For Killer Abs, Try Some ... Push-Ups? ThePostGame
Not many of us love the push-up. Sure, it’s relatively safe and effective, but let’s face it, it's kind of boring. It's something we did in P.E. class.
But what if you realized that the push-up would not only help you get a stronger upper body, but also a stronger midsection?
It's true. The push-up incorporates the stabilization muscles of your core, combining an upper-body pushing movement with a plank -- one of the best and most basic exercises for your midsection.
In fact, according to Nick Tumminello, trainer and owner and operator of the Performance University gym in Baltimore, Md., the push-up can effectively replace the sit-up.
“The push-up is basically a plank position," Tumminello says, "so it’s actually a great abdominal exercise and there’s no reason to do planks if you can do (a significant number of) push-ups."
Push-ups are a higher value plank. You’re not only strengthening your abdominals by holding them still while gravity’s trying to push your hips towards the ground, but you’re also strengthening your upper-body pushing muscles: your chest, shoulders and triceps.”
What else can a push-up do for you?
For many men, the bench press is a temptress -- the key to getting a big chest and, sometimes, an inflated ego.
“How much can you bench?” is ingrained in our fitness conversations because of the tangibility of numerous 45-lb. plates on the barbell. “How many push-ups can you do?” is not, however, even though push-ups are a much better indicator of relative strength, since you’re forced to push the mass of your body against the forces of gravity and stabilize your core.
For many women, a full push-up is a tease, a noble fitness goal that’s rarely achieved despite countless sets of knee pushups and other push-up variations.
“I have seen women who can hammer out forty plus kneeling push-ups who still can’t do one regular push-up," Tumminello says. "I’ve never trained a female who can bang out forty plus or even ten plus incline push-ups at about a bench height and not be able to hammer out at least one or two pushups from the floor."
So what's the best way for both men and women to perfect the push-up? Here are some tips -- no As-Seen-On-TV equipment needed:
-- If you can only do a handful of push-ups, start with your hands on a bench and your body in a straight line from your head to your feet. As the number of push-ups you can do with your hands on a bench improves, you can move to an aerobic step and decrease the height of the step.
-- If you find your midsection sagging towards the floor before your upper body gets tired, Tumminello recommends focusing on plank and other core stability exercises to help you stay stable.
-- When doing push-ups, either from the floor or from a bench or step, don’t try to form a “T” with your upper arms. Tuck your elbows towards your midsection at roughly a 45-degree angle. “Not only does (having your elbows flared to 90 degrees) make the exercise significantly tougher on you," Tumminello says, "but it can be a lot tougher on your shoulder and your elbow joints as well."
-- At all times, keep your wrists should directly underneath your elbows. Your forearm should be perpendicular to the ground at all times, like a table leg.
-- Open your hands up and angle your fingers slightly outward. “If you turn your hands outwards," Tumminello says, "it actually starts to incorporate your lat muscles and some more muscles in your shoulders. So not only do you have more horsepower behind the push-up, which helps increase your push-up strength, but now you actually have more muscles working to stabilize your joints as well."
For most of us, push-ups are a last resort -- what we do when we can't get to the gym. But maybe the last resort should actually be first.
Dr. Joshua Brooks
Chiropractor, Fairfax VA 22031
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
K2 Gains Popularity Among Athletes: Similar High As Pot, No Positive Drug Test | ThePostGame
K2 Gains Popularity Among Athletes: Similar High As Pot, No Positive Drug Test ThePostGame
David Rozga loved the Packers. He had a No. 4 tattoo for Brett Favre on his right shoulder, and he planned to add a No. 12 for Aaron Rodgers. He played football until he broke his leg as a sophomore in high school, and he often made the trip with his dad to Lambeau Field from his home in Indianola, Iowa. David Rozga dreamed of seeing the Pack win a Super Bowl.
He didn’t get the chance. Last June, he left a high school graduation party, returned home and took his own life.
David Rozga was 18.
