Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
See article keywords and concepts |
 Simontacchi: That is exactly why Vioxx and celebrex came off the market, because those medications caused bleeding and tremendous other problems. Now they're coming out with even stronger and more powerful medications than Vioxx, not because they need to do that, but because they've run the market dry on Vioxx and celebrex, and they're looking for new markets. We just knew it was going to happen. Something needed to be done because now they are connecting almost every disease category with inflammation. |
Carol Simontacchi
See book keywords and concepts |
 This was followed in rapid succession by similar news about celebrex (celecoxib).
Studies show that long-term users of both Vioxx and celebrex have more than twice the risk of heart attacks than those taking a placebo drug. As of this writing, Bextra (valdecoxib) is on the ropes, too, and question marks hang over the entire class of COX-2 inhibitors, part of the family of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). What are people in pain supposed to do?
A GROWING PROBLEM
The anti-inflammatory drugs were introduced into the marketplace for a good reason: increased inflammation. |
Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
See article keywords and concepts |
| Now they're coming out with even stronger and more powerful medications than Vioxx, not because they need to do that, but because they've run the market dry on Vioxx and celebrex, and they're looking for new markets. We just knew it was going to happen. Something needed to be done because now they are connecting almost every disease category with inflammation.
Mike: We've seen news on the C-reactive proteins, and they're saying that heart disease is all inflammation now.
Simontacchi: Yes, you start at the top and go all the way down. |
| Simontacchi: Yes, they're looking at 140,000 adverse events from Vioxx and celebrex.
Mike: Do you see that as being a dangerous precedent by the FDA? What's your take on it?
Simontacchi: Again, you're asking me to talk about my own cynicism. It's based on dollars. I think the bean counters get together, figure out how many people are likely to die or have an averse event, how much that's going to cost them and whether or not it pays off in the long run to keep the drug on the market. |
| REPPED: Mike: We're here with Carol Simontacchi, author of "The Crazy Makers" and a new book entitled, "Natural Alternatives to Vioxx, celebrex and other Anti-Inflammatory Prescription Drugs." Thanks for sitting down with us for a few minutes, Carol.
Simontacchi: Thank you. It's a pleasure.
Mike: What gave you the motivation to write this book? Why do you think it's important for people to read?
Simontacchi: Well, over my professional lifetime, I have developed a huge amount of skepticism about the pharmaceutical industry. |
Carol Simontacchi
See book keywords and concepts |
| The COX-2 inhibitors were greeted with enthusiasm as first celebrex (celecoxib), then Vioxx (rofecox-ib), and then Bextra (valdecoxib) entered the market. Unlike the traditional NSAIDs, which came in over-the-counter strengths, these were all prescription drugs. Yet despite the fact that they required a prescription and cost far more than the traditional NSAIDs, the COX-2 inhibitors contributed to a dramatic increase in NSAID use. |
| Studies show that long-term users of both Vioxx and celebrex have more than twice the risk of heart attacks than those taking a placebo drug. As of this writing, Bextra (valdecoxib) is on the ropes, too, and question marks hang over the entire class of COX-2 inhibitors, part of the family of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). What are people in pain supposed to do?
A GROWING PROBLEM
The anti-inflammatory drugs were introduced into the marketplace for a good reason: increased inflammation. |
Bill Sardi
See book keywords and concepts |
 British Medical Journal 330:1366, 2005]
Before these drugs were taken off the market temporarily by the FDA, celebrex and Vioxx generated $5 billion in annual sales to treat rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. A daily dose of celebrex or Vioxx costs about $2.50 a day. Other non-steroidals like ibuprofen (Advil) and aspirin cost only about 10 cents per pill.
The next step in snuffing out inflammation
Pharmaceutical companies think they have come up with a master anti-inflammatory mechanism that may be useful in preventing cancer as well as treating inflammation and pain. |
Andreas Moritz
See book keywords and concepts |
 The most recently documented and widely popularized side effects of pain killers, such as Vioxx, celebrex and the over-the-counter drug Aleve (Naproxen), should tell you that there are no safe painkillers. These drugs were found to increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes by at least 50 percent. Aspirin and other "harmless" drugs belong to the same class of painkillers as the above. |
Charles Barber
See book keywords and concepts |
 Since Prozac's smashing success, it has become all but de rigueur that new blockbuster drugs have brand names that simultaneously soothe, invigorate, and inspire—the names of Viagra, celebrex, Claritin, and others have all followed Prozac's lead. In fact, the naming of drugs is now big business. "Coming up with a brand naming used to be an afterthought," says Bill Trombetta, a professor of pharmaceutical marketing. "But today, pharmaceutical companies realize that they need to brand drugs as early as they can and build equity in the brand. |
Dr. Abram Hoffer, MD, FRCP (C) and Dr. Harold D. Foster, PhD
See book keywords and concepts |
 This panel also supported the continued use of other cox-2 drugs, such as celebrex and Bextra, for arthritis, despite their known cardiovascular risks, so long as they also carry a black-box warning. Given the evidence that arthritis can often be successfully treated with vitamins B-3 and C or other nutrients, these decisions raise many interesting ethical issues.
