November 15.
1 'P art lattò (Observer
Page B3
HEALTH
B
Generic Pain Reliever Recalled
Pills may
contain metal
fragments
(A P ) — C heck y o u r m edicine
cabinet: M illions o f bottles o f the
w idely used pain reliever acetam i­
nophen — som e sold as long as
th ree y ears ago — are being re ­
ca lled b ecause they m ay contain
m etal fragm ents.
The recall affects 11 million
bottles containing varying quanti­
ties o f 5(X)-milligram acetaminophen
caplets m ade by the Perrigo Co.
The pills w ere sold under store
brands by W al-Mart, CVS, Safeway
and more than 120 other m ajor re­
tailers, the Food and Drug Admin-
Cl/S and other generic brands of acetaminophen are being
recalled because some of the pain-reliving pills were discovered
to be contaminated with metal fragments. The recall does not
affect Tylenol. (AP photo)
istration said. At least tw o chains
— C V SC orp.and SuperValu Inc.—
started pulling the pills from store
shelves Thursday.
There were no imm ediate reports
o f injuries o r illness. The contam i­
nated pills included metal fragments
ranging in size from "m icrodots” to
portions o f wire one-third o f an
inch long, the FDA said. The FDA
could not describe further the type
o f metal.
P errigo d isco v ered the m etal
bits during quality-control checks
d one after the com pany d isc o v ­
ered its eq u ip m en t w as w earing
dow n prem atu rely , the FDA said.
A gency o ffic ia ls d eclin ed to say
w h eth er the m etal found in the
p ills caused the d am age o r re­
su lted from it.
C onsum ers who take any o f the
contam inated pills could have mi­
nor stomach discom fort or possible
cuts to the mouth and throat, the
FDA said, adding that the risk of
serious injury was remote.
A cetam inophen is best known
as the drug in products sold under
the Tylenol brand. But it is avail­
able in typically less expensive
generic versions.
‘Hair Stress’ Relief
A uthor Sheila Y. G ooding has
published “T he Best, T ruthful,
Helpful,& Different HairCare B<x>k
Ever W ritten on Planet Earth.” Al­
though this fxxik focuses on hair
care exclusively for the African
Am erican audience, it is still a fun
book to read regardless o f race.
The author felt an obligation to
write this book since she believes
that there is entirely loo much "hair
stress" circulating unnecessarily
within the black com munity. In this
witty and engaging bixtk, Sheila
also gives her very frank opinions
and assessm ents.
BEST,
t r it h h i „
HELPFUL
DIFFERENT
H A IR C A R E HOOK
EVER WRITTEN ON PLANET EARTH
“ ''In'*
.^\ócare wher&
%
Study Dispels Common Myths About Sex
Some views not
supported by
evidence
H ygiene and Tropical M edicines
and her colleagues analyzed data
from 59 countries.
“We did have som e o f our pre­
co n c ep tio n s d a s h e d ,” W ellin g s
said, explaining they had expected
(AP) — In the first com prehen­ to find the m ost prom iscuous be­
sive global study o f sexual behav­ havior in regions like A frica with
ior, British researchers found that the highest rates o f sexually trans­
people aren’t losing their virginity m itted diseases. That was not the
at e v e r y o u n g er ag es, m arried case, as multiple partners were more
people have the m ost sex, and there com m only reported in industrial­
is no firm link between prom iscuity ized countries w here the incidence
and sexually transm itted diseases. o f such diseases was relatively low.
T he study was published as part
“T h ere's a m isperception that
o f a series on sexual and reproduc­ th e re 's a great deal o f prom iscuity
tive health by the British medical in Africa, which is one o f the poten­
journal The Lancet. Professor Kaye tial reasons for H IV /A ID S spread­
W ellings o f the London School o f ing so rapidly," said Dr. Paul van
Look, d irecto r o f R eproductive
Health and Research at the World
Health Organization. "But that view
is not supported by the evidence."
W ellings says that implies pro­
miscuity may be less important than
factors such as poverty anil educa­
tio n — especially in the encourage­
ment o f condom use — in the trans­
mission o f sexually transm itteddis-
eases.
The survey found that single
men and women in Africa were fairly
sexually inactive: only two-thirds
of them reported recent sexual ac­
tivity, com pared with three-quar­
ters o f their counterparts in devel­
oped countries.
The study also found that con-
We live in the
communities we serve
trary to popular belief, sexual activ­
ity is not starting earlier. Nearly
everywhere, men and women have
their first sexual experiences in their
late teen s— from 15 to 19yearsold
— with generally younger ages for
w omen than for men, especially in
developing countries. Still, there
were considerable variations across
countries. Men and w omen in In­
donesia waited until they were 24*/i
and 18Vi respectively.
There has been a gradual shift to
delay marriage, even in developing
countries.
“A single woman is more able to
negotiate safe sex in certain circum ­
stances than a married w om an,"
says van Look.
Zj
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