First, peanut butter. Then, tomatoes. Then, peanut butter again. Now, pistachios?

Before you say “Nuts!” to all nuts, keep in mind they may be fine. But until the Food and Drug Administration completes a probe into possible salmonella food poisoning in pistachios, the feds are advising Americans to squirrel away those nuts until the “all clear” sounds.

That advice isn’t aimed just at pistachios themselves, but at any product which contains them, from trail mix to ice cream. Again, it may not be contaminated. But since those products have a long shelf life anyway, why not wait until the FDA has proven them A-OK?

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Chances are, you place your trust in pharmaceutical products. Chances are, when you got an MRA or MRI exam, you thought you were getting results which would help you. You thought your MRI or MRA would  pinpoint internal problems and boost your health, thanks to use of an intravenous contrast dye. But if that dye was gadolinium-based, you may have thought wrong.

That’s because gadolinium used in a gadolinium MRI or MRA exam is injuring countless Americans. No, it doesn’t harm everyone. But it can prove seriously damaging to those with pre-existing kidney ailments. In fact, it can spark a potentially life-threatening condition: NSF, or Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis, also known as NFD, or Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy.

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Your car was just rear-ended by a distracted motorist blabbing on his cell phone and now — through no fault of your own — you’ve got bills to pay for damages. What time is it? It’s HAMMER TIME.

You’ve waited months for your insurance company to make good on its policy and pay for your property damage after Hurricane Ike or some other calamity — and now you’re still waiting. What time is it? It’s HAMMER TIME.

Your child was injured in a Yamaha Rhino accident when the ATV rolled over on a flat surface due to manufacturer design negligence, and now she faces surgery. What time is it? It’s HAMMER TIME.

Your loved one suffered a near-fatal overdose of powerful narcotic fentanyl from a defective Duragesic pain patch, and now requires special care. What time is it? It’s HAMMER TIME.

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You know cell phones are a menace to society when they even start steering TV plots — sometimes twice in the same episode. That was the case with this week’s Desperate Housewives on ABC, when two major events were badly derailed simply because a person unwisely if not recklessly used a cell phone.

One such cell phone accident occurred at episode’s end when Edie (Nicollette Sheridan) was fleeing her maniacal husband. She’d escaped his clutches and was in her car, which she frantically raced down Wisteria Lane while — perhaps by force of habit — she looked down to dial a number on her cell phone.

Now, as smart drivers know, taking your eyes off the road even momentarily can be dangerous, if not deadly. Edie learned this lesson — too late. When a pedestrian appeared whom she belatedly noticed, she swerved her rushing car into a light pole, and at episode’s end it was suggested she was dead.

Now, how important was it to make a phone call while driving? Important enough to kill someone, including yourself?

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As actress Natasha Richardson fights for life after a Monday skiing accident, her brain injury is a tragic reminder of the human brain’s vulnerability and the horrible chance, even after a small blow to the head, for TBI, or traumatic brain injury.

Such a head injury, however minor as in Richardson’s case, can produce catastrophic results, especially if veins around the brain are damaged and begin bleeding. Unlike other bodily organs, the brain is in a rigidly confined space — the skull — and if bleeding and swelling occur, there’s no room for the brain to expand as would, say, a swollen arm.

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Large passenger buses are inherently dangerous. Big rigs, diesel trucks, semi trucks, 18 wheeler trucks or tractor trailers  are even more so. Combined, how dangerous are they? You do the math.

The tragic numbers after a recent bus-truck crash in northeast Mexico were 11 bus passengers killed — including 10 United States and Canadian tourists — and 15 injured when a tractor trailer went out of control and swerved into oncoming traffic, smashing the bus, Mexican authorities said.

As usual with such incidents, the diesel truck driver survived with only injuries. The bus driver is dead, along with 10 passengers. Those who were injured reportedly are in “grave” condition.

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For Houston-born actor Dennis Quaid, star of Disney’s The Rookie, The Alamo and The Parent Trap, the pain of almost losing his twin children to a heparin overdose remains quite real. On today’s Oprah Winfrey Show, a tape revealed Quaid on an emotional visit to the Los Angeles hospital where the near-tragedy occurred, and he then discussed the event with hostess Oprah Winfrey, who assessed other defective drug dangers.

As Winfrey pointed out, more people die from medical mistakes each year in America than from breast cancer, AIDS and car accidents — combined. That’s not a problem. It’s an epidemic. And epidemics demand action.

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It’s bad enough that the United States economy is in dire straits as the stock market plummets and millions face unemployment. But on top of that comes another alleged investment fraud scheme that could be taking many millions — if not billions — of dollars from investors, this time those with Stanford Financial Group.

Stanford, which has offices in the Houston Galleria/Uptown area, already has had its assets frozen and has been placed in a receivership. The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a civil fraud complaint against Stanford, alleging an $8 billion “Ponzi” scheme in which money from new investors was used to pay dividends to older investors.

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Pharmaceutical giants took a huge hit Wednesday, while American consumers won an enormous victory, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Wyeth vs. Levine. And now, justice can be done.

The 6-3 Supreme Court decision held that pharmaceutical companies cannot be shielded from liability because the Food and Drug Administration or other federal agencies erred in approving their drugs, and such companies can be sued in state courts.

Wyeth vs. Levine involved Vermont musician Diana Levine, who lost her right forearm after she was injured in 2000 via injection of Wyeth’s drug Phenergan, an anti-nausea medication which was used to treat her migraine headache.

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