Has anyone seen this??

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After reading this, I've decided that my homemade chicken soup and lots of O.J. is the best remedy!!!

           DRUG RECALL OF OVER-THE COUNTER COLD & FLU REMEDIES           For your information. All drugs containing PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE are being recalled. 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. << http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/ppa/default.htm>> Medications containing Phenylpropanolamine: Acutrim Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant Plus Dietary Supplements Acutrim Maximum Strength Appetite Control Alka-Seltzer Plus Children's Cold Medicine Effervescent Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold medicine (cherry or orange) Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold ! Medicine Original Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Cough Medicine Effervescent Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Flu Medicine Effervescent Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Sinus Effervescent Alka Seltzer Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine Effervescent BC Allergy Sinus Cold Powder BC Sinus Cold Powder Comtrex Deep Chest Cold & Congestion Relief Comtrex Flu Therapy & Fever Relief Day & Night Contac 12-Hour Cold Capsules Contac 12 Hour Caplets Coricidin 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 Tavist-D 12 Hour Relief of Sinus & Nasal Congestion Triaminic DM Cough Relief Triaminic Expectorant Chest & Head Congestion Triaminic Syrup Cold & Allergy Triaminic Triaminicol Cold & Cough Per the 800# on the container for Triaminic, 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 1-800-548-3708 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.

-- Anonymous, December 02, 2002

Answers

Holy crap . . . I recognize a whole lot of these labels from my medicine cabinet. With the flu and cold season on us, I'm sure quite a few bottles have been consumed so far already.

This isn't a hoax - I went to www.snopes.com (an urban legend site) to check it out. It's true.

Bummer. :^(

Thanks for the early warning, Marcia.

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2002


I think that this recall happened last winter, and that the drugs in the stores now have been reformulatedto remove the phenylpropanolamine. If you have old medicine at home you may want to check the label to make sure it's OK.

My ex-SIL had a major stroke after taking some medicine for a sinus headache. She had a history of high blood pressure so the medicine may have had nothing to do with it, but this recall really makes me wonder. She was 38 years old at the time, she did survive the stroke but she is now paralyzed on her right side and can't speak. She's the reason why I carry a huge disability insurance policy on myself. It makes me feel better to know that if something would happen where I wasn't able to take care of myself, there would be money available to put me in a nice facility.

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2002


I just checked the FDA website and this recall happened back in 2000. By now all of the stuff in the stores should be reformulated, but check any old medicines you may have at home. Phenylpropanolamine is usually abbreviated as PPA on the ingredients list. It also was used in diet pills.

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2002

Thanks for checking that out, Sherri. I received it in a medical alert email that I subscribe to. Maybe they're just "reminding" folks! I know some people keep medications in their medicine cabinets forever!!

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2002

Bren's mom takes alka-selzer nightime all the time, even when she doesnt have a cold; uses it as a sleeping pill! She likes to make fun of us cuz we have no pharmaceuticals in the house, and when she visits she can't find any 'regular medicine'!

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2002


I got a kick out of this from one of my natural health newletters: --------------------------------

Bat-spit in the belfry?

Ooh, and I just missed Halloween on this one!

How's this for creepy: A new, experimental anti-clotting drug for stroke victims is currently being tested at the University of Louisville Hospital — and it's based on…

VAMPIRE SALIVA!

Now, normally I wouldn't be reporting on ANY new drug — there are too many of them out there already that do more harm than good — but this one really caught my eye.

Why? Because instead of concocting some toxic chemical with nothing but a theory in one hand and test-tube in the other, the German makers of this new medication, called desmoteplase (the name is taken from the Latin name for the vampire bat), took their cues from NATURE before they took to the laboratory.

What do I mean? In case you didn't know, the vampire bat — just like the monsters in Bram Stoker's Dracula — survive by drinking the blood of the living. Mostly, they prey on cattle and other large quadrupeds (human bites are rare). Anyway, it generally takes half an hour or so to fill the diminutive vampire bat's tank. Since blood clots up much faster than this, vampires utilize a special protein in their saliva to prevent clotting.

And as it turns out, this chemical is a far better anticoagulant than ANY PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION KNOWN TO MAN. See, nature almost always does it better! Preliminary trials on real stroke victims have been promising, and the American Heart Association even included desmoteplase on its "top 10" list of innovations for last year.

Now, before you go thinking that I've flown the coop and crossed over to the pro-drug "dark side," consider this: As an M.D., I've written plenty of prescriptions in my life (but only when they were needed, and only for drugs that work!). And as an open-minded and optimistic (really!) human being, I can hope for the best in the future of medicine, drugs and all — especially if some new nature- based medication can help keep stroke victims from suffering permanent brain damage.

Besides, popping a pill sure beats letting a squadron of vampires suck on you, right?

-- Anonymous, November 21, 2004


You're an M.D. EM? I'm pretty sure you're not . . . but you don't say who wrote the article! ;-)

-- Anonymous, November 22, 2004

Sorry if I wasn't clear.......the newsletter I mentioned I was quoting in my first sentence is that of Dr Wm Campbell Douglass, called "real health."

-- Anonymous, November 22, 2004

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