The "Blow" press kit comes in a faux cocaine brick with several vials, a credit card and a mirror. It caused quite a stir in our mailroom.

"Coke", "snow", "the white lady" -- I'm not old enough to remember cocaine's heyday, but I've seen enough movies to get a good idea.

Fast forward to 2007 and another sort of heyday -- energy drinks. One of the newest ones on the market is seeking to re-create that Studio 54/"Boogie Nights" cocaine glory, and it has the name to go along with it -- "Blow."

"We're the first powdered energy drink in a resealable vial," says Logan Gola, "Blow's" creator. "It's powerfully effective and convenient to consume." [Editors note: Since this story originally ran, CNN was contacted by the founder of "Zipfizz" who told us that in fact his product was the first powdered energy drink in a resealable vial.]

The similarities don't end with the drink's name. "Blow" also comes in a small vial in white powder form. You simply pour this mixture of caffeine, taurine and other stimulants into any drink to soup it up.

But my concern when I first saw the stuff, apart from the obvious play on the illegal drug -- what if somebody poured this powder into another energy drink, creating a lethal high-caf' cocktail? Or if people took the cocaine allusion a little bit further and actually snorted Blow?

Not to worry says Dr. Eric Lavonas, a North Carolina ER doctor and spokesman for the American College of Emergency Physicians. Although he wouldn't recommend snorting it, he says "Blow" has a little less caffeine than a grande coffee from Starbucks. People who drink those will tell you they pack barely enough punch to get you to the next Starbucks for your second cup of the day.

While caffeine overdose can be serious business, Lavonas says it's not very easy to accomplish. "You most certainly can overdose enough on [caffeine] to die. You just have to really work at it."

So what are the risks associated with caffeine? For starters, too much caffeine when you're not used to it can cause serious problems. "Much as a 15-year-old has three mixed (alcoholic) drinks, he's going to be sick as heck, but that same 15-year-old when he's in college he'll be much less affected." says Lavonas. "If you come out of the blocks with this much caffeine, you're going to feel awful."

Other possible complications can include irritability, the jitters, and potentially serious heart arrhythmias. The bottom line, Lavonas says, "If somebody takes one or two of these things, they're going to feel awful, but it's not going to cause them serious harm."

Do you consume energy drinks? Have you had any bad experiences with them, or do they just give you a much-needed energy boost?

Are you one of those people who ignore the signs in hospitals telling you to turn off your cell phone? You're not alone. As I walk through my hospital, I see lots of people - patients and doctors alike talking on their phones, seemingly oblivious to any dangers they might be causing. In fact, if you asked most of these people, they would probably say their personal phone is unlikely to cause any sort of problem with patient care. Turns out they are wrong and the consequences could be serious.

A new Dutch study, published in the journal Critical Care, concluded that we should keep all cell phones, Blackberries and anything that transmits data back and forth off, and at a minimum of three feet away from any medical equipment. That's right. It doesn't matter if you are talking on it or not, simply having it on could cause a problem. The culprit is electromagnetic interference which, when simulated in the study, caused some pretty bizarre and life threatening problems.

The researchers found interference with a variety of machines, including one, a mechanical ventilator or breathing machine, which switched off and on. In other situations, a pacemaker didn't detect an EKG signal and an infusion pump stopped. Of course, in the study, no patients were being treated, but the implications were clear.

The worst offenders seem to be devices that are GPRS based or use WiFi and get on the internet. Previous studies, such as one from the Mayo Clinic, found no interference with normal phones and normal usage. As things stand right now, there are no national guidelines on cell phone usage in hospitals. My hospital, for example, allows no usage, whereas other places may be more liberal. A good rule of thumb, though, is to probably turn off your phone entirely when in intensive care units, emergency rooms and near operating room suites.

I think most people will hear this story and be more diligent about obeying the signs in hospitals. I am curious, though, about a couple of other related issues. What do you think about the use of cell phones on airplanes? Real problem or hype? And, also do any of you worry about a relationship between cell phone usage and brain tumors?

Doctors might not be listening to their patients as much as they should. A new study indicates that the issue is most problematic when it comes to patients reporting side effects to their doctors. The example the study authors used were statin medications - medications used to lower cholesterol. A lot of patients may not know this, but these medications can cause muscle pain, kidney failure and liver problems. These side effects are not common, but they do happen, so the study authors decided statins would provide a good test subject.

In a survey, published in Drug Safety, many of the 650 patients who were taking statin medications and having side effects said their physician either denied or didn't commit one way or another to the relationship between the drug and the side effect. Again, these were side effects that are well known among doctors, but around a third said there was no connection. 39 percent said a connection was possible and 29 percent "neither endorsed not dismissed" the possibility of a link.

Some of the strategies to deal with this problem include keeping a diary of side effects to better illustrate the relationship between medications and reactions. Of course, as difficult as it may be, read the package inserts and ask your pharmacist, nurse and doctor about possible side effects. If your health care team still dismisses your concerns, it might be time to find a new team.

While the point of this study wasn't to determine why doctors aren't listening as much as they should, the authors did draw some conclusions. They think, for example, the pharmaceutical industry, which helps doctors with drug education, is more interested in discussing the benefits of a drug while adverse effects are less likely to be represented. Another theory is that doctors are simply inundated with side effect information on a rapidly expanding medication list, and are unable to keep up with all of them. It was also suggested some doctors are simply too arrogant to listen to their patients and too pressed for time to pay attention. What do you think the problem might be and how do you get your doctor to listen?