FDA: Hydroxycut.......Cytotec

According to a CNN report on May 1, 2009:

The FDA said it has received 23 reports of serious liver injuries linked to Hydroxycut products, which are also used as energy enhancers and as fat burners.
The reports include the 2007 death of a 19-year-old man living in the Southwest, which was reported to the FDA in March. Other serious liver problems reported included liver damage that resulted in a transplant in 2002, liver failure, jaundice, seizures and cardiovascular problems. The FDA is warning consumers to immediately stop using 14 Hydroxycut products manufactured by Iovate Health Sciences Inc. of Oakville, Ontario, and distributed by Iovate Health Sciences USA Inc. of Blasdell, New York.

In the July/August 2001 issue of Mothering Magazine, Ina May Gaskin wrote:

My review of 30 misoprostol [Cytotec] induction studies and reports representing 3,415 births was far less reassuring. I found 14 baby deaths, 25 uterine ruptures, 2 maternal deaths, and 2 life-threatening hemorrhages.4-14 Significantly, several of these complications occurred in women given a single 25 mcg dose-the smallest dose possible.15 According to one researcher, the author of several studies, "Some patients appear to be quite sensitive to misoprostol, demonstrating prolonged contraction responses after a dose of the agent, sometimes in excess of 20 hours after the drug."16


While this may not be the first occurence of such a disparity of truth, I feel betrayed as a medical professional, woman, mother, and US citizen. However, I have renewed energy to educate both the medical and expectant parent population about this disparity.