His parents, Mike and Jan, blamed themselves. “It really made us look deeply at ourselves,” Mike says. “How terrible parents we were to not have seen this in our son.”
Two days later, David’s girlfriend, Carrie, came by with a confession: On the day he died, she said, David had been smoking a synthetic marijuana called K2, also known as Spice.
David’s parents had never heard of it. Carrie hadn’t, either. But when Mike Rozga called the police, he began to learn about an herbal blend sprayed with chemicals that mimic the high from marijuana. It’s marketed as incense but it is nothing like the stuff that makes your kitchen smell like potpourri.
Reporting by ThePostGame.com shows K2 use may be on the rise in the athlete population –- not only at various levels of amateur sport, but in professional sports as well. “I go straight weed in the off-season,” one NFL veteran told ThePostGame.com on condition of anonymity. “Then, in-season, when they test, I go to [K2].”
“It’s a danger to anybody who thinks this is a legal way to get high without being caught,” says Jay Schauben, director of the Florida Poison Control Center. “The possible side effects include significant hallucination, cardiac effects, seizures, rapid heart rate, hypertension, severe agitation, passing out, and panic attacks.”
Rozga believes a K2 high led to his son’s suicide. The Indianola police chief, Steve Bonnett, wrote a letter saying David “had a severe panic attack after smoking K2, which resulted in his death.”
“David suffered greatly,” Mike Rozga says. “He was tormented by this drug.”
Leading health experts believe more tragedy is to come -- and that athletes may be at particular risk.
“We’re receiving more reports of its use in the athlete population,” says Frank Uryasz, director of the National Center of Drug-Free Sport. “It appears to be marketed heavily to young people -- high school age and below, and college. We’re getting reports from colleges, where athletes are asking about it.”
One such report to the Drug-Free Sport hotline, from an NCAA athletic trainer, reads:
“Three student-athletes were breaking apart cigarettes, mixing it with K2, rolling it back up into papers and then smoking. One young man, who had NO past medical history, had a seizure and lost consciousness. He was found outside the dorm by campus security convulsing. His heart rate was elevated above 200 for enough time that he was admitted for 24 hours of observation … When asked why he did it: "I didn't think it would be that much of a rush, I had no control over my body in that I could see but could not talk or speak.”
Here’s another report, from another athletic trainer:
“We have a student-athlete who was in the emergency room over the weekend! Says he was smoking ‘Spice.’ His heart was racing, his blood pressure was off the charts, and he was hallucinating. This went on for hours!!”
K2, which was first identified in December 2008, has an active ingredient called JWH-018, which is very similar to the compound that produces the high of marijuana. But K2 does not produce a positive drug test, and that is part of why its use has skyrocketed in the U.S. over the last two years. According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, there were 14 cases of K2 exposure in the 48 states plus the District of
Columbia in 2009. In 2010, that number exploded to 2,888. Already this year, there have been nearly 1,000. In the last four months alone, 151 Navy sailors have been accused of using or possessing the drug.
The U.S. Naval Academy expelled eight midshipmen last month for using K2.
Several forms of synthetic marijuana were added to the DEA’s controlled substance list last week, including JWH-018, but it’s virtually impossible to identify and ban all of them.
K2 is relatively inexpensive and widely available; it’s even sold at some gas stations, according to several experts. David Rozga got his at a mall near Des Moines, according to his father.
ThePostGame.com recently bought a three-gram package of “K2 Peach” at a smoke shop in Orlando for $59.95. The package said “Not for consumption,” and it came with a small leaflet that said “Not … for human consumption” three times.
But it is being consumed, and athletes who use it are at particular risk, some experts say. “For athletes, you run the danger of having cardiovascular effects,” says David Kroll, professor of pharmaceutical sciences at North Carolina Central University. “I would hypothesize that with enough people using this stuff, you’re bound to see a heart attack.”
Performance-enhancing drugs may add yet another layer of risk. “If you combine these products and steroids, I can’t begin to predict the negative consequences,” says Anthony Scalzo, director of toxicology at St. Louis University. “If you add these stresses to the heart, someone’s probably going to have a heart attack from it.”
