Pigs and C diff

It’s not surprising, but it is a little worrisome.

Remember all that talk about antibiotic overuse in farm animals? Well for the first time, a resistant bacteria has jumped to humans*. Those shifty Danes have identified a strain of Clostridioides difficile whose genes have apparently spread from pig farms to local hospitals.

And that’s the scary part — that it’s the genes that are spreading, not simply the bacteria.

“This alarming discovery suggests that resistance to antibiotics can spread more widely than previously thought, and confirms links in the resistance chain leading from farm animals to humans.”

* For the first time it’s been proven. It’s probably happened before.

Guess who doesn’t want you to keep helping?

Did you hear that thunk? That was the sound of pharmacists and physicians butting heads. The issue: Whether Medicare should continue to pay pharmacists for providing the services they were allowed to during the pandemic — testing, vaccinations, and more.

First the AMA said that the Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act (ECAPS) would undermine patient care. Now they claim it would “undermine state scope of practice laws and the ability of states to regulate pharmacists.”

APhA pointed out that, you know, without pharmacists filling in, the pandemic would have been a lot worse. And it’s not as if they suddenly lost their capabilities — Covid gave them (that is, you) the opportunity to show what you can do.

Oh, and as far as state regulations go, APhA points out that ECAPS addresses that clearly: “[T]he pharmacist can only provide the services included in the bill according to state scope of practice laws.”

Two Covid-related approvals

The FDA has approved the use of remdesivir for young children — specifically, anyone who ways about 7 pounds or more. It’s to help prevent hospitalization in those who have contracted Covid but so far only have a mild case.

And ICYMI: The FDA has amended its emergency use authorization for Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to say that it can be used “for up to 12 months from the date of manufacture.” That is all.

Three steps to lower risk

Want to reduce the risk of cancer for someone over 70? There’s apparently a three-step program to do just that — at least according to a group of Swiss and American researchers (with some other countries thrown in for extra flavor).

The three steps: Vitamin D, omega-3s, and exercise.

Mechanistic studies have shown that vitamin D inhibits the growth of cancer cells. Similarly, omega-3 may inhibit the transformation of normal cells into cancer cells, and exercise has been shown to improve immune function and decrease inflammation, which may help in the prevention of cancer.

That all makes sense, but now there’s a clinical study to back it up.

Each of the treatments had a small individual benefit but when all three treatments were combined, the benefits became statistically significant, and the researchers saw an overall reduction in cancer risk by 61%.

If you’re wondering, the exercise was a home strength exercise (SHEP) program: “sit to stand,” “one-leg stance,” “Pull backs against elastic resistance,” and “external shoulder rotation against elastic resistance.” Glad you asked?

Are you ready for Saturday?

That’s right! It’s the next National Prescription Drug Takeback Day!

This year’s website for finding a disposal location is … disposemymeds.org from NCPA. (Or you can use the good ol’ DEA site.)

You know about Lucky Charms, right?

A reminder that luck can also be bad luck: The FDA is investigating reports of more than 3,000 people getting sick — nausea, diarrhea, vomiting — after eating Lucky Charms. (A normal amount. Not the double-dog-dare, chowing down an entire box thing.)

Despite those 3,000 reports, General Mills said, “[W]e have not found any evidence of consumer illness linked to the consumption of Lucky Charms” and has not issued a recall.

Know someone affected? Send ’em to Iwaspoisoned.com.