Vitamin B-3 is not a drug. Drugs are developed to treat a single condition. Arthritis is not a single disease. It is caused by many factors, including toxic responses to foods. |
Donna Jackson Nakazawa
See book keywords and concepts |
 For those with rheumatoid arthritis, Remicade and Enbrel can lead to a greatly elevated risk of lymphoma, serious infections, and tuberculosis; celebrex and Vioxx are overwhelmingly linked to cardiac problems. Those suffering from Crohn's disease can choose between methotrexate, which can be toxic to the liver, and prednisone, which can also lead to potentially fatal infections because it suppresses the entire immune system. Not a pretty picture. |
Craig Pepin-Donat
See book keywords and concepts |
 Over the years I was also prescribed multiple types of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs including Vioxx, celebrex and Bextra, all of which have been proven to increase the risk of having a heart attack. During the time I took these three drugs, none of them helped. Ultimately, I made the decision to stop taking these medications. If you don't feel that you are getting results from a drug, why continue to take it? Yes, there are drugs that "take time" to get the benefit, and there are others that you cannot stop taking all at once without withdrawal symptoms or other health risks. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
See book keywords and concepts |
 The Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in 2005 reported that the combination of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate is at least as effective as the prescription drug cele-coxib (brand name celebrex) in treating pain caused by moderate to severe osteoarthritis of the knee. So for best results, use them together.
Glucosamine/chondroitin therapy requires patience: You may have to wait anywhere from eight to twelve weeks to see results. |
Charles Barber
See book keywords and concepts |
| Paxil, Zoloft, and the like (as well as celebrex, Viagra, and Claritin) are now nightly visitors to the homes of millions of Americans by virtue of their ceaseless presence on prime-time television. The actual mechanism that sprang the entire DTC drug advertising industry was bizarrely simple. Starting in 1997, the FDA waived the requirement that drug makers list a detailed summary of a drug's side effects and contraindications in advertising. |
Andreas Moritz
See book keywords and concepts |
| Nexium, Prevacid, Lipitor, aspirin, celebrex, Crestor and other such drugs have become household words. Neighbors, friends and relatives are all taking at least one pill, and more often, several pills, each day for months and even years. Television, radio and print media are full of praise for their "life enhancing" benefits. Newspapers go even one step further. Not a day passes without an article or two heralding the latest study "demonstrating" the supposed benefits of the wonder drugs. |
Shannon Brownlee
See book keywords and concepts |
 Kate Howard recalls enlisting a doctor to help her push celebrex, a local orthopedist who was a "high-writer," or a physician who writes more prescriptions than average for the drug. As a high-writer, it was clear he already liked the drug. Sitting in the orthopedist's office one day, Howard and her partner suggested that he come aboard the company as a paid speaker. "My partner started to talk about the money angle," says Howard. " 'I realize you and your wife want to have a summer home. |
Andreas Moritz
See book keywords and concepts |
| Over the last 10 years, the FDA has approved 12 drugs that have deadly side effects, including Vioxx, celebrex, and Aleve, among others.
• The Journal of the American Medical Association reported several years ago that an estimated 125,000 Americans die each year from the side effects of FDA approved drugs. Since the new drug scandals that occurred in 2004-05, this figure is quite likely to be 10 times as high.
• The FDA approved the sale of the statin drug Baycol to lower cholesterol. |
Dr. Timothy Scott
See book keywords and concepts |
 The Vioxx recall prompted the FDA to assemble an advisory panel during the third week of February 2005 to make a recommendation to the FDA about the entire group of Cox-2 inhibitors (Vioxx, celebrex and Bextra). Then something very surprising happened. By a very close vote (17-15) the panel of experts voted to allow Vioxx back on the market. They also voted not to remove celebrex and Bextra. The vote made headlines and seemed to say again that the safety concerns were overblown. The message seemed to be that, yes, there were risks, but they were so minimal even Merck was overreacting. |
Gerald E. Markle and Frances B. McCrea
See book keywords and concepts |
 In 2002, the CEO of Pfizer rhapsodized over Celebrex: "Millions of people who were once crippled with arthritis can now work, walk, garden, and do all the little things that make life worthwhile."37
Amidst the explosion of sales and use, especially for the relief of pain from arthritis and other chronic conditions, there were rumblings of problems. In 2001, a team of researchers led by Eric Topol38 published a meta-analysis in JAMA showing that Vioxx use increased the risk of heart attacks fivefold.39 In response, Merck conducted its own study which found a much smaller risk. |
| The story of Vioxx and celebrex painkillers, unfolding as we write, is instructing us otherwise. That tens of millions of women were given estrogen replacements to alleviate symptoms of menopause and make them "feminine forever" is a good example from a few years earlier. A few years before that, 5-fluorouracil, a highly toxic drug, was widely used for the treatment of colon cancer—even though it was known at the time to be ineffective.
