SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:
At least 25 people in two states were likely poisoned by toxic batches of the "Re2al ," including five children who suffered acute liver failure and one person who died.
The toxic water made headlines earlier this year when health investigators initially linked alkalized water sold by Nevada-based water company Real Water to severe illnesses in five children in Clark County, Nevada. But the new report from the CDC offers the most complete look at the identified cases and illnesses.
The saga began in November and December of 2020, when the five children—ranging in age from seven months to five years—became severely ill with acute liver failure after drinking the water. They were hospitalized and later transferred to a children's hospital for a potential liver transplant—though they all subsequently recovered without a transplant. Local health officials investigating the unusual cluster found that family members had also been sickened. The only common link between the cases was the alkalized water, which Real Water claimed was a healthier alternative to tap water.
In mid-March, the Food and Drug Administration contacted Real Water about the cases and urged the company to recall their water, which was sold in multiple states, including Nevada, California, Utah, and Arizona. Real Water agreed to issue the recall. However, by the end of the month, the FDA reported that retailers were still selling the potentially dangerous water, and the regulator tried to warn consumers directly. By then, Nevada health officials had linked the water to six additional cases, including three more children, bringing the total to 11.
Now, according to the new report, the tally has increased to 25: 18 probable cases and four suspected cases in Nevada, as well as three probable cases in California.
All 21 probable cases ended up hospitalized, and 18 required intensive care. One woman in her 60s with underlying medical conditions died of complications from her liver inflammation.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Opportunist on Sunday November 21 2021, @02:33PM (34 children)
I always thought their main reason to exist was exactly to keep snakeoil peddlers from selling harmful snakeoil.
It's already bad enough that they can sell snakeoil that's just harmful to your wallets, but at least they shouldn't be harmful to your health.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @02:39PM (16 children)
I saw a different brand of alkalized water in the clearance section after reading this story.
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Sunday November 21 2021, @02:51PM (15 children)
Who the hell would want to drink water that tastes soapy?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @03:03PM (13 children)
Who the hell would want to eat horse paste?
(Score: 1, Informative) by XivLacuna on Sunday November 21 2021, @05:02PM (11 children)
I think someone who wasn't able to get their doctor to prescribe human Ivermectin pills might consider Ivermectin horse paste. Plus there was only like four cases of people poisoning themselves with Ivermectin horse paste overdosing. All of that media blasting over a nothing burger. More people ate tide pods and that was another nothing burger.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by nitehawk214 on Sunday November 21 2021, @05:18PM (3 children)
But how many of those people died because they took Ivermectin instead of getting vaccinated?
"Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
(Score: -1, Troll) by Username on Monday November 22 2021, @09:29AM (2 children)
Zero people have died from taking ivermectin. Especially for haitians with bartiercal pneumonia or brain worms. Well known life saving medicine. They probably will live healthier lives than those who took the vaccine as well, despite living in a county with 0.4% vaccination rate.
14,506 vaccine related deaths.
1,793 reports of heart damage.
0 ivermectin deaths.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @03:21PM (1 child)
The Pfizer vaccine offers 100% long term protection in children. Ivermectin does not.
https://www.statnews.com/2021/11/22/pfizers-covid-19-vaccine-was-100-effective-in-in-kids-in-longer-term-study/ [statnews.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @04:25PM
"If they said it on TV it must be true!"
>Ralph_Picking_Nose.jpeg
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @07:51PM
When eating tide pods is your defense... you're in trouble.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by Booga1 on Sunday November 21 2021, @08:16PM (4 children)
Ivermectin poisonings are WAY up. So far there have been over 1800 cases this year compared to just about 500 for the same period last year. [jsonline.com]
It is disingenuous to try to dismiss ivermectin poisoning's as minimal because "only like four cases" happened to be one particular form of the eivermectin being misused.
