Better Know What's in That Pill; Need Information? Don't Call Us; Again: Don't Smoke, and Lose Weight
Better Know What's in That Pill
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration warned that some supplements marketed on the Internet as a natural way to cure impotence actually contain chemicals the same as or similar to the prescription medications Viagra and Levitra. The FDA says that the products--Zimaxx, Libidus, Neophase, Nasutra, Vigor-25, Actra-Rx, and 4EVERON--can cause a drug interaction in men taking other medications. People taking drugs with nitrates, for example, may dangerously lower their blood pressure by adding the supplements. "Just about anybody can post something on the Internet and call it a dietary supplement," says Linda Silvers, leader of the FDA's Internet and health fraud team. "It's important that consumers be vigilant." - Betsy Querna
Need Information? Don't Call Us
If you've got a question about Medicare's Part D drug coverage, don't count on the insurers' toll-free hotlines for answers. A study released last week by the Government Accountability Office found that customer service reps at the call centers gave accurate and complete answers just 34 percent of the time. A May study found that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' own call center frequently got it wrong, too. Medicare experts recommend contacting your State Health Insurance Assistance Program, which provides counseling about Medicare drug plans in the state. To find your SHIP agency, use the Eldercare Locator (eldercare.gov, 800-677-1116), run by the federal Administration on Aging. "It's a great resource," says Vicki Gottlich, a policy analyst with the Center for Medicare Advocacy. - Michelle Andrews
Again: Don't Smoke, and Lose Weight
Last week, women got new reasons to follow a more healthful lifestyle. Two studies in the Journal of the American Medical Association on women and cancer suggested that female smokers are more likely to develop lung cancer than men and that gaining weight increases the odds of breast cancer. In the first study, researchers found that 2.1 percent of the women screened had lung cancer, compared with 1.2 percent of men. Women were also more likely to survive. No one knows why there are disparities, but hormones might play a role, says Alfred Neugut, a medical oncologist at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and coauthor of the editorial accompanying the study. Women who gained just over 20 pounds after menopause had an 18 percent higher chance of developing breast cancer than those who maintained their weight. Losing weight, by contrast, cut the risk--especially in women who didn't use hormone replacement therapy. - Katherine Hobson
This story appears in the July 24, 2006 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.