Decorative and cosmetic tattoos  have been performed in many cultures and societies for thousands of years. Although tattoos have always been popular in American culture, the popularity of tattoos has continued to grow at a rapid pace. It is estimated that more than 10 million Americans have at least one tattoo. To fill the demand for these procedures, tattoo parlors are springing up in nearly every neighborhood, and some beauty shops now ofter these services. As the demand for tattoos grow, so do the concerns about the potential safety risks, such as infections, often spread through the use of unsterilized needles. Additionally, there are concerns over the safety of tattoo inks which can cause allergic reactions in some individuals.

Permanent tattoos are made from injecting colored ink below the skin’s surface through the use of needles. Permanent make-up, considered a permanent tattoo that mimics the results of cosmetic products, can include eyeliner, eyebrow pencil, lip liner and cheek blush. Although state and local law agencies supervise the tattoo business, the inks and pigments used in the tattoo process are largely unregulated by the federal government. In fact, experts in toxicology research at the Food and Drug Administration admit there have been no systematic studies around the safety of tattoo inks.  Researchers want to know what happens to the ink after it breaks down and is absorbed into the body.  There is some evidence that pigments may migrate to the body’s lymph nodes. What effect this process has on the lymphatic system is unclear.

If you are tempted to get a tattoo or permanent make-up, remember that the FDA has not approved any tattoo pigments for injection into the skin, including the UV (glow-in-the-dark) pigments. In fact, many tattoo inks are the same types used in automobile paints and in printer’s shops. Henna has not been approved by the FDA for use in temporary tattoos.

Removing a tattoo may be painful, is costly and may not always work, as some colors of ink are more difficult to remove. If you wish to remove a tattoo, consult a health professional, not a tattoo parlor, and never buy do-it-yourself removal products, as these are acid-based products that can cause serious skin reactions.

Skechers, a toning shoe manufacturer, claims that their toning shoes will improve the bottom half of your body. On its website, Skechers touts the key element to shaping up with their toning shoes:  the curved bottom that “guides you back to the body’s barefoot stride” and “adjusts your stride to naturally align your body’s center of gravity.” The makers of these so-called toning shoes say the shoes can give wearers shapely abs, butts and legs.

But a number of health professionals are claiming that toning shoes, sold by MBT, Reebok, Avia, New Balance and Skechers, are not delivering on their marketing promises. The shoes could cause a number of injuries to consumers because the design of the sole forces the wearer’s leg muscles to stretch with every stride. The curved soles of toning shoes may destabilize the wearer since, at any given time, only a small portion of the sole makes contact with ground. The wearer may experience loss of traction on smooth sidewalks or on slippery or wet surfaces, increasing the risk of falling.

Dr. Barbara De Lateur of John Hopkin’s School of Medicine warns that wearing toning shoes can change the way a person walks and may present difficulties for people who have issues with balance. The instability that the shoes create makes muscles in the core, back and legs work harder. Unfortunately,  strains and sprains of muscles or fractures in the leg, foot or ankle may result. A number of injuries have already been reported.

As for the claims that toning shoes make a better workout, the American Council on Exercise says otherwise. It tested three popular brands against standard running shoes “calorie to calorie.” Those wearing the toning shoes compared equally to those wearing the standard shoe: each runner burned about five calories per minute. The Council also tested the muscle activity in the back,  abs, buttocks and legs and found there was no difference between standard running shoes and toners.

Skechers is currently facing a class-action lawsuit in California that accuses the company of making unfounded claims about the health benefits of its toning shoes. The lawsuit also alleges that toners pose a risk of injuries to legs and ankles due to the instability and bulkiness of the design. New Balance is also the subject of a lawsuit filed by a California woman who claims that the shoes don’t work.

