Re: House/Senate Bills to limit vitamin supplements

[Guest guest]

That would be S. 722 better known as the " Dietary Supplement Safety Act " .

Jane

fatwally10 <fatwally10@...> wrote:

Does anyone know the bill numbers that have been introduced in the

Senate by Hillary Clinton that seek to limit our ability to buy

vitamins over the RDA and would also subject them to FDA testing

that is supposedly required for RX drugs? This would drive up the

prices even higher. I read this but now cannot find the article.

This measure must be stopped or else we won't be able to continue to

help heal our children! This is just another example of politicians

working for the RX industry because they are not happy that some of

us have turned away from their drugs and are using vitamins instead.

They tried this a few years back and we stopped it. We must do it

again.

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[Guest guest]

I tried to post earlier but it didn't go through. The bill number is

S722 and the name of the bill is " Dietary Supplement Safety Act " . I

have already contacted one of the senators here from Ohio regarding

the bill. Let me know if you would like a copy of the letter and I

will post it.

Jane

> Does anyone know the bill numbers that have been introduced in the

> Senate by Hillary Clinton that seek to limit our ability to buy

> vitamins over the RDA and would also subject them to FDA testing

> that is supposedly required for RX drugs? This would drive up the

> prices even higher. I read this but now cannot find the article.

> This measure must be stopped or else we won't be able to continue

to

> help heal our children! This is just another example of

politicians

> working for the RX industry because they are not happy that some

of

> us have turned away from their drugs and are using vitamins

instead.

> They tried this a few years back and we stopped it. We must do it

> again.

[Guest guest]

Yes I would very much

Thanks so much!

> > Does anyone know the bill numbers that have been introduced in

the

> > Senate by Hillary Clinton that seek to limit our ability to buy

> > vitamins over the RDA and would also subject them to FDA testing

> > that is supposedly required for RX drugs? This would drive up

the

> > prices even higher. I read this but now cannot find the article.

> > This measure must be stopped or else we won't be able to

continue

> to

> > help heal our children! This is just another example of

> politicians

> > working for the RX industry because they are not happy that some

> of

> > us have turned away from their drugs and are using vitamins

> instead.

> > They tried this a few years back and we stopped it. We must do

it

> > again.

[Guest guest]

First I sent the senator one of those pre-made letters circulating the internet.

His response to me was that we need to make sure that all dietary supplements

are safe for the american people and S722 would do that (yeah right, it opens up

the dietary supplements market to the pharmaceutical companies). Here is my

response to him. Please feel free to copy, modify and use the letter.

Jane

Honorable Senator Dewine,

Thank you for your timely response to my letter concerning the “Dietary

Supplement Safety Act of 2003” (S.722). I appreciate the Senate’s concern for

the wellbeing of people who use dietary supplements.

However, I still have some grave concerns regarding S.722:

As the parent of a child (, age 7) diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum

Disorder (ASD), I have begun dietary and alternative intervention with my son.

This includes removing gluten and casein from his diet (which my son cannot

break down). Unfortunately, when removing those two proteins, other important

vitamins and minerals are lost too. It is important to my son’s health that he

receives these vitamins and minerals, and because he can’t get them through his

food, he has to take dietary supplements. These supplements can be used more

safely than most prescription drugs, and they have been used by many people for

hundreds of years. There is no cure for autism, but research has shown a marked

improvement in autistic children using dietary supplements and eliminating

certain ingredients in their food. I will be more than happy to supply you with

this research if you are not familiar with it.

S. 722 would subject nearly all vitamins, minerals, herbal products and other

supplements to a level of scrutiny that is both unwarranted and unnecessary.

Pediatricians across the nation recommend that children take multivitamins

daily. S. 722 would make it nearly impossible to purchase these multivitamins.

Under S. 722 hundreds of products that have been safely and beneficially used,

could be removed from the marketplace, regardless of whether the product was

used under conditions cautioned against by the manufacturer on the label.

AND under S. 722 the FDA would be given complete discretion to make the

determination whether a dietary supplement is safe or not. The FDA is having a

hard enough time with the prescription drugs they have approved as safe and

effective. I have to seriously question their ability to make a decision on

dietary supplements.

Quote from S. 722:

“The Secretary may grant a waiver from the requirements of paragraph (1), (2),

or (3) with respect to a dietary supplement if the Secretary determines that

compliance with the requirement is not necessary to protect the public health.”

This provision brings to my mind the actions of the FDA’s vaccine safety review

committee where 2/3 of the committee members, making decisions as to whether a

vaccine would be safe or not, owned stock in major pharmaceutical companies who

produced the vaccines. The members had been granted a waiver of conflict of

interest. I can see the same thing happening with regards to the committee that

would be responsible for the safety of dietary supplements. It would all be

turned into “big money” and it would leave us, consumers, without any vital

supplements.

Quote from S. 722:

“A manufacturer of a dietary supplement shall annually (or at such shorter

intervals as the Secretary may require), in accordance with such requirements as

the Secretary may establish, submit to the Secretary a report that discloses all

information received with respect to adverse dietary supplement experiences not

previously reported under paragraph (1).”

This reporting system would be very inadequate. Unless very serious conditions

or death occurs, these adverse reactions would neither be reported to the

manufacturer nor to the FDA. Another example of an inadequate reporting system

is the VAERS system (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System). VAERS was

established to track any reactions due to vaccines. 90% of all such reactions

are not being reported by doctors to the system. The dietary supplement adverse

reaction system would fall in the same category.

There are, of course, some dietary supplements that can be dangerous when used

inappropriately. Supplements containing stimulants can be unsafe, and many such

supplements are considered an “alternative to illegal street drugs”. However, if

S. 722 is an attempt to stop the use of supplements containing stimulants (such

as Ephedra), then it would be more appropriate for the FDA to directly and

specifically address that issue, instead of the Senate introducing a bill that

would directly affect the lives of many consumers in a negative way. AND if such

stimulants were to be made illegal, then the number 1 most widely used

stimulant, caffeine, should not be excluded!

A much better way to address the issue of dietary supplements, is S. 1538. This

Bill would double the funding given to the Office of Dietary Supplements to

expand research and consumer information about dietary supplements. AND it would

require the FDA to file annual reports to Congress about how they are regulating

dietary supplements. If they fail in their responsibilities to fully implement

the law, they will be held accountable.

PLEASE SUPPORT S. 1538 AND OPPOSE S. 722.

Sincerely,

Jane Milota

fatwally10 <fatwally10@...> wrote:

Yes I would very much

Thanks so much!

> > Does anyone know the bill numbers that have been introduced in

the

> > Senate by Hillary Clinton that seek to limit our ability to buy

> > vitamins over the RDA and would also subject them to FDA testing

> > that is supposedly required for RX drugs? This would drive up

the

> > prices even higher. I read this but now cannot find the article.

> > This measure must be stopped or else we won't be able to

continue

> to

> > help heal our children! This is just another example of

> politicians

> > working for the RX industry because they are not happy that some

> of

> > us have turned away from their drugs and are using vitamins

> instead.

> > They tried this a few years back and we stopped it. We must do

it

> > again.

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