But those who use it often fail to see the danger behind the high.
“I used it freshman year,” one Division I NCAA athlete told ThePostGame.com, on condition of anonymity. “We tried it and realized that it has similar effects to weed. It was the first time where you could do something that you shouldn’t be doing but you couldn’t get in trouble for it.”
There are no confirmed deaths from K2, however the Drug Abuse Warning Network reports there were 374 emergency room admits last year because of K2 and similar substances.
“Sometimes you feel like your heart is going to come out of your chest, going to explode,” says the D-I athlete. “Your pulse just goes up like crazy. You literally feel like sometimes you’re going to die. But you wake up the next morning and you’re like, ‘Whatever, it’s fine.’
“If you smoke weed, you’re just chill. When you smoke K2, you are (messed) up. Sometimes I felt almost like drops of water were landing on my body somewhere. You’ll feel like a cool drop somewhere and I’ll check but there’s nothing. It’s weird. It’ll trigger different kind of senses around your body.”
The DEA plans to keep K2 illegal for at least a year. The NCAA has also decided to ban it, effective August 1 of this year, but according to NCAA associate director of health and safety Mary Wilfert, “We don’t have a punishment until a student tests positive.” And there is currently no test for K2.
“This market is always going to be available,” says the D-I athlete. “No matter what laws they pass, there will be a way to get around it. I don’t think there’s a way to test for (K2), so athletes are going to use it. Athletes are going to keep doing stuff they can get away with.”
That’s Mike Rozga’s biggest fear. He started the site K2DrugFacts.com as a way to warn the public, but it’s too late to save his son. He watched the Packers win the Super Bowl in his home, weeks after spreading some of David’s ashes in an end zone at Lambeau Field.
“We would have watched the Super Bowl together, without a doubt,” Rozga says. “As a lifelong fan, I was really happy. But it was one of the many things I’ll never get to share with David. I’ll never go to another Packers game with him.”
Dr. Joshua Brooks
Chiropractor Fairfax, VA 22031
David Rozga loved the Packers. He had a No. 4 tattoo for Brett Favre on his right shoulder, and he planned to add a No. 12 for Aaron Rodgers. He played football until he broke his leg as a sophomore in high school, and he often made the trip with his dad to Lambeau Field from his home in Indianola, Iowa. David Rozga dreamed of seeing the Pack win a Super Bowl.
He didn’t get the chance. Last June, he left a high school graduation party, returned home and took his own life.
David Rozga was 18.
His parents, Mike and Jan, blamed themselves. “It really made us look deeply at ourselves,” Mike says. “How terrible parents we were to not have seen this in our son.”
Two days later, David’s girlfriend, Carrie, came by with a confession: On the day he died, she said, David had been smoking a synthetic marijuana called K2, also known as Spice.
David’s parents had never heard of it. Carrie hadn’t, either. But when Mike Rozga called the police, he began to learn about an herbal blend sprayed with chemicals that mimic the high from marijuana. It’s marketed as incense but it is nothing like the stuff that makes your kitchen smell like potpourri.
Reporting by ThePostGame.com shows K2 use may be on the rise in the athlete population –- not only at various levels of amateur sport, but in professional sports as well. “I go straight weed in the off-season,” one NFL veteran told ThePostGame.com on condition of anonymity. “Then, in-season, when they test, I go to [K2].”
“It’s a danger to anybody who thinks this is a legal way to get high without being caught,” says Jay Schauben, director of the Florida Poison Control Center. “The possible side effects include significant hallucination, cardiac effects, seizures, rapid heart rate, hypertension, severe agitation, passing out, and panic attacks.”
Rozga believes a K2 high led to his son’s suicide. The Indianola police chief, Steve Bonnett, wrote a letter saying David “had a severe panic attack after smoking K2, which resulted in his death.”