It’s becoming more commonplace to see many drivers on their cell phones, reading maps or newspapers, putting on lipstick or eating lunch while driving. But don’t look now, the driver cruising in the lane next to you may be checking Facebook or surfing the Web. New in-car services, such as Toyota’s Entune and BMW’s ConnectedDrive, demonstrate how automakers are hoping to attract new customers by integrating smart phone and Web access into vehicle control systems. In addition, some cars come loaded with electronic features that are guaranteed to boggle the brain.

Toyota’s Entune system allows drivers to use their smartphones to access onscreen Web information such as weather reports or stock quotes, send texts, Tweet or post to Facebook. Other manufacturers are producing cars with complex electronic features and complicated controls. For example, the 2011 BMW 750i requires six steps and ten seconds to manually tune a radio station frequency, using voice commands and rotating a controller knob.

For some car manufacturers, such as Toyota, offering more, unrestricted complex technology for drivers represents a departure from the past. In older Lexus RX350 and 400h models, drivers were locked out of most functions, initiating calls and GPS mapping, while the vehicle was moving. But automakers say that drivers are already using those functions via smartphones. So why not offer the same features with voice interaction or touch screens and buttons in vehicles.

As car manufacturers struggle to balance safety with technology and marketing, results in a 2006 Virginia Tech study of car crashes should be considered. The study found that driver inattention played a role in 80 percent of accidents, five years ago when technology was less prevalent. With driver distraction currently a significant issue, expanding in-car technology and electronics available to drivers in motion increases the likelihood that the rate at which serious accidents and injuries occur will dramatically increase.

Many experts agree that automakers, under pressure to place in-car electronics in vehicles to increase sales, are not making safety a high-level priority. Experts worry that drivers are using their eyes, hands and brains in such a way that competes with driving.  Self-regulation does not work as people don’t have the skills or intuition to monitor whether they are running red lights or driving erratically because they are distracted.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently evaluating in-car technology to develop criteria to assist automakers gauge the risks in their systems. Results should be available later this year.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that about 48 million, or one in six Americans, will become sick from tainted food this year; 3000 will die. In a report that was made public in December 2010,  scientists said the statistics do not offer insight or guidance into how to prevent major outbreaks. Knowing the food source that is linked with the disease is key in answering questions around, for example,  how much salmonella is coming from pork vs. beef, chicken or eggs. Researchers admit that little is known about foodborne illnesses. In fact, four-fifths of foodborne illnesses reported each year are caused by “unspecified agents” that may include pathogens or chemicals in food that have not been discovered or identified as the cause of illnesses.

Despite the large number of Americans who are sickened every year by tainted food, there are a number of simple things you and your family members can do to avoid becoming a statistic:

1. When shopping, always check the freshness date on the product to make sure that you are not buying spoiled food.

2. Use care when buying pre-ground hamburger,  as this cut of meat can easily become contaminated with fecal matter from cows.

3. Always thoroughly wash and drain fresh vegetables and fruit before use.

4. Buy your groceries from reputable stores that have a high turn-over of food items, as your chances of buying safe, fresh food are increased.

5. Use two different cutting boards, one for meat and another for fruits and vegetables. Clean cutting boards with hot, soapy water after use. Wash your hands before and after preparing foods.

6. Trust your senses. If the food looks or smells bad, don’t eat it!

7. If possible, keep hot food at 150 degrees and cold food under 40 degrees. Foods prepared with mayonnaise are especially susceptible to bacterial growth in the summertime heat.

By following these easy tips for preparing food, you can reduce the risk of exposing yourself and your family to foodborne illnesses. However, if you or a family member experience the symptoms of food poisoning, nausea, vomiting, watery diarrhea, fever, fatigue, or abdominal or stomach pain/cramps, you should see your physician or go to the emergency room to be evaluated. If possible, save a sample of the food that you suspect may be the cause of your illness.  If you believe you have been sickened by food you have consumed at a restaurant, or at a public or private gathering , call your local health department to report your illness and check whether others who may have eaten at same restaurant have made reports. Although the majority of food poisoning cases cause mild symptoms, food poisoning can be life-threatening.

