Mainstream Media and Health Reporting

Related Article: Mainstream Health Coverage Unsatisfactory, May 2008
Network TV morning health news segments may be harmful to your health
Created 08/03/09

By reviewing health news coverage every day, we are able to see big pictures of clear patterns unfolding that the casual day-to-day news consumer may miss.

One picture is quite clear. The morning health news segments on ABC, CBS and NBC do the following regularly:

Unquestioningly promote new drugs and new technologies
Feed the “worried well” by raising unrealistic expectations of unproven technologies that may produce more harm than good
Fail to ask tough questions
Make any discussion of health care reform that much more difficult


Here is just some of what we’ve observed, broken down by topics. You can look up any of these on the HealthNewsReview.org website. Probably the easiest way is to go to “Find Reviews” > “By News Organization”, then use the pulldown menu to select the news source. http://www.healthnewsreview.org/review/by_org.php?type=Media+Source

We apologize for the length of this note, but we thought it was important for you to see the full pattern of what we see unfolding. We give you the “headline” of the story, the date it aired, the star score it received after our review, and a brief excerpt of our review comments.



Obesity & weight loss & thinning

ABC’s Good Morning America

Breakthrough obesity drug
July 21, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

Miscasts an experimental obesity Rx as potential "silver bullet" for people wanting to drop a few pounds. Oddly refers to interviewee's potential conflicts of interest as evidence of expertise. Huh?...

Super shot? Can it cut weight by 25%?
July 14, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

Woefully inadequate reporting on animal research on a weight loss drug. Makes the unfounded leap that this is a "promising new drug that could ultimately impact how to control obesity and diabetes."

Cutting the fat--without incisions: New weight-loss surgery
June 3, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

Breathless enthusiasm - not backed by facts about new incision-free approach to weight loss surgery. Story calls it "remarkable" and "exciting" but that results aren't as good as gastric bypass....

Blasting Inches Off Without Surgery: New Technique to Lose The Fat
January 5, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

This story medicalizes a normal state of health - a few additional pounds or inches. The story lacked evidence and data from the alleged 50,000 who've had it - an astoundingly poor use of air time....

CBS Early Show

The Real Skinny: Liposlim During Lunch?
February 16, 2009
Rating: (0 stars out of possible 5)

What the anchorman calls a "healthy, gorgeous" young woman gets lunchtime lipo with no discussion of evidence or whether insurance covers it. If your premiums went up because she was in your insurance pool, would you be happy?...

NBC Today show

Lose weight while you sleep?
February 9, 2009
Rating: (0 stars out of possible 5)

NBC gave 5.5 minutes of free publicity to Glamour magazine's pseudo-scientific experiment, then made bold, baseless projections that women would "probably add about 7 years to their life". Amazing....



Paralysis & spinal cord injury

ABC’s Good Morning America

In Christopher Reeve's footsteps: Young man beats the odds
July 16, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

Story focused on one person's experience but failed to reference any research or provide quantitative data on benefits. No independent expert, no discussion of cost, harms, alternatives or outcomes.

CBS Early Show

Blue Breakthrough? Blue Food Dye Could Help Prevent Spinal Cord Injury
July 28, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of possible 5)

A story about spinal cord injury with no certain human application that implied just the opposite. The fact that the study was done on rats does not appear until 2 minutes into a 3-minute segment. ...

Walk on: New device helps paraplegics walk again
July 22, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of possible 5)

This segment puts a check next to nearly every item on a list of Health Journalism Worst Practices. It calls the device new, revolutionary, miracle. The device is none of these. Terribly misleading.



New medical technologies

ABC’s Good Morning America

The Cutting Edge: Robotic Surgery, Today!
May 5, 2009
Rating: (1 star out of a possible 5)

A few minutes of techno-tainment with inexcusable, almost inconceivable lapses in journalistic hygiene. No discussion of cost, of evidence for benefits or harms, and no independent insight....

The Cutting Edge: Amazing Journey Inside the Brain
May 4, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

Another gee-whiz Good Morning America segment that fits their apparent formula: no discussion of costs, no quantification of benefits or harms, and no independent source....

