Just stirring up the fire What do you all think about this? I admire her work as an actress and as a business woman. She's achieved great things. With her last two books on menopause and anti-aging, I do feel that she crossed a line. Certainly forgivable but no more medical books Suzanne!
I read she's opening up some franchise cafes - Suzannes kitchens. They sound fun - consumers go in and make their own meals. Have you experienced this type of business? Apparently it's a popular concept.
Associated Press
The American Medical Association has stepped into the controversy over alternative hormone treatments for aging that Suzanne Somers advocates in a hot new book.
The nation's largest doctors' group voted this week to seek stricter Food and Drug Administration oversight and regulation of these so-called "bioidentical" hormone compounds.
Some of the treatments are promoted as alternatives to estrogen and progestin supplements once widely used for hot flashes and other menopause symptoms. Somers' new book, "Ageless: The Naked Truth About Bioidentical Hormones" on national best-seller lists, maintains that these treatments also can reverse the aging process and keep people mentally sharp, physically fit and sexually active.
Some doctors who were quoted in "Ageless" say the book overpromises anti-aging benefits from these products and wrote a letter of complaint last month to the book's publisher.
The actress-fitness guru could not immediately be reached for comment, but she has defended the book and was scheduled to square off against her critics Wednesday night on CNN's "Larry King Live."
Landmark government research linking conventional hormone pills with health risks led many women to quit taking them.
But there's no evidence that bioidenticals are any safer and they may even have other risks, Dr. Robert Vigersky, a member of the Endocrine Society delegation to the AMA, said Wednesday. The society represents doctors who specialize in hormone-related disorders.
"This is a safety issue, there's no question about it," said Dr. Ardis Hoven, an AMA board member.
The products, sometimes called "natural" hormones, are compounds that have the same chemical and molecular structure as hormones that are produced in the human body. They are custom-mixed by special pharmacies according to a doctor's prescription.
Promoters say they are plant-based, but Vigersky said some contain synthetic products and their exact ingredients aren't always known because they are not FDA-approved.
"We think that people are being misled into thinking that they are safer and we're worried that they may be inappropriately prescribed," said Vigersky, an endocrinologist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He said he has no financial ties to pharmaceutical companies that produce hormone pills.
The AMA adopted the new policy at its interim meeting Monday in Las Vegas. Wyeth (nyse: WYE - news - people ) Pharmaceuticals, which makes conventional hormone pills, requested similar scrutiny in an FDA petition earlier.
The AMA will urge the FDA to assess the purity of ingredients in the alternative compounds, evaluate any side effects and require manufacturers and compounding pharmacies to report any adverse events.
The doctors group also endorses creation of a registry of adverse events linked to bioidenticals, along with standard patient safety information on the product packaging.
While the custom compounds are not FDA-approved, the agency has regulatory authority over them because they are considered drugs. An FDA spokesman said the agency shares the AMA's concerns about potentially misleading claims and is paying close attention to the issue.
Dr. Erika Schwartz, a New York physician who objects to the wide-ranging claims in Somers' book, nevertheless criticized the AMA for taking the side of the pharmaceutical industry.
Schwartz said that while she shares the AMA's general concerns about safety, there's no evidence that the hormone compounds are not safe.
"I don't believe in overpromising," Schwartz said. "I believe hormones are only part of the anti-aging process. If you want to stay young and healthy, you need to eat right, to exercise, to deal with stress, to sleep," she said. "The hormones are one other option."
Anyway that being said, I think supplements need to looked at to see what is viable and what is not. I also think food should be looked at more (they've done extensive on soybeans and the phytoestrogens in them) because honestly, I think food can be a drug as well.
Having read her book where she talked about insulin and the glycemic I wouldn't trust anything she has to say. I've had to become very educated about how my endocrine system works due to PCOS (and I'm not convinced that the doctors have that right)and her descriptions about how the body uses insulin was different from what I understood through my own reading and what I learned from medical professionals.
