The Food and Drug Administration has issued warning letters to 17 manufacturers for carrying deceptive or false labels about nutrition and health benefits.

It challenged the label claims of some products on issues like fat contents, nutrient standards which could result in medical problems.

Mrs. Smith's Coconut Custard Pie produced by Schwan's Consumer Brands North America of Bloomington, Minn., was one of the targets of the FDA's action. It claimed that the pie has no trans fat, but did not reveal that it has considerable levels of saturated fat and total fat.

The U. S. Food and Drug Administration released the latest study of dietary habits, which says that most of the consumers go through the food labels and are abreast of good nutrition values.

The FDA has urged food manufacturers to move nutrition labels to the front of the box.

Meanwhile, last Thursday, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration declared that makers of long-acting beta antagonists (LABAs) will need to include a warning in the product labels that these drugs by no means should be taken alone in the treatment of asthma in children or adults.

The FDA clinical experiments revealed that the drug could lead to worsening of asthma symptoms, which could probably result in hospitalization in children as well as in adults. The use of the drug could also result in death. Therefore, it is better to limit the utilization of this drug and combine some other medicine along with this drug to cure asthma. The FDA advised that LABAs should be used only for some period of time to control. And once it has been done, the drug should be discontinued.

A new report reveals that each year, more than 100 U. S. children 14 years or younger are killed due to choking and thousands more are treated in emergency rooms. Candy and gum are the chief criminals, along with items like coins and balloons.

To avoid choking, physicians suggest that hot dogs, raw carrots, grapes and apples should be cut into small pieces for little children. In addition, hard candies, popcorn, peanuts and marshmallows, should not be given to young children at all.

More warning labels on toys, balls and balloons will certainly help to prevent choking cases in future.