Cutting edge nail cure
April 9, 2009
Rating: (0 stars out of a possible 5)

The advantages were unsubstantiated, the harms unstated and the effectiveness exaggerated. Network TV promoting an off-label use. Disease mongering at its worst. A new low. Stay tuned for lower....

Life-Saving Test: How One Minute Can Save Your Life
March 25, 2009
Rating: (0 stars out of a possible 5)

The story overstated the risk of esophageal cancer and the value of a new approach for direct visualization and biopsy of the esophagus and was a free ad for a local hospital and a manufacturer. Wow....



America’s leading killer - cardiovascular diseases

ABC’s Good Morning America

Medical Breakthrough: Amazing New Heart Valve Procedure
January 7, 2009
Rating: (2 stars out of a possible 5)

One week into 2009, calls this "one of the big medical stories of 2009, "groundbreaking," and "the biggest thing since the heart transplant." Unfortunately no data are given to support that....

Heart Health: New Treatments For America's #1 Killer
March 30, 2009
Rating: (1 star out of a possible 5)

Story on coronary calcium test fails to discuss evidence, cost, or problems with false positive tests. But it hypes the test and disease mongers - telling us it's a wakeup call we all need. Not so....

CBS Early Show

Three Heart Tests Every Woman Should Know About
June 18, 2009
Rating: (0 stars out of possible 5)

Classic morning show health news garbage - confusing screening and diagnostic tests and confusing viewers. And a glaring error on the CBS website claims that heart CT scans had no radiation! On which planet?...

Heart Score: New Treatment for Heart Failure
February 16, 2009
Rating: (1 star out of possible 5)

The plural of anecdote is not data. Viewers were told one very positive patient story, but nothing about whether that's a representative outcome. No independent sources. Nothing on harms or costs.

NBC Today show

Today's Matters of the Heart: Dr. Nancy's Personal Wake-Up Call
February 4, 2009
Rating: (1 star out of possible 5)

A 6-minute segment almost completely devoid of evidence and data, riding the single personal anecdote of the network's medical editor. Disease-mongering. Incomplete story on heart CT scans....



This is a dangerous pattern. Such stories do more harm than good to public understanding of health care. This must change.

We continue to offer our help to any news organization that wants it. We have loads of good story ideas to take the place of this pablum – stories that affect individuals’ health, finances and decision-making – all the makings of good news stories.

Gary Schwitzer
Publisher
__________________________________________________________________

Website: www.HealthNewsReview.org

A Natural Lesson for Hyperhydrosis, Part Two

This topic came up again today on national TV on the Rachel Ray program. Once again nothing in the conversation included natural approaches to balancing the over active sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system.

What did disturb me was the failure to mention that aluminum is associated with Alzheimer's dis-ease and the most effective product from the trial with three Stamford, CT firefighters.

Again we have products that stop the natural function of human physiology.

A word to those involved in this trail, and the discussion may be needed.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008
A Natural Lesson for Hyperhydrosis
A fellow who works for Oprah as a producer asked Dr. Oz about his sweaty palms today. I was holding my breath that Mehmet just might have offered up a natural and effective treatment that is effective and inexpensive. He didn't.

I was pleased that he opted against the sympathectomy, which he gave as the last option of the three he suggested, including Botox.

And of course there are problems with Botox and the surgery.

I was surprised that he failed to suggest acupuncture which would be a good approach for re-balancing the sympathetic arm of the autonomic nervous system, or a very effective herbal treatment.

It was good that he mentions thyroid and pancreas concerns because these can be involved.

He didn't mention the nutritional approach that re-balances your biochemistry. He did offer that reducing coffee was important. Coffee's caffeine adds stress to the adrenals glands, so add more vitamin B and C throughout each day (these two vitamins help support the adrenal glands).

Naturally speaking, Siberian Ginseng is an effective approach to this problem. We use only properly prepared liquid herbal extracts for the best clinical results.

