Health Uncle:The Red Flag Burgers

The size of unhealthy hamburgers is a red flag in itself.If it's too big to fit comfortably in your mouth,it is probably too fatty and salty to eat.These are burgers built on a dare.They are statements about freedom to some;but is the statement one that is really worth making?Even one unhealthy meal can push an individual over the heart's limit.It's an edge you don't want to fall off of,my reader friend.To stay away from heart procedures,consider having those more modest burgers and other foods. One company that specializes in health information is WebMD.It publishes a magazine for doctors' offices and a large and sophisticated website on consumer health topics. WebMD Health Corporation(WBMD)

NFL Legend Dies Frustrated With His Own Body

NFL legend Bubba Smith,who died August 3 at his Los Angeles home,was apparently dissatisfied with his weight.According to the Los Angeles County Coroner,Smith had high levels of the diet drug phentermine in his system.This,along with poor cardiovascular health in the form of high blood pressure and clogged blood vessels,contributed to his death at age 66,found by a caretaker.
At 6-foot-7 and 280 pounds,Smith was one of the original NFL big men.He played for the Baltimore Colts from 1967-72,helping them win Super Bowl V over the Dallas Cowboys in 1971.He was an all-star in the Pro Bowl in 1970 and 71.Smith later played for the Oakland Raiders and Houston Oilers,retiring with a knee injury in 1976.
Following football,the gentle giant of Baltimore was very successful in Hollywood,excelling in the "Police Academy" film series as Officer Moses Hightower.He also appeared in popular T.V. series such as "Charlie's Angels" and "Married With Children."
I personally encountered Smith at the Baltimore Colts training camp in Westminster,Maryland when he signed autographs for my younger brother and myself.He was sitting alone outside one of the campus buildings in casual clothes and black horn-rimmed glasses.With his goatee and glasses,he looked more like a professor to me than a star athlete.Going over his photos,note that he kept his facial hair in various styles at different points in his life-including cleanshaven.
Smith had indeed received a Bachelor's degree in Sociology from Michigan State,where he was an All-American football star.
Bubba,you will always be warmly remembered by your many sports and cinema fans.

Who Owns St.Joseph Aspirin

St.Joseph Aspirin is a brand owned by Ilex Consumer Products Group,a subsidiary of private equity firm Ilex Capital Group.The longtime children's aspirin product received a new lease on life when research showed that a low dose aspirin regimen has numerous benefits for cardiovascular health,reducing stroke and heart attack risk,and even lessening the damage from a heart attack in progress.
More recently,it has been ascertained that an 81 mg aspirin regimen may help prevent colon cancer as well.Some people are allergic to aspirin.Others with sensitive stomachs may develop bleeding ulcers from taking aspirin.These are rare complications,however.The low dose aspirin regimen,with its minimal cost and multiple benefits,has become one of the most widely recommended in family medicine.
Ilex Consumer Products also owns the Calgon and Gourmet Dining brands.
Based in Annapolis,Maryland,Ilex Capital Group has client service offices in Baltimore and London.Private equity firms such as Ilex normally seek to optimize a brand until it is ready to sell or list for a substantial profit.

Commentary:Overwrought Weather Warnings Blanket Region

There seem to be more alerts and warnings of every sort now than in the past.One can hardly get through a day without being sternly advised about some risk or other.
Thursday morning in the Washington,D.C. area was a case in point.Every five minutes,radio and television broadcasts were interrupted with tornado warnings,many of them redundant.Thunderstorms were under minute scrutiny for signs of rotation,and the least bit of it set off a hyperactive alert apparatus.By noon,you could have been excused for being a jangle of nerves.
Repeated alert sirens and loud taped warnings over a public address system in an outlying town gave a distinct impression of impending doom.In fact,not one tornado materialized there.If you had heeded the advice given,you would have sat in a windowless corner from 4:30 am to noon.
Try that on for cardiovascular or mental health.
The rotation detected in the storms was strictly in the upper levels.It was a potential for materializing,not an actual event.As well,one whole big county was lumped together,when the suspect rotation was confined to only portions of it.A high level of anxiety was produced in a region where killer tornadoes are almost never encountered,if ever encountered at all.Thankfully,the region carried on Thursday and the work of the nation proceeded.
Ironically,in areas typically hardest hit by severe storms,in the deep South and Midwest,they were perhaps not warned vigorously enough today.Hundreds died and more than a thousand were injured by tornadoes and straight line winds.

Pfizer Acquires Cardio Prospect

Pfizer,the world's largest pharmaceutical company,has acquired the developmental drug terguride from Ergonex Pharma GmbH.Terguride is in a Phase 2 Trial.It is an oral medication for the rare cardiovascular condition pulmonary arterial hypertension,which afflicts 100-200,000 people in Europe and the U.S.
In PAH,the arteries that carry blood from the heart to the lungs become thickened and constricted,forcing the heart to work harder to pump blood through the lungs.Eventually,the heart can no longer provide an adequate blood supply to the lungs,resulting in shortness of breath,fatigue,dizziness,fainting,chest pain,edema and even heart failure.
Terguride treats PAH by targeting the release of serotonin,an organic compound found in human and animal tissue.Although serotonin is beneficial in many ways,such as regulating cyclic body processes,it can also stimulate the proliferation of pulmonary artery smooth cells and cause fiber formation in the artery walls.Terguride offers the hope of reversing this arterial remodeling and slowing disease progression,Pfizer believes.
The agreement gives Pfizer exclusive worldwide rights-excluding Japan-to commercialize terguride for the treatment of PAH.Ergonex will receive milestone payments and royalties on sales of the drug.
Pfizer(PFE)

New Catheter Developed

A new prototype for a device that both clears blood vessels of blockage and precisely delivers anti-blockage medication or live cells to the site,has been developed by Atlanta Catheter Therapies.The Occlusion Perfusion Catheter follows the guide wire used by the de-bulking catheter to deliver therapy to the treatment site.
Re-blocking of blood vessels,or restinosis,is a major problem in cardiovascular medicine.Restinosis occurs when smooth muscle cells migrate to the blood vessels and proliferate there,having been stirred up by the catheterization procedure itself,which amounts to a controlled injury to blood vessel walls.More surgery is then indicated,costing the health care system an estimated 475 billion dollars a year.Effectively delivering anti-blockage therapy has been a significant dilemma to this point.
ACT specializes in the development of new technology for catheterization procedures.It brings the new device to the human trials stage.At that time,the work is licensed or sold to a strategic partner.The company is led by CEO Paul Fitzpatrick.Mr.Fitzpatrick joined the firm on March 12.He has 24 years of experience in the entrepreneurial health care field,including start-ups,turn-arounds and integration.