“David suffered greatly,” Mike Rozga says. “He was tormented by this drug.”
Leading health experts believe more tragedy is to come -- and that athletes may be at particular risk.
“We’re receiving more reports of its use in the athlete population,” says Frank Uryasz, director of the National Center of Drug-Free Sport. “It appears to be marketed heavily to young people -- high school age and below, and college. We’re getting reports from colleges, where athletes are asking about it.”
One such report to the Drug-Free Sport hotline, from an NCAA athletic trainer, reads:
“Three student-athletes were breaking apart cigarettes, mixing it with K2, rolling it back up into papers and then smoking. One young man, who had NO past medical history, had a seizure and lost consciousness. He was found outside the dorm by campus security convulsing. His heart rate was elevated above 200 for enough time that he was admitted for 24 hours of observation … When asked why he did it: "I didn't think it would be that much of a rush, I had no control over my body in that I could see but could not talk or speak.”
Here’s another report, from another athletic trainer:
“We have a student-athlete who was in the emergency room over the weekend! Says he was smoking ‘Spice.’ His heart was racing, his blood pressure was off the charts, and he was hallucinating. This went on for hours!!”
K2, which was first identified in December 2008, has an active ingredient called JWH-018, which is very similar to the compound that produces the high of marijuana. But K2 does not produce a positive drug test, and that is part of why its use has skyrocketed in the U.S. over the last two years. According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, there were 14 cases of K2 exposure in the 48 states plus the District of
Columbia in 2009. In 2010, that number exploded to 2,888. Already this year, there have been nearly 1,000. In the last four months alone, 151 Navy sailors have been accused of using or possessing the drug.
The U.S. Naval Academy expelled eight midshipmen last month for using K2.
Several forms of synthetic marijuana were added to the DEA’s controlled substance list last week, including JWH-018, but it’s virtually impossible to identify and ban all of them.
K2 is relatively inexpensive and widely available; it’s even sold at some gas stations, according to several experts. David Rozga got his at a mall near Des Moines, according to his father.
ThePostGame.com recently bought a three-gram package of “K2 Peach” at a smoke shop in Orlando for $59.95. The package said “Not for consumption,” and it came with a small leaflet that said “Not … for human consumption” three times.
But it is being consumed, and athletes who use it are at particular risk, some experts say. “For athletes, you run the danger of having cardiovascular effects,” says David Kroll, professor of pharmaceutical sciences at North Carolina Central University. “I would hypothesize that with enough people using this stuff, you’re bound to see a heart attack.”
Performance-enhancing drugs may add yet another layer of risk. “If you combine these products and steroids, I can’t begin to predict the negative consequences,” says Anthony Scalzo, director of toxicology at St. Louis University. “If you add these stresses to the heart, someone’s probably going to have a heart attack from it.”
But those who use it often fail to see the danger behind the high.
“I used it freshman year,” one Division I NCAA athlete told ThePostGame.com, on condition of anonymity. “We tried it and realized that it has similar effects to weed. It was the first time where you could do something that you shouldn’t be doing but you couldn’t get in trouble for it.”
There are no confirmed deaths from K2, however the Drug Abuse Warning Network reports there were 374 emergency room admits last year because of K2 and similar substances.
“Sometimes you feel like your heart is going to come out of your chest, going to explode,” says the D-I athlete. “Your pulse just goes up like crazy. You literally feel like sometimes you’re going to die. But you wake up the next morning and you’re like, ‘Whatever, it’s fine.’
“If you smoke weed, you’re just chill. When you smoke K2, you are (messed) up. Sometimes I felt almost like drops of water were landing on my body somewhere. You’ll feel like a cool drop somewhere and I’ll check but there’s nothing. It’s weird. It’ll trigger different kind of senses around your body.”
The DEA plans to keep K2 illegal for at least a year. The NCAA has also decided to ban it, effective August 1 of this year, but according to NCAA associate director of health and safety Mary Wilfert, “We don’t have a punishment until a student tests positive.” And there is currently no test for K2.
