Category: Issue 380
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NRC Report Suggests Past Smoking, Obesity Behind Shorter Lifespans
The National Research Council (NRC) recently issued a report suggesting that past smoking and current obesity levels are major reasons why U.S. life expectancy at age 50, though still rising, has not kept pace with that of other high-income countries, such as Japan and Australia. Sponsored by the National Institute on Aging’s Division of Behavioral…
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Jerome Groopman, “The Peanut Puzzle,” The New Yorker, February 7, 2011
“People with food allergies live under a constant threat, in a society that is still poorly informed about the condition,” writes New Yorker medical correspondent Jerome Groopman about this rapidly evolving branch of immunology. His article traces the history of food allergy studies, which at first recommended restricting common allergens—milk, corn, soy, citrus, wheat, eggs, peanuts,…
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Jane Brody, “Scientists See Dangers in Energy Drinks,” The New York Times, January 31, 2011
This article summarizes recent research, including a November 2010 literature review in The Mayo Clinic Proceedings, that has questioned the effectiveness and safety of energy beverages (E.B.’s). According to Times journalist Jane Brody, the Mayo study “noted that the drinks contain high levels of caffeine and warned that certain susceptible people risk dangerous, even life-threatening…
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NYC Health Department Airs Controversial Ad Campaign
The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has announced a new advertising campaign designed “to educate New Yorkers about the potentially serious health effects of consuming sugary drinks.” With the tagline “Pouring on the Pounds,” the health department’s latest installment features subway advertisements and a new TV commercial, the latter of which…
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CSPI Backs Suit Charging Safeway with Recall Notification Shortcomings
Montana and California residents have sued Safeway, Inc. in a California state court on behalf of a putative nationwide class of customers that the company allegedly failed to notify about tainted food recalls despite the ability to contact purchasers of contaminated products through its “club card” loyal customer program. Hensley-Maclean v. Safeway, Inc., No. __…
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California Plaintiff Shocked to Learn Nutella® Contains Sugar and Fat
A California resident who purportedly bought the hazelnut spread Nutella® to provide a nutritious snack or breakfast for her 4-year-old daughter has filed a putative class action against its manufacturer alleging violations of consumer protection laws. Hohenberg v. Ferrero U.S.A., Inc., No. 11-0205 (S.D. Cal., filed February 1, 2011). Seeking to represent a nationwide class…
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Court Issues Summary Judgment Rulings in Remanded GM Rice Contamination Suits
A federal court in Missouri has denied in part and granted in part the summary judgment motions filed by Texas and Louisiana rice farmers as well as the company they sued in the first group of cases in this multidistrict litigation (MDL) to be remanded to their transferor courts for trial. In re: Genetically Modified Rice…
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EPA to Declare Prions a Pest Under FIFRA
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a proposed rule that would declare a prion a pest under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), thereby requiring products “intended to reduce the infectivity of any prion on inanimate surfaces” to register as pesticide. According to EPA, the proposed rule would codify the agency’s current…