OverTheCounterToday

"Health News Daily": Tylenol Trickles Back To Shelves As J&J Touts Consumer Turnaround

Our contribution to today's "Health News Daily" takes a closer look at Johnson & Johnson's full-year financials and what they mean for the recovering consumer health division.

Keep reading for a full reprint of that story, compliments of "The Tan Sheet."

This blog is brought to you by "The Tan Sheet," your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here -- no credit card required.

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This Week In OTCs And Nutritionals: Pfizer Launches Nutrition Site, Valeant Snaps Up OTCs, FDA Elevates Supplement GMPs

The Jan. 23 issue of "The Tan Sheet" features a look at Pfizer's launch of nutritionpossible.com, a website designed to educate consumers about dietary supplements as well as drive interest in the company's Centrum vitamin brand.

This week's edition also examines how consumer health products play into the amibitious growth goals of Valeant Pharmaceuticals and checks in on CMP Therapeutics, a U.K. start-up preparing to introduce an OTC nasal spray derived from chitin.

Additionally, "The Tan Sheet" has stories on FDA's elevated expectations for supplement good manufacturing practices in 2012, cooperation among supplement trade groups, and more.

This blog is brought to you by "The Tan Sheet," your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here -- no credit card required.

Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

This Week In OTCs And Nutritionals: Alli Kidney Stones Risk, J&J Wrongful Death Suit, Novartis OTC Recalls

"The Tan Sheet" this week looks at adverse event reporting data that may point to a kidney stones risk among consumers taking GlaxoSmithKline's weight-loss drug alli (orlistat). Not exactly opportune timing for Glaxo, which is trying to unload the drug, along with other non-core OTCs.

Our Jan. 16 issue also features stories on a wrongful death lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson relating to its recalled OTC products; Novartis' recalls of Bufferin and Excedrin after quality control issues arose at one of its plants; and Perrigo's forthcoming private-label Mucinex launch.

This blog is brought to you by "The Tan Sheet," your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here -- no credit card required.

Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

OTC/Nutritional News From "The Tan Sheet": Takin' It To The Street

At this week's J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, pharma industry execs repeatedly emphasized to Wall Street analysts the importance of their consumer product businesses. Highlights follow.

This news roundup is brought to you by "The Tan Sheet," your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required.

Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

 

This Week In OTCs and Nutritionals: A Flurry Of Activity

Although actual snow flurries have been scarce in the nation's capitol this winter, 2012 has started with a flurry of activity. First, the U.S. military bans sales of the stimulant DMAA on its bases after two soldiers died and regulators in Canada and New Zealand restrict acess.

Elsewhere in the supplement realm, industry champions Sens. Orrin Hatch and Tom Harkin call on FDA to withdraw the new dietary ingredient draft guidance, citing its conflict with Congress's intent in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act.

Finally, FDA posts comments on its self-selection draft guidance, this one from Merck, which mined its studies on the unsuccessful switch of the statin Mevacor to rebut FDA's argument that purchase decisions are "an unreliable surrogate" for self-selection. 

Stay up-to-date on all OTC and nutritional industry news and analysis, from flurries to blizzards, with "The Tan Sheet." For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required. Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

OTC/Nutritional News From "The Tan Sheet": Omega-3s And Depression, USP Floats Probiotics Standards, California Limits DXM Sales

This news roundup is brought to you by "The Tan Sheet," your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For information on a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required.

Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

 

This Week In OTCs & Nutritionals: Ring In The New Year ... And The Old

The New Year starts with a bang as FDA reveals new enforcement against an ingredient banned from use in supplements and as several companies embrace new brands and strategies in an attempt to start 2012 on the right foot.

Just in time for New Year’s diet resolutions, FDA announces the seizure of products adulterated with ephedrine alkaloids – a move that sends a strong deterrence message. An agency official acknowledges other products likely contain the illegal and undeclared diet aid and that FDA will seek these as part of its enforcement against spiked supplements.

Meanwhile, ProPhase Labs’ CEO Ted Karkus discusses the firm’s plans for 2012 and beyond, including several line extensions for Cold-EEZE and new products that use the state-of-the-art delivery technology available to ProPhase through a joint venture with the Australian delivery technology firm Phosphagenics Ltd. Prestige Brands also hopes to expand its offerings in 2012 by closing the acquisition of 17 brands from GlaxoSmithKline, including BC and Goody’s brands.

Finally, we also take a look back at the most read topics of 2011, including how Johnson & Johnson handled quality control problems, the mystery of Pfizer’s consumer division’s future and the future of Rx-to-OTC switches.

Ensure you stay ahead in 2012 by making “The Tan Sheet” your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required. Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

Happy New Year From "The Tan Sheet"!

 

From all of us at "The Tan Sheet," enjoy a happy and healthy new year. We look forward to 2012, our 20th year of publishing(!), as we continue to provide you with the latest and most insightful coverage of the nonprescription pharmaceutical and nutritional industries.

See below for the top stories from the Dec. 19 issue, our final of 2011. For a complete table of contents, and to sign up for a free trial subscription, click here -- no credit card required.

Also, follow the latest OTC drug and nutritional news via "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

Deja Vu All Over Again: McNeil Recalls Motrin Product

McNeil Consumer Healthcare’s voluntary recall of 12 million bottles of its Motrin product marks the third consecutive year the Johnson & Johnson business ended the year recalling an OTC drug product.

In a Dec. 21 statement on the Motrin website, McNeil said it is recalling from retailers 59 lots of Motrin IB coated caplets and tablets in 24-count containers and coated caplets in 24+6-count packages -- each product contains 200 mg ibuprofen. The firm said testing of samples showed some caplets may not dissolve as quickly as intended when the products near their expiration date. The lots are being recalled "since there is a chance they could experience a similar problem as they approach expiration,” the J&J business said.

Don't get caught out in the cold. Make "The Tan Sheet" your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required. Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.

This Week In OTCs And Nutritionals: A Cold Front Chills Industry

The temperatures outside are dropping, but Jack Frost is not responsible for the cooling relationship between FDA and the dietary supplement industry. Trade groups respond icily to new dietary ingredient notification draft guidance that they say contravenes the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act. Most groups agree FDA should rewrite the guidance, but “The Tan Sheet” combs through individual comments to highlight the finer points.

HHS Secretary Sebelius also sent a chill through the drug industry when she blocked Teva Pharmaceutical Industry’s attempted full OTC switch of emergency contraceptive Plan B. We look at why Sebelius overrode FDA’s recommendation to make the pill available OTC to all females of childbearing age, and analyze the potential impact the interference could have on future switch attempts and the potential creation of a third drug class.

We also look at FDA’s enforcement priorities for the New Year and its progress on foreign food facility inspections.

Don't get caught out in the cold. Make "The Tan Sheet" your go-to weekly source for OTC and nutritional news and analysis. For a free 30-day trial subscription, click here. No credit card required. Also, follow "The Tan Sheet" on Twitter and Facebook.