Welcome to Consumer Reports Health News for health and medical journalists.  Consumer Reports and ConsumerReportsHealth.org cover issues pertaining to the efficacy and safety of prescription and non-prescription drugs (including natural medicines), mental health, diet and nutrition, food safety, and fitness.  CR tests health and fitness products, rates the effectiveness and affordability of prescription drugs, and evaluates the claims made by drug companies and the health-care industry—all without commercial agendas or advertiser influence.

Imaging Tests:  How to Avoid Overexposure: Special Report

The use of imaging tests is soaring; doctors performed nearly 69 million computed tomography (CT) scans in 2007, compared with 30 million a decade earlier.  But up to a third of those tests may not have been needed, unnecessarily exposing people to potentially harmful radiation.  Even tests that don’t expose patients to radiation, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound, can pose other risks.  And they can be expensive and time-consuming.  The June issue of Consumer Reportson Health provides a detailed guide to imaging tests that screen for disease in specific body parts including the aorta, bones, breast, colon, heart, lungs, teeth, and uterus.

CR notes that some CT scans use high doses of radiation. For example, the “64-slice” CT angiography, a test that some say can catch coronary disease early, can expose patients to 200 times as much radiation as standard chest X-rays, and twice the radiation of many CT scans. CR warns about “whole-body” CT scans that some doctors and clinics promote to screen for cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses.  But such exams are likely to reveal harmless abnormalities and expose people to high doses of radiation.  CR advises people to steer clear of whole-body screening.

CR’s report includes a chart comparing the radiation exposure associated with various X-rays and CT to background radiation from natural sources. For the full report, go to www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org and click on Today’s Health News.

Patients Find Health Advice and Support in Online Communities

CR medical adviser Dr. Orly Avitzur, has been a guest at many patient support groups, but nothing prepared her for the experience of the group she visited online at www.SecondLife.com, a virtual community that looks and feels like a video game.  Increasingly, blogs Dr. Avitzur, a practicing neurologist, patients are going online for collective wisdom, advice, empathy, and understanding related to their health problems.  Many online health sites have forums or communities based on health conditions.  Participants include patients, caregivers, and sometimes doctors and medical researchers.  Dr. Avitzur says that she’s seen medical advances shared on these online forums almost as soon as they hit the journals. To read Dr. Avitzur’s blog, log on to www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org and click on the Health Experts tab.

Consumers Union: USDA Opposition to Mad Cow Testing is Anti-Consumer 

Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, is calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to allow the use of “rapid test” kits by the Kansas-based meatpacking company, Creekstone Farms, to test its slaughtered cows for mad cow disease.  The USDA recently appealed a ruling allowing Creekstone to test and label its beef “tested for BSE.”  BSE is bovine spongiform encephalopathy, known as mad cow disease.  Not only is the USDA decision anti-consumer and anti-competitive, CU says, but allowing companies like Creekstone to test for mad cow could help resolve the beef trade dispute with South Korea, which currently bans all U.S. beef.  In early June, hundreds of thousands of South Koreans demonstrated against lifting the ban.  “A reevaluation of our beef testing policy is essential to remain competitive in the world beef market and ensure the safety of consumers both home and abroad,” said Michael Hansen, senior scientist at CU.  For more information, check out “Latest News” at www.ConsumersUnion.org or click on www.ConsumersUnion.org/pub/core_food_safety/005740.html to see CU's letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer.

Home Remedies That Really Work

While many people swear by their favorite home remedies, most remain unproved. The June issue of Consumer Reports on Health highlights a handful of home therapies that have been scientifically tried and found to be true.  For example, allergy and sinus sufferers might consider nasal saline irrigation—a saltwater rinse for the nasal passages—that has recently been proved to be a safe, cheap, and effective remedy for chronic nose and sinus inflammation.  Live-culture yogurts contain probiotics that may provide multiple health benefits, including relief from digestive problems and urinary-tract and vaginal infections.  But scratch wart removal off the list of uses for duct tape.  Research shows that it’s no better than a placebo. 

CR Goes Live With New Online Summer Safety Hub

For many people, summertime means vacations at the beach, lazing by the pool, outdoor volley ball games, and other fun activities.  But summer comes with its own set of hazards, too.  To address these risks, CR this week launched its online Summer Safety Hub at www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org.  Here, consumers will find tips on how to stay safe in the sun, curb car sickness on long trips, prevent “airplane ear,” avoid sports injuries, buy a bike helmet, maintain a safe pool, and other important safety precautions. For parents, check out www.ConsumerReports.org/childsafety for CR’s online Guide to Childproofing and Safety.

Manage Anger and Improve Health

Anger control has a powerful impact on the body’s ability to heal, according to an article in the June issue of Consumer Reports.  A study by researchers at Ohio State University found that people who managed their anger better healed faster.  People who did not control anger well, not only took longer to heal but also produced higher levels of cortisol, a stress hormone linked to delayed healing. CR offers tips on how to rein in out-of-control anger and stress that can speed up heart rate, narrow blood vessels, and increase the risk of blood clots.