Post by graybeard on Sept 17, 2007 6:01:49 GMT -6
China’s Poison Medicines: What Are We Supposed To Do?
By SusanUnPC on Sep 16, 2007 in Food Safety/FDA
noquarterusa.net/blog/
I am f–king furious. I have to take a lot of drugs, almost all generic, and I have to trust that those criminal — and I do mean criminal — drug and OTC medication manufacturers in China aren’t poisoning me? What if one of the drugs I’ve taken is responsible for my excruciating leg pain? See this, and there’s another shocker below the fold:
China recalls tainted leukemia drugs
By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN
Associated Press Writer
BEIJING — Chinese authorities ordered the recall of tainted leukemia drugs blamed for leg pains and other problems, state media reported Sunday, the latest crisis to strike the country’s embattled food and drug industries.
Yesterday’s Seattle Post-Intelligencer featured an op-ed, “In trade, China’s moral compass is off course,” by Chi-Dooh Li, a Seattle attorney. It is a must-read in its entirety, but I’ll just quote the section about drugs — and it should scare you as much as it does me:
Chinese pharmaceutical companies have sold fake polio vaccines, blood protein and other drugs. International health authorities are understandably alarmed, considering that China makes 70 percent of the world’s supply of penicillin, 50 percent of its aspirin and 35 percent of its acetaminophen, and dominates the global market in vitamins. Chinese companies have even sold fake baby formula, resulting in numerous infant deaths. …
How in the hell are we supposed to know which drugs and over-the-counter medications are safe?
President Bush has steadily starved our federal safety agencies (FDA, etc.) of both the budget and staffing they desperately need just to be able to inspect a tiny fraction of these imports. At best, currently, only 1% of all imports are being inspected. We cannot trust any of the manufacturing plants in other countries.
I want — I demand — American-made medications. (I realize that American manufacturers have had their own problems, but I trust them more than I do overseas manufacturers.) But how in the hell do I even know where my medications are made? How does my pharmacist know? How does my doctor know he’s prescribing a properly-made medication?
How do we know that ALL of the ingredients of a drug are safe? So many “precursors” are now manufactured overseas. For example, the “precursors” for commonly-prescribed antibiotics are now almost all made in China.
Here’s an example. I bought TwinLabs’ multiple vitamin/mineral, more expensive than most, because historically it has been a very fine brand. My vitamins are made in Utah. But — and I called the Utah manufacturer to find out — the Vitamin C that is in my multiple pill comes entirely from China. What is in that Vitamin C? How do I know it is not adulterated, or that it is the correct strength? Does TwinLabs test every single lot of Vitamin C they import? Can I believe their assurances? How can I know when I read examples like this from the P.I. op-ed piece?
Chinese-made toothpaste containing diethylene glycol was exported under brand names such as “Mr. Cool.” The toothpaste is marketed to children.
[…]
Chinese food producers have used formaldehyde, industrial wax and banned toxic dyes in making candy, pickles and crackers. Foods with long expired shelf life are repackaged and sold as fresh. Many of those products are exported and sold in the U.S.
Where do we turn to find out that not only the whole product — but each ingredient in the product — is safe? I haven’t a clue.
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I copied the above almost in its entirety, due to its importance and urgency. Can you shed any more light on this, UC?
GB
By SusanUnPC on Sep 16, 2007 in Food Safety/FDA
noquarterusa.net/blog/
I am f–king furious. I have to take a lot of drugs, almost all generic, and I have to trust that those criminal — and I do mean criminal — drug and OTC medication manufacturers in China aren’t poisoning me? What if one of the drugs I’ve taken is responsible for my excruciating leg pain? See this, and there’s another shocker below the fold:
China recalls tainted leukemia drugs
By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN
Associated Press Writer
BEIJING — Chinese authorities ordered the recall of tainted leukemia drugs blamed for leg pains and other problems, state media reported Sunday, the latest crisis to strike the country’s embattled food and drug industries.
Yesterday’s Seattle Post-Intelligencer featured an op-ed, “In trade, China’s moral compass is off course,” by Chi-Dooh Li, a Seattle attorney. It is a must-read in its entirety, but I’ll just quote the section about drugs — and it should scare you as much as it does me:
Chinese pharmaceutical companies have sold fake polio vaccines, blood protein and other drugs. International health authorities are understandably alarmed, considering that China makes 70 percent of the world’s supply of penicillin, 50 percent of its aspirin and 35 percent of its acetaminophen, and dominates the global market in vitamins. Chinese companies have even sold fake baby formula, resulting in numerous infant deaths. …
How in the hell are we supposed to know which drugs and over-the-counter medications are safe?
President Bush has steadily starved our federal safety agencies (FDA, etc.) of both the budget and staffing they desperately need just to be able to inspect a tiny fraction of these imports. At best, currently, only 1% of all imports are being inspected. We cannot trust any of the manufacturing plants in other countries.
I want — I demand — American-made medications. (I realize that American manufacturers have had their own problems, but I trust them more than I do overseas manufacturers.) But how in the hell do I even know where my medications are made? How does my pharmacist know? How does my doctor know he’s prescribing a properly-made medication?
How do we know that ALL of the ingredients of a drug are safe? So many “precursors” are now manufactured overseas. For example, the “precursors” for commonly-prescribed antibiotics are now almost all made in China.
Here’s an example. I bought TwinLabs’ multiple vitamin/mineral, more expensive than most, because historically it has been a very fine brand. My vitamins are made in Utah. But — and I called the Utah manufacturer to find out — the Vitamin C that is in my multiple pill comes entirely from China. What is in that Vitamin C? How do I know it is not adulterated, or that it is the correct strength? Does TwinLabs test every single lot of Vitamin C they import? Can I believe their assurances? How can I know when I read examples like this from the P.I. op-ed piece?
Chinese-made toothpaste containing diethylene glycol was exported under brand names such as “Mr. Cool.” The toothpaste is marketed to children.
[…]
Chinese food producers have used formaldehyde, industrial wax and banned toxic dyes in making candy, pickles and crackers. Foods with long expired shelf life are repackaged and sold as fresh. Many of those products are exported and sold in the U.S.
Where do we turn to find out that not only the whole product — but each ingredient in the product — is safe? I haven’t a clue.
----------
I copied the above almost in its entirety, due to its importance and urgency. Can you shed any more light on this, UC?
GB