Fwd: IAHF: Breaking News, Whats New, What to Do, All Countries,

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IAHF Webmaster: Breaking News, Whats New, What to Do, All Countries, Codex, EU

FSDIAHF List: I just sent this editorial to the Natural Products Industry Center

in response to an editorial submitted to them by all of the US Vitamin Trade

Associations (which all endorse the FDA's ban on ephedra.)We will see whether or

not NPI Center is willing to publish my editorial for the sake of balance or

not. Unfortunately, the global pattern is that pharma's tentacles not only

dominate the industry trade associations, but also the trade press.Natural

Products Industry CenterTo the EditorIn response to your editorial Supplement

Industry Trade Associations Respond to FDA Action On Ephedra at

http://www.npicenter.com/index.asp?action=NBViewDoc & DocumentID=5628International

Advocates for Health Freedom is a consulting firm to the dietary supplement

industry on legislative issues, and has a strong global grass roots

component.IAHF published the first article in the world calling global attention

to

the Codex International Threat to Health Freedom.IAHF takes strong exception to

the position of CRN, NNFA, AHPA, and UNPA who have decided that the FDA's final

rule on ephedra is " balanced. " How is it in ANY WAY " balanced " to ban ephedra,

while allowing pseudoephedrine to remain on the market in a slew of OTC cold

preparations and in such OTC drugs as " Pseudofed " when objective data clearly

indicates that pseudoephedrine is far more dangerous than ephedra is? The FDA is

required by law to be balanced in their rule making efforts. IAHF maintains that

FDA is in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act, and urges ephedra

manufacturers to retaliate in court.Now that CRN, NNFA, AHPA, and UNPA have

caved in to the FDA on ephedra, whats NEXT? Saw Palmetto? Melatonin? Chromium

Picolinate? DHEA? Glucosamine? Shark Cartilage? Chaparrel? (After all,

FDA/NAS-IOM have had these substances in their cross hairs for the past few

years, and have only been waiting to create a legal precedent

before they start challenging all of them too.) See the NAS- IOM Framework for

Evaluating the Safety of Dietary

Supplements.http://www.iom.edu/project.asp?id=4605 This " framework " is being

created ostensibly to " evaluate the safety of dietary supplement ingredients "

(which is ostensibly the same reasoning behind the EU's creation of a black list

for dietary supplement ingredients, while the EU's so called " white list " of

" approved " ingredients includes such toxins as lye....) In IAHF's opinion, none

of the vitamin trade associations can be trusted by consumers, health food

stores, or small, innovative manufacturers. In IAHF's opinion they're all

controlled from the top-down by pharmaceutical interests, and they're walking in

lock step with these pharmaceutical interests.In IAHF's opinion, the FDA is not

acting in the best interests of consumers in banning ephedra, they're acting in

the best interests of the same multinational pharmaceutical companies that

dominate CRN, et al, who

don't want ephedra cutting into the sale of prescription weight loss drugs that

are far more dangerous than ephedra.(CRN's membership includes Wyeth, Pfizer,

Bayer, BASF, and Monsanto: http://www.crnusa.org/who_omc.htmlThe situation with

ephedra, unfortunately, is just the tip of a much larger iceberg when it comes

to pharma dominance of all of the vitamin trade associations world wide.Given

that a finalized Codex vitamin standard could be created at the next Codex

meeting in November, and that the FDA whitewashed an oversight hearing on the

Codex vitamin issue on March 20, 2001 such that the USA has been set up to lose

in a future WTO trade dispute via which our supplement laws can be forcibly

harmonized to a grossly restrictive international standard- all IAHF can do is

hope more companies in the supplement industry wake up and take notice of what

is happening right under their noses.Companies and individuals seeking

additional information on IAHF's views in this matter are

welcome to view the IAHF website at http://www.iahf.comContact IAHF directly at

800-333-2553 (N.America); and via 360-945-0353 (World) or via jham

Health Freedom,John C. Hammell, PresidentInternational Advocates for Health

Freedom556 Boundary Bay RoadPoint Roberts, WA 98281-8702

USAhttp://www.iahf.comjham (AT) iahf (DOT) com800-333-2553 N.America360-945-0352 World

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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