Lost your sex drive? Then try pork, like the president

The people of Argentina are being asked to experiment with a new addition to the national diet: pork.

In response to a beef shortage which means her country will soon have fewer cows than people for the first time in living memory, Argentina's President Cristina Fernández has launched a bold campaign to persuade the nation that pig meat is "sexy".

She has given a speech touting pork as a cheap alternative to Viagra – and suggesting that she had personal experience. "I didn't know that eating pork improved sexual activity, [but] it is much more gratifying to eat some grilled pork than to take Viagra," she said at a meeting on Thursday where she unveiled new subsidies to representatives of the swine industry.

Tucking into a pork chop with her husband, former president Néstor Kirchner, Ms Fernández raised an eyebrow and declared that it was "all good", adding that rumours of the meat's aphrodisiac qualities ( for erectile dysfunction) "might be right".

Regulation urged for herbal pills

A Chinese herbal "doctor" has admitted selling dangerous pills which destroyed the health of a civil servant amid calls to regulate the trade.

Ying "Susan" Wu sold the tiny brown "Xie Gan Wan" tablets to Patricia Booth for more than five years from a shop in Chelmsford, Essex.

Mrs Booth, 58, began taking the pills three times a day to treat a skin condition but they ended up destroying her kidneys and giving her cancer, it is claimed.

In a statement, the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM) said: "The tragic case at the Old Bailey concerning a patient who allegedly suffered cancer and kidney failure after taking pills from a Chinese herbal shop highlights the urgent need for the statutory regulation of herbal medicine in the UK. The suppliers were not members of the RCHM, which upholds the highest standards of herbal practice and has a robust quality control system in place."

A spokeswoman for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said a Department of Health review was taking place about the regulation of alternative practitioners.

Agencies line up for Viagra like launch task

Pfizer, the global pharmaceuticals company, is holding talks with agencies about a launch advertising brief for a new Viagra-like product that tackles erectile dysfunction.

The company, which already owns the prescription-only Viagra brand, is understood to be considering launching the new product in 2011. It does not yet have a name.

The product contains an ingredient that is also found in Viagra, but has been altered in a bid to make it available to consumers over the counter. Pfizer has already attempted to make Viagra available without prescription in the UK, and trialled the product at three Manchester chemists in 2007.

However, a nationwide launch was halted after European regulators raised concerns that thousands of men with underlying health problems could be put at risk if they were given the opportunity to take the pill without consulting their doctor first.

In the UK, Rapp handles the digital and direct marketing work for Viagra. The agency won the £8m business in November 2007, after a pitch against TMW.

Last year, Pfizer launched a controversial cinema ad that aimed to raise awareness of the dangers of buying drugs such as Viagra online without a prescription.

The ad, by the healthcare agency Langland, featured a man pulling a dead rat out of his mouth and attracted more than 50 complaints to the advertising regulator.

Source: http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/983356/Agencies-line-Viagra-like-launch-task/

Deadly erectile dysfunction drugs for women

Authorities raided a local direct-selling firm’s outlets yesterday for selling to women a health supplement that contains a drug used to treat erectile dysfunction.
Health Ministry enforcement officers seized RM1 million worth of health supplements marketed under the brand names “Extremen” and “Extrewomen”.

The officers conducted the nationwide raids simultaneously, including at the firm’s headquarters in Taman Shamelin, Cheras, here and a factory in Malacca.

Ministry pharmaceutical enforcement division director Hatta Ahmad said more than 200 officers were involved in the raids on more than 20 locations following a month of surveillance.

“Prior to the raids, samples of the product, which were sold in powder form, were sent to the Chemistry Department and the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry for tests.

“Results revealed that Extrewomen contained tadalafil while Extremen contained hydroxythiohomosildenafil, an analogue of sildenafil or Viagra.” Tadalafil is used to treat erectile dysfunction but can only be obtained with a doctor’s prescription, similar to Viagra. Those suffering diabetes, hypertension and coronary artery disease are not allowed to consume tadalafil as it can have massive repercussions.

The analogue hydroxyhomosildenafil is illegal in Malaysia as it causes health problems to those who consume it.

Hatta said: “I nvestigations revealed that users did not realise that there was tadalafil inside the product because the manufacturers claimed the product only contained natural herbs and collagen, a group of naturally-occurring proteins.

“But Extrewomen will make women feel amorous and randy. They will not realise that it is due to the tadalafil in the product.” He took the direct-selling company to task for selling the product as tadalafil was a controlled substance.

The side effects include headaches, stomach aches, blurred vision or, in extreme cases, sudden death.

The amount of tadalafil in the product seized is considered three times stronger than taking a Viagra pill.

Investigations revealed that the products had been distributed nationwide besides being exported to Indonesia, based on invoices found at the headquarters.

80% of men overweight by 2020

Eight out of 10 men and almost seven in 10 women will be overweight or obese in the UK by 2020, according to a new study.

While data suggests childhood obesity may be levelling off, the picture for adults is "less optimistic".
Not only will people be larger but the likeliness of diabetes, strokes and heart disease will increase, the report added.

Led by Professor Klim McPherson from Oxford University, who is also chair of the National Heart Forum, the study updates predictions in a 2007 Foresight report, which was based on data from 1993 to 2004. The latest research uses complete figures from 1993 to 2007 to predict future levels of obesity in England.

The study said: "Unlike the recent report on child obesity, which showed some indications of a plateauing or at least a significant reduction in the rate of obesity, the future projections for adults are less optimistic."

Some 41% of men aged 20 to 65 will be obese by 2020 and 40% will be overweight, the new predictions show. Meanwhile, 36% of women will be obese and 32% will be overweight. Among those aged 40 to 65, 44% of men and 38% of women will be obese while 40% of men and 32% of women will be overweight.

Obesity shows no sign of slowing down among adults and the incidence of associated illnesses - such as heart disease - will only rise, said the report. By 2050, there will be a 23% rise in the prevalence of obesity-related stroke, a 34% rise in obesity-related high blood pressure, a 44% rise in obesity-related coronary heart disease and a 98% rise in obesity-related diabetes.

Prof McPherson said: "The Government needs to redouble its efforts to tackle obesity. We are being overwhelmed by the effects of today's 'obesogenic' environment, with its abundance of energy-dense food and sedentary lifestyles."

Joe Korner, director of communications at The Stroke Association, said the results were "shocking". He added: "Obese people are more likely to suffer a stroke which can leave people with paralysis and communication problems. But you don't have to become a statistic; you can do something about it."

Peter Hollins, chief executive of the British Heart Foundation (BHF), said: "These figures predict an alarming rise in adult obesity and the knock on effect this could have on the number of people suffering from heart disease will be devastating. We all need to think long and hard about the long-term consequences of choices we are making today if we want to achieve a healthy old age."