Last month, President Barack Obama signed The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act into law, allowing the federal government broad authority over tobacco products. Unfortunately, new research indicates that regulations have not fully enabled the removal of misleading information from cigarette labeling, reports ScienceDaily.

Verbiage such as “silver” or “smooth,” says ScienceDaily, allow consumers to believe that cigarettes are not as dangerous. Including low numbers into cigarette brand names, lighter colors, or pictures of filters, add to the misconception, Science Daily added. More Cigarette Packaging is Still Misleading

Anxious homeowners had a chance to have their Chinese drywall questions answered during a town hall meeting in Bonita Springs, Florida last Thursday. The meeting was sponsored by Parker Waichman Alonso LLP and Morgan & Morgan, P.A., which together filed the first federal lawsuit on behalf of Chinese drywall victims.

About 100 homeowners attended the event, which was held at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa in Bonita Springs. Jordan L. Chaikin of Parker Waichman Alonso LLP and Michael Goetz of Morgan & Morgan, P.A. hosted the event. According to Chaikin, the meeting covered a variety of issues relating to Chinese drywall, including the progress of the Chinese Drywall Multidistrict Litigation currently underway in federal court in New Orleans. Mortgage and lender issues, as well remediation efforts were also discussed. Homeowners were given the opportunity to ask any and all questions they had regarding Chinese drywall during an open forum discussion. More Chinese Drywall Meeting Answers Homeowners’ Questions

An emerging study has found a link between pediatric cancer and household pesticides. Researchers at the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center have found that the urine of children with a specific type of cancer contains increased levels of common household pesticides, said ScienceDaily.

The research discovered the finding occurred in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a cancer that generally develops when children are between three and seven years of age, said ScienceDaily. The study’s findings appear in next month’s issue of the journal Therapeutic Drug Monitoring. More Pesticides Linked To Cancer In Children

A spine surgeon who had a financial relationship with Medtronic Inc. did not disclose that relationship when he testified before a Senate committee urging more funding for research into combat-related injuries, The Wall Street Journal is reporting. One of Medtronic’s products, Infuse Bone Graft, has been used to treat wounded soldiers.

Following his May 2006 testimony, Dr. David Polly and his colleagues at the University of Minnesota received a $466,644 Department of Defense grant for a two-year study involving Infuse, the Journal said. More Infuse Bone Graft Researcher Failed to Tell Senate Committee He was Paid by Medtronic During 2006 Testimony

According to emerging research, GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug, Avandia, can cause death as a result of liver failure, and should be banned by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). The group, Public Citizen, published the research in the peer-reviewed medical journal Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety.

According to Public Citizen, it petitioned the FDA to ban Avandia as far back as October due to its risks, including heart attack, heart failure, and liver toxicity, noting that these risks “far outweigh its benefits,” especially given that there are safer medical alternatives for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes. The study discussed 11 cases of severe liver toxicity, mostly fatal, that were associated with Avandia (generic: rosiglitazone) use, said Public Citizen. More Group Says Avandia Ups Risk For Liver Damage

A group of U.S. Senators sent out a series of letters yesterday – including one that went to the White House – asking for more action on the Chinese drywall problem. Similar letters were sent to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The Consumer Products Safety Commission has received 681 complaints from residents of 22 states regarding Chinese drywall. The most reports – 510 – have come from Florida. Homeowners have complained that fumes from the Chinese drywall produce a “rotten eggs” odor that permeates their homes, and causes metal, including air conditioning coils and even jewelry, to corrode. Eye irritation, sinus problems and respiratory symptoms have also been reported among people living in homes containing Chinese drywall. More Chinese Drywall Help Sought from White House, Federal Agencies

Body building supplements, including those sold by American Cellular Laboratories under the names “TREN-Xtreme,” “MASS Xtreme,” “ESTRO Xtreme,” “AH-89-Xtreme,” “HMG Xtreme,” “MMA-3 Xtreme,” “VNS-9 Xtreme,” and “TT-40-Xtreme” have been linked to serious liver damage and other health problems, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) warned yesterday. Consumers should not use these, or any body building supplements that claim to contain steroid-like ingredients.

The FDA has received five adverse event reports, including serious liver injury, in men taking products marketed as dietary supplements by American Cellular Laboratories including TREN-Xtreme and MASS Xtreme. Acute liver injury is generally known to be a possible side effect of using products that contain anabolic steroids. Some of the cases resulted in hospitalization, but there were no reports of death or acute liver failure. More Body Building Supplements Linked to Serious Liver Damage, Other Problems

Generic drug maker, Mylan Inc.’s manufacturing plant in Morgantown, West Virginia, is being reviewed by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) due to alleged “production irregularities,” reported the Pittsburgh Business Times, citing a spokesman.

According to Chris Kelly, an FDA spokesman, the so-called “fact-finding” is considered routine, but could result in further steps, depending on what the review reveals, noted the Pittsburgh Business Times. More Drug Maker Mylan Under Review Following Report of Irregularities at West Virginia Plant

The Associated Press is breaking with news that a group of people is suing the company that owns a Pizza Hut restaurant in Greenwood, Mississippi for $1.1 million. The suit now includes 15 people who are members of the same congregation and who allege they fell ill after consuming chicken at the Greenwood Pizza Hut, said the AP.

NPC International Inc., located in Kansas, is named as the sole defendant; Pizza Hut is not named, said the AP. NPC is, said the AP, the nation’s largest Pizza Hut franchisee, comprised of hundreds of Pizza Hut restaurants nationwide, citing the Web site. More Pizza Hut Food Poisoning Lawsuit Grows

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) commissioners have just unanimously voted for draft statement approval for specific “good faith” compliance. Playthings.com reported that the compliance will allow manufacturers credit for good faith regarding tracking label requirements that will be mandated by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) that is effective this August.

“I believe that the guidance unanimously approved by the Commission … will help to achieve the goals of improved recall effectiveness and better protection of consumers while also providing industry with assurance that the Commission does not intend to penalize manufacturers for inadvertent violations of the statute when they have made a good faith effort in attempting to comply with the tracking label requirements,” said the agency’s recently-appointed chairman, Inez Tenenbaum, quoted Playthings. More CPSC Eases Tracking Rule