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Good Health is a Right Worth Protecting! by Kathryn Davis
President Clinton's decision to put health care reform at the top of the American agenda gave hope for substantial change in the politics of medicine. Unfortunately, as the merits of managed care and universal coverage are hotly debated, one very significant issue has been overlooked . . . the basic right of each individual to make their own decision about health care choices. Those Americans who would elect to pursue a healthy lifestyle and to guard their wellness with preventive measures are about to be stripped of their freedom of choice. On December 30, 1993 the availability of many dietary supplements will cease to exist! The FDA, under the authority of the Nutrition, Labeling, Education Act will define many nutritional supplements as either drugs or food additives. At risk are supplements such as antioxidant nutrients, digestive enzymes, body-building products, chromium, selenium, and primrose oil. Herbs will be classified as drugs and subjected to the standard drug approval process for over-the- counter status. Few companies will invest in such a costly process for an un-patentable substance. All amino acids, a substance essential to human metabolism, will be classified as prescription drugs. Several pharmaceuticals are currently working on synthetic forms of amino acids. At a time when nutrient supplementation is being used successfully in the treatment and prevention of disorders such as stroke and heart disease, the RDA will be lowered and a cap will be placed on supplement dosage. Information about supplements will be restricted to that which has been pre-approved by the FDA. Thus far they have approved only three claims. The FDA Dietary Supplements Task Force Report had as a guiding consideration "what steps are necessary to ensure that the existence of dietary supplements on the market does not act as a disincentive for drug development." The new regulations promulgated by the FDA will violate our basic constitutional rights and freedoms. Censorship of potentially lifesaving information will be imposed upon us. Public outrage at the prospect of FDA pro-posals induced Congress to place a one-year moratorium on the NLEA. New legislation was introduced, "The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1993:" The Senate vers-ion, S 784, introduced by Senator Hatch and the House, HR 1709, introduced by Congress-man Richardson. This bill will block the FDA from regulating supplements as unapproved food additives or drugs by creating a regulatory category for dietary supplements. True health claims will be permitted if they "accurately represent the state of scientific evidence." Good manufacturing practices to ensure quality are required, and the FDA will maintain its current right to take action against deleterious substances. Unfortunately the moratorium on NLEA is about to expire; if this new legislation is not passed by the end of 1993, the FDA regulations will immediately take effect. The situation is critical; we must act now to protect our Freedom of Health. Kathryn Davis, lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. She is an Artist and Health Advocate. For further details send a S.A.S.E. to: Health Issues P.O. Box 380-531 Brooklyn, NY 11238 Editorial comment: "(T)he basic right of each individual to make their own decision about health care choices" was lost in 1906. The above call for action reminded me of the end of Earl Lee's article in Truth Seeker, v. 120 #2; it is a call from us slaves for "bigger cages" and "longer chains," basically asking our masters to give us a third cage as they shrink the other two. So be it. As we support this legislation, let's try to hold real freedom in mind. -W.B.L.
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