“This market is always going to be available,” says the D-I athlete. “No matter what laws they pass, there will be a way to get around it. I don’t think there’s a way to test for (K2), so athletes are going to use it. Athletes are going to keep doing stuff they can get away with.”
That’s Mike Rozga’s biggest fear. He started the site K2DrugFacts.com as a way to warn the public, but it’s too late to save his son. He watched the Packers win the Super Bowl in his home, weeks after spreading some of David’s ashes in an end zone at Lambeau Field.
“We would have watched the Super Bowl together, without a doubt,” Rozga says. “As a lifelong fan, I was really happy. But it was one of the many things I’ll never get to share with David. I’ll never go to another Packers game with him.”
Dr. Joshua Brooks
Chiropractor Fairfax, VA 22031
Monday, March 7, 2011
5 health reasons to not quit coffee - Healthy Living on Shine
5 health reasons to not quit coffee - Healthy Living on Shine
By Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D., Associate Nutrition Editor at EatingWell Magazine
I really like coffee. The morning ritual of brewing a cup, the smell that perks me up before I take a sip and, of course, the flavor all make it my favorite beverage aside from water (water’s delicious!). As a registered dietitian and a nutrition editor for EatingWell Magazine, I know that coffee is fine in moderation. It has lots of antioxidants and is low in calories if you don’t load it up with cream and sugar. Nonetheless, I always feel slightly guilty about drinking it—you know, in a “it’s so good, it must be bad” kind of way.
Don’t Miss: 5 “Bad” Foods You Should Be Eating
Which is why I’m always delighted to hear of new reasons that coffee is good for your health...and there are plenty! Over 18,000 studies on coffee have been published in the past few decades, revealing these benefits, many of which Joyce Hendley wrote about in the March/April issue of EatingWell Magazine:
Recipes to Try: Hot Fudge Pudding Cake and Other Coffee-Infused Recipes
Don’t Miss: How to Brew a “Greener” Cup of Coffee
1. It protects your heart: Moderate coffee drinkers (1 to 3 cups/day) have lower rates of stroke than noncoffee drinkers, an effect linked to coffee’s antioxidants. Coffee has more antioxidants per serving than blueberries, making it the biggest source of antioxidants in American diets. All those antioxidants may help suppress the damaging effect of inflammation on arteries. Immediately after drinking it, coffee raises your blood pressure and heart rate, but over the long term, it actually may lower blood pressure as coffee’s antioxidants activate nitric oxide, widening blood vessels.
2. It diverts diabetes: Those antioxidants (chlorogenic acid and quinides, specifically) play another role: boosting your cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which helps regulate blood sugar. In fact, people who drink 4 or more cups of coffee each day may have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to some studies. Other studies have shown that caffeine can blunt the insulin-sensitivity boost, so if you do drink several cups a day, try mixing in decaf occasionally.
Must-Read: 4 Diet-Busting Coffee-Shop Drinks (and What to Drink Instead)
3. Your liver loves it: OK, so the research here is limited, but it looks like the more coffee people drink, the lower their incidence of cirrhosis and other liver diseases. One analysis of nine studies found that every 2-cup increase in daily coffee intake reduced liver cancer risk by 43 percent. Again, it’s those antioxidants—chlorogenic and caffeic acids—and caffeine that might prevent liver inflammation and inhibit cancer cells.
4. It boosts your brain power: Drinking between 1 and 5 cups a day (admittedly a big range) may help reduce risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as Parkinson’s disease, studies suggest. Those antioxidants may ward off brain cell damage and help the neurotransmitters involved in cognitive function to work better.
5. It helps your headaches: And not just the withdrawal headaches caused by skipping your daily dose of caffeine! Studies show that 200 milligrams of caffeine—about the amount in 16 ounces of brewed coffee—provides relief from headaches, including migraines. Exactly how caffeine relieves headaches isn’t clear. But scientists do know that caffeine boosts the activity of brain cells, causing surrounding blood vessels to constrict. One theory is that this constriction helps to relieve the pressure that causes the pain, says Robert Shapiro, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of neurology and director of the Headache Clinic at the University of Vermont Medical School.
