Health Highlights: April 13, 2018

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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Limit Alcohol To One Drink a Day: Study

A new study says adults should limit their alcohol consumption to one drink a day, which is lower than drinking guidelines in the U.S. and many other countries.

The researchers warned that adults who exceed the one-drink-a-day limit can expect to die at a younger age than those who do not, the Associated Press reported.

Current U.S. guidelines recommend no more than seven drinks a week for women, but 14 drinks a week for men, the Associated Press reported.

A 40-year-old man who drinks as much as the U.S. guidelines allow could expect to live one to two years less than one who has a maximum of seven drinks a week, according to the study in the Lancet medical journal.

The researchers analyzed 83 studies that were conducted in 19 countries and included nearly 600,000 people who drank alcohol.

“What this is saying is, if you’re really concerned about your longevity, don’t have more than a drink a day,” David Jernigan, an alcohol researcher at Johns Hopkins University who was not involved in the study, told the AP.

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Canadian Online Pharmacy Faces $34 Million in Fines

An online pharmacy called Canada Drugs faces $34 million in fines under a plea deal made with U.S. prosecutors.

They say the international company illegally imported unapproved and misbranded drugs from all over the world, the Associated Press reported.

Canada Drugs has made at least $78 million through illegal drug imports, including fake versions of the cancer drugs Avastin and Altuzan that had no active ingredients, according to prosecutors.

They spent more than two years trying to get the company to appear in U.S. court to face felony charges, finally securing a plea deal late last year, the AP reported.

On Friday, a judge will decide whether to approve the prosecutors’ recommended sentences of $29 million forfeited, $5 million in fines and five years’ probation for the company, and six months’ house arrest, five years’ probation and a $250,000 fine for company founder Kristian Thorkelson.

Under the deal, Canada Drugs would permanently halt sales of all unapproved, misbranded and counterfeit drugs and would surrender all the domain names of the numerous websites it used to sell drugs, the AP reported.

The final decision on the sentences is up to U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen. An advocacy group says the plea deal terms are too lenient and wants the judge to impose more severe penalties to deter similar crimes in the future.

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