Originally posted by SheriaVa: [QUOTE]Originally posted by GoingSkiing: Personally, I take my perscription drugs... would have been dead a couple times over if I didn't.
Me too. I usually hate putting any kind of chemicals (meds included) into my body but without them, I definitely wouldn't be here.
Modern medicine is a wonderful thing (mostly. Had I been been born even 50 years sooner I would have died as a teenager from a bad case of Rubella. If I somehow survived that, childbirth would have gotten me or the ensuing toxic shock which had me hospitalized for a week (and recurs without proper meds).
I do wish that I could come off my meds (the side effects aren't pleasant) but I'd rather take side effects than dead any day.
Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.
Originally posted by GoingSkiing: Personally, I take my perscription drugs... would have been dead a couple times over if I didn't.
Ditto. I could have very likely died from epiglottitis in the mid-80s without drugs. I had waited too long to go to the ENT, thinking it was "just a sore throat." The ENT said she couldn't believe I was walking and talking by the time I got to her office. I was sent straight to the hospital ER and was in a bed within 10 minutes of walking in the door. Prescription drugs saved me by quickly reducing the swelling in my throat.
For the past dozen years or so, I've taken Dyazide to control the edema (fluid retention) in my body which then controls my blood pressure. Because of how sensitive my body is to salt and how easily I retain fluid, I could not live without the Dyazide for very long before I would have serious health consequences.
And sometimes, prescriptions aren't a matter of saving your life but improving the quality of life. I have had hypothyroidism for nearly 25 years and take a daily prescription pill for that which improves the quality of my life dramatically.
As for supplements, I presently take two on a regular basis--CoQ10 and Fish Oil/Omega 3s.
I have been taking CoQ10 for about a decade and it has made a dramatic difference in my health. I went from being a person who had to go to a dentist or peridonist 4 times a year, had gum disease, and bled so badly during cleanings that I would be sick by the time I left to a person who (starting this year) goes twice a year and hardly bleeds during cleanings anymore. Both the dentist and the peridontist and both of their hygienists have commented on the dramatic improvement in my gum health. Sure, part of that is my taking better care of my mouth, but I absolutely attribute a large part of it to CoQ10. I also used to be constantly sick and visiting the ENT for ear, sinus and throat infections 4-5 times per year. Now, I'm down to seeing her maybe once every 2-3 years. She can't believe the difference.
I have only been taking Fish Oils/Omega 3s this year, and I wasn't taking them regularly until a month or two ago. Already, I can see an improvement my fingernails--they are smoother with less ridges and are somewhat stronger.
I am wary of a lot of supplements but, if I've done my research and I think they could benefit me, I will at least try them.
Personal Healthy Habits Challenge - 10/1 to 12/31/08: 1. Exercise: Get back to consistently working out 3-5 X week. 2. Food: Get back to consistently preparing healthy lunches for the week with increased veg servings. 3. Behavior: Reduce intake of sweets.
Posts: 7356 | Location: Rehoboth Beach, DE | Registered: March 12, 2004
A place opened near us just recently, where you "build" your own food...they've got a bunch of different menu items, and you decide what you want, and if you want them on a salad (and then you get to pick your greens), in a wrap, on a sandwich, on pasta (and the article said they have whole wheat pasta)...whatever. I'm looking forward to trying it out. Some of the examples they gave were grilled chicken, sirloin steak slices, balsamic onions, garlic aoili (aoli? aoililiiao?), homemade croutons, applewood bacon, smoked turkey.
As far as medications and supplements...well, if it's been proven safe for hundreds of years, I might give it a go. If a thorough clinical study has been done, I'm game. If someone believes that because it worked for them, it'll work for me...no, thanks.
I got a list of medications I can't take 2 weeks prior to my surgery...the normal Tylenols, Aleves, over-the-counter stuff...and the doctor's office included a flyer they'd drafted up of "supplements" and herbal medications that a lot of women use that they ALSO don't want in my system...calcium supplements caught my eye, along with the laundry list of vitamin supplements, iron supplements, and herbal remedies.