Now, that’s not to say that coffee doesn’t have any pitfalls—it does. Some people are super-sensitive to caffeine and get jittery or anxious after drinking coffee; habitual coffee drinkers usually develop a tolerance to caffeine that eliminates this problem (but they then need the caffeine to be alert and ward off withdrawal headaches). Coffee can also disturb sleep, especially as people age. Cutting some of the caffeine and drinking it earlier in the day can curb this effect. Lastly, unfiltered coffee (like that made with a French press) can raise LDL cholesterol, so use a filter for heart health.
But if you like coffee and you can tolerate it well, enjoy it...without the guilt.
Community Poll: How much coffee do you drink every day?
By Kerri-Ann Jennings
Kerri-Ann, a registered dietitian, is the associate editor of nutrition for EatingWell magazine, where she puts her master’s degree in nutrition from Columbia University to work writing and editing news about nutrition, health and food trends. In her free time, Kerri-Ann likes to practice yoga, hike, bake and paint.
Dr. Joshua Brooks, Chiropractor Fairfax, VA 22031
By Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D., Associate Nutrition Editor at EatingWell Magazine
I really like coffee. The morning ritual of brewing a cup, the smell that perks me up before I take a sip and, of course, the flavor all make it my favorite beverage aside from water (water’s delicious!). As a registered dietitian and a nutrition editor for EatingWell Magazine, I know that coffee is fine in moderation. It has lots of antioxidants and is low in calories if you don’t load it up with cream and sugar. Nonetheless, I always feel slightly guilty about drinking it—you know, in a “it’s so good, it must be bad” kind of way.
Don’t Miss: 5 “Bad” Foods You Should Be Eating
Which is why I’m always delighted to hear of new reasons that coffee is good for your health...and there are plenty! Over 18,000 studies on coffee have been published in the past few decades, revealing these benefits, many of which Joyce Hendley wrote about in the March/April issue of EatingWell Magazine:
Recipes to Try: Hot Fudge Pudding Cake and Other Coffee-Infused Recipes
Don’t Miss: How to Brew a “Greener” Cup of Coffee
1. It protects your heart: Moderate coffee drinkers (1 to 3 cups/day) have lower rates of stroke than noncoffee drinkers, an effect linked to coffee’s antioxidants. Coffee has more antioxidants per serving than blueberries, making it the biggest source of antioxidants in American diets. All those antioxidants may help suppress the damaging effect of inflammation on arteries. Immediately after drinking it, coffee raises your blood pressure and heart rate, but over the long term, it actually may lower blood pressure as coffee’s antioxidants activate nitric oxide, widening blood vessels.
2. It diverts diabetes: Those antioxidants (chlorogenic acid and quinides, specifically) play another role: boosting your cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which helps regulate blood sugar. In fact, people who drink 4 or more cups of coffee each day may have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to some studies. Other studies have shown that caffeine can blunt the insulin-sensitivity boost, so if you do drink several cups a day, try mixing in decaf occasionally.
Must-Read: 4 Diet-Busting Coffee-Shop Drinks (and What to Drink Instead)
3. Your liver loves it: OK, so the research here is limited, but it looks like the more coffee people drink, the lower their incidence of cirrhosis and other liver diseases. One analysis of nine studies found that every 2-cup increase in daily coffee intake reduced liver cancer risk by 43 percent. Again, it’s those antioxidants—chlorogenic and caffeic acids—and caffeine that might prevent liver inflammation and inhibit cancer cells.
4. It boosts your brain power: Drinking between 1 and 5 cups a day (admittedly a big range) may help reduce risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as Parkinson’s disease, studies suggest. Those antioxidants may ward off brain cell damage and help the neurotransmitters involved in cognitive function to work better.
