New research being done on the link between ADHD and diet has begun to unveil some interesting findings that may have parents trying to change up their child’s diet before seeking a prescription for Ridalin or Adderal.

According to MSN,

ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder in childhood, affecting from 5 to 7 percent of U.S. school-age children. Most parents and physicians treat ADHD with medication—in fact, the use of medication tripled worldwide between 1993 and 2003, with the United States prescribing more medication for ADHD than any other country. Yet some parents have taken a rigorous look at their child’s diet, as a substitute for or in conjunction with meds, in an effort to minimize symptoms and ultimately sidestep a dependency on drugs.

Medication can yeild much faster results which is preferred by many parents and teachers.

Clinical nutritionist Marcia Zimmerman, a former research scientist at Stanford University Medical Center and author of the book The ADD Nutrition Solution: A 30-Day Drug-Free Plan said, “It does improve behavior, it is easy, it is quick, but the problem is it doesn’t heal anything, and moreover, when a child has been on these meds for a period of time [they may] develop side effects and you have to use more drugs to relieve the side effects.”

There are many different diets to lesson the affects of ADHD such as the Feingold Method. The Feingold Method has sparked a little controversy with nutritionists because of its recommendation that you steer clear of select fruits that are high in natural salicylates. Another option is elimination diets, in which parents remove different foods from their child’s diet, and then reintroduce them one at a time to see how they affect mood and behavior.

Whatever path you choose to take, make sure that you talk the approach over with your doctor. Medication may be the best route to solving your child’s ADHD problem, but if you could remedy the problem naturally, Why not?

According to recent reports from the Food and Drug Administration, fake versions of GlaxoSmithKline’s drug Alli were found to have dangerously high levels of the prescription weight loss ingredient sibutramine.

Sibutramine is the main ingredient in the diet drug Meridia. Although with the right dosage sibutramine can be used safely, the amount of sibutramine found in the counterfeit Alli poses a serious health risk to some individuals.

Dr. Janet Woodcock, head of the FDA’s drug unit, told reporters

“A person taking the counterfeit Alli as directed would be exposed to twice the maximum prescription dose of sibutramine every day.”

Woodcock said even healthy people exposed to the counterfeit Alli pills could experience effects including palpitations, sleepiness, anxiety, nausea and slightly elevated blood pressure.

Fake version of the diet drug have been found for sale mainly at online auctions sites like eBay.

The FDA and GlaxoSmithKline are urging consumers to check any Alli recently purchased to make sure it is the real deal. The FDA said the counterfeit Alli has:

– An outer cardboard packaging missing a `”Lot`” code.

– An expiration date that includes the month, day, and year (”06162010″), while authentic Alli expiration date includes only the month and year (”05/12″).

– Packaging in a plastic bottle that has a slightly taller and wider cap with coarser ribbing than the genuine product.

– A plain foil inner safety seal under the plastic cap without any printed words. The authentic product seal is printed with “SEALED FOR YOUR PROTECTION.”

– Contains larger capsules with a white powder, instead of small white pellets.

Another chance for American Senators to make a real change that would quickly help Americans lower the cost of their health care came and went last week, when the Senate voted 51-48 to shoot down an amendment that would have allowed American citizens to get their prescription drugs from countries who actually have the the backbone to impose cost controls on the pharmaceutical industry.

In today’s political climate, rarely does any issue receive bi-partisan support, however the drug importation amendment did. The problem was that the amendment needed at least 60 votes to pass, which it did not receive.

But why didn’t the amendment pass? Couldn’t all Americans use a break on the cost of their everyday prescriptions like Plavix and Xenical?

The answer is simple, to protect the profits of the big pharmaceutical companies.

An article from Examiner.com explains why the amendment was voted down:

“Speculation is the pharmaceutical industry made a deal with the White House to commit 80 billion dollars over the next 10 years to health care reform. The deal was supposedly contingent upon Congress not asking for more cuts in their profits.”

The article wen on to say,

“There is only one simple reason why the pharmaceutical companies charge 50% or more in the United States than they do in other countries. It is because our government allows it. The never ending desire to allow corporations to make as much money as they can at the expense of the working class creates fertile ground for these extortionists to pad their bottom lines.

Millions of people currently buy their prescriptions from Mexico or Canada, as they try to save as much money as they can from an industry that tries to extract as much as possible from them before they die. How much could people have saved with the simple passage of this amendment, in spite of the backroom deal the drug makers have with the White House?”

I don’t think you should wait around for politicians to decide when you can save money, do you? Sign up to No Prescription Needed today and start saving on the prescription medications you need, now.

A new study released Sunday has again raised questions about the effectiveness of Merk and Co’s cholesterol drug Zetia and its sister drug Vytorin. In this most recent study, Zetia failed to shrink buildups in artery walls. It was compared to a newer drug, Niaspan, which did so significantly. Zetia users also suffered more heart attacks and other problems although the numbers of these events were too small to draw any conclusions.

Zetia “has been on the market for about seven years and we still haven’t proven that it improves clinical outcomes,” said Roger Blumenthal, preventive cardiology chief at Johns Hopkins University. The results will be “very influential” in getting more doctors to turn to Niaspan, he said.

Doctors say that the study results are not conclusive and that users should not stop taking there prescribed medication. In a report from Reuters, Dr. Paul Armstrong of the University of Alberta in Edmonton said he received an email from a patient early Monday morning asking if she should stop taking Zetia even though it was having the intended effect on her LDL levels.

Doctors say not to worry if the medicine is having its intended affects, but to be cautious if any side affects are experienced and don’t hesitate to contact your doctor for consultation.

The large American drug maker Abbott Laboratories is moving to close a deal today to purchase the prescription drug unit of the Belgian company Solvay for close to $6.6 billion in order to take sole possession of a shared cholesterol drug venture. The deal could possibly pay out an addition $440 million if the product meets certain sales goals from 2011 to 2013.

The deal will also give Abbott sole possession TriCor, which competes with Antara and Lofibra in the highly competitive cholesterol drug market. Last year TriCor had over $1.3 billion in sales.

In addition to TriCor, Abbott will also receive full ownership of Solvay’s drugs for hormone replacement, hypertension, as well as other neurological conditions.

According to the New York Times,

Pending health care legislation in Congress is not considered a deterrent for pharmaceutical acquisitions, because the drug makers are expected to do well in whatever emerges from Washington. The industry has a potentially winning political argument that its drugs prevent disease and save medical costs. And the industry stands to benefit from the addition of tens of millions of Americans to the ranks of the insured, under a health care overhaul.

Abbott’s patent on TriCor is set to expire soon, which means generic, less expensive versions of TriCor will be available. Abbott will then face the challenge of switching consumers over to the new drug Trilipix. This means that Abbott will throw all of it’s marketing behind Trilipix, and try and dupe consumers into buying a medication that is no more affective, yet much more expensive.