Drug Firms to Pay Record U.S. Fines for Price Fixing
Roche Holding AG and BASF AG agreed to pay record U.S. fines totaling $725 million and plead guilty to criminal charges they conspired to fix vitamin prices. Roche, Europe's No. 4 drug company, will pay $500 million, the largest U.S. criminal fine ever, and a company official agreed to a four-month prison term. BASF, Europe's largest chemical company, will pay $225 million. Another vitamin giant, Rhone-Poulenc SA, must reimburse customers for helping inflate prices, though it will escape prosecution. The Justice Department, which conducted a two-year investigation, said the three companies conspired for nine years to raise the prices of vitamins A, B2, B5, C, E and beta carotene by hundreds of millions of dollars. Those nutrients, part of a $20 billion world vitamin market, are used in everything from animal feed to groceries.

Teen Use of Antidepressants Is on the Increase
Pharmaceutical treatment for troubled teens -- like video games, school security and parenting -- is being re-evaluated since the shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado. One of the killers, Eric Harris, was taking Luvox, a prescription that eases obsessive-compulsive behavior and depression. And yet, his parents apparently were unaware he was building bombs.

Herbal Preparation Found to Soothe Sour Stomachs
An herbal preparation can ease the symptoms of people with indigestion by up to 90 percent, according to a report released Tuesday. The German study, presented here at the annual Digestive Disease Week meeting, investigated the effects of the herbal preparation on 127 patients with dyspepsia that had no known cause. A large research team led by gastroenterologist Dr. Gerald Holtmann of the University of Essen in Germany found that herbal preparation -- called Iberogast and containing extracts of bitter candy duft, matricaria flower, peppermint leaves, caraway, licorice roots and melissa balm -- was most effective when taken for eight weeks in a row.

Fortification With Folate Is Paying Off
The US government's two-year-old program to require grain-based products to be enriched with folate, a form of folic acid, is showing ``substantial improvements'' in people's levels of the substance, according to another study in the current New England Journal of Medicine.

Dr. Galland's Integrated Medicine
Iron is unique among essential minerals, because there is no mechanism for its excretion once absorbed into the body. Whatever iron is absorbed must either be used or stored and excessive storage of iron in the body promotes the generation of free radicals. In this column, "Dangers of Iron Supplements," Dr. Galland reports that excess dietary iron has been implicated by some scientists as a cause of cancer and heart disease, and that it also increases the risk of bacterial infection. "No one should ever take iron supplements unless iron deficiency is present, says Dr. Galland, "with the possible exception of pregnant women."

The Healer Within
The presence of special breathing practices in the ancient cultures has always been a mystery to people in the Western world. In this column, "Every Seventh Breath Full and Relaxed," Dr. Jahnke describes a method is similar to the previous method described in our last Healthy Update, Full Chest and Abdominal Breathing. However, this technique brings the consciousness of the breath and the benefits of breath practice to as much of one's daily activities as possible. Rather than the concentrated but brief effects of doing breathing exercises for a specific period of time this method spreads the benefits of breath practice, pervasively, throughout the day. Take a deep, full, relaxed breath. As you exhale allow yourself to deeply relax. Then breath as usual. As you exhale allow yourself to deeply relax. Then breath as usual. After seven regular breaths, initiate another deep and full breath. For further descriptions click on the full column above.

Keeping Fit with Dr. Wayne Westcott
As the weather becomes more springlike many of us will begin our running/jogging/ walking programs. This is good, and certainly the most natural means of improving our cardiovascular fitness and burning calories in the process. Although there are a variety of training programs, the basic procedure is to start with shorter distances and slower speeds and gradually progress to longer courses and faster paces. Perhaps the most important principle is the 10 percent rule, meaning that you never increase your exercise effort (distance, pace, etc.) by more than 10 percent per week, notes Dr. Wayne Westcott in his most recent column, "Spring is for Sprinting." This permits consistent improvement and reduces the risk of overuse injuries

New Spa Database Launched on HealthyTravel.net
HealthyTravel.net, HealthWorld Online's travel service, has launched a new service, a searchable guide to a selection of 100 of the most popular Retreat and Spa facilities worldwide. Here you will find your perfect place to balance your mind, body and soul. Discover the Magic.

Children's Health Update
Do you have questions about vaccinations for your children? In "About Vaccine Choices," excerpted from his book, The Vaccine Guide: Making an Informed Choice, Dr. Randall Neustaedter addresses choosing vaccines, the adverse side-effects of vaccines, legal requirements and exemptions, as well as alternative vaccines. For more information visit our web site on Vaccination & Immunization coordinated by Dr. Neustaedter at www.healthy.net/vaccine.

Medical Cybrarian Service
Need help in researching a difficult health issue? Want to be able to effectively search Medline and other medical databases? Need to have a professional who can do this fast and efficiently? Let an experienced medical librarian do it for you. HealthWorld Online's innovative Medical Cybrarian Service searches the Internet and and other databases, provideing you with information on diseases, treatments (alternative and/or mainstream), drugs, statistics, and patient information that is summarized for your research needs. This "Cybrarian" carefully gathers and selects bibliographic citations, points you to useful Web sites, and annotates or summarizespages or documents that would be useful to you for reasonable fees.

Participate in our Online Community--Join our Discussion Forums
Looking for an answer to a tough health question? Looking for support from others who have faced the same health challenges. HealthWorld Online's forums provide you with the opportunity to participate in discussions and find answers to a wide range of health concerns. Visit our forums on, "Vaccination," "Mind/Body Approaches to Chronic Illness," "Issues in Integrated Health Care," "Legal/Legislative Issues," and Qigong." Interact with our other visitors and forum leaders: Elliot Dacher, MD; William Collinge, PhD, MPH, Emmett Miller, MD; Randall Neustaedter, OMD; Roger Jahnke, OMD; and William Dailey, Esq.

Association Network -- Hot Pick
The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians website offers resources and information regarding disease prevention, health restoration, curricula and contacts for naturopathic medical education, affiliated state associations, naturopathic physician referral database, political action, and links to other organizations that share the AANP mission to transform the medical paradigm to a true health care delivery system.

Visit The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians.

Global Health Calendar -- Hot Picks

Echinacea Symposium. Sponsored by the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). AHPA presents Echinacea, the Queen of Herbal Medicines, in the first of our 1999 Herb Symposia. June 3-5, 1999. Ritz-Carlton ð Kansas City, MO. Contact the American Herbal Products Association. (301) 588-1171. Email: AHPA@ix.netcom.com

Comprehensive Cancer Care II: Integrating Complementary and Alternative Therapies June 9-13, 1999 Arlington, VA USA. Contact: Center for Mind-Body Medicine - 202-966-7338