The herb kratom has a large following and is so popular that it is sold in vending machines. The FDA recently issued a public warning about the herb, which contains low levels of opioids.
FDA Director Scott Gottlieb has proposed discussions about drastically cutting nicotine levels in cigarettes. This could result in some of the biggest health gains in history.
Regulatory bodies approved some medical devices to treat pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence before having data to prove their safety and efficacy.
Reports about trace amounts of pesticides, like the EWG’s Dirty Dozen, can leave people afraid to buy fruits and vegetables. But the hype is often overblown.
Intuitively, it might seem desirable to speed up access to medicines. But this means more drugs will be approved that may subsequently prove unsafe or ineffective.
Dogs are great companions, and they also are proving to be great research subjects for cancer. Here’s how our canine friends are pointing to possible treatments in human cancer.
Lowering the threshold for FDA approval and feeding the agency less rigorous information will increase the likelihood of approvals of unsafe or ineffective drugs and devices.
The maker of the EpiPen has raised the price of two injectable treatments to about US$600, six times the price nine years ago. Why do drug companies do this? Because they can. The FDA ends up helping.
The FDA recently advised people not to eat raw cookie dough because raw flour with E. coli in it had sickened 38 people. Do we really have to forgo our favorites?
Federal officials could give the FDA authority to develop e-cigarette regulations. But developing regulations that maximize their benefits and minimize their risks is harder than it looks.
Thalidomide’s manufacturer, Chemie Grünenthal, marketed the drug as safe for pregnant women despite reports it was causing malformations in newborns. Why such blatant denial?
Professor and Director of Quantitative Biosciences Institute & Senior Investigator at the Gladstone Institutes, University of California, San Francisco