FDA SAYS 99% OF MILK SAMPLES "FREE OF DRUG RESIDUES THAT ARE OF CONCERN"

FROM:  U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
FDA’s Survey of Milk Finds Few Drug Residues
March 5, 2015

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced results from its milk sampling survey, involving the testing of nearly 2,000 dairy farms for drug residues in milk. More than 99 percent of the samples are free of drug residues of concern-- underscoring the safety of the US milk supply. These findings provide evidence that the nation’s milk safety system is effective in helping to prevent drug residues of concern in milk, even in those limited instances when medications are needed to maintain the health of dairy cattle.

The agency initiated the study to determine whether dairy farms with previous drug residue violations in tissue derived from dairy cows were more likely to have violative drug residues in milk than other dairy farms. The FDA tested samples from two groups: a “targeted” list of farms with known previous tissue residue violations and a control group of farms. Results show that the occurrence of drug residues in milk is very low, even in the targeted group. However, the limited number of residues detected involved drugs that are not included in routine testing under the current milk safety program.

Despite the finding of a small number of drug residues in samples collected, the FDA intends to take steps to maintain the strongest possible system to ensure milk safety. The FDA will work closely with state regulators to consider modifying testing to include collecting samples as necessary from milk tanks on farms when investigating illegal drug residues in tissues involving culled dairy cows. The agency is also working with its milk regulatory partners to update the existing milk safety program, as necessary, to include testing for a greater diversity of drugs and to educate dairy producers on best practices to avoid drug residues in both tissues and milk.

HHS SITES SURVEY, YOUNG CHILDREN DRINKING SUGARY DRINKS MAY HAVE FUTURE WEIGHT PROBLEMS

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 
Little kids and sweet drinks
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Nicholas Garlow with HHS HealthBeat.

Starting off as a little kid with lots of sweet drinks may lead to weight problems later. At the University of Virginia, Mark DeBoer saw evidence in national survey data on 9,600 children who were followed at ages 9 months, and 2, 4 and 5 years.

“Children who consumed sugary drinks regularly were more likely to be overweight and obese at age 5.”

DeBoer says weight went up over time with the amount of sugar, and was quite noticeable at 4 and 5.

DeBoer recommends kids get water and milk, but not sugar-sweetened drinks. He also notes that keeping kids active helps to control weight.

The study in the journal Pediatrics was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at healthfinder.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Nicholas Garlow.