Health Highlights: Sept. 25, 2008

Sept. 26 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

European Union Bans Chinese Milk Products

Baby food products that contain milk imported from China were banned Thursday by the European Union in response to the deaths of four Chinese infants who ingested locally made tainted formula.

The European Commission also called for tighter controls on other foods imported from China, the Associated Press reported.

In addition to the four deaths, Chinese formula tainted with the plastics chemical melamine has caused more than 54,000 Chinese babies to become sick. The chemical, which can lead to kidney stones and kidney failure, is considered particularly harmful to children.

Melamine has been detected in products from 22 Chinese dairy firms, the AP reported. It's thought that suppliers used the chemical to mask the watering down of various milk products.

The practice may now be affecting animals, the wire service reported, as a lion cub and two baby orangutans have developed kidney stones at a zoo near Shanghai.

The World Health Organization and UNICEF issued a joint statement Thursday condemning baby-food makers that deliberately contaminate their products.

"Whilst any attempt to deceive the public in the area of food production and marketing is unacceptable, deliberate contamination of foods intended for consumption by vulnerable infants and young children is particularly deplorable," the statement read.

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Standardized Color Plan for Hospital Wristbands Faces Hurdles

A new standardized system for color-coded wristbands in hospitals to prevent potentially dangerous mistakes is essential to patient safety, proponents say, but others fear they may compromise patient privacy, The New York Times reported.

The movement to standardize color coding of the hospital bands gathered steam, in part, because of a 2005 Pennsylvania case where a patient nearly died when a nurse mistakenly used an incorrect band. The plan is to have the wristbands designate patient conditions so treatment can be checked: Purple, or amethyst, means Do Not Resuscitate (D.N.R.); red, or ruby, indicates allergies; and yellow, or amber, identifies someone at risk for falling, according the Times.