If you or a loved one have been the victim of a foodborne illness, have been hospitalized or have sustained a serious injury from tainted food, please call the attorneys at the Law Offices of Henry Hanflik. We can help you now!

Despite many warnings about the risks of developing skin cancers, nearly 30 million Americans tan indoors every year,  and more than a million visit tanning salons each day. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, 120,000 cases of melanoma are diagnosed every year in the U.S. So why do people continue the dangerous practice of tanning?  Many tanners say they like their darker skin tone, they feel they look healthier, more youthful. But scientists have long suspected that frequent exposure to the ultraviolet (UV) radiation in tanning beds has the potential to become addictive, and for some people,  tanning is a tough or impossible habit to kick.

Results of a recent study at the University of Texas Southwest Medical Center seem to indicate that frequent exposure to UV rays actually changes brain activity.  By means of radioisotopes injected into a group of frequent tanners, those who tan three or more times a week, the researchers were able to peer into the brains of their subjects.  Scientists monitored how tanning affected their brain activity and discovered that the brain activity and blood flow of subjects who received the UV rays during tanning sessions mimicked the patterns of drug addiction. During tanning sessions when UV rays were filtered out, the subjects, who were not told if they were receiving UV rays, seemed to know that they had not received their usual dose of UV rays and expressed  a desire to tan some more. When subjects received the UV rays, their desire to tan was satisfied.

The author of this study said the research indicates that some individuals seem to be addicted to tanning, as long-term tanners have difficulty cutting back or stopping their tanning sessions despite serious health risks. One dermatologist involved in the study expressed concern about her young adult patients who immediately went back tanning after she cut out their skin cancers.

In addition to the risk of skin cancer, tanning can cause other serious changes in the body, including premature aging of the skin, immune suppression, eye damage (from UV radiation) and allergic reactions. There are no safe tanning beds or sun lamps.

This story can be found on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s website:

Melanoma: One Woman’s Story

Brittany Lietz Cicala of Chesapeake Beach, Md., began tanning indoors at age 17. She stopped at age 20 when she was diagnosed with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. The former Miss Maryland says she used tanning beds at least four times a week, and sometimes every day.

“Growing up, until I started using tanning beds, my parents were very strict about me wearing sunscreen,” says Cicala. Although she also tanned in the summer sun during her 3 years of tanning bed use, Cicala estimates that 90 percent of her UV exposure was in tanning beds during this period.

In the 4 years since she was diagnosed with melanoma, Cicala’s surgeries have left her with about 25 scars. Cicala gets a head-to-toe skin exam every 3 months, which usually results in removal of a suspicious growth.

This article appears on FDA’s Consumer Updates page, which features the latest on all FDA-regulated products.

Updated: May 11, 2010

In February 2011, Dave Duerson, a former NFL safety for the Chicago Bears and a two-time Super Bowl champion, ended his life because he feared that he had traumatic brain injury (TBI) stemming from the many concussions he suffered as a football player. Posthumous testing of Duerson’s brain, which he donated to research,  confirmed that he was suffering from life-altering injuries to his brain, injuries that were often invisible to others. But the effects of TBI can produce persistent behavioral challenges, including severe depression, lack of concentration, mood swings, and in Duerson’s case, suicide.

A brain injury may be sustained in a variety of situations. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),  over half of all brain injuries are caused by falls (35%)  and motor vehicle accidents (17.3%),  with over 1.7 million people sustaining TBIs every year. Fortunately, nearly 80% of patients seen in the ER are treated and released from the hospital. However, 52,000 people will die and 275,000 will be hospitalized as a result of a TBI.

Traumatic brain injury is caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Most TBIs are concussions or other forms of mild TBI. Severe TBI may involve an extended period of unconsciousness or amnesia. A brain injury may affect the way the a person thinks, feels and acts and can change functions within the body, such as temperature, bladder and bowel control. For those with significant brain injury, special services may be required  including in-home care, neurological assessment and counseling, financial assitance as well as physical therapy.

