Posts Tagged ‘FDA’

Back in April, the FDA smacked Kind Bars for making healthy food claims for some of their snack bars that didn’t meet FDA guidelines. Now Kind LLC is smacking back by questioning the guidelines in a citizen’s petition. And they’ve recruited some interesting help in making their case. Kind has recruited Walter Willett, David Katz, and a host of […]

The U.S. Justice Department has filed a criminal indictment against two dietary supplement companies that were selling magic weight loss products and generating hundreds of millions of dollars in sales with them. These products have two problems: they don’t work and they contain substances that are illegal because of the danger they present to human health. […]

Nicotine and tobacco policy is often cited for similar issues confronted in nutrition and obesity. In this guest post, our good friend Joe Gitchell shares his perspective based on decades of experience in tobacco control, bumping into disconnects between science, bias, and policy. Sound familiar? Mitch Zeller, Director of FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, has one of […]

Consumers already have a pretty good idea that too much added sugar in the food they eat is not good. But they’re not so sure how much is a lot. A new study published in Obesity adds to the evidence that proposed changes in the Nutrition Facts label will make things a bit clearer regarding added […]

Over the past five years, the pace of obesity innovation has noticeably quickened. But health plans are clearly not keeping up in providing access to evidence-based care for obesity. In a new commentary published by the American Journal of Managed Care, Ted Kyle and Fatima Cody Stanford point to a growing gap: Responding to the […]

The latest food conspiracy pits the vast empire of Big Egg against a little fake mayo upstart called “Just Mayo.” And here is where the trouble starts — with a brand name that quietly screams authenticity. That’s because, according to legal definitions of what’s real mayonnaise, “Just Mayo” is just not mayonnaise. The result is that […]

Progress in developing obesity care options is very encouraging, and at the same time frustrating. Friday, Novo Nordisk reported on early results from introducing Saxenda — the fourth new obesity treatment in as many years — into the U.S. Uptake is encouraging, with prescriptions that are growing steadily at a volume comparable to other recent introductions. For […]

Late yesterday, FDA approved the Orbera gastric balloon as a short-term treatment for obesity. This makes two FDA approvals for medical devices to treat obesity – booth gastric balloons – in one week. Counting the Maestro VBLOC system approved in January, we now have three devices approved this year after more than a decade passing […]

Late yesterday, FDA approved the first of two gastric balloon devices under review to treat obesity. The ReShape dual balloon is the first new treatment for obesity to be approved for explicitly short-term use — it must be removed after six months or less. On the plus side, it would appear to fill a significant gap […]

FDA issued its final ruling Tuesday to effectively ban trans fats from the U.S. food supply. With people fighting tooth and nail about dietary fat recommendations, it’s remarkable that there’s not even a whimper of protest about this ruling. Businesses will have three years to comply. Everyone saw it coming and the evidence on health problems […]