| Over-the counter heartburn drug could save consumers thousands
The over-the-counter drug omeprazole (Prilosec OTC) is just as effective in easing heartburn and acid reflux as costlier prescription medicines--and could save consumers up to $2,000 a year, according to an updated report from Consumer Reports' Best Buy Drugs initiative.
Prilosec OTC and prescription versions of similar drugs, such as lansoprazole (Prevacid) and esomeprazole (Nexium), belong to a class of drugs called proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs). They are among the most widely prescribed drugs in the country, and manufacturers have put a great deal of marketing muscle into steering consumers to their brands. Nexium, for example, was the second-most advertised drug in 2005, with a $205 million direct-to-consumer ad campaign.
But according to the Consumer Reports' Best Buy Drugs report, none of the PPIs are significantly more effective than the others, with the only real difference being price.
Women Often Miss Subtle Heart Attack Symptoms
CLEVELAND -- Most women are concerned about diseases such as breast cancer, but some have no idea that heart disease kills far more women than cancer does. Television station WEWS looked at how women are different from men when it comes to heart attacks. Everyone seems to love Ken Drain, including his wife, Jennie, who has always worried about his risk for a heart attack, the station reported. Even he worried about it. .
20TH CENTURY'S BEST: HALITOSIS, HARDING
Friday, December 27, 1991 - Any fool can write an end-of-year roundup. It takes a special fool to tackle an end-of-century wrap. But I'm doing it for you as a public service, kind of a flu shot against the coming epidemic. Warning: We'll soon be infested with end-of-century commemoratives.
Don't believe me? This is the same media machine that goes nuts over the anniversary of a hitting streak. Think of what they'll do for the close of the 20th century. I can see it now. Life magazine - The Century in Pictures; Playboy - The Century in Sex; Tool Digest - The Century in Drill Bits. We'll be blitzed with special offers from Time-Life books, the Franklin Mint, K-Tel, Dick Clark, Oral Roberts. We'll be overrun with TV mini-series like ``The 20th Century, from Aaron to Zappa, sponsored by Clairol Conditioner - ready to Untangle the 21st century.'' Why will all this be happening? Because the media is in love with history? No, because someone wants to make a buck.
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