 |
 |
 |
FDA Home | Search
FDA Site | FDA A-Z Index | Contact
FDA
Topics in This Issue:
Important consumer health information from the federal government will be available more widely and quickly now that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has teamed with WebMD to launch an HHS "channel" on the popular WebMD health site. The new channel can help consumers become better informed about their own health and will include information about, for example, how to use the food label to make smart choices about what to eat, or how to talk to your doctor.
The nine-month pilot project, launched in May 2004, includes information that supports several national health priorities identified by HHS. The first category posted is physical activity, with information on how to make exercise part of your life, how to get the kids involved, and personalizing your fitness program. Other topics to be added in the coming months include:
The information will be posted on the special HHS page on WebMD and will be linked to the Web site's partner health sites, which include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the FDA.
Are you older than 50 and looking for reliable information on government services, health, volunteering, and finances? If so, the new FirstGov for Seniors Web site should be helpful. It's a one-stop for seniors that contains links to topics such as fraud, long-term care, Social Security, federal and state services, pertinent laws, and travel.
Need some help with taxes? The site has a whole section that serves as a gateway to background on tax counseling for the elderly, tax law changes, tax credit for the elderly or disabled, and pension or annuity income.
Though the site contains hundreds of links, it spotlights commonly used sites, making it easy for users to find the most popular material, including an eldercare locator, nursing home comparison, prescription drug assistance, and a retirement calculator.
Now that it's summer, it might be tempting to visit a "sunless" tanning booth to get an artificial tan by being sprayed with the chemical dihydroxyacetone (DHA). Results can simulate a tan. But you should know that while the FDA allows DHA to be "externally applied" for skin coloring, there are restrictions on its use. Mainly, the chemical should not be applied in any way that would allow it to get into the eyes, lips, or mucous membranes, or to be inhaled.
The FDA suggests that consumers ask questions of the sunless tanning booth operator before undergoing the treatment. Suggested questions can be found on the agency's sunless tanning Web site.
Next time you throw hamburgers on the grill, it might be tempting to judge the burgers' "doneness" by checking to see which ones have turned brown. Don't. Experts emphasize that this system is flawed because color is a misleading method to determine if food is safe to eat. Research at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has shown that 1 out of every 4 burgers that turns brown in the middle isn't sufficiently cooked. The only way to ensure that food has reached a high enough temperature to destroy harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer.
But only about half of the U.S. population even owns a food thermometer, the USDA says, and only 3 percent use one when cooking foods like hamburgers at home.
To spread the word about the importance of measuring food temperature, the USDA has created a campaign centered around "Thermy," a cartoon character that has some fun with the issue on posters and brochures. Thermy's Web site will give you helpful information about using a thermometer, not only with hamburgers in the summer, but also year-round with foods such as poultry, roasts, meatloaf, and egg casseroles.
The site also has coloring books, puzzles, and other fun Thermy games for kids. Educators will find art projects and other teaching aids, and businesses can use Thermy graphics in their in-house newsletters and displays.
Many online Thermy materials also are available in Spanish.
FDA.gov is written by John Henkel, a member of the FDA's Website Management Staff.