Remedies from the leaflady - 

• Hyperhydrosis homeopathic remedy $15 plus shipping
• Herbal extracts (Ginseng) $15 plus shipping

Part 1

Herbal Medicine for H1N1

It is terribly unfortunate that here in the US, the Big Pharma controlled FDA, along with FTC, HHS and our paid-for-protecting-corporate-America officials and the mainstream media and medical conclaves do not want any non-drug information disseminated here.

See natural options here and here

And please also refer to the unique garlic product in the right column, ALLI-C.

See the entire photo album

Workers prepare herbal medicines at Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Beijing
Chinese pharmacy workers prepare traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) packets of various herbs at the Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Beijing on July 23, 2009. In order to bring TCM into full play in the prevention and treatment of Type A influenza H1N1, or swine flu, the Beijing Administration of TCM has set up a special service path for people to obtain herbal packets that doctors claim will help prevent H1N1 infection. (UPI Photo/Stephen Shaver)

A Fitness Routine Geared Specifically For Women Who Want A Great Body Fast

By Chris Tan

A fitness routine geared specifically for women is an
excellent way to lose weight and gain a healthier you.
However, it is important to remember that with any fitness
regimen, hard work and dedication are needed for success.

The women of today live a hustle and bustle lifestyle that
leaves them no time for anything extra. For this reason,
time is the number complaint as to why women fail at
exercise routines. In addition, it places an emphasis on the
quick fix of diet pills and teas which can be harmful and
generally don't work. To achieve the much desired 'quick
result" women need to adopt specific exercise routines.

High Intensity Workouts.

Intensity is the key when it comes to fitness trainings.
Whether you are doing cardio exercise or weight training
exercises, you have to know that the higher intensity of
your workout, the more calories you will be burning. For
example, a person who jogs for 5 days a week will be losing
less calories and fats as compared to one who runs for 3
days a week. That is how much a difference intensity levels
can make.

For maximum intensity levels, do short bursts of exercises.
For example, do sets of sprints and then rest instead of
long distance jogging. Long distance jogging will not
increase your heart rate as much as sprinting does. With
high intensity workouts, you will no longer need hours of
exercise to see results.

Training with Weights.

Training with weights is the best way to increase your
metabolism. In weight training, the heavier the weights and
the more lifting you do, the more your metabolism increases.
In addition, the higher intensity of your weight training
will increase your metabolism for twenty-four hours.

The best workout is a combination of both cardio and weight
training. All of this may seem daunting and sound like hard
work, but you will be rewarded with changes in your body
every week.

Eat a Healthy Diet.

Proteins, carbohydrates and fats ingested by the body
determine the way your body will look. Adopting a healthy
diet is another great step to achieving your fitness goals.

To see results quickly, implement a strict healthy diet into
your fitness routine. Here are some suggestions.

Eating foods high in protein rather than carbohydrates is
the best way to see results. Proteins allow your body to
feel full for longer while carbohydrates create excess
energy that the body will store, thus creating fat.

Eating small meals several times a day is another great way
to boost your metabolism. This little trick makes your body
think you're eating more food, thus it will work harder. It
is for this reason that starvation diets do not work. When
the body is starved, the metabolism does not have to work as
hard to store energy for later use.

Chris Tan is a keen fitness enthusiast. He loves to share
his knowledge and wrote articles about
(http://www.clivir.com/lessons/show/women-stretching-exercises.html)
Woman Exercises to Stretch and
(http://www.clivir.com/lessons/show/women-fitness-equipment.html)
Equipment for Woman Fitness on Clivir.com.

The Ultimate Sandbag Strength Training Movie

Check out some of my favorite exercises using a sandbag.

This is live, from my Underground Strength Gym in Edison, NJ.

Pay attention and get ready to make your own sandbag!

Check out the movie….

Now go get busy!

Kill it!

--Coach Z—

Check out the Underground Strength System and you’ll have a full blown encyclopedia of Sandbag Strength Training Exercises at your disposal!

Go to http://UndergroundStrengthManual.com and see all the success stories.

