system: You are George Lagergren, a caller on a 1990s BBS posting in the Altern. Medicine message echo. Write like a real BBS user of the era — plain, direct, in your own voice, no modern polish.

user: You are replying to All about "FOOD SUPPLEMENTS IN DANGE".

They wrote:
-=> Quoting Pilothigh to  <=-
Pi> From: PilotHigh@heaven.com (PilotHigh)
Pi> Subject: FOOD SUPPLEMENTS IN DANGER!
Pi> Newsgroups: alt.health
Pi> Organization: None
Pi> Message-ID: <PilotHigh-1508971434050001@ts40ip164.cadvision.com>
Pi> Codex Alimentarius and What It Means To You
Pi> By Jackie Buchanan
Pi> "Unless we put medical freedom into the constitution, the
Pi> time will come when medicine will organize itself into an
Pi> undercover dictatorship . . . denying equal privileges. All
Pi> such laws are un- American and despotic . . .
Pi> -Benjamin Rush, Physician Signer, Declaration of
Pi> Independence
Pi> Codex Alimentarius, in simple terms, is a code of law for
Pi> food. What it actually means to each and everyone of us is a
Pi> threat to our health and the health of every human being on
Pi> this planet.
Pi> The future availability and legal status of herbs, vitamins,
Pi> amino acids, minerals and all other supplements in the U.S.
Pi> and throughout the world, may be determined by a committee
Pi> made up of 146 nations called the Codex Alimentarius
Pi> Commission, which operates in conjunction with the United
Pi> Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Pi> It is under the guise of protecting public safety through
Pi> the standardization of food and botanical codes that the
Pi> commission may be a tool of the international pharmaceutical
Pi> industry that is intent on making ALL SUPPLEMENTS -herbal or
Pi> otherwise- available by prescription only.
Pi> Established in 1962 for the purpose of setting international
Pi> standards and codes for foods, the Codex Commission is over-
Pi> whelmingly composed of German and International
Pi> Pharmaceutical Corporations. Over 90% of the international
Pi> organizations ALLOWED to send delegates to the meetings
Pi> represent giant multinational pharmaceutical corporations.
Pi> The only consumer organization is the International
Pi> Organization of Consumer Unions.
Pi> NEITHER THE NATURAL HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY NOR THE GENERAL
Pi> PUBLIC HAS ANY REPRESENTATION AT THE CODEX MEETINGS.
Pi> Spearheaded by the German pharmaceutical corporations, this
Pi> Codex Commission plans to ban -on a worldwide basis- any
Pi> health statement in relation to any non-prescription
Pi> supplement, preventive, therapeutic, or otherwise. Moreover,
Pi> any formulas which would still be available would have to
Pi> meet the arbitrary restrictions of the Codex Commission.
Pi> Those nations that do not comply with these restrictions are
Pi> faced with economic sanctions.
Pi> While researching this article, I came across a letter
Pi> written in 1995 from Matthias Rath, MD to Chancellor Kohl
Pi> and Members of the German Bundersag, prior to the Codex
Pi> meeting in Bonn Germany in 1996.
Pi> "As a physician and scientist who led the breakthrough in
Pi> vitamin research which can eradicate heart disease, I feel
Pi> it is incumbent upon me to address this important matter . .
Pi> .. as I see it, the attack of the Codex Commission is a
Pi> desperate act by the pharmaceutical companies to protect
Pi> their world wide drug market against naturally effective and
Pi> much more affordable supplements. Particularly disturbing is
Pi> the role of the German pharmaceutical and chemical
Pi> corporations within the Codex Commission. Once before in
Pi> this century, a German pharmaceutical and chemical
Pi> corporation, I.G. Farben, became responsible for the deaths
Pi> of millions of people and consequently was dismantled in
Pi> 1946 by the Nuremberg Tribunal and split into Bayer, BASF,
Pi> and Hoechst. With the current plans of the German
Pi> pharmaceutical companies, the predictable dimension of the
Pi> unnecessary and premature death of millions of people is
Pi> unavoidable. If the Codex Commission is allowed to obstruct
Pi> the eradication of heart disease by restricting access to
Pi> nutritional supplements, more than 12 million people
Pi> world-wide will continue to die every year from premature
Pi> heart attacks and strokes. Within the next generation alone,
Pi> this would result in over 300 million premature deaths, more
Pi> than in all the wars of mankind together . . ."
