HEALTH

CONEY ISLAND, N.Y. — ProPhase Labs recently announced that its Cold-Eeze Cold Remedy will sponsor a New Jersey television personality to help raise money for Camp Sunshine, a retreat in Casco, Maine for kids with life-threatening illnesses and their families. 

On Jan. 1, "Jersey Shore" star Vinny Guadagnino will take the plunge as part of the annual Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge New Year’s Day event. 

This is Vinny’s second year doing the Polar Bear Plunge, ProPhase noted.

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Healthcare Products Association last week applauded Ohio Gov. John Kasich for signing into law House Bill 334, an anti-methamphetamine bill authored by Reps. Terry Johnson, R-Portsmouth, and Danny Bupb, R-West Union. With the new law, Ohio now becomes the 25th state to adopt real-time, stop-sale technology known as the National Precursor Log Exchange.

PITTSBURGH — Women deficient in vitamin D early in their pregnancies are more likely to deliver babies with lower birth weights, according to research released last week by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

The study, funded by the National Institutes of Health, will be reported in the January print edition of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

SAN BRUNO, Calif. — Biocodex last week sought to set the record straight regarding the use of probiotics with antibiotics. 

"There is a common myth that probiotics can't be used with antibiotics," stated Kerry Neville, a registered dietitian in Seattle. "In fact, there are different probiotic options available that can be beneficial before, during, and after antibiotic use, like Florastor."

BETHESDA, Md. — The National Institute on Drug Abuse last week released the 2012 Monitoring the Future survey, finding that 5.6% of high school seniors abused over-the-counter cough and cold medicines containing dextromethorphan, a rate that has held relatively steady over the past five years. Abuse of DXM products was reported to be 3% among eighth graders and 4.7% among tenth graders, bringing the overall average to under 5%.

 NORTHFIELD, Ill. — Kraft will introduce more than 40 new products in 2013, the company stated. This is the first comprehensive new products launch since Kraft became an independent public company in October. In keeping with the company's initiative to offer consumers good, better and best choices, Kraft is using its iconic brands and successful new platforms to deliver innovation across multiple categories. While some new products are hitting store shelves now, others debut in early 2013.

NEW YORK — Demand for SeroVital-hgh — a proprietary amino acid compound developed by Sierra Research Labs — has spiked in the past month, in part due to recent exposure on news channels like CNN and on news programs like "The Today Show," the company announced last week. To help meet demand, the company on Dec. 21 announced distribution expansion through GNC. 

PALATINE, Ill. — In support of its December launch of the pseudoehedrine product Nexafed, Acura Pharmaceuticals recently kicked off a national e-mail campaign to help drive pharmacists to the Nexafed website with content specifically designed for the pharmacist audience, including infographics, graphic representations of study data and a behind-the-scenes look at Nexafed's abuse-deterrent technology.