2005 "Swine" Flu

Emerging Infectious Diseses, Volume 14, Number 9–September 2008
Dispatch
Human Case of Swine Influenza A (H1N1) Triple Reassortant Virus Infection, Wisconsin
Alexandra P. Newman,1 Erik Reisdorf, Jeanne Beinemann, Timothy M. Uyeki, Amanda Balish, Bo Shu, Stephen Lindstrom, Jenna Achenbach, Catherine Smith, and Jeffrey P. Davis
Author affiliations: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA (A.P. Newman, T.M. Uyeki, A. Balish, B. Shu, S. Lindstrom, J. Achenbach, C. Smith); Wisconsin Division of Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin, USA (A.P. Newman, J.P. Davis); Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, Madison (E. Reisdorf); and Sheboygan County Health and Human Services, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, USA (J. Beinemann)

Abstract
Zoonotic infections with swine influenza A viruses are reported sporadically. Triple reassortant swine influenza viruses have been isolated from pigs in the United States since 1998. We report a human case of upper respiratory illness associated with swine influenza A (H1N1) triple reassortant virus infection that occurred during 2005 following exposure to freshly killed pigs.

http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/14/9/1470.htm
Suggested citation for this article
Newman AP, Reisdorf E, Beinemann J, Uyeki TM, Balish A, Shu B, et al. Human case of swine influenza A (H1N1) triple reassortant virus infection, Wisconsin. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2008 Sep [date cited]. Available from http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/14/9/1470.htm

DOI: 10.3201/eid1409.080305
1Current affiliation: New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA.

Find more articles by entering 'Tamiflu' or 'Flu' in the search window.

Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Tamiflu dangers reported
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada has asked Swiss drug maker Roche AG to warn consumers of possible health risks linked to its influenza drug Tamiflu, the health department said on Wednesday.

Ottawa took the step after receiving international reports of side-effects such as hallucinations and abnormal behavior, including self-harm. The reports include cases involving children and teenagers, primarily in Japan.

"Health Canada has requested that the manufacturer ... update the Canadian prescribing information for Tamiflu to include this new information," the department said in a statement.

According to Health Canada, there have been 84 reports as of November 11 of Canadian patients having adverse effects when using Tamiflu. Ten of those cases involved fatalities...

Tamiflu not effective
Relenza, Tamiflu
Tamiflu

How Much Protein Is "Too Much" Protein For Bodybuilders?

By The Muscle Nerd, Jeff Anderson

Protein supplements are a staple in any bodybuilder's supplement arsenal.

Depending upon who you listen to, you'll get different answers for "how much protein" you should consume in order to build muscle.

Bodybuilding magazines and supplement manufacturers tell you you should consume at least "2 grams of protein per pound of body weight" because you need all that protein to recover from your workouts and increase muscle mass.

But are they blowing these dosages way out of proportion?

I mean, supplement companies who promote massive dosages (I've seen up to 5g/lb of body weight!) couldn't POSSIBLY be trying to get you to consume more of their product so you'll go and buy another tub, right?

Fact is, I've caught a LOT of hell over the years from so called "experts" for my statements in my Optimum Anabolics (http://optimum.rxsportz.com) program where I've said that the body CAN'T use more than 20-30g per meal.

Well a recent study looked at just how much protein is "enough" and how much is "too much".

Protein Study: How Much Protein Should You Consume?

A group of highly trained athletes consumed one of five different doses following a bout of resistance exercise.

    * Og: The "control" group
    * 5g
    * 10g
    * 20g
    * or 40g

Following exercise, ALL groups increased muscle-protein synthesis, but the 20g dose produced nearly DOUBLE the amount of muscle-protein synthesis than the control group!

The 40g dose was even higher, but not by all that much. Therefore, it appears that even after resistance training, your body can only USE so much protein (somewhere between 20g and 40g) and then the rest gets burned up as fuel.

Even in Optimum Anabolics, I recommend way less protein than most people take in (1.17g/lb of LEAN body weight) with about 25% of your daily protein requirement taken IMMEDIATELY after training.

By not consuming "too much" protein, your body can focus on burning FAT for fuel instead of the excess protein which is why OA is considered more of a "build and burn" bodybuilding program.

So stop overdosing on protein, will you?

Consume about 20g in 5 meals throughout the day and add a separate 30-40g serving immediately after your workouts to ensure full muscle-protein synthesis when you need it the most.