What can you do to prevent concussions or other forms of TBI? There are a number of ways to reduce the risk of injury:

1. Wear a seat belt every time your drive/ride in a motor vehicle.

2. Use a child safety seat, booster seat or seat belt (according to your child’s weight, height and age) every time your child rides in a motor vehicle.

3. Wear a helmet, and make sure your children wear helmets when playing contact sports, skating, riding a bike, skateboarding or snowboarding.

4. Protect seniors from falls by removing trip hazards, installing grab bars in showers and bathrooms and improving lighting in the home.

5. To keep children from falling out of open windows, install window guards. Place safety gates at the tops and bottoms of staircases when youngsters are in the home.

6. Never operate a motor vehicle while you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

7. Use shock-absorbing materials, such as cedar mulch or sand, under and around your child’s play equipment.

In the event that you or a loved one suffers an injury to the head, look for the warning signs of TBI, and immediately seek medical attention  if any of the following symptoms are present: numbness, excessive drowsiness, severe headache, weakness in arm/leg, dizziness or loss of speech, slurred speech, loss of consciousness or confusion, vomiting or nausea or inability to find the right word. This is only a partial listing of symptoms listed on the CDC website, and is not meant to represent medical advice. Symptoms can appear days or months after an injury, and are often recognized when the victim begins to resume her/his daily schedule.

If you, a family member or friend has sustained traumatic brain injury, you may need an attorney to represent you. The experienced and compassionate attorneys at the Law Offices of Henry Hanflik can help you now! Call 810-720-4000 for a free consultation.

U. S. Coast Guard statistics show that July was the month of the year 2010 with the greatest number of personal watercraft incidents: 1140 accidents and 108 deaths.  The total number of personal watercraft-related accidents in 2010 was 4607, including 672 deaths. The year 2011 is shaping up to be a similar year as many seek  to escape the oppressive heat of the summer on personal watercraft.

The number of personal watercraft fatalities are second only to those involving open motorboats. At the top of the list of injuries occurring in 2010 and involving personal watercraft, are broken bones, lacerations, scrapes and bruises, concussions, and hypothermia. The least publicized injuries are those to the groin and abdominal area.  Victims are seriously and permanently injured when they fall off the backs of their personal watercraft and suffer severe damage from the jet nozzle. Because injuries to the vagina, anus and rectum have received little attention from the media, most operators and owners of personal watercraft are unaware of the dangers. Those who rent personal watercraft are often given little instruction on how to operate the vehicle and race away without the benefit of supervision or training.

While some safety experts are calling for manufacturers to redesign and improve personal watercraft by adding a reverse thruster, braking-type system to help slow the vehicle when approaching a hazard and install protective seatbacks that would prevent the driver or passenger from falling directly behind the craft into the jet nozzle, operators of personal watercraft can take some simple precautions to prevent accidents:

1. Pay attention at all times while operating the craft.

2. Seek knowledge and training on how to safely operate the vehicle prior to leaving the dock. Log on to PWCSafetySchool.com for information.

3. Do not use alcohol while operating the craft.

4. Use a proper lookout.

5. Avoid congested or hazardous waters.

6. Load the craft properly.

If you or a loved one are injured in a personal watercraft accident, you may need an attorney to represent you. The experienced and compassionate attorneys at the Law Offices of Henry Hanflik can help you now.

Many hospitals around the country are advertising robotic surgery as a means of attracting patients to their facilities, as robotic surgery represents state-of-the art technology to consumers who seek quality medical services. The truth is robots have been used to perform surgeries since the mid-1980s. Perhaps the most widely known robotic surgery, performed for several decades, is abdominal or gallbladder surgery, where a video camera and long-handled surgical instruments on a tube are inserted through a small incision. With the aid of a video monitor, human surgeons watch the magnified images as they guide the instruments.