Challenge Goals: *10 minutes of unplanned exercise five times a week *Gym time twice a week *Socialize at least once every two weeks.
The supplement industry is awash in widespread medical fraud. Supplements aren't, by law, screened by the FDA for either safety or effectiveness. I don't know the current law, but it used to be that supplements didn't even have to list known side-effects on the bottle.
Originally posted by jillybean: Well I for one am very glad you take them then!! I guess I have been very fortunate to not have to take anything but I'm sure if I had something that required me to take a med or die, I'd take the med!
Yeah... was in ICU for 8 days and regular ward for another 8 with a DVT and PE...
Better to take heparin and cumadine (sp?) for a while rather than end back there. (Saw 23 different doctors while I was preg… and kind of explains why ds is an only child. )
Asthma meds are better than asthma.
Not to mention the miracle of antbiotitics and the number of people who used to die from an abscessed tooth or STD or something relatively easy to cure.
I generally trust the FDA, USDA, CDC, EPA, etc., etc.
(Suzanne Sommers pushing "anti-aging" meds… don’t trust that all too much…)
We often take safe drinking water, a safe food supply and relatively easy access to medications for granted, living in a first world country.
Denise
Posts: 8744 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
Originally posted by jillybean: PS: Denise, I was not attacking you or your comment, just stating my opinion on the FDA
Oh I know!
There is room for disagreement...
Personally, I take my perscription drugs... would have been dead a couple times over if I didn't.
Well I for one am very glad you take them then!! I guess I have been very fortunate to not have to take anything but I'm sure if I had something that required me to take a med or die, I'd take the med!
Jill
Summer Challenge Goals: 1) Walk 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week 2) Plan weekly menus
Kind of a backwards system. They don’t have to prove it safe… but should we all buy it and take it and it turns out to NOT be safe… well, then they can pull it off the market.
Unfortunately the FDA deems many prescription and non-prescription drugs "safe" and then has to pull them because they turn out to be not safe. I don't put much weight into the FDA . I also don't take supplements(approved or not approved). Actually, I don't take anything except the occasional Tylenol or Midol. If a doctor gives me a prescription, to me, it is really not much safer than something not approved by the FDA. We have absolutely no idea what is really in those medications and just because it has "FDA approval" means nothing to me. The FDA would be the same people who regulate nutrition labels and apparently they are quite misleading. Just my opinion. Jill
PS: Denise, I was not attacking you or your comment, just stating my opinion on the FDA
Summer Challenge Goals: 1) Walk 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week 2) Plan weekly menus
I know how terrible this is going to sound, but with all the "stars" endorsing diets, diet products, exercise equipment etc. I gave up on them a long time ago. It's all in the $$. I haven't heard about Somers yet, but can't imagine that it's any better than her thigh reducer.
Kristy Alley weighs in at 125? Give me a break. I want to see the scale she is using. No I am not jealous...but I don't believe it. Tummy tucks, liposuction, etc, yes, but it wasn't all diet, and how long will she be able to keep it off eating normally?
I am sorry it's all $$ for them, and not real life. Joy Bahr on the view, has put her Jenny Craig weight back on...maybe not all of it, but now she has hired a special trainer and cook to get it back off. Oprah is just a matter of time. I'd like to see just one of these people, just one, live a normal life, no trainers, no coaches, no cooks, etc kids and a hubbie take the weight off, keep it off, sweat like the rest of us. Then I wonder how long it would last.....
It's never too late to get it right.
Posts: 3473 | Location: Central USA | Registered: March 11, 2004
When I first heard about her book(s), I considered purchasing the second one. I think I even made a post about it on here.
Not too long ago I heard that some of the doctors who were interviewed for her book are rather upset about how the book presents certain things that were said. That right there tells me a lot.
