Hyland's teething tablets recalled

[HuckleB]

Source: CBC News

A brand of teething tablets is being recalled in Canada and the United States because they may pose a risk to children.

Hyland's Homeopathic Canada, a division of Standard Homeopathic Company, is voluntarily recalling Hyland's Teething Tablets because they could harm infants and toddlers, according to tests done by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The tablets contain a small amount of belladonna, which can cause serious harm in larger doses, Health Canada said in a release.

The FDA has had reports of serious adverse events in children taking this product that are consistent with belladonna toxicity, although there have been no conclusive links.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/10/28/con-teething-tablets.html

---

For the FDA news release: http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm230761.htm

And from Science Blogs:

"Hyland's Teething Tablets are one of the "weaker" homeopathic remedies in that it is only 3X. An "X" dilution is only 1:10; so a 3X dilution is a 1:1000 dilution. Clearly, it's quite possible to have active remedy left after only a 1:1000 dilution. In the Bizarro World of Homeopathy, it's actually the "weaker" homeopathic dilutions (such as 3X) that you have to be more careful with. It's such "weak" homeopathic dilutions that might contain actual active drug."

Link: http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2010/10/a_brief_diluted_homeopathic_interlude.php#more

[Chulanowa]

1. Alternative medicine that works is called "medicine"

Alternative medicine that doesn't work... is this woo-woo shit right here.

[Taverner]

2. Belladonna????

Why would you put that in a teething tab?

Codeine, Morphine, Alcohol, Cannabis - all those I can see

But Belladonna???

[Hannah Bell]

3. anesthetic/sedative properties

[Taverner]

4. Ahhhh. To hell with that, I'd go with Morphine

It is the opiate of the masses ;)

[madrchsod]

11. tripp`n baby

[Bluestar]

5. Apparently it does work. My niece and all her new-mom friends

are frantic that this is being taken off the market--only thing (they say) that really works.

[HuckleB]

6. A friend gave some to us, so we tried it, and it didn't do anything.

After consulting with the others in our birthing class and around the neighborhood, the overall consensus was "don't waste your money." I've watched others, who are convinced that it works, feed their kid tablet after tablet, and the kid's discomfort remains obvious, but maybe only to me.

For us, frozen blueberries worked best, with good old benzocaine gel as a back up for extreme occurrences.

Since then, I've learned far more about the complete lack of plausibility for homeopathic remedies, and now understand why so many of the parents I knew threw the stuff in the trash. However, if your niece is convinced, then tell her the Hyland's colic tablets work almost as well for teething, too. The actual effect should be the same.

On edit: This is a good piece on the matter, generally and specificially.
http://theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=2453

[BuddhaGirl]

15. they will be back on the market

they do work! when my niece was a baby it was the only thing that worked for her teething.

[Old Troop]

7. Interesting. When I lived in Panama and one of our kids started

teething, our maid (another story for another time), brought in stuff called maricuria or something like that (it's been 25 years) to help. It came in a flat cardboard box filled with paper tubes full of white powder. You rubbed the powder on the gums and the kid was happy again. I know what you're thinking; no it wasn't coke, it was some kind of herbal remedy that seemed to work really well. There were no apparent side affects such as listlessness or sleepiness, just relief from pain.

[HuckleB]

18. Interesting.

There are times when I suspected that the act of rubbing the gums with something, anything is the key.

[mahina]

8. It worked for us.

A hot angry drooling baby would be suddenly cool, laughing, and drool- free. Mostly. It was the only thing that would work. I am trained in research methods by a prof who scoffed at homeopathy as voodoo. I understand the reasoning that would indicate that homeopathic remedies can't possibly work- except they did.

Babies can't possibly experience placebo effects. They don't know what the pill is expected to do.

[HuckleB]

9. Actually...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2002/homeopathyqa.shtml

"How can the 'placebo effect' explain homeopathy in animals and babies?

...

However, homeopathy is also believed to work on animals and babies. Could the placebo effect also explain this?

The apparent effect of a placebo could also be due to other interventions that occur at the same time - changes in diet for instance, or just increased care and attention. There could also be a degree of wishful thinking on behalf of the human observer - believing an animal or baby that received the treatment has improved more than it has because of unconscious bias. There might also be an indirect placebo effect - the treatment makes a carer feel more relaxed and this is picked up by an animal or baby.

Because of these possibilities, research (even on animals and babies) can only be convincing if it is 'double blind' and placebo controlled. This means that the researcher mustn't know which subjects have received the test treatment and which have received the placebo."

----------------------------------------------------------

Julia's placebo effect.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20705216

----------------------------------------------------------

And...
http://punkpsychologist.blogspot.com/2010/02/homeopathy-does-not-work-on-babies-or.html

----------------------------------------------------------

And then there's this:

Acute Pain Is Eased With the Touch of a Hand, Study Shows
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100923125111.htm

----------------------------------------------------------

Is There a Placebo Effect for Animals?
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=263

----------------------------------------------------------


More:

The Placebo Effect
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=24

Placebo Effects Revisited
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=4304

[mahina]

12. "Actually,"

implies that my direct observation is not as relevant as an article.

I already told you that I understand the science regarding the placebo effect.

[HuckleB]

13. Our direct observation and expectations can be a part of it.

You wrote: "Babies can't possibly experience placebo effects."

Thus, you may have said you understand the science of placebo effects, but why would you make such a statement if you do?

:shrug:

Further, if you understand the placebo effect, why would you be so keen to defend your singular observation?

:shrug:

[madrchsod]

10. we used paregoric- tincture of opium

[Odin2005]

14. Belladonna? Isn't that NIGHTESHADE!?!

:wow:

[HuckleB]

19. I believe so.

Novella offered up a typically concise examination of this issue and how our regulations are clearly broken, when it comes to the label of homeopathy.

http://theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=2453

[Born_A_Truman]

16. Gripe water!

Within seconds it calms my 6 month old granddaugter and soothes her to sleep.

[HuckleB]

17. Goodness.

It appears that there are people who will unrec a thread that contains information that needs to get to all parents who may have purchased this product. Why would do that? I could guess the reasons, but are there any that are justifiable?