Retail Clinics

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. ­— The Little Clinic has announced the appointment of Kenneth Patric as its new chief medical officer, providing medical oversight and management, and overseeing the development and implementation, of new clinical programs and initiatives for The Little Clinic on a national level.

ATLANTA — The National Center for Health Statistics earlier this month issued a report showing that use of dietary supplements has been on an upward trajectory over the past decade — only 40% of Americans took supplements in 1988, compared with 53% who took supplements in 2006.

WASHINGTON — The congressional Dietary Supplement Caucus held its first briefing for the 112th Congress April 6 to a capacity crowd of 60 House and Senate staffers, the caucus announced Thursday.

The DSC recently was relaunched for the 112th Congress. The caucus serves as a bipartisan, bicameral group of members to facilitate discussions among lawmakers about the benefits of dietary supplements, provide tips and insights for better health and wellness, and promote research into the healthcare savings provided by dietary supplements.

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Water Pik, a maker of personal healthcare products, has announced the launch of its new Waterpik water flosser for kids.

The tool features new water flosser technology and, according to the manufacturer, is proven to be up to twice as effective as traditional floss. Recent studies show that it removes 99.9% of plaque from treated areas and is more than three times as effective as string floss for cleaning around braces.

NEW YORK — Healthcare reform has remained a major subject of debate since President Barack Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last March, but what the law means for diabetes care was the particular focus of a conference call with diabetes stakeholders Tuesday.

NEW YORK — Sunbow has announced the launch of a new sunscreen line for children called Sunbow Sunscreen, as well as a new website to offer parents a resource for sun protection.

Featuring proprietary formulas with natural ingredients, this new collection is comprised of seven SKUs formulated with micronized zinc oxide formulas to provide an UVA/UVB barrier, without such chemical actives as oxybenzone or octinoxate.

NEW YORK — A diabetes education program developed by Johns Hopkins researchers significantly improved long-term blood-sugar control among patients.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The 2011 allergy season is expected to be 27 days longer in the northernmost parts of North America, adding almost a month of suffering to the typical pollen allergy season of February through October, a study published Tuesday by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences determined.