The same FDA that said getting cheaper drugs from Canada is bad now says mercury in food is OK!

[ck4829]

In the waning days of the Bush presidency, the Food and Drug Administration is pushing to scuttle the government's advice about mercury-contaminated seafood, a dramatic policy change that would, in effect, encourage women and children to eat more fish despite growing concerns about the toxic metal.

The FDA's recommendations, sent recently to the White House Office of Management and Budget for approval, prompted a sharp rebuke from scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency who, in memos circulated earlier this month, described them as "scientifically flawed and inadequate."

A joint advisory issued by the two agencies in 2004 cautions women of childbearing age, nursing mothers and young children to limit seafood consumption to 12 ounces a week. But in a draft version of the FDA's new report, the agency says its own modeling shows that kids can benefit from eating fish.

EPA scientists, though, say the FDA's report reaches conclusions that aren't supported by the studies it cites, and at various points either trivializes or overstates existing research.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/6174650.html

Mercury news...

Students checked after mercury spill at school

A mercury spill at a San Bernardino school brought out a hazardous materials squad and led to an after-classes decontamination ordeal for about 500 students.

An eighth grader at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School found the 4-ounce bottle of mercury in a shed and he brought it to school on Thursday. While showing it to schoolmates, the mercury spilled.

Mercury can cause respiratory problems, skin irritation and long-term damage.

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_11270228

Student's home quarantined after mercury scare

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School returned to business as usual Friday following a mercury scare, but a family's home and vehicle were quarantined because of the potentially dangerous silver liquid.

An eighth grade boy brought a jar containing four ounces of mercury to school Thursday and spilled it while showing his friends.

Although more than 900 students and school employees were detained several hours after school let out at 2:10 p.m., a HAZMAT crew found that only 37 children had been in direct contact with the mercury.

"We had to check everyone, one by one," said San Bernardino City Unified School District spokeswoman Linda Bardere.

http://www.sbsun.com/sanbernardino/ci_11274101

And just to be clear, this is the same FDA that tried to hassle the American People out of getting cheaper prescription drugs from Canada because they said (Without any evidence) that these drugs were dangerous.