FDA Wants Stronger Warnings On Aspirin
WHITFIELD: So our Daily Dose this morning, you have a headache, you reach for that Tylenol or Advil, but going overboard with over the counter pain relievers can be dangerous. Now the government wants tougher warning labels on these popular drugs. I talked with CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen earlier this morning in</s>THE NEWSROOM. ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Let's start first with Acetaminophen. That's what's in Tylenol and many other drugs. It's also in cough and cold medicines, which a lot of people don't know, and what the FDA is proposing is that it would carry warning labels, talking about possible liver problems, liver toxicity, if you take high doses, if you drink three or more alcoholic beverages a day, or if you double up on products. And what we mean by that is some people will take a Tylenol and will take a cold medicine. What they don't realize is they're getting Acetaminophen twice and they're getting a very high dose.</s>WHITFIELD: Too much.</s>COHEN: Now also proposed labelling changes for Advil, or Aspirin, generic names up there, Aleve, a warning about possible stomach bleeding if you're 60 years or older, if you have a history of stomach bleeds, if you take blood thinners, if you take multiple drugs containing these products, which we already explained, and if you are drinking three or more alcoholic beverages a day. Again, the concern with these drugs, a little bit different. Here they're talking about stomach bleeding.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, so now everyone is getting the public or verbal warning, but when might these warning labels be attached to these items?</s>COHEN: Right now it's just a proposal, and the FDA is hoping that these companies will put these on these products voluntarily and they won't have to go through the regulatory rigmarole to make it regulation. But if they do have to go through that, it could take about a year for them to be on the labels.</s>WHITFIELD:: All right. So a lot of folks who are taking this stuff regularly, are there certainly patients or certain conditions that need to stay away from it all together? Wait until these warning labels come out or what?</s>COHEN: What people need to do is they need to talk to their doctors. They need to think about what category they might be in and talk to their doctors. For many people this really isn't a problem. But let's say you're over 60, you should talk to your doctor about aspirin or Aleve or Advil and stomach bleeding. Let's say you drink moderately, you should talk to your doctor about acetaminophen and alcohol. It really depends who you are, your age, what conditions you already have. But, no one needs to stop taking them immediately necessarily. Talk to your doctor.</s>WHITFIELD: And we can't be overly cautious. I think a lot of folks think over the counter, you know what, it's safe, it's fairly harmless, we can take them at liberty.</s>COHEN: Right, these are drugs, and what they found is that actually people were sometimes taking lots and lots of them for that reason as Fred just said -- it's over the counter. They say take one, gee, two must be better. Not the case.</s>WHITFIELD: Well, get your daily dose of health news online as well. Log on to our website and you will find the latest medical news, a health library, and information on diet and fitness. The address: CNN.com/health.</s>WHITFIELD: Well, perhaps some stormy days in Washington. Now that we heard the president is promising a greater troop buildup in Iraq, will it be a hard sell. Our Elaine Quijano was at that press conference and now in front of the White House. That is the burning question. This just might be a hard sell in Washington and beyond?</s>ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly what we've heard from the president today echoing what he has said in recent days, and that is he is listening to opinions from a variety of different sources as he goes about determining what next to do about Iraq. And this is coming, of course, at a time when there is intense political pressure on this president to change course when it comes to Iraq. Democrats are poised to take control of Congress, of course, next year. Now, the president did emphasize he has not made a final decision yet when it comes to a U.S. temporary troop surge to help stabilize Baghdad. The president was also asked about a comment that he made yesterday to the "Washington Post" when asked whether or not he believed the United States was winning in Iraq, the president pointed to some comments by General Peter Pace, the chairman of the joint chiefs, saying essentially that we're not winning and we're not losing. Here now is how President Bush explained that comment today.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My comments -- the first comment was done in this spirit. I believe that we're going to win. I believe that -- by the way, if I didn't think that, I wouldn't have our troops there. That's what you got to know. We're going to succeed. My comments yesterday reflected the fact that we're not succeeding nearly as fast as I wanted when I said at the time and that conditions are tough in Iraq.</s>QUIJANO: Now, the president was also asked whether or not he might overrule possibly his commanders on the ground. This is a president who, of course, has said many times before that when it comes to U.S. troop levels in Iraq, he does listen to his generals and his commanders on the ground. The president said he had not made a decision yet and said it was a dangerous hypothetical to answer, but also added that the information and the input that he gets certainly from those commanders is important -- Fredricka.</s>WHITFIELD: Elaine Quijano, thanks so much at the White House.</s>HARRIS: All right. Let's get you to the Pentagon now and Barbara Starr. Barbara, I asked to bring you back because I just have a question that I can't get off my head and I want you to answer it for me. First of all, it seems to me we've heard the president now saying that he listens to the advice and will continue to listen to the advice of the generals on the ground. There is all this talk about a surge of additional troops to sort of quell the violence in Baghdad and a couple other areas. But you have to ask you, the president says they shouldn't go without a plan, he agrees with that assessment, and then General Casey talking to Jamie McIntyre a few moments ago, says well there needs to be a plan. My question to you is, General Casey, General Abizaid, aren't they the generals who have the job of devising the plan?</s>BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And here's how you answer that question, Tony. It's a combination of politics and military strategy. You know, several days ago the White House let it float around town, here's the politics, that they were thinking of a surge of up to 30,000. Then it seemed to be an idea in search of a strategy to find a reason to do those 30,000 troops because there's no question, these generals have let it be known that they're not in favor of that kind of surge unless there is a military reason to do it, so that's the military reason. A chicken and egg. What's really happening here? What came first, the idea of a surge and then a reason, a military reason to do it? It's really difficult to figure out at this point. What we are hearing from our senior military sources that we are speaking to is that President Bush has floated the notion of a surge, that he wants to know if that's a good idea, and now folks are going back looking at it and trying to determine if there's a good reason to do it because that's what the joint chiefs are saying. It doesn't do any good to put boots on the ground unless there's a reason to put boots on the ground. Otherwise, as we've talked about so many times, you just have more military targets. What do you do if you have more boots? The violence doesn't ease up. What options do you have next? There are other generals who are weighing in very heavily and saying it's not just a military problem at this point. Unless you have political progress, economic progress -- that means jobs and investment-- these additional troops really won't make a difference. But here is one of the key military issues that Bob Gates is going to have to grapple with, commanders say. If you put more troops on the ground, what will that mission be? The stated mission will be security in Baghdad. That means putting U.S. troops between Shia and Sunni on the streets. That means putting U.S. troops in the middle of a sectarian war, and that means there has to be a decision that that's a good idea, and it's a long way from all of that by all accounts, Tony.</s>HARRIS: Man, I'm glad we were able to get you back. Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Barbara, thank you.</s>STARR: Thank you.</s>HARRIS: Still to come, President Bush says he wants more troops in the Army. One man has to make sure there are enough feet to fill the boots. At 2:00 p.m. Eastern, General Richard Cody, the Army vice chief of staff, will be in the NEWSROOM. We will certainly ask him if there are enough trained fighting forces to complete the mission in Iraq and elsewhere and what he has to do to get them ready. Join us at 2:00 eastern right here in the</s>NEWSROOM. WHITFIELD: And, Tony, we're watching this situation out of Nashville, Tennessee. Apparently there's been an underground utility explosion there in downtown Nashville, and reportedly three people have been transported to the hospital. We don't know how significant their injuries are, but we continue to watch this situation. They've sealed off an area. You can see there it's downtown Nashville along the river. We'll try to find out exactly what else might be near this underground explosion that is being linked to some sort of utility problem. When we get more information on that we will be able to bring that to you.</s>HARRIS: OK, Fred, a very, very busy morning obviously for the president. The news conference first off for the president this morning that wrapped up just inside the last 45 minutes or so. The president is back, back in that same treaty room right now for a bill signing. He's about to sign the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006. Let's listen in.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you all. Please be seated. Thanks for coming. Welcome to the White House. In a few moments, I'm going to sign a bill that will extend tax relief to millions of American families and small businesses and add momentum to a growing economy. The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 will maintain key tax reforms, expand our commitment to renewable energy resources, make it easier for Americans to afford health insurance, and open markets overseas for our farmers and small-business owners. This is a good piece of pro-growth legislation, and I'm looking forward to signing it into law. And I appreciate members of my Cabinet who have joined me in thanking the Congress for their good work here at the end of this session. I want to thank Secretary of the Treasury Hank Paulson, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, and Ambassador Sue Swab for joining us today. Thanks for your service.</s>HARRIS: And there you have the president just moments away from signing the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006. I think of it as a bill that basically reinstates a number of tax benefits, 20, 20 in all, retroactively to the beginning of 2006. Among them the bill renews a deduction of up to $4,000 for higher education. The president signing that bill in just a couple moments.</s>WHITFIELD: And this, an important milestone today, half century ago, just 50 years ago, so it's still very fresh in a lot of people's minds, people, a protest galvanizing the civil rights movement. One of the movements' leaders, we're honored today to be joined by the Reverend Joseph Lowery, coming up in the NEWSROOM.