In a move not surprising considering the FDA’s poor record under the Bush administration, an internal memo shows they think it’s okay for expectant & nursing mothers and small children to eat up to 12.oz of seafood regardless of earlier mercury warnings.

What Happens When Government Agencies Don’t Agree
The Washington Post reports that FDA recommendations have alarmed scientists at the EPA, who have criticized them as “scientifically flawed and inadequate”, saying they fell short of the “scientific rigor routinely demonstrated by EPA.”

Most curious about this draft document obtained from the Environmental Working Group is what’s missing:

SECTION III: DATA ON EXPOSURE TO METHYLMERCURY IN THE UNITED STATES   Read more...

Water treatment plants were never designed to remove pharmaceuticals from water, so many drugs wind up downstream from the water plants, which then become part of our larger marine population.

Since most people just flush their unused or unneeded drugs down the toilet or in the garbage, in many cases, it then winds up in the ocean.

The EPA has issued guidelines for properly disposing of unwanted pharmaceuticals, and here are White House guidelines for the proper disposal of prescription drugs.

The FDA advises that the following drugs be flushed instead of thrown in the trash:

1. Actiq (fentanyl citrate)
2. Avinza Capsules (morphine sulfate)
3. Baraclude Tablets (entecavir)
4. Daytrana Transdermal Patch (methylphenidate)
5. Duragesic Transdermal System (fentanyl)
  Read more...

Just ask MotherJones, she knows best.

Hopefully you or your mother aren’t eating tuna everyday like a former co-worker of mine did for breakfast. Sure, he lost lots of weight, and his high protein diet was helping that, but a high canned tuna diet has other side effects too. Symptoms of mercurial poisoning include, but are not limited to:

• loss of hair,
• heart fluttering,
• heart, nervous system, and kidney damage,
• and more.

I haven’t ran into John in a couple of years, but hopefully everything is going good for him.   Read more...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers against eating certain frozen cooked mussel products made by Bantry Bay Seafoods, imported from Ireland.

The mussel products may be contaminated with azaspiracid toxins, a group of naturally occurring marine toxins known to cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach cramps.

Reports of AZA intoxications and/or contaminated shellfish have been documented from several countries, including Ireland, UK, Norway, Netherlands, France, Spain, and Italy. – NOAA