There was another article I read about the book (can't remember where I read it but I think it was online, MSN homepage maybe?) that pointed out several things that Suzanne Summers contradicts herself on. (Also remember she had liposuction but claimed she was doing it because she had a breast cancer scare.... )
I didn't purchase the book. I do hope that more research is conducted on more natural medications and theropies though. It seems like more and more doctors these days are "prescription happy". One statement from Summer's book that I read somewhere and do agree with was something to the affect that Doctors should look more into treating causes than just treating symptoms.
While I do do some of the homeopathic/natural "cures", I also keep in mind that lead is natural, arsenic is natural...both were used in makeup in the past... (not recent past, historical past)
Not everything that is historical is healthy. But not everything new is healthy either.
We really need some kind of committee or something, like so many European countries have, which oversee supplements. They have studies... basically we need to get our government out of bed with the big food/supplement people.
And I don't think it is a good idea to have all these celebrities hawking diets/medical stuff. I think "natural" remedies can be very positive, but they really need to be overseen. There is stuff at the health-food store which I have not bought (eyedrops with belladonna in 'em) because I know enough about the history of herbs to say "wait a minute". (Belladonna causes the pupils to dilate, its another ord for deadly nightshade. It was used historically at one point because dilated pupils are seen as more attractive, it is also, I beleive, a hallucinogen)
I never understood why the FDA bowed to pressure with not regulating supplements just like anything else.
It just doesn't make any sense to me that just because something is "natural" that it's safe to take. There are plenty of high potency drugs that are plant based and "natural". One of my mil's chemotherapy drugs was derived from South American tree bark. Look at opium!
So personally, I'm glad that the AMA is recommending that bioidentical hormones fall under greater scrutinity. I know lots of people who take them and swear by them but since there are no studies into long term effects, how do they really know what they're doing to their bodies for the long haul?
Three compounding pharmacies have popped up in our little town over the past couple of years so this is apparently a big business.
As for celebs pushing medical products or weight loss schemes, that certainly isn't anything new. I do find it interesting though when otherwise intelligent people follow the advice of someone like Suzanne without doing their own analysis and research.
Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.
The FDA is in a weird position when it comes to supplements.
The way I understand it, the supplement industry lobbied Congress, who passed a bill in 1994 that said that supplements are not a “food” and they don’t have to be proven safe nor effective before being marketed or sold. However, the FDA can document bad side effects and take a supplement (like ephedra) off the market once they document that it is not safe.
Kind of a backwards system. They don’t have to prove it safe… but should we all buy it and take it and it turns out to NOT be safe… well, then they can pull it off the market.
WebMD article FDA Tightens Scrutiny of Supplements Agency gives industry guidance on acceptable health claims
Dr. Phil got into trouble with supplements. His book claimed that apple shaped people need supplements in order to lose weight and pear shaped people need a different mixture of supplements... and guess what?!?!?! Dr. Phil had is own brand of supplements for a while and would sell them to you… based on your body type... but he got in trouble and had to pull his supplements and weight loss products... because there was just no science to his claims and he ended up being sued and lost.
I think that Dr. Phil’s supplements were safe enough… it was just junk science… and they didn’t work. But Suzanne Sommers pills sound pretty funky to me.
But basically I don't take herbs or pills or vitamins or supplements or whatever from the "Health Food Store" based claims that product XYZ cures depression or hot flashes or baby colic or lowers cholesterol or ________ because the products don't have to be tested or even proven safe.
If I wanted to start a cilantro extract supplement company and fed cilantro to Nelson and Jamie and myself and claimed that I did a study and based on my research, Cilantro Extract improves mental acuity in adults and improves concentration and study skills in children ... I could. And no government agency would be looking out for my customers... unless a bunch of them got sick or died or something.
Denise
Posts: 8744 | Location: Silicon Valley, CA | Registered: March 17, 2004
What do you all think about this? I admire her work as an actress and as a business woman. She's achieved great things. With her last two books on menopause and anti-aging, I do feel that she crossed a line. Certainly forgivable but no more medical books Suzanne!
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