Pi> When I first read this, I took it with a grain of salt -
Pi> until I came across an article in Issue 14 of the
Pi> Alternative Medicine Digest, a reprint of an article that
Pi> originally appeared in the Wall Street Journal on April 25,
Pi> 1996. The headline read "They're Scientific When It Suits
Pi> Them, But a $1.4-Billion Deal is Better than Science." The
Pi> article opened by saying that if a study which was
Pi> peer-reviewed by 5 independent medical experts had been
Pi> published in the Journal of the American Medical Association
Pi> in January 1995 as planned, American consumers with thyroid
Pi> problems would have saved $356 million a year in drug costs.
Pi> However, the publication of this article would have wrecked
Pi> a $1.4-billion deal for its manufacturer, Boots Company, the
Pi> British pharmaceuticals and drugstore chain. The study
Pi> documented how Synthroid, which controls 84% of the US
Pi> thyroid medication market and is used by 8 million
Pi> Americans, works no better than 3 other lower priced drugs.
Pi> The makers of Synthroid - first introduced in 1958 as a
Pi> synthetic version of thyroid hormone - had never been
Pi> required by the FDA to submit proper clinical trial data,
Pi> like other drugs. An unpatented drug for underactive
Pi> thyroids, Synthroid's vigorous U.S. sales have been
Pi> protected by something as good as a patent: the presumption
Pi> that the competing, lower-priced drugs are not
Pi> bioequivalent, which means that they are not absorbed and
Pi> assimilated as fast and as well as Synthroid.
Pi> The JAMA study proved this presumption wrong and it was
Pi> about to call an end to Synthroid's free market run. Even
Pi> worse, the study would have jeopardized Boots' $1.4 billion
Pi> buy-out by Germany's BASF-AG. How did the study's sponsor,
Pi> which has invested $250,000 to finance the research feel
Pi> about it? It was the sponsor itself -- none other than Boots
Pi> that did everything to discredit the study and block its
Pi> publication. Quite clearly, scientific evidence takes a
Pi> backseat to preserving the competitive edge.
Pi> Another more recent web-site written from a Canadian point
Pi> of view about how Codex will affect Canada goes on to state:
Pi> In October, 1996, Codex met in Bonn, Germany to make radical
Pi> changes in the rules governing dietary supplements for
Pi> member nations. The proposals of greatest concern were those
Pi> made by the German delegation (see the proposed Draft
Pi> Guidelines for Dietary Supplements) and is being sponsored
Pi> by Hoechst, Bayer and BASF. These are the three drug
Pi> companies formed when the Nuremberg War Trials disbanded IG
Pi> Farben, manufacturer of the poison gas used in Nazi
Pi> concentration camps. This is not the first time that the UN
Pi> has been linked closely with Nazi war criminals. Ostensibly,
Pi> their purpose is " . . .to create a set of international
Pi> standards to guide the world's growing food industry and to
Pi> protect the health of consumers.
Pi> Can reports from 4 different, totally unrelated sources, be
Pi> ignored? I think not!
Pi> The pharmaceutical company backed proposals call for the
Pi> following:
Pi> 1. No vitamin, mineral, herb, etc., can be sold for
Pi> prophylactic (preventative) or therapeutic reasons.
Pi> 2. Natural remedies can be sold as food but they must not
Pi> exceed the potency (dosage) levels set by the commission.
