HEALTH

NEW YORK — The owner of an independent pharmacy in New York has won a national award for his diabetes education and counseling efforts.

Ronald Del Gaudio, a graduate of Long Island University's College of Pharmacy, also known as LIU Pharmacy, and the owner of Kings Pharmacy in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, has won the Health Mart Diabetes Care Excellence Award from the independent pharmacy franchise company, the university said. Kings Pharmacy, a member of Health Mart, includes two pharmacies in Brooklyn and one in Manhattan.

 BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Aspirin has the potential to block tumor growth in certain patients with colorectal cancer, according to an editorial in the Oct. 25, 2012 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by a University of Alabama at Birmingham oncologist. In a study that appears in the same issue, researchers examined the use of aspirin in the treatment outcomes of patients with colorectal cancer.

CINCINNATI — Social media engagement between a consumer and brand drives both immediate and long-term sales increases, according to a study released Thursday by LoyaltyOne. The research constitutes a social media marketing breakthrough because it establishes the accountability link long sought by brands that have showered dollars on social media outlets while attempting to prove the return on investment to C-suite skeptics, the company stated.

ALBANY — Leosons Overseas on Tuesday announced the acquisition of the brands N’Ice and Fiberall from Insight Pharmaceuticals. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

"We are proud of our growth and success of these brands, and we feel that this acquisition will further our mission to deliver the best U.S.-made products globally," said John Ohanian, general manager and president of Leosons. "The acquisition … will broaden our existing sales and distribution reach, as well as bring scale to our business.” 

DENVER — Although 77% of general shoppers compare store brands to brand names, 90% of women compare both regularly, according to a shopper behavior study conducted by The Integer Group and M/A/R/C Research that was published Thursday in The Checkout.  

BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Sam's Club, via its Simply Right wellness brand, has donated $500,000 to Vitamin Angels, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing availability, access and use of micronutrients among at-risk populations in need. The monetary donation will help Vitamin Angels expand their efforts to reach at-risk children age five and under with vitamin A and daily multivitamins and pregnant or breastfeeding women with prenatal vitamins around the world and domestically.

BUTLER, N.J. – Sneaky Pete's Naturally Oatstanding Beverage is now available at various grocery stores and other retailers nationwide. The first soluble oat beverage of its kind, Sneaky Pete's is an easy and low-calorie way for consumers to meet the daily requirement for fiber.

StoreBoard Media — a company that places advertising billboards on the security pedestals at the entrance of chain stores nationwide — is launching its StoreBoard Wellness Program throughout New York's 259 Duane Reade stores.

Through the program, Duane Reade stores will feature StoreBoard Media's billboards and in-store kiosks advertising brands like Eau Thermale Avene — a hypoallergenic skin recovery cream from Pierre Fabre USA — and encouraging customers to use the Purell hand sanitizer at the kiosk.