MedShadow Foundation Blog

The MedShadow Foundation utilizes its website and multiple social media channels to share up-to-date articles and news regarding medical conditions, potential side effects, and alternative treatment options. We understand that medications are crucial for saving lives, especially for those with chronic illnesses and critical health situations. However, we are also aware that some medications may be overprescribed and that comprehensive information about side effects is often insufficient. Additionally, long-term effects typically aren’t examined before FDA approval. Our goal is to help bridge this information gap and motivate patients to evaluate the risks and benefits of the medications they are given.

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Articles

Expert Commission Redefines Obesity, But How It Will Be Implemented Remains Unclear

2 months ago | medshadow.org | Emma Yasinski

Fact Checked FACT CHECKED On January 16, 2025, global experts convened to unveil and discuss a new clinical definition of obesity, which they describe in a new report: Definition and Diagnostic Criteria of Clinical Obesity. This updated framework — the result of years of meetings and debates among members of The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology Commission on Clinical Obesity — redefines obesity as a disease in its own right.
The Side Effects of Inequality: How Lack of Diversity in Clinical Trials Affects Drug Effectiveness and Safety

2 months ago | medshadow.org | Daphne Berryhill

Fact Checked FACT CHECKED Editor’s note: In this article, the author makes note of guidance published in 2024 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that required pharmaceutical companies to develop a Diversity Action Plan before submitting an investigational new drug (IND) application. However, in late January 2025 — before we were able to publish this piece — the FDA removed that guidance from its website.
The FDA Has Failed to Inspect Thousands of Drug Manufacturing Labs

Nov 13, 2024 | medshadow.org | Harris Meyer

An AP investigation revealed that the FDA has missed inspections for 2,000 labs since 2019, despite its own five-year mandate. In early September 2024, anAssociated Press (AP) investigation revealed that the FDA has struggled to keep up with inspections of medication manufacturing labs, especially those based overseas. The agency faces a backlog of about 2,000 labs that haven’t been inspected in more than five years, even as they continue to produce medications taken daily by millions ofAmericans.
6 Drugs That Can Cause Kidney Damage

Oct 11, 2024 | medshadow.org | Tori Rodriguez

No matter what kind of medicine you take, whether OTC (over-the-counter) or prescription, it is destined to take a trip through your kidneys. Taking a drug the wrong way or in excessive amounts can damage these vital, bean-shaped organs and lead to serious complications. In the worst-case scenario, it could necessitate a kidney transplant. No matter what kind of medicine you take, whether OTC (over-the-counter) or prescription, it is destined to take a trip through your kidneys.
Antidepressants Can Cause Long-Lasting Sexual Dysfunction: How to Protect Yourself

Oct 8, 2024 | medshadow.org | Emma Yasinski

Stacey Harder, an author in Melbourne, Australia, has struggled with anxiety related to early traumas for most of her life. Eventually, she decided it was time to speak with her doctor about the condition and consider starting medication. Antidepressant medications, such as SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and SNRIs (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors), are commonly prescribed for anxiety, and her doctor suggested that she try taking one.
What To Know About Cobenfy, First New FDA-Approved Treatment For Schizophrenia in Decades

Sep 30, 2024 | medshadow.org | Jessica DiGiacinto

On September 26th, 2024, the FDA announced approval for Cobenfy (xanomeline and trospium chloride) the first novel schizophrenia treatment for adults in over 30 years. Early Cobenfy proponents find this new medication exciting because it may diminish some of the adverse side effects of currently available drugs. Right now, most antipsychotics that are prescribed for schizophrenia work by blocking dopamine, a chemical in the brain thought in hallucinations and delusions.
Emma Yasinski, Author at MedShadow Foundation

Sep 21, 2024 | medshadow.org | Emma Yasinski

MedShadow Foundation is an independent nonprofit health & wellness journalism organization focused on helping to protect lives from the side effects of medication and lower risk with alternative health options. We help protect your life and the lives of your family by making sure you have the information you need to make informed decisions about the risks, benefits and alternatives to medicines.
High Doses of Adderall Raise Risk of Psychosis, Study Shows

Sep 12, 2024 | medshadow.org | Emma Yasinski

When Lauren Moran, M.D., started working as an inpatient psychiatrist at McClean Hospital in Boston, she noticed a surprising amount of college students getting admitted for psychosis or mania who had no history of psychiatric symptoms. Many did, however, have a recent prescription for Adderall (a type of amphetamine) to treat symptoms of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). “This is a known side effect. The FDA put it on their labels,” says Dr. Moran.
What to Know About the Right to Try Act in 2024

Sep 9, 2024 | medshadow.org | Jessica DiGiacinto

What would you do if you were suffering from a terminal illness and you’d exhausted all medical options? If you answered “I’d try anything,” you’re not alone. Enacted in 1987, the FDA’s Expanded Access program (also referred to as “compassionate use”) allows patients with life-threatening illnesses to apply for and use drugs that are in development but not yet fully approved.
Why Did the FDA Reject MDMA for PTSD?

Sep 3, 2024 | medshadow.org | Emma Yasinski

On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejected an application for MDMA, also known as ecstasy, to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in conjunction with talk therapy.1 The heavily anticipated FDA ruling on MDMA-assisted therapy came on the heels of a damaging assessment in June by an FDA advisory committee, in which experts said they didn’t have enough confidence in the evidence due to missing data and potential bias in the studies.2 The announcement caused...