Alternative Medicine In The News

Your Right To Buy Herbs and Vitamins will be gone in 2012 if you don't Act Now!

2011-11-26T11:29:00.000-08:00

You must get in your protests to the FDA NOW! Before Dec 1st!

In Dec the FDA will be moving forward to reclassify herbs as drugs. All vitamin and herb supplements will be affected. If you take vitamins