Pi> This means that consumer access to dietary supplements will
Pi> be limited to the RDA dosage as a maximum limit for vitamins
Pi> (Vitamin C - 60 mg. Vitamin E - 15 mg., etc.) Supplements
Pi> without an RDA (e.g. coenzyme Q10) would be illegal to sell
Pi> because they would all become drugs.
Pi> 3. Codex regulations for dietary supplements would become
Pi> binding, eliminating the escape clause within the General
Pi> Agreement of Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that allows a nation
Pi> to set its own standards. This applies to all member
Pi> countries of the UN. Any nation that does not accept these
Pi> new standards will be heavily fined by the World Trade
Pi> Organization (WTO) creating the potential for crippling
Pi> entire sectors of that nation's economy.
Pi> 4. All new supplements would be banned unless they go
Pi> through the Codex approval process. Five steps have already
Pi> been taken in the Codex process over the past few years.
Pi> Remember Canadian Bill C-7 which was passed eventually in
Pi> Canada as C-8? The similarity of the process, the secrecy,
Pi> and the wording between the Codex proposals and the Canadian
Pi> laws is uncanny. Voting in favor of adopting the German
Pi> proposals has been overwhelming (16 for 2 against in the
Pi> most recent vote). The Codex process is now at Step Five -
Pi> formalization and debate concerning the specific features.
Pi> In two years, Codex could jump from Step 5 to Step 8 to
Pi> finalize these restrictions.
Pi> In the U.S., the FDA has already tried to use guerrilla
Pi> tactics to stop the use of these supplements. The first time
Pi> I became totally aware of their horrendous practices was in
Pi> the case of ESSIAC, the herbal formula that had been
Pi> researched since the 1920's with excellent results in
Pi> curing, yes I said curing, cancer. Fortunately, once their
Pi> tactics came to light, a nation-wide non-violent revolution
Pi> took place resulting in millions who were appalled at the
Pi> tactics, writing letters and calling their congressmen and
Pi> the FDA. The end result, ESSIAC is now widely available in
Pi> many forms. Even Respirin, the drug company in Canada who
Pi> owned the rights to the formula has started producing it and
Pi> selling it via magazine ads and in health food stores. All
Pi> of this took place in 1989-1990.
Pi> In 1992, the FDA raided the Tahoma Clinic in Kent,
Pi> Washington. The FDA alleged that Dr. Wright, MD was engaged
Pi> in the commerce of foreign labeled injectable "drugs" (which
Pi> were actually vitamins). This action interfaced with FDA
Pi> raids of 17 health food stores in Texas and others in
Pi> Oklahoma, supplement manufacturing facilities in California,
Pi> Oregon, and Washington, and other nutritionally-oriented
Pi> medical doctors across the US. Again, there was a national
Pi> call to action of everyone interested in preserving their
Pi> rights to make their own choices in health care. Letters
Pi> were mailed and faxed to the White House by the millions and
Pi> once again, the FDA was forced to back off. At this same
Pi> time Bill H.R. 3642/S2135 was in committee and being
Pi> reviewed prior to voting it into law. This bill would have
Pi> given the FDA the power to put the health food and dietary
Pi> supplement industry out of business. It would have also
Pi> given them the power to legally conduct warrantless
Pi> searches, seize and embargo products and levy heavy fines
Pi> ($250,000 on individuals and $1,000,000 on companies)
Pi> without a trial. Again, the people of the United States took
Pi> action and through a powerful campaign whereby they voiced
Pi> their opinions, another small battle was won for freedom of
Pi> choice!
Pi> In 1995, the FDA attempted to quietly but quickly do away
Pi> with the use of any type of electronic instrumentation (not
Pi> already approved) for use in diagnosing, tracking, or
Pi> treating illness. This would have affected many doctors,
Pi> dentists, osteopathic physicians, chiropractors, etc.
