It’s always encouraging to hear that something you enjoy, such as a food or beverage, has exceptional nutritional value or prevents a disease.

Recently, red wine and even alcohol, in general, have been headlines because moderate amounts of alcohol seem to be protective against heart disease.  Alcohol decreases the stickiness of blood cells so they’re less likely to form a clot, and it prevents constriction of coronary arteries; both are scenarios that may lead to a heart attack. [1]

Go into any grocery store nowadays and you‘ll find lots of processed food products aimed at attracting the "heart wise" shopper who‘s trying to lower his or her cholesterol. You‘ll find "heart smart" juices, milk, popcorn, spreads, and breads down just about every aisle.

I‘m not a big fan of these gimmicky processed foods. One of the worst types of offenders, in my opinion, is the "heart-smart" margarine spreads. These products pull you in with promises of delivering delicious and all-natural ingredients that help lower your cholesterol. But how do they get away with this, when most products are nothing more than plastic butter?

Again I have to wonder who the FDA is protecting...because it certainly isn't us.

Late Friday, the FDA announced that they were approving a new drug -- Effient, Eli Lilly's new blood thinner -- even though this drug comes with extremely dangerous and potentially deadly risks.

It is estimated that there are over 50 million people with high blood pressure, or hypertension, in the United States and approximately 1 billion worldwide.

Dear Pharmacist,

I take medications for blood pressure, diabetes and arthritis, five drugs in all.  My doctor is happy with my progress but my wife is urging me to take fish oils to lower my blood pressure. I am not a vitamin type of person, but I don’t like some of the side effects I’m experiencing on the medications. What should I do?  

--G.S. Tampa, Florida

Get a load of this. Big Pharma giant Merck is trying to re-package one of Nature’s most potent heart health allies… and sell it to you as a heart “drug.”

At this very moment, they’re heavily lobbying the FDA to get it approved.

The name of this new “drug” they’re suddenly so excited about?

We often hear warnings about eating foods that contain cholesterol.  We are told eating these foods will lead to cardiovascular disease and heart attacks.  From this we often form the conclusion that cholesterol is bad.  In fact, we are told there is “good” cholesterol and “bad” cholesterol.  Yet, the simple truth is that cholesterol is an essential component of human biochemistry - our body requires it and uses it continuously. 

By now you may have noticed that I’m never impressed by those labels slapped on packaged foods that shout “FAT FREE!”

These labels are designed to confound and misinform you and me. They hide important information, and use all kinds of numerical tricks to make sure you’re never quite fully aware of what you’re eating.

I should know by now not to read the news while enjoying my morning cup of tea. Because this morning, I nearly ended up owing my publisher a new keyboard.

The culprit was this absolutely ridiculous headline: "Give Blood Pressure Drugs to All."

The safety of BPA has been questioned for decades. In fact its toxicity was first discovered in 1930 when it was initially found to mimic estrogen, leading to various cancers. But nonetheless, a decade later its use was ubiquitous in plastics, cans and tins used for foods. Although manufactures knew of its health impacts, they were not required to prove its safety. Until more recently, BPA’s toxicity has been ignored by governmental regulatory organizations, despite mounting evidence for the contrary.