War on Vitamins

via: http://www.realitysandwich.com/war_vitamins

Matt Toussaint

In response to a petition filed by a drug company, the American Association for Health Freedom reports that the US Food and Drug Administration has banned a naturally occurring form of Vitamin B6, pyridoxamine, deeming it a “new drug.”  This gives the FDA the authority to raid businesses and seize any products or supplements containing the now illegal pyridoxamine — unless, of course, you are talking about fish, chicken, whole grain foods, nuts, or any of the other natural sources that produce this “drug.”  Any nutritional supplement that contains pyridoxamine is now considered “adulterated”, and manufacturers are legally responsible for ceasing production at the risk of being arrested and shut down for drug trafficking.

This is not the first time the FDA has resorted to such actions.  Ephedra, a well known herb used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, was labeled “dangerous at any dose” in its natural form yet pharmaceutical companies were allowed, and still are, to push over-the-counter cold medicines containing the same active chemical, ephedrine.  A similar situation occurred with red yeast rice (and its lovastatin molecules) that are used to treat high cholesterol.

According to Natural News, “the bottom line is this: FDA approvals and bans have nothing to do with science and everything to do with protecting drug companies profits. If a drug company can make money selling a vitamin as a drug, the FDA will gladly ban the vitamin and protect the drug. If a drug company can rip off molecules from Mother Nature and patent them, the FDA will ban those same molecules found in nature.”

Natural News will be posting a petition in the near future demanding FDA reform, so be sure to stay tuned in to their website for updates.

Creative Commons Image: “Comida y Drogra” courtesy of Daquella Manera on Flickr.