Pi> Fortunately, they banded together, got their scientific
Pi> studies and documentation together and, after a long hard
Pi> struggle, managed to hold their ground and prevent the FDA
Pi> and other interested parties (pharmaceutical companies and
Pi> medical practitioners who felt that only the usual methods
Pi> of treatment, i.e., surgery and drugs should be allowed)
Pi> from getting their way.
Pi> Now, here we are in 1997 and BY ALL APPEARANCES, the FDA has
Pi> ceased their efforts to take away our rights to make our own
Pi> choices about healthcare. Their policy with regard to the
Pi> Codex standards is stated in the Federal Register of October
Pi> 11, 1995 - FDA Policy on Standards, which states:
Pi> "It is the intent of this policy to enable the FDA to
Pi> continue to participate in international standards
Pi> activities that assist it in implementing statutory
Pi> provisions . . .
Pi> and
Pi> "The development of an international standard that achieves
Pi> the agency's public objectives is generally, but not always,
Pi> given a higher priority than the development of a domestic
Pi> standard . . .
Pi> and
Pi> "Where a relevant international standard exists, or
Pi> completion is imminent, it will generally be used in
Pi> preference to a domestic standard . . .
Pi> In considering the above statements about their intentions
Pi> coupled with their past tactics as well as their continuing
Pi> policy of ignoring the public's wishes in protecting health
Pi> freedom, a public outcry against the Codex is again called
Pi> for. I urge you to educate yourselves to what is really
Pi> going on here. Most of the information can be found on the
Pi> Web. In the past 4 months, I have found only one small
Pi> article about this issue, tucked away in the back pages of
Pi> Issue 18 of the Alternative Medicine Digest which is on the
Pi> newsstands now.
Pi> If the German and Canadian proposals are passed, it would
Pi> constitute an effective end run by the pharmaceutical
Pi> companies around the medical rights of Americans. They
Pi> wouldn't dare attempt to do this in the U.S. because there
Pi> would be such a public uproar
Pi> it would never pass through congress. However, by taking the
Pi> stance that they have, the FDA WILL ACCOMPLISH ITS GOALS BY
Pi> LETTING CODEX DO ITS UNACCEPTABLE DIRTY WORK. The
Pi> pharmaceutical companies are planning a global takeover of
Pi> the vitamin-herb industry and within a few short years, they
Pi> will have succeeded by pushing competitors out of the field.
Pi> They are planning to do it very quietly and carefully
Pi> through GATT and the Codex Commission. They will succeed if
Pi> they are not exposed and their plan is not given national
Pi> headlines.
Pi> This is the last wake-up call that may be given before it is
Pi> too late. It is of the utmost importance that everyone
Pi> become aware and voice their displeasure with the leaders of
Pi> their respective governmental agencies. In the U.S., it is
Pi> imperative that everyone call and write to their local
Pi> congressmen. Phone the White House. Call the FDA. Tell
Pi> everyone you know to do the same. Call your local newspaper
Pi> and alert them to what is really going on here. If we don't
Pi> take action now, our freedom to choose will be taken away
Pi> without most of us even being aware that it had happened!
Pi> President Bill Clinton,
Pi> The White House, Washington, DC 20500
Pi> Phone: 202-205-5372 Fax: 202-260-8957
Pi> E-mail: president@Whitehouse.gov
Pi> Dr. Elizabeth Yetley, Director
Pi> Office of SpecialNutritionals, HFS-45
Pi> US Food and Drug Administration
Pi> 200 C Street S.W. Washington, DC 20204, USA
Pi> 202-205-4168 FAX: 202-205-5295
Pi> E-mail: eyetley@bangate.fda.gov
Pi> * * * * * * * * * * About the author * * * * * * * * * * *
Pi> Jackie Buchanan has 26 years experience in the medical and
Pi> textbook publishing field. She may be reached at Buchanan
Pi> Publishing, P.O. Box 732 Collinsville, Illinois 62234 Email
Pi> address: gypsy@MO.NET
Pi> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

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assistant: * Crossposted from: AHEALTH
 Message about FDA regulation of supplements:
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