|
(NaturalNews) Cold remedies that contain the drug phenylpropanolamine (PPA) can increase the risk of having a hemorrhagic stroke, especially among women, according to South Korean researchers.
PPA, formerly used as a nasal decongestant for over-the-counter cough and cold medicines and also used as an appetite suppressant, was recalled from use by the FDA in 2005. The Korean research confirms findings that even small doses of PPA can increase the risk of stroke.
The FDA first asked pharmaceutical companies to voluntarily remove the ingredient from medicines as early as November 2000. In November 2005 it re-classified PPA as “unsafe” and removed it from being an ingredient used in over-the-counter medicine.
Many companies have reformulated their American-market cold and cough medicines to remove PPA, but older medicines may still have it.
The research comes from the Seoul National University Hospital. The study aimed to look at whether smaller doses of PPA could trigger a stroke. It had already been proven that the use of PPA in appetite suppressants and diet pills can increase the risk of stroke, thanks to a study by Yale University researchers completed in May 2000.
For the Seoul study, 940 people who had a hemorrhagic stroke were each paired up with two controls. The researchers found that 1.7 percent of the women who had a stroke also had ingested a cold or cough medicine that has PPA, versus just 0.7 percent of the controls. It also was found that longer exposure to PPA increased stroke risk.
In the study, while men are at risk, the percentage of men affected by PPA was a very small amount. The Seoul study is in line with the Yale study in finding that women who have taken PPA are at a higher risk.
The study results can be found in the January 9th issue of Neurology.
###
Related Articles
• Better Stroke Outcome with High Blood Calcium (press release)
• Magnetic Therapy May Help Stroke Recovery (press release)
• Biomarkers Unable to Predict Occurrence of Stroke in Women
• Healthy lifestyle reduces women's stroke risk (press release)
• Listening to Music Accelerates Recovery From a Stroke
 |
Additional Resources:
stroke
strokes
over-the-counter drugs
|
Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com
 Email this article to a friend
 Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us
Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/021537.html
Reprinting this article: Non-commercial OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link.
|
 |
 |
Receive our Natural Health Newsletter for FREE
 Subscribe now (it's free!) to win. We randomly choose a subscriber each month to send $100 in eco-home products or a RealGoods.com gift certificate (our choice). Plus, you'll receive FREE news, articles and action alerts from NaturalNews.com editors and join over 800,000 monthly readers who report extraordinary health improvements after becoming a subscriber!
- Receive breaking news alerts on natural health solutions, renewable energy, the environment, global warming and more.
- Receive a free instant download of our $29 Secret Sources guide that reveals top sources for little-known health and diet solutions.
|
|
 |
 |
Recommended Special Report:
 Seven Words that can Change the World
by Joseph R. Simonetta
Read this special report now...
"Seven Words That Can Change the World reveals the astonishing, simple truths that have the power to forever transform our world for the better while freeing our minds from the enslavement of limiting beliefs. This is not a text for the simple-minded; it is a guiding philosophy for the mindful, intelligent few who are wise enough to seek out -- and recognize -- the higher simplicities of truly purposeful living." - Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com
|
More on NaturalNews.com:
• Streaming Health Ranger Videos
• CounterThink Cartoons
• FREE Special Reports
• Podcasts
|
 |
|
Printable Version
