot study in Holland found that 79% of patients who used a
combination of Ayurvedic therapies including yoga
improved over a three month time period. The patients in this study
suffered from such diseases as: rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, chronic
bronchitis, eczema, psoriasis, hypertension, constipation, headaches,
chronic sinusitis, and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (Janssen,
1989 op cit. National, 1996). In yet another study,
individuals practicing Ayurvedic methods
involving yoga and meditation have shown reductions in cardiovascular
disease risk factors such as blood pressure, cholesterol, and reaction to
stress (Orme-Johnson, 1988 op cit.
National, 1996).
Subject:
Herbal preparations. Ayurvedic physicians recommend an extensive number of
herbal remedies for various conditions. Depending upon their
particular qualities, herbs are used to rebuild and rejuvenate the body and
its various systems (Health).
Research: Sharma et al.(1990
op cit. Reed et al., 1992) found that Ayurvedic
herbal preparations and other therapies have a wide range of potentially
beneficial effects for the prevention and treatment of certain cancers,
including breast, lung, and colon cancers. Studies have also demonstrated
that herbal preparations are effective for treatment of mental health and
infectious disease (Thyagarajan et al.,
1988 op cit. Reed et al., 1992), in health promotion (Schneid et al., 1990 op cit. Reed et
al., 1992), and in treatment of aging (Alexander et al., 1989;
Glaser et al, 1992 op cit., Reed). Further research indicates
that the mechanisms underlying these effects include free-radical
scavenging effects (Fields et al., 1990 op cit. Reed et al.,
1992), immune system modulation, brain neurotransmitter modulation, and
hormonal effects (Glaser et al., 1992 op cit. Reed et al.,
1992). Additionally, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) includes Ayurvedic
herbal compounds on its list of potential chemopreventive
agents, and is currently funding a series of in vitro studies on the
cancer-preventive properties of Ayurvedic herbal
compounds, maharadis amrit
kalash 4 and 5 (MAK-4 and MAK-5) (Reed,
1992). In preliminary studies, NCI researchers found that MAK-4 and MA
significantly inhibited cancer cell growth in both human tumor and rat
tracheal epithelial cell systems (Arnold et al., 1991 op cit.
Reed et al., 1992).
For more research data on the efficacy of
various herbal preparations please see
Alternative Medicine: Expanding Medical Horizons
A Report to the National Institutes of Health on Alternative Medical
Systems and Practices in the United States
Prepared under the auspices of the Workshop on Alternative Medicine,
Chantilly, Virginia
September 14-16, 1992. http://www.naturalhealthvillage.com/reports/rpt2oam/herb.htm
What is Ayurvedic
Medicine
Ayurvedic Medicine is an ancient holistic system of
both health and healing (Divgi). It
emphasizes the interconnectedness of mind, body, and nature. The goal
of Ayurvedic medicine is to achieve a proper
balance with nature for each individual through foods and lifestyle.
Balance for every individual includes soundness of mind, body, and
spirit. Because Ayurvedic Medicine attempts
to maintain health and create balance with nature, its efforts are both
preventative and curative (Divgi). The
fundamental difference between Ayurveda and
Western medicine is that Ayurveda believes that
we are thoughts which created bodies (Kennedy). Western medicine, in
contrast, believes that we are material (body) which creates thoughts
(Kennedy). Despite this difference, elements of Ayurveda
are beginning to creep quickly into medical practices in the United States. Presently, ten Ayurveda
clinics exist in North
America. One of
these clinics is a hospital setting, which has served an estimated 25,000
patients since its beginning in 1985 (Lonsdorf op
cit Reed). Through the American Association of Ayurvedic Medicine, more than 200 physicians have
received training as Ayurvedic physicians
(Kennedy). Furthermore, physicians may pursue interests in Ayurvedic medicine through continuing medical education
courses (Lonsdorf op cit Reed).
2. Unethical activity of some ayurvedic
practitioners
Costs
for certain Ayurvedic products that are
recommended just to maintain health can cost thousands of dollars each
year. During illness, these
prices can rise steeply. Patients with serious illnesses often pay hundreds
or even thousands of dollars for gemstones prescribed by Jyotish consultants
(Hindu astrologers) at Chopra's Maharishi Ayur-Veda Health Center in Lancaster (the most
respected Ayurvedic Clinics in the United States) (Wheeler).
Acceding the Journal
of the American Medical Association, "Two physicians who are the chief
promoters of a type of Ayurveda in Great Britain have been charged with 'serious professional
misconduct'" in connection with promoting and selling herbal remedies
for AIDS. One source indicates that "Laboratory analyses . . . showed
some of the herbal preparations were composed of plant material, fungus,
feces, and bacteria, which may have caused the gastrointestinal problems
reported by the patient...on whose behalf the charges were
brought...persons with AIDS were charged $500 a
month for the herbal remedies. In addition, they were persuaded to spend
hundreds of dollars more to learn Trascendental
Meditation. Some patients were also encouraged to discontinue taking the
AIDS drug zidovudine...Among other charges, the
physicians are accused of giving dietary advice that could endanger the
health of patients with AIDS and distributing promotional literature that
boasted of a weight gain of 6 kg and other improvements in the health of a
patient who was already dead.” (Skolnick)
http://www.bio.davidson.edu/Biology/student/scrolloquium/medicine
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