5. It helps your headaches: And not just the withdrawal headaches caused by skipping your daily dose of caffeine! Studies show that 200 milligrams of caffeine—about the amount in 16 ounces of brewed coffee—provides relief from headaches, including migraines. Exactly how caffeine relieves headaches isn’t clear. But scientists do know that caffeine boosts the activity of brain cells, causing surrounding blood vessels to constrict. One theory is that this constriction helps to relieve the pressure that causes the pain, says Robert Shapiro, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of neurology and director of the Headache Clinic at the University of Vermont Medical School.
Now, that’s not to say that coffee doesn’t have any pitfalls—it does. Some people are super-sensitive to caffeine and get jittery or anxious after drinking coffee; habitual coffee drinkers usually develop a tolerance to caffeine that eliminates this problem (but they then need the caffeine to be alert and ward off withdrawal headaches). Coffee can also disturb sleep, especially as people age. Cutting some of the caffeine and drinking it earlier in the day can curb this effect. Lastly, unfiltered coffee (like that made with a French press) can raise LDL cholesterol, so use a filter for heart health.
But if you like coffee and you can tolerate it well, enjoy it...without the guilt.
Community Poll: How much coffee do you drink every day?
By Kerri-Ann Jennings
Kerri-Ann, a registered dietitian, is the associate editor of nutrition for EatingWell magazine, where she puts her master’s degree in nutrition from Columbia University to work writing and editing news about nutrition, health and food trends. In her free time, Kerri-Ann likes to practice yoga, hike, bake and paint.
Dr. Joshua Brooks, Chiropractor Fairfax, VA 22031
Friday, March 4, 2011
FDA says migraine drug ups risk for birth defects
FDA says migraine drug ups risk for birth defects
A headache medication for migraines increases the risk for birth defects in babies born to pregnant mothers taking the medication, U.S. health officials said on Friday.
The Food and Drug Administration said new data shows the drug, sold generically and as Johnson & Johnson's Topamax, can cause cleft lips or cleft palate deformities.
Officials called on doctors to warn their female patients of childbearing age who are taking the medicine about its risks.
FDA's Russell Katz, who heads the agency's Division of Neurology Products, said doctors should think carefully before prescribing the drug to women and "alternative medications that have a lower risk of birth defects should be considered."
Cleft lips and cleft palates occur when the mouth does not fully form, causing a "split lip" or a hole in the roof of the mouth.
They can lead to multiple development issues because they can make it nearly impossible for babies to get adequate nutrition. They can be corrected with surgery, although sometimes several operations are needed.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc, Mylan Inc and other generic drug makers also sell the drug under its chemical name topiramate.
FDA issued the warning based on data collected from the North American Antiepileptic Drug Pregnancy Registry, it said.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Julie Steenhuysen and Gerald E. McCormick)
Dr. Joshua Brooks
Chiropractor Fairfax, VA
A headache medication for migraines increases the risk for birth defects in babies born to pregnant mothers taking the medication, U.S. health officials said on Friday.
The Food and Drug Administration said new data shows the drug, sold generically and as Johnson & Johnson's Topamax, can cause cleft lips or cleft palate deformities.
Officials called on doctors to warn their female patients of childbearing age who are taking the medicine about its risks.
FDA's Russell Katz, who heads the agency's Division of Neurology Products, said doctors should think carefully before prescribing the drug to women and "alternative medications that have a lower risk of birth defects should be considered."
Cleft lips and cleft palates occur when the mouth does not fully form, causing a "split lip" or a hole in the roof of the mouth.
They can lead to multiple development issues because they can make it nearly impossible for babies to get adequate nutrition. They can be corrected with surgery, although sometimes several operations are needed.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc, Mylan Inc and other generic drug makers also sell the drug under its chemical name topiramate.
FDA issued the warning based on data collected from the North American Antiepileptic Drug Pregnancy Registry, it said.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Julie Steenhuysen and Gerald E. McCormick)
Dr. Joshua Brooks
Chiropractor Fairfax, VA
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