But do robots make better surgeons than humans? Robots are merely computerized systems, with arms capable of interacting within an environment. They assist surgeons who sit at control consoles that display three-dimensional images on video screens and allow the surgeons, using computer controls, to easily maneuver the surgical instruments inside the body. Currently, more than 800 hospitals across America and Europe offer some type of robotic surgery for prostate cancer, hysterectomy, and heart surgeries.  Although widely used, robotic surgeries present advantages and disadvantages.

Some advantages of robotic surgery are that most procedures are simpler, minimally invasive with less pain and scarring, as incisions are smaller than those in traditional surgery. Recovery periods are generally shorter as healing is faster, so hospital stays are shorter, by about 50%, than those associated with conventional surgery. However, some studies have shown that recovery times for laparoscopic prostate surgery are about the same for both traditional and robotic surgery, with no real improvement in functional outcome, i.e. impotence or urinary functions.

While there are distinct advantages to robotic surgery, there are several disadvantages patients should understand. First, there is a good deal of time required for a surgeon to master the technology involved with robotic surgery: there is a steep learning curve. The high cost of buying and operating the equipment, $1million and up, makes these devices unaffordable to smaller hospitals, and the cost of a surgery may be higher than a conventional procedure. There is less space for health care professionals to assist in the operating room, as the cart holding the device occupies a good deal of space.  Finally, some surgeons feel hindered by the lack of tactile sensation, as the natural feel of operating is lost.

While health care facilities and manufacturers of robotic devices are heavily promoting robotic surgery, more research is needed to compare the benefits of conventional vs. robotic surgery. Patients should educate themselves about the risks and benefits of each type of surgery and chose a physician who has performed many procedures using robots.

Better yet, never start to smoke!

We have been warned about the dangers of lung cancer and serious health issues related to smoking. But recently researchers at Harvard Medical School found that the more cigarettes a woman smokes, the greater the risk of developing peripheral arterial disease, or PAD, a debilitating condition in which narrowing of the arteries restricts the flow of blood to the extremities. Symptoms of PAD can include numbness and pain in the arms and/or legs. In serious cases where blood flow is reduced, the disease can cause infection and lead to amputation, stroke, heart disease and heart attack.

The Harvard researchers relied on the Women’s Health Study which began in 1993 and followed nearly 40,000 healthy women, ages 45 and older, to determine the relationship between smoking and PAD.  Although smoking cessation reduced the chance of developing PAD, women remained at risk for for the disease long after they stop smoking. Women who stopped smoking within the past ten years were about half as likely to develop the disease as women who were current smokers. Women who stopped smoking 10 to 20 years ago were nearly 25% as likely, while those who quit smoking at least 20 years ago were %15 as likely to develop PAD.

Although men were not part of this research project, the researchers stressed the importance of smoking prevention, cessation and long-term smoking abstinence to reduce the risk for PAD in men and women.

As a followup to our April 20, 2011 blog about the importance of lawnmower safety, we are again stressing the urgency of operating lawnmowers with the utmost of care, especially when young children  may be present. In a tragic accident, a 5-year-old West Michigan girl died May 17, 2011 when her father ran over her with his riding tractor.  The father of the girl said he did not see his daughter until his machine hit her and ran over her. The Kent County sheriff’s office investigated the accident and says that the child may have run out of the house to play during the evening hours, and then tripped in the grass, making it difficult for her father to see her. The sheriff’s office stated that the man may not have been paying attention as he was operating the tractor, was looking in another direction, and he”never noticed her until the tractor was on top of her.” Another report states that the tractor may have rolled sideways or backward over the child, which may indicate a failure of the lawn mower manufacturer to install adequate safety systems, such as rollover protection or a “no mow in reverse” system, that may have contributed to this accident.

The attorneys at the Law Offices of Henry Hanflik have extensive experience in handling lawn mower-related accidents and injuries. If you or a loved one have suffered a serious injury as a result of a defective lawn mower, contact us at 888-905-4632 for a free consultation.