The idiots are drinking sheep drench, buying injectable forms, etc... While you can't blame horse paste for every overdose, there are clearly more than "four cases" from ivermectin misuse.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @09:05PM (3 children)
Think how much less there would be if doctors would just issue prescriptions for Ivermectin. Ivermectin is a drug that was developed specifically for humans.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Booga1 on Sunday November 21 2021, @09:40PM
Ivermectin prescriptions are up. [cdc.gov]
People in the U.S. got over 80,000 more prescriptions [cdc.gov] for it this year than last, over 20 times the prior baseline rate for the medicine.
Since the overdoses are up about 3x, but the prescriptions are up 20x it looks like most people that want it are actually getting prescriptions.
(Score: 5, Informative) by FatPhil on Monday November 22 2021, @07:15AM (1 child)
It's also almost useless against CoViD, there's literally no point in prescribing it for anyone who's not at high risk of a parasitic infection. Sure, some studies in some parts of the world have shown decreased covid deaths, but they were places with high incidences of systemic parasitic infection. Ivermectin was most likely fixing the parasite problem, nothing more, and people with weakened immune systems from the virus found that very useful. Joe Public who doesn't walk around barefoot, work hands-on in a field, or drink shitty water are simply not going to benefit from its use. (There - I made it back on-topic again.)
But don't let facts get in the way of a good drool.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: -1, Troll) by VLM on Monday November 22 2021, @02:48PM
Well its usefulness seems to depend entirely on ones political leanings and nobody never looks at the medical journal reviews, OR they only quote 1 of 75 studies that supports their perspective the best.
Or its just a situation of the vax clot shot is the communion wafer of the D party and ivermectin is the communion wafer of the R party and all that matters is demonstrating group affiliation.
There's also the dirty little secret that the govt has approved plenty of prescription medicines with lower effectiveness than ivermectin. Its definitely no silver bullet, but its better at its job than a lot of stuff that has been approved for other diseases.
Then there's the interesting side dish that covid really only kills VERY sick people or VERY old people. In my demographic, asymptomatic is very likely and its just a minor cold, so why would someone under 50 and athletic take ivermectin, we're not even going to get sick. If you're 85 its a near death sentence and those people would be ideal candidates for medication but they're too old to read a label or remember if they took it or not, so they F it all up.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @09:11PM
Have you tried the Vegemite flavored horse paste?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @07:42PM
At least it's apple flavored?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @07:02PM
In soviet Russia, alkaline water saponifies you!..... oh, wait, that's everywhere.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @04:10PM
This is what they're supposted to be for, but what they're really for is banning alternatives the profitable, patented drug company products. Won't somebody think of the shareholders?
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by fustakrakich on Sunday November 21 2021, @05:55PM (8 children)
The FDA is corrupt. That's why they have a problem selling the vaccine too. The secrecy and corruption are what feed the Conspiracy Theory Industrial Complex.
Urged a recall? Please! They're supposed to order a recall and shut these people down. More corruption, more "conspiracies"...
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 5, Informative) by mcgrew on Sunday November 21 2021, @09:30PM (4 children)
The FDA is thought to be corrupt by the Q.
FTFY
Carbon, The only element in the known universe to ever gain sentience
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by fustakrakich on Sunday November 21 2021, @10:26PM (2 children)
Oh jeeze... The FDA is known to be corrupt long before Q ever existed, CIA, NSA (James Clapper), etc too. But ever since Russiagate, they have become national heroes because they jumped to the "right" conclusions. There has been quite a reversal of magnetic poles since Trump, even though nothing has really changed
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @07:54PM (1 child)
Flamebait
Well there ya go! Democrats are to downmod every comment that contradicts their narrative, which evidently must be protected at all costs.. I hope they're prepared to lose again next year, probably worse than 2010, the path to defeat is well worn.. So knock yourselves out, we understand the catharsis, unfortunately it just pushes people to the "other side", aiding the republican campaign, even helping the Orange Orangutan himself.. Keep up the good work!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 23 2021, @01:00AM
Darn Democrats! Down-modding my native born American conspiracy theories and traditional folk medicine! Where is hemo when we need him?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @03:44PM
Q is thought to be nuts by the FDA.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @02:24AM (1 child)
Flambeau
*sigh* All these downmods... What's the democrat version of Q?
