Mad Cow Disease: There are other things to worry about

Some food for thought about health issue and real versus perceived risks -

I've been reading a lot about the risks of mad cow disease lately, and it seems like it is more of a media event that a true risk. How many people have actually died from mad cow disease compared to the number of people who have died from smoking? Oddly, there are bans on beef imports from countries where mad cow disease has been found, yet have these same countries banned the importation of cigarettes?

The media distorts the real risks of many condition by over publicizing relatively rare events and under publicizing common event that are so common they are not newsworthy.

Medical Errors Can Be Deadly

The Food and Drug Administration today proposed a new format for prescription drug labeling that will help reduce medical errors, which according to the National Academy of Sciences may be responsible for as many as 98,000 U.S. deaths annually.

98,000 deaths a year from medical errors - that statistic sure makes a statement. I think it pays to be cautious whenever one receives medical care. I've gotten vastly different opinions just by seeing differnt doctors for the same medical condition.