U.S. Food and Drug Administration
FDA Consumer magazine
July-August 2001
Table of Contents
Ever wonder what is meant by terms like "dermatologist tested" on cosmetic labels? Want the lowdown on ingredients in hair dye or mascara? How about sunscreens? The Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition can answer these questions and more on a new Web site loaded with useful background on all kinds of cosmetics. The site, at www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/cos-toc.html, has special sections on color additives, hair spray, nail products, soap, and thigh creams. While on the site, take an interactive quiz to gauge your cosmetics smarts, then print out a "diploma." If the quiz whets your appetite for more, there's an extensive question and answer page that discusses aromatherapy, alpha hydroxy acids, tattoos, and other topics. The site also has features for kids and teens, along with a page on cosmetic use for cancer patients.
It was first diagnosed in Great Britain in 1986, but in recent months, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or "mad cow disease," has seen its share of headlines as the disease has shown up in numerous European countries. What are the facts about this destructive cattle disorder that as yet is unknown to exist in the United States? What is being done to keep the disease out of this country? A recently remodeled FDA Web site at www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/bse.html explains the latest about BSE. The site acts as a portal to FDA information, as well as to materials from other federal agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There's background for travelers, questions and answers about human vaccines made from bovine materials, explanations about the human form of BSE, and information for industry and veterinarians. The site also links to a special page containing slides and transcripts from an informative April 16 FDA briefing on BSE for consumers.
Every day, more than 1,500 Americans attempt suicide; 86 of them succeed, making the yearly suicide toll in this country a devastating 30,000. Suicide is "reaching epidemic proportions in some groups," Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., says. To help Americans understand suicide and to suggest ways to prevent it, the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention (NSSP), a new coalition of four federal public health agencies, has created a Web site that brings together varied expertise. On the site, you will find information about:
At www.mentalhealth.org/suicideprevention, the site also has a webcast and chat page where you can view the surgeon general's May 2 speech announcing the formation of the NSSP and see the transcript of an online chat with the surgeon general about suicide.
The NSSP is a joint effort of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the Health Resources and Services Administration.
Internet con schemes. Bogus prize promotions. Telemarketing scams. Fake advance-fee loans. Identity theft. Taken together, these crimes cost American consumers and businesses tens of billions of dollars yearly. But the Federal Trade Commission is fighting back with its "Consumer Sentinel" Web site, which brings together U.S., Canadian, and Australian law enforcers, along with organizations such as Better Business Bureaus, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the National Consumers League. The site, at www.consumer.gov/sentinel, allows consumers to register fraud complaints, which are then shared with law enforcement agents to determine, for example, if a reported scheme is local, regional, or national. In just the last two years, law enforcers using Consumer Sentinel have brought hundreds of cases to justice and have returned millions of dollars to consumers. Consumer Sentinel also links to various sites that have helpful information about avoiding consumer fraud when buying products online.
--John Henkel, Website Management Staff
Table of Contents
| How to Subscribe |
Back Issues | Editorial Questions
FDA/Office of Public Affairs
Web page created by clb 2001-JUN-19.