The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed a consent decree with a federal court in Texas to resolve claims that a Burger King franchise operator discriminated against a former cashier on the basis of religion. EEOC v. Fries Rest. Mgmt., LLC, No. 12 3169 (N.D. Tex., filed January 16, 2013). Without admitting liability, the operator has agreed to settle the claims by paying $25,000 to the former employee, who was allegedly fired for wearing a skirt on the job as required by her Pentecostal Christian religion, in two checks: one for $5,000 attributable to wages, and one for $20,000 attributable to claims of mental anguish and suffering. The Burger King franchisee will also post on employee bulletin boards “its policy against religious discrimination and duty to accommodate” and “conduct an annual training session [in 2013 and 2014] for all district managers and general managers for Defendant’s Texas Burger King Restaurants,…
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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a final decision in a complaint alleging that POM Wonderful made false and misleading claims by advertising its pomegranate juice products with health-benefit assertions that the company contended were backed by medical research. In re POM Wonderful LLC, No. 9344 (FTC, decided January 10, 2013). Additional information about the matter appears in Issue 441 of this Update. Henceforth, two randomized, controlled clinical trials (RCTs) will be required before POM can make a claim that any of its products treat, prevent or reduce the risk of heart disease, prostate cancer or erectile dysfunction (ED). Any efficacy or health benefit claims falling short of disease claims will require substantiation consisting of “competent and reliable scientific evidence . . . that must be sufficient in quality and quantity when considered in the light of the entire body of relevant and reliable scientific evidence, to substantiate that the…
At the request of a polystyrene custom mold manufacturer, California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) will conduct a February 14, 2013, public workshop “concerning OEHHA’s intent to list styrene as a chemical known to cause cancer under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (commonly known as Proposition 65 [Prop. 65]).” According to the agency’s notice, discussions “should be limited to whether the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Report on Carcinogens has identified styrene as a human carcinogen or potential human carcinogen. OEHHA cannot consider scientific arguments concerning the weight or quality of the evidence considered by NTP.” The hearing will be webcast. OEHHA has also extended the public comment period until February 28. See OEHHA News Release, January 17, 2013.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has published the results of an investigation “examining the authenticity of a number of beef burger, beef meal and salami products available from retail outlets in Ireland.” According to a January 15, 2013, FSAI press release, the agency’s study revealed “the presence of horse DNA in some beef burger products,” raising concerns about “the traceability of meat ingredients and products entering the food chain.” After testing for horse and pig DNA in 27 beef burger products, investigators evidently reported that 10 (37 percent) of the samples contained horse DNA and 23 (85 percent) contained pig DNA. The study also found that all 19 salami samples and 21 of 31 beef meal products contained pig DNA, though none of these items contained horse DNA. In addition, notes FSAI, “[t]races of horse DNA were also detected in batches of raw ingredients, including some imported from…
According to a notice published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), several Codex Alimentarius committees have invited member countries and observer organizations to join electronic working groups (eWGs). The Food Hygiene Committee seeks participation on a parasites eWG to further develop proposed draft guidelines on controlling the zoonotic parasites Trichinella spp. and Cysticercus bovis. The Fish and Fish Products Committee seeks participation on a food additives eWG “to prepare proposals for food additives in the standards for fish and fishery products, following the approach taken for the Standard for Smoked Fish and to focus on technological justification for those food additives.” This committee also seeks participants for fish sauce and scallop meat eWGs. The Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses Committee seeks participation on a nutrient reference values eWG and an addition of essential nutrients to foods eWG. Deadlines for and more details…
Democratic U.S. Sens. Edward Markey (Mass.), Richard Durbin (Ill.) and Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) have issued letters to 14 energy drink companies, including Red Bull, Pepsi Co. Inc. and Monster Energy, seeking answers to more than a dozen questions. Responses are requested by February 1, 2013. Noting that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is investigating the industry, the senators contend that “[t]he blurred distinction between supplements and conventional foods or beverages combined with recent published reports by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and FDA regarding consumption of energy drinks has led to significant consumer confusion and concern about the safety and use of these products.” Among other matters, the senators ask (i) whether each company’s product is a “supplement, conventional food/beverage or neither,” (ii) how each company presents nutritional information on product labels, (iii) how much caffeine is present in the company’s product and whether this…
A recent study targets the alleged health effects of two food and beverage dyes—Brilliant Blue (E133) and Patent Blue (E131)—after systemic absorption. Marianna Lucová, et al., “Absorption of triphenylmethane dyes Brilliant Blue and Patent Blue through intact skin, shaven skin and lingual mucosa from daily life products,” Food and Chemical Toxicology, February 2013. A particular focus of the study was to “assess the potential for lingua mucosa absorption of the dyes from human saliva as a consequence of licking lollipops.” The findings were “troubling,” the study noted, “particularly with regard to the repeated licking of lollipops by children.” The study concludes that because both dyes can potentially enter the bloodstream through the dorsum of the tongue and cause adverse health effects, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, allergies and asthma, neither dye should be used in the manufacturing of lollipops and hard candies. Brilliant Blue is used as food additive…
A recent study using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has allegedly suggested that compared with glucose consumption, fructose consumption resulted “in a distinct pattern” of cerebral blood flow (CBF) in brain regions linked to appetite and reward pathways, and “a smaller increase in systemic glucose, insulin, and glucagon-like polypeptide 1 levels.” Kathleen Page, et al., “Effects of Fructose vs Glucose on Regional Cerebral Blood Flow in Brain Regions Involved With Appetite and Reward Pathways,” JAMA, January 2013. Researchers relied on 20 adult volunteers who underwent to MRI sessions “together with ingestion of either a fructose of a glucose drink in a blinded, random-order crossover design.” The MRIs evidently showed that within 15 minutes, “glucose significantly reduced hypothalamic CBF, whereas fructose did not.” As the authors explained, “[I]ngestion of glucose but not fructose reduced cerebral blood flow and thus activity in specific regions that regulate appetite and reward processing. In keeping with…
The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently highlighted energy drinks in its December 19, 2012, online issue, where two commentaries discussed caffeine-related adverse events and the risks of mixing energy drinks with alcohol. Authored by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center infectious disease specialist Kent Sepkowitz, the first viewpoint article notes that “the swift change in public perception of energy drinks from harmless mild stimulant to lethal, unregulated drug is unprecedented.” Summarizing recent cases of unintentional caffeine overdoses and caffeine poisoning, the article claims that “a person would need to ingest at least 12 of the highly caffeinate energy drinks within a few hours” to reach a lethal dose of caffeine. Sepkowitz argues, however, that this estimate does not take into account variables such as medications that may slow the metabolism of caffeine or preexisting cardiac or liver conditions “that could increase susceptibility to caffeine-related adverse events.” “The appropriate…
A recent study has reportedly concluded that bisphenol A (BPA) exposure is associated with low-grade albuminuria in U.S. children, suggesting they may be at a greater risk for kidney and heart disease as adults. Leonardo Trasande, et al., “Bisphenol A exposure is associated with low-grade urinary albumin excretion in children of the United States,” Kidney International, January 2013. Using data from 710 children enrolled in the 2009-10 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, researchers reported that those “with the highest as compared to the lowest quartile of urinary BPA [uBPA] had a significant 0.91 mg/g higher albumin-to-creatinine ratio, adjusted for urinary BPA concentration.” These results were evidently consistent with previous studies associating BPA exposure with low-grade albuminuria in Chinese adults. “Long-term observational studies will be needed to ascertain whether uBPA-associated changes in low-grade albuminuria potentiate the features of the metabolic syndrome—hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or insulin resistance— and augment the risk of…
