fda to regulate natural supplements as drugs!!
By pyewacket
@pyewacket (43903)
United States
April 17, 2007 9:40pm CST
I got this e-mail that really left me outraged. It seems that the FDA (Food and Drug Administratiion here in America) plans to regulate and classify all natural, herbal and vitamin supplements as drugs...In other words it might come down to needing a prescription to get Vitamin C! It also plans to classify simple things like vegetable juice as a drug! How insane is this...This is the same government administration who re-introduced the non-steroidal anit-inflammatory medication Vioxx into the market even though a reported 50,000 Americans total died from it as it can trigger blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks.
Imagine...no longer being able to get natural, herbal, or vitamins without a prescription! Why we might need a prescription if we want to drink mint tea...Like I said I was so out-raged when I read this. People can e-mail directly to the FDA their opinions for Docket No. 2006D-0480. "Draft Guidance for Industry and Alternative Medicine Products and Their Regulation by the Food and Drug Administration
I sure hope I got the link right--this is one time I could do with a copy/paste
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/oc/dockets/comments/COMMENTSMain.CFM?EC_DOCUMENT_ID=1451&SUBTYP=CONTINUE&CID=&AGENCY=FDA
I already wrote to this jerks....LOL and I'm hoping some of you will too...this is just too important
4 people like this
6 responses
@teapotmommommerced (10359)
• United States
18 Apr 07
Someone needs to regulate herbal medications, because there is no one doing it. When you buy a herbal medicine you never know the exact amount of the herb that is in the tablet, you do not know what part of the world the herb came from. One brand you buy may be full strenght and another might be 50%.
Now I do agree with you if the FDA wants to regulate juices, that is wrong, but why would the FDA take on more than they can handle now? Some vitamins are already regulated by the FDA and nothing may change with getting them.
Ferris sulfate is iron. You use to have to get a prescirption for it now you can buy it over the counter.
Can you email me the you read that states that the FDA is going to regulate herbal medications? My email is teapotmommerced@sbcglobal.net
@Idlewild (6090)
• United States
1 May 07
thanks for saying this... these supplements are totally unregulated. Conservative estimates are than in 2005 alone 125,000 people were injured by taking vitamins, supplements, herbal remedies, etc.
People should really check out these mass emails they get to see if they have any basis in fact before they go around reporting them as if they are true.
1 person likes this
@Idlewild (6090)
• United States
1 May 07
With all due respect, I've heard this same discussion on Mylot, and it sounds like this is one of those hoax emails that gets widely circulated around the Internet and everybody gets up in arms about it without even trying to find out if it's legit or not.
Even if the FDA is looking at regulating supplements (which caused approx. 125,000 incidences of illness in 2005), that doens't mean vitamin C will need a prescription, etc.
People really need to view this kind of info with a skeptical eye--especially if it's one of those forwarded emails sent to zillions of people-- and check it out to see if it's true before reporting it as fact and circulating it all over the Internet.
1 person likes this
@Idlewild (6090)
• United States
3 May 07
pyewacket, it's true that people can misuse any product. But at least medicines, even aspirin, are regulated and tested and have warning labels. The problem with herbal supplements, etc. is that they are not regulated at all.
There is no established safe dosage in many cases, there are no standards on potency or how much of a substance a pill should contain, so there aren't warning labels at all in many cases.
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 May 07
This wasn't one of those wild e-mails that was forwarded out to me but I got it from a most trusted friend--and unfortunately the reason why people might suffer ill effects from vitamin or herbal supplements, is due to the fact that like with everything, sometimes people abuse or misuse the product
2 people like this
@GnosticGoddess (5626)
• United States
18 Apr 07
That is insane!!
They have finally realized the money making potential in herbal remedies and vitamins and now want to cash in!
What is this world really coming to?!
Is it really all about money?!
Cause that is all I can see anymore...
1 person likes this
@GnosticGoddess (5626)
• United States
18 Apr 07
Yep.
Exactly.
Did you know we are finally getting email notifications to the discussions we post in! That is awesome!
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
18 Apr 07
I do remember reading somewhere though that if aspirin had come out now, that it would have to be by prescription--all I'm saying though is that I do hope people will speak out with this issue...I just hope we're listened to for a change....since the government doesn't seem to be listening to our other issues...like having the wrong people in the gov't in the first place--LOL
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (45579)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
1 May 07
If you go to
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/petition/herbal.htm
you will see that this is not so.
@scarlet_woman (23465)
• United States
18 Apr 07
i had a feeling they'd try this one sooner or later.
heaven forfend people try to treat themselves with natural products and not put money in pharmacutial products.
not to mention some bases of medical products they stole from traditional herbalolgy,gave it a big name,and claimed it,like the original "asprin".
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
18 Apr 07
I know...aspirin is the synthetic version of the herb white willow
2 people like this
