FDA Will Reexamine Potential BPA Bottle Risk

The issue of whether water and other bottles made from the plastic bisphenol-A (BPA) is dangerous to humans isn't quite settled yet, as far as the FDA is concerned. The FDA has decided to reconsider the potential risk posed by the material after its own advisory group accused the agency of "failing to adequately consider research about the dangers of bisphenol-A," according to an article in The New York Times.

A number of animal studies have linked BPA to risk of disease, including some by federal government agencies. BPA is used in many types of plastic bottles (including baby bottles) and in plastic containers, as well as other containers used for food.

Scientific American featured an article in April discussing what it saw as the reasons for suspicions surrounding BPA.

One study has found that the chemical is released more quickly when boiling water is placed in a container made from BPA, but says it's unclear what addition risk this might pose to humans.

The Canadian government is said to have restricted the use of certain products containing BPA, and to have banned baby bottles made with the chemical.

Holiday Health Myths Debunked, and Top Health Stories of 2008

The holiday season is a time of overindulging in food and fun, and of looking back on the past year. WebMD has articles covering both aspects of the season. First there's a quick look at some long-held myths about the holidays and wintertime. Does eating lots of sugar really make children hyperactive? Is it true you lose most of your body heat through your head? Is there really an effective hangover remedy? This article sets the facts straight.

Food and health issues were in the news a lot this year, from tainted tomatoes to the fact that more Americans have HIV than was previously thought. WebMD surveys the top 10 health news stories of 2008, with a number of links to relevant articles for each topic.

Lean Cuisine Recall: Details on Specific Products Involved

Close to 900,000 pounds of Lean Cuisine frozen chicken meals are being recalled because they may contain small pieces of hard blue plastic. Nestle, the owner of Lean Cuisine, issues the recall after receiving a half dozen or so complaints from consumers.

An article on WebMD lists the products involved in the Lean Cuisine recall and gives the toll-free phone number to call with questions (800-227-6188). Lean Cuisine has also set up a Web site, www.News.LeanCuisine.com, with updates on the recall.

The affected products are listed below, but not all of these products are being recalled; check the Web site to see which product codes are involved in the Lean Cuisine recall.

LEAN CUISINE Café Classics Pesto Chicken with Bow Tie Pasta
LEAN CUISINE Spa Cuisine Chicken Mediterranean
LEAN CUISINE Dinnertime Selects Chicken Tuscan

Burlington, Vermont Named America's Healthiest City

Burlington, Vermont has been named the healthiest city in the United States in a study conducted for the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).

Both towns are home to colleges and both have mostly white populations, but beyond that there are more differences than similarities. Burlington's citizens are younger, wealthier, and better educated than their counterparts in Huntington. Eight percent of Burlington's population lives at the Federal poverty level; in Huntington, the figure is 19 percent.

Vermont is home to skiing and other winter sports, of course, but Burlington residents are also enthusiastic participants in activities such as bicycling, hiking, and walking. And there are groups in the town that encourage maintenance of parks, walkways, etc.

At the University of Vermont you can find students eating the traditional college fare of pizza and snack foods, but Burlington, like many places in Vermont, also has plenty of healthier options such as organic and vegan food.

Burlington has been getting good press for other reasons, too: it was the focus of a recent Wall Street Journal article that detailed why the city has become popular as a destination for retired people to settle.

Study Shows Statins Benefit Low-Cholesterol Patients

A new study has shown that common cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins can dramatically reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events in patients who already have low cholesterol.

The study, called Jupiter, examined about 18,000 healthy men and women who had normal cholesterol levels but higher-than-normal levels of a type of C-reactive protein (CRP), a substance that's a marker of inflammation in the bloodstream, and which has been linked to heart disease.

Jupiter used the commonly used statin drug Crestor, was planned as a four-year test but was stopped after less than two because of the remarkable results. The study, which was funded by the maker of Crestor (Astra-Zeneca), was presented at a meeting of the American Heart Association and appears in The New England Journal of Medicine (Nov. 20th issue).

The significance of the study is that many heart attacks (as many as half of them) take place in people who don't have high LDL (so-called "bad") cholesterol levels or other risk factors for heart disease.

But some experts caution that Crestor and other statins have side effects, and that people should try to lower their risk for heart disease through other means such as diet and exercise before going on a medication that can be expensive and which they may need to take the rest of their lives.

In light of the Jupiter study, WebMD has prepared an article with Crestor questions and answers.