(Score: 2) by kazzie on Monday November 22 2021, @05:37AM
John de Lancie? I dunno.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 22 2021, @09:03AM
Flamebait 3!
Hmm, some moderators really are a bunch of trolls... democrats, what can you do? This is their game
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday November 21 2021, @06:25PM (2 children)
The FDA turned into more of a food marketing agency and less of a consumer protection agency a couple decades ago.
Pretty much everything in a grocery store, other than what is found in the produce & fresh meat/ fish section & some dairy, is snake-oil, AKA "processed food". During processing the nutrition and fiber from the base ingredients like grains or vegetables is destroyed and high amounts of unhealthy ingredients like sugar, salt, fat, and unheathy oils are added.
(Score: 2) by Opportunist on Sunday November 21 2021, @11:46PM (1 child)
I'm curious, where do you think that sugar and fat comes from. Hint: They're not fully synthetisized, that's more expensive than the actual source...
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Monday November 22 2021, @07:20AM
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 3, Interesting) by wisnoskij on Sunday November 21 2021, @06:55PM (1 child)
I am also wondering about this. Is water not considered a "food" or something and so subject to less regulation?
(Score: 2, Interesting) by VLM on Monday November 22 2021, @02:59PM
One of my classmates in chemistry ended up doing tap water chemistry (not in Flint, LOL) so we've shot the breeze on this topic.
In his opinion its a tragedy that the EPA regulates your tapwater (his job) and the FDA regulates bottled water, even though 99% of bottled water is just tap water in a bottle. It would seem logical that standards for contamination are ... standard, across bottles or faucets.
Also there's a "state line" argument where water bottled and sold in the same state does not get federal oversight because presumably the tapwater in my kitchen already gets municipal and state oversight, and the feds are more in the business of national homogenization in case, for example, Utahs state tapwater laws don't mesh well with NYCs muni tapwater regulations when sold as bottled water in NYC. Although in practice nobody would bottle water in Utah and send it to NYC; I think.
Apparently if you put "water" in the label on the bottle its regulated as bottled water so the FDA got weird as hell about "Vitamin water" type products a couple years ago, but they don't care what kind of shit they put in energy drinks as long as they're not marketed as "water". So they could get out of a lot of regulation by changing the label to "Alkaline energy drink" instead of "alkaline water"
Another story he tells is the situation with total dissolved solids aka water hardness, is fairly Dilbertian. So in some "deep well" parts of the country the tap water can only be sold as "mineral water" because too much hardness.
Not entirely sure how much of the above is his after work ramblings vs practical reality.
(Score: 5, Informative) by PinkyGigglebrain on Sunday November 21 2021, @07:43PM
The FDA approved the original formula used for the product after evaluating it's safety. so they did their job correctly. At that point it it is the responsibility of the manufacturer to ensure that the product they ship matches the one the FDA originally tested. The FDA also does random testing but unless they get one of the rare contaminated bottles they won't catch them.
Seems like there was some screw up during manufacturing and more of something than was expected, or a contaminate was added to the water during manufacture. Probably a contaminated batch of one of the ingredients or some left over cleaning chemicals in the fill lines that didn't get flushed properly.
The latter is most likely since it was such number of people effected relative to the volume of product made during a production run.
"Beware those who would deny you Knowledge, For in their hearts they dream themselves your Master."
(Score: 5, Insightful) by srobert on Monday November 22 2021, @05:39AM
Regulations aren't designed to make such incidents impossible. They designed to make them less probable. And they've actually succeeded in doing that. Before we had these sort of regulations, people became ill and died from consuming bad food products so frequently that an incident like this wouldn't be newsworthy.