WASHINGTON - The U.S. Senate has passed a resolution co-sponsored by Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa designating this week as National Youth Synthetic Drug Awareness Week.

"Congress and law enforcement work to get synthetic drugs off the streets but cynical manufacturers work all the time to put out new varieties," Grassley said.  "Public awareness is a large part of prevention.  A product sold in a store or online isn't necessarily safe and might be far from it.  These drugs have had tragic consequences in Iowa.  People should know the consequences and stay away from these products."

Grassley co-sponsored the resolution with Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California. These states, like Iowa, have had problems with synthetic drugs.  Grassley, Klobuchar and other senators worked toward the enactment of the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012, banning many iterations of synthetic drugs, including one associated with the death of an 18-year-old Iowan named David Rozga.

New versions of the drug emerge regularly, leaving the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to ban the new compounds using its administrative authority. Included among these drugs is a compound called "5F-PB-22," which was blamed for the deaths of three young Iowans last year.  5F-PB-22 is officially banned, or scheduled, under DEA procedures.  The final rule went into effect earlier this month.

Grassley is Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and co-chairman of the Caucus on International Narcotics Control.

The text of the resolution is available here.  Grassley's floor statement on the resolution follows here.

Floor Statement of Sen. Chuck Grassley on National Youth Synthetic Drug Awareness Week

I am pleased to join Senator Klobuchar in cosponsoring a resolution designating the week of March 9, 2014, as National Youth Synthetic Drug Awareness Week.  The abuse of synthetic drugs has grown rapidly in a very short amount of time.  Calls into poison control centers concerning synthetic marijuana, also known as "K2," doubled between 2010 and 2011, and remained elevated throughout 2012.  Emergency room visits connected to synthetic marijuana use more than doubled, to 28,000 visits, from 2010 to 2011.   In addition, other synthetic drugs commonly known as "bath salts" produced over 22,000 emergency room admissions.

The serious symptoms associated with synthetic drug use range from rapid heart rate, psychosis, and agitation - which may lead to suicide, cardiac arrest, or organ failure.  In 2010, a constituent of mine named David Rozga committed suicide shortly after ingesting "K2" with his friends.  After smoking the drug, David became highly agitated.   His friends calmed him down, and he decided to go home.  Not long afterward, however, he committed suicide.  David's death was one of the first in the U.S. attributed to synthetic drug use.

I worked with Senators Klobuchar, Schumer and Feinstein, along with many others, to place many of these terrible drugs on the list of Schedule I controlled substances.  I am grateful that the Senate and the House worked together to pass the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 2012.  Our efforts were an important step in allowing the Drug Enforcement Administration to begin enforcement actions against those who are poisoning our communities.

However, new synthetic drugs have emerged since the passage of that law.  In fact, the Drug Enforcement Administration has moved to administratively place an additional 17 chemical compounds on the list of Schedule I narcotics in recent months.  Included among these drugs is a compound called "5F-PB-22," which was blamed for the deaths of three young Iowans last year.   Moreover, in just the past few days, police in Iowa have arrested six people and raided multiple stores in the Des Moines area for selling synthetic drugs.  These tragic deaths and arrests of those pushing these substances underscore the ongoing need to raise awareness of these deadly drugs.

The good news is that people, including in my home state of Iowa, are fighting back against the scourge of synthetic drugs.  The Rozga family has been active in sharing David's story.  They have also started a website, K2drugfacts.com, which creates a forum for other parents, friends, and people who have survived terrifying experiences with synthetic drugs to share their stories and spread the word that these drugs are destructive.  Other anti-drug organizations and coalitions are raising public awareness in Iowa.  For example, a local community group in Johnson County, Iowa called "Iowans Against Synthetics" has raised synthetic drug awareness throughout that county.

The National Youth Synthetic Drug Awareness Week resolution encourages other individuals and organizations throughout the country to continue their efforts to raise awareness about the deadliness of these drugs.  I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution.

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WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa is asking Northwestern University for documents on a medical device implanted in patients for heart valve repair.  Grassley wrote to the university in 2008 and 2009 about the Myxo device over allegations that the device had not been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before it was implanted in patients as part of an outcomes study.

Since then, new allegations have come to light that Northwestern did not provide all of the documents to Grassley that were squarely within the scope of his request, and that Northwestern failed to provide any notice or explanation of why it was withholding certain documents.  In a letter this week to the presidents of Northwestern University and Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Grassley asks for the documents apparently withheld from him in response to his earlier inquiries.