What we are saying is that the medicalization of our lives—test this, monitor that, cut this, drug that—has a minimal impact on mortality. |
Andreas Moritz
See book keywords and concepts |
| Vioxx, celebrex, Bextra, Aleve, and aspirin are just plain poisons. Another arthritis drug, infliximab (Remicade), is on alert for causing cancer.
Amazingly, many people have been so blinded by clever advertising campaigns and brainwashing that they have no clue they are being methodically poisoned in order to support and sustain the most lucrative business in the world besides oil, the pharma-medical industry. An investigation made public by CNN on 26 September 2007 discovered that 56 million prescriptions each year are handed out by doctors for drugs that are not even approved by the FDA. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
See book keywords and concepts |
 It was the ability of arthritis drugs like Vioxx and celebrex to inhibit COX-2 that made them effective. Unfortunately, at least in the case of Vioxx, side effects were dangerous enough to cause it to be withdrawn from the market. Anthocyanins have no such side effects. Though the anthocyanin content in strawberries isn't as high as that in cherries or raspberries, it's still significant. And anthocyanins have significant antioxidant activity as well.
A cup of strawberries has only about 50 calories and delivers about 3 g of fiber. |
Benjamin H. Natelson, M.D.
See book keywords and concepts |
 Although celebrex is still available, I think its risk for people taking it chronically outweighs any potential benefit over ibuprofen. Whether these toxicities extend to the older class of NSAIDs is currently not known but is a question undergoing research.
When I recommend NSAIDs, I'm actually ignoring the fact that no good evidence exists for their use in reducing FM pain. However, in my experience, a substantial number of patients reporting muscle and joint pain indicate relief when using this class of drugs. |
| A treatment plan that's limited to a single drug for pain (like celebrex or Motrin) often is inadequate because these medicines alone are less likely to bring about substantial relief than a more comprehensive plan. If your physician does not offer you more than a prescription, ask for a referral to a specialist.
A doctor's lack of familiarity with illnesses like fibromyalgia does not necessarily mean that he or she is dismissing your concerns. Here again, the issue is depth of training. Internists know a great deal about common illnesses like high blood pressure, asthma, and heart disease. |
Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
See article keywords and concepts |
 In human beings, all doctors have been taught is to give Motrin or celebrex medications and Tylenol -- and narcotics if you have cancer. That's all your doctor knows about pain management, and it's pathetic because there are hundreds of effective treatments.
The first thing you do is treat the underlying cause of the pain. I call it, instead of the oil light, the SHIN light. You want to treat Sleep, Hormonal problems, Infections and Nutritional support. |
| When you look at the data for mild arthritis, celebrex and the natural remedies are about equally effective. For moderate to severe arthritis, the natural remedies are far more effective -- and the spin headline says, "Don't use natural remedies." Now, there are two things that help me figure out what's going on with that. One, it's in the New England Journal of Medicine, which almost never prints anything positive about natural remedies.
Mike: Yes -- and look at who their advertisers are.
Teitelbaum: Well, look at all the drug companies, and where they advertise. |
| But the headline reads, "Natural remedies don't work, use celebrex." Why? I suspect it's because 11 of the authors on the study -- 11 -- were on the payroll of drug companies that make pain medications. Now, you know it's one thing to do spin for business -- and people do it all the time -- but not when you're killing tens of thousands of people unnecessarily a year with that. That's just not acceptable.
Mike: Those reading this right now are somewhat used to hearing this from critics of conventional medicine -- these are the people who focus on alternative medicine. But you are an M.D.? |
Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
See article keywords and concepts |
 Over 540 brand-name drugs are listed in the NewsTarget DrugWatch database, including Amoxicillin, celebrex, Prozac, Ibuprofen, Risperdal and others. Each health caution is backed by cited references. The data for this consumer guide was provided by Applied Health (www.AppliedHealth.com), a nutritional research and solutions company specializing in restorative nutritional therapies.
The NewsTarget DrugWatch database is updated monthly to reflect the latest research about drug-induced nutrient deficiencies. |
Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
See article keywords and concepts |
 REPPED: Over the past four years, I've written extensively about the health benefits of cherries, describing the therapeutic effects of the natural medicines found in cherry skins and explaining how cherry products help eliminate arthritis inflammation, reverse gout and can often replace anti-inflammatory prescription medications like Vioxx or celebrex. |
Email this page to a friend
