The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    More contaminated foods from China

    As an update to yesterday’s discussion about undeclared ingredients in medicine and other products from China, here’s the latest FDA advisory, warning the public not to consume certain dairy products because of possible melamine contamination.

    A list of the products and a brief discussion of the dangers of melamine follows.

    Products included in the FDA import-alert.

    • Fresh and Crispy Jacobina Biscuits New!
    • Koala’s March Crème filled Cookies
    • YILI Brand Sour Milk Drink
    • YILI Brand Pure Milk Drink
    • Blue Cat Flavored Drinks
    • White Rabbit Candies
    • Mr. Brown Mandehling Blend Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown Arabica Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown Blue Mountain Blend Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown Caramel Macchiato Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown French Vanilla Instant Coffee (3-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown Mandheling Blend instant Coffee (2-in-1)
    • Mr. Brown Milk Tea (3-in-1)
    • Infant formula manufactured in China

    Sciencebase blog has a concise review of the “melamine scandal.”

    • Thousand of babies in China who were fed formula milk contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine suffered kidney failure.
    • There have been several fatalities.
    • Melamine was added to artificially inflate the protein levels.
    • “Melamine in the food supply is China’s big open secret.”

    More on contaminated food products from China is here.

    The bottom line?
    Melamine has been described as a trimer of cyanamide (see photo) — a cyanide-containing molecule. Chronic exposure to melamine can lead to bladder or kidney stones, acute kidney failure, and even bladder cancer, according to the Sciencebase review.

    11/26/08 10:15 JR

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