Fwd: An Urgent Call To Action

[Guest guest]

>

> AN URGENT CALL TO ACTION:

> YOUR RIGHT TO USE NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS IS IN JEOPARDY

>

> July 17, 2003

>

> We need to take action, and we need to take action now. There is

> a movement in Congress to restrict your freedom to use nutritional

supplements. The only way to stop it is for us to flood our elected

representatives with so many e-mails and faxes that they will be forced

> to say no to the powerful interests that are behind this movement.

>

> Click now to take immediate action, or read on.

>

>

> You Can Make a Difference

> Don't underestimate the power of such a grassroots movement. Ten years ago,

Health & Healing readers were instrumental in rallying the passing of the

Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). Millions of letters were

written to our Congressmen and Senators in support of this legislation - it

generated more letters than any other issue in US history. Because of DSHEA,

which reduced the FDA's power to block the production, sale, and use of natural

substances, we have free access to herbs, amino acids, vitamins, hormones,

minerals, and other nutritional supplements.

>

> Don't Believe the Smokescreen of " Safety "

> Well, DSHEA - and your right to purchase nutritional supplements - is under

fire. A bill (SB 722) has been introduced in the Senate to amend current

legislation and give the FDA even broader regulatory powers. Under the guise of

" consumer protection, " it would place safety requirements on nutritional

supplements that are even more stringent than those on drugs!

>

> Just one complaint of a serious adverse reaction attributed to a dietary

supplement would give the FDA license to remove entire classes of supplements

(hundreds of products) from the market, even if that product was used against

manufacturer's instructions. This nefarious bill is singling out " stimulants "

such as ephedra - a sure step towards banning such supplements altogether. But

mark my words, virtually all nutritional supplements are at risk.

>

> All this additional scrutiny, by the way, is directed solely at nutritional

supplements, which have a long history of safety. According to Congressman Dan

Burton, a maximum of 16 deaths were attributed to a nutritional supplement last

year. (Excessive doses of ephedra were the suspect in the majority of these

cases, and the supplement link was definitively proven in only a few of them.)

Meanwhile, the FDA turns a blind eye to the 106,000 deaths from adverse effects

of prescription drugs and the tens of thousands of deaths from aspirin and other

over-the-counter drugs that occur every year.

>

> A Power Grab by the FDA

> You may have read in the press that we need new laws because there is no

regulation of nutritional supplements. This is simply not true. DSHEA gives the

FDA tremendous regulatory power, and in fact, it already has the power to pull

any supplement it feels is unsafe off the market.

>

> Yet because DSHEA also gives supplement manufacturers some autonomy, the FDA

has attempted to circumvent it from day one. This agency fought hard against the

passage of DSHEA ten years ago and, in a thinly veiled attempt to get rid of or

amend it, has refused to act responsibly within its confines ever since.

>

> Folks, this isn't about safety. It's about control. SB 722 undermines DSHEA

and gives unprecedented power to an agency that has proven time and time again

all too willing to abuse that power.

>

> The Bad Old Days

> Some of you might remember the pre-DSHEA days when the FDA was completely out

of control. They raided the offices of nutritional physicians like Jonathan

Wright, MD, of Kent, Washington - at gunpoint! They barged into manufacturing

facilities and seized natural substances such as stevia. They authorized the

removal of coenzyme Q10 and other supplements from health food stores, claiming

they were " illegal. " They refused to allow any information on nutritional

supplement labels that would help consumers make informed choices. They mandated

that many supplements now sold over-the-counter require a prescription, making

them more expensive and less accessible.

>

> This is the kind of tyranny I'm worried about, and if you think this kind of

stuff couldn't happen today, think again.

>

> Send an E-Mail and Tell a Friend

> Time is of the essence. SB 722 has quietly wormed its way through committee

and may be on the Senate floor as early as late July. We can and must act

quickly to stop this legislation.

>

> What can you do? E-mail your senators today and ask them to vote against SB

722. If you've already done so, do it again. (You may also send a fax, but I

don't recommend sending letters. Anthrax screening has slowed mail delivery to a

crawl.)

>

> Forward this to your friends and get them to contact their Senators. If each

one of you could commit to generating four e-mails, over a million messages

would descend upon Washington. You may not realize how powerful a grassroots

campaign like this can be, but our elected officials cannot ignore something of

this magnitude.

>

> Click here to learn more about SB 722 and to contact your senators.

>

> To your health and freedom,

>

>

>

> Julian Whitaker, MD

>

> P.S. This isn't the only threat to health freedom lurking on the horizon. I'll

keep you informed on all these issues, but for now, let's send a strong message

that we're not going to take this lying down. Voice your opinion about SB 722 by

e-mailing your Senators today.