The documents are important to reviewing whether Northwestern's use of the devices was appropriate and whether notification to patients was adequate.

Grassley has a longstanding interest in FDA oversight and patient safety.

The text of his letter is available here.

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Physician-Chef Points Out the Pros, Cons of 3 Suggested Changes

It's nothing new to the American consumer that food packaging emphasizes only part of a product's health story, and the fact that the nutritional labeling hasn't been overhauled in 20 years hasn't helped, says cardiologist and professional chef Michael S. Fenster, MD.

A proposed update, which could take a year or more to appear on store shelves, is being driven by first lady Michelle Obama, as part of her "Let's Move" campaign.

"Our current nutrition labeling is the same as that implemented in the 1990s, except with the 2006 addition of trans fats information. It's based on nutrition data and eating habits from the 1970s and 1980s," says "Dr. Mike," author of "Eating Well, Living Better: The Grassroots Gourmet Guide to Good Health and Great Food," (www.whatscookingwithdoc.com).

From the perspective of physician and foodie, he analyzes what's good about the first lady's proposed new label, and what could be improved.

• Good: Calorie counts would be displayed in a bigger, bolder font. Emphasizing calories allows consumers to think with a helpful "energy in / energy out" baseline. Do I really need the calories in this product when I could stand to lose a few pounds? That's a reasonably good question to promote.

***Basing the value of food primarily on calories over-simplifies the evaluation process. An energy drink may have zero calories, but it's not better for you than an apple, which may have 100 calories. We cannot overlook nutrition!

• Good: Serving sizes would be determined from real data reflecting the portions real people typically eat. A serving of ice cream is expected to increase from a half cup to a full cup, and a one-serving muffin would be 4 ounces instead of 2 ounces, reflecting the obvious fact that people generally consume the whole scoop of ice cream and the whole muffin.

***Food producers may simply change the size of pre-packaged portions to skirt the rules. Industry experts suggest some food manufacturers may just reduce the package size to make their labeling more seductive. When food is parceled into smaller packages, the price per unit usually increases - it becomes more expensive for consumers.

• Good: New labeling would have listed separately, "added sugar." The grams of sugar added, irrespective of whether it's pure cane sugar, corn syrup, honey, sucrose or any other source, would be shown as one listed value. This is good because it starts to get into the quality and composition of the food product, at least indirectly. Many public health experts say "sweet creep" has been a major contributor to obesity, certain cancers, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

***This will likely be wildly controversial, prompting aggressive lobbying efforts that may have already begun. The Grocery Manufacturers Association and other industry groups note that the current label already includes the total amount of sugar in the product. The food industry argues that natural sugar and added sugar are chemically identical and that the body doesn't differentiate between the two. However, a significant amount of research shows this is not completely true.

About Michael Fenster, MD

Michael Fenster, M.D., F.A.C.C., FSCA&I, PEMBA, is a board-certified cardiologist and former Assistant Professor of Medicine at the NEOUCOMM. Dr. Mike is a passionate teacher who has addressed numerous professional organizations and he has participated in many clinical trials. He has published original research featured in peer reviewed scientific and medical journals. He worked his way up to executive chef before medical school and later received his culinary degree in gourmet cooking and catering from Ashworth University; where he graduated with honors. He has combined his culinary and medical expertise to deliver delicious cuisine to delivers us from the disability and diseases of modern civilization through his Grassroots Gourmet™ approach to metabolic health.  Dr. Mike's first book  "Eating Well, Living Better: The Grassroots Gourmet Guide to Good Health and Great Food,"  is currently availability. His next book, The Fallacy of the Calorie is slated for release Fall 2014. (www.whatscookingwithdoc.com).

1941

The Red Cross began collecting blood for the U.S. military with Dr. Charles Drew as medical director.

1943

March was first proclaimed Red Cross Month by Franklin Roosevelt. Every president since has honored Red Cross Month.

1948

The Red Cross implemented the first nationwide blood program for civilians. The first collection center opened in Rochester, N.Y.

1972

The Red Cross called for a national blood policy, which the federal government set up in 1974, supporting standardized practices.

1992

The Red Cross applied standardized tests to ensure the safety of blood products. Now about a dozen tests are performed on every blood donation.