Stalteri vs. Monopoli di Stato is the first tobacco product liability case filed in Italy (in 1994) and the second one in Europe. On 13 March 2002 a panel ad hoc appointed by the Civil Court of Appeal in Rome released its expert witness opinion on specific causation, concerning the case of the late Mario Stalteri, a pack-a-day smoker …
We analysed data on 2842 subjects aged ≥40 years enrolled in the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS 2008-2019). Based on serum 25(OH)D concentrations, study subjects were grouped in three categories: vitamin D deficiency (<25 nmol/L), vitamin D insufficiency (25-49 nmol/L) and vitamin D sufficiency status (≥50 nmol/L). Differences in CVD risk factors between vitamin D deficiency or insufficiency and vitamin D sufficiency status were expressed in standard deviation scores (SDS) and estimated through weighted multiple linear regression models.
To evaluate the understandability and the validity of information included in package inserts of the 20 main oral contraceptive (OC) preparations sold in Italy, we systematically tabulated the indications, contraindications and side-effects listed in their patient information leaflets. OC information leaflets included, in their vast majority, only contraception as indication, with no mention of endometriosis, dysmenorrhea, or other menstrual cycle disorders, which are potential indications for OC use. In contrast, information leaflets included an extremely detailed, but largely acritical, list of contraindications and side-effects, in the absence of any quantitative indication on their frequency and importance. These include, among others, depressive symptoms, visual impairments, or endometrial hyperplasia, which is indeed an indication for combined OC use. Such acritical and poorly explained information on potential, but often unproven, side-effects may cause confusion and lead to withdrawal from OC use for some women, in the absence of any real contraindication. In contrast, some real contraindications or serious side-effects, including cervical neoplasia, hepatomas, liver cancer or myocardial infarction, were not reported in OC leaflets. The incomplete data, and particularly the absence of quantitative information on OC leaflets, may cause negative attitudes of women towards their use, decreased compliance, and, however indirectly, be a determinant of the low prevalence of OC use among Italian women.
The role of diet in cancer is a major public health issue Foods associated with a low risk of cancer are those typically included in the so-called Mediterranean diet, which is also associated with low mortality rates from cardiovascular disease. Implementing such a diet would involve increasing the consumption of fruits, vegetables, cereals, whole-grain foods and fish, while reducing the intake of refined carbohydrates and red meat. In addition, olive oil should replace saturated fats. Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish inhibit the growth in vitro of colon, breast and prostate cancers. Fibre can bind bile acids, which produce carcinogenic metabolites, and fermented fibre produces volatile fatty acids that can protect against colon cancer. It has been hypothesized that the anti-cancer actions of olive oil may relate to the ability of its mono-unsaturated fatty acid, oleic acid, to regulate oncogenes.
