| National update |
Natural medicines not FDA approved
BY CARLA K. JOHNSON
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — Standing inside a
downtown Chicago chain drugstore,
shopper Beth McClanahan considered
the product Zicam.
“I wouldn’t have known it was
homeopathic,” she said looking at the
bright orange label. “The name Zicam
sounds very scientific.”
Stuffy noses and sore throats are
driving many cold sufferers to herbal
and homeopathic remedies. But like
McClanahan, consumers may not re
alize they’re buying alternative medi
cines when they choose wildly popu
lar products such as Airborne and
Zicam — both shelved alongside tra
ditional medicines in the cold and flu
aisles of chain drugstores.
The makers of both medicines have
paid for their own clinical studies to
test their products. But Airborne and
Zicam have not been reviewed for safe
ty and effectiveness by the Food and
Drug Administration, unlike prescrip
tion and new over-the-counter drugs.
The law allows their sale unless the
FDA proves them harmful.
That concerns some experts.
“I think it’s quite confusing for
consumers to try to sort out which
things have some data showing they
actually work,” said Dr. Ronald B.
Himer, a cold virus expert at the
University of Virginia School of
Medicine in Charlottesville.
Zicam and other homeopathic prod
ucts do say on their packaging that they
are homeopathic. Zicam is the nation’s
third leading nasal spray. Airborne is an
effervescent tablet containing Chinese
herbs, vitamins and echinacea. Its label
notes that the FDA has not reviewed its
language saying it should be taken at
the first sign of cold symptoms.
For drugstore operators, it makes
sense to place the remedies where
consumers can find them quickly. For
the manufacturers, marketing to a
wider audience means more sales.
“There’s a reason for the success of
these products. Consumers want
them and they’re effective,” said Rid
er McDowell, co-founder of the com
pany that created Airborne..
Herbal products and homeopathic
remedies are regulated separately,
and the law lays out only a few quali
ty controls and labeling rules.
Cold sufferers try herbal remedies
Homeopathic and herbal cold remedies are becoming popular
alternatives to traditional over-the-counter drugs, which are
approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Unit sales*
(Homeopathic in
COUGH/SORE
THROAT DROP
Halls
Ricola
Ludens
Cold-Eeze
Airborne
* In millions
of over-the-counter cold remedies, 2004
bold)
UNIT PCT. CHG.
SALES* YEAR AGO
24.27
10.99
7.46
2.90
0.21
-10.7%
-5.4%
-17.3%
+6.3%
+286.0%
COLD/ALLERGY/
SINUS LIQUID/ UNIT
POWDER
PCT. CHG.
SALES* YEAR AGO
Vicks Nyquil
Tylenol Plus
Benadryl
Sudafed
Zicam
6.32
3.63
2.86
0.66
0.35
-10.5%
+24.2%
-0.7%
-2.4%
+149.5%
Percentage of adults using herbal remedies, 2002
Echinacea Garlic supplements
40.3% 19 9%
Ginseng
24.1%
Ginkgo biloba
■■21.1%
Glucosamine with or
without chondroitin
14.9%
St. John’s wort
12.0%
SOURCES: Information Resources Inc.; National Health Interview Survey, 2002 AP
BUS SERVICE MAY CEASE ON
MARCH 7th, 2005.
LTD Wants to Make Sure
You Still Have a Way to Go.
As early as March 7th, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), Local 757, may
go on strike. Lane Transit District (LTD) will not be able to operate bus
service during the strike. Once a settlement has been reached, LTD will
be committed to getting buses back on the road as quickly as possible.
LTD’s Guest Services office will be closed but if you call 687-5555 we will
have staff to assist you.
What you can do:
► Register at ltd.org for carpool-matching. It’s easy and fast. Sign up to
drive as well as ride.
► RideSource will continue to run and serve those passengers who are
eligible. We expect demand to increase significantly. Medical
appointments may be given priority over other trips.
► Go to the LTD website for information on ways to get around including
links to the City of Eugene for Bike Path Maps.
Please plan ahead. For further information,
log onto www.ltd.org or call LTD at 687-5555.
Lane Transit District
Mild flu
season
may still
get worse
BY DANIEL YEE
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATLANTA — After the panic last fall
over the vaccine shortage, the flu sea
son is milder than last year’s severe
bout, but it may not have peaked yet,
the government said Thursday.
“It doesn’t look like it’s as severe as
last year, but it’s too early to tell,” said
Lynnette Brammer of the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention’s
influenza branch.
Last year, flu cases started early and
rapidly hit a high point in December,
clogging emergency rooms with flu
sufferers. By the end of that season,
153 children had died from the flu. So
far this season, nine children have died
from the flu.
Flu cases this season did not start to
increase until the end of December. As
of Feb. 19, the latest data available, all
50 states have had at least one lab-con
firmed flu case and 33 states have had
widespread flu activity.
The outbreak could peak within the
next two weeks, which would be
somewhat later than usual, the CDC
said. The season most often hits its
peak in February.
But Brammer said later data may
show that the season reached its
height in February after all; the CDC
will not be able to say for certain until
it sees a drop-off in flu for a couple of
weeks in a row.
The season began with fears of a
vaccine shortage after a factory in Eng
land was shut down. The shutdown
cut off half the U.S. supply of shots.
That prompted the government to
recommend restricting the shot to only
high-risk groups: babies, the elderly
and those with chronic conditions.
But many states lifted those restric
tions last month after they found that
many of the shots were still unused
and might go to waste. A flu shot can
be used only during* the season it is
made for.
Each year in the United States,
about 36,000 people die of the flu and
200,000 are hospitalized.
Milder flu season
This season flu cases did not
start to increase until the end of
December - the same month
flu cases peaked last year. Flu
season most often hits its peak
in February.
Influenza diagnoses
Per week, in thousands
4.5 .
SOURCE: Centers for Disease AP
Control and Prevention