companies

FDA Warns 14 Companies over Questionable Health Product Claims

The FDA is warning consumers to avoid 65 products sold online which, according to the agency, come with bogus claims that they can treat, cure, diagnose, or prevent cancer, along with other medical conditions. However, the companies which received the warning were not ordered to stop selling their products. [1]
Referring to the pills, creams, and teas as “a cruel deception,” the FDA says the products are a waste of time and money, and have the potential to harm buyers.

Trump’s Pick for FDA Chief Has Drug and Biotech Industry Ties

President Trump’s pick for head of the FDA, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, has taken more than $400,000 from drug makers in the last few years alone, and Gottlieb has deep ties to the pharmaceutical industry. [1]
Gottlieb has testified multiple times on Capitol Hill concerning complex drug pricing issues, and is largely approved of by drug companies and pharmaceutical investors for FDA head. He’s on the boards of directors of several small drug and biotech companies, while also serving as an adviser to GlaxoSmithKline PLC. [2]

U.K. Government Orders Restaurants to Cut Size of Desserts

U.K. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has ordered restaurants, pubs, and cafes to make their food and drink healthier by cutting sugar content, and to shrink the size of desserts. [1]
It’s all part of Britain’s plan to combat obesity.
Hunt met with more than 100 major food chains, including McDonald’s, Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Starbucks, and Pizza Express, and warned them that each restaurant’s performance would be monitored and that a public campaign would name any violators. 
Hunt said:

Amazon is Testing a 30-Hour Work Week for Some Employees

A few lucky Amazon.com employees will soon get to have what so many workers only dream of: a shorter work week. [1]
The company is getting ready to launch a program that will have a few technical teams made up of employees who work just 30 hours a week, yet they will be salaried and will receive the same benefits as traditional 40-hour workers. Employees on the part-time team will make about 75% of what full-time Amazon workers make.

Regulatory Loophole Allows GMO Products to be Marketed as Non-GMO

The government isn’t particularly interested in making sure Americans know what they’re eating. It seems like knowing what is in the food should be a basic right, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. In fact, last week Congress passed a federal requirement for labeling products containing genetically modified ingredients that signifies a big win for food companies.

Free Meals from Drug Companies Influence how Doctors Prescribe Drugs

Drug companies don’t need to give doctors thousands of dollars in kickbacks to sway them to prescribe their medications and implant their devices. A new study published online in JAMA Internal Medicine shows that doctors who received a free meal from a pharmaceutical company were more likely to prescribe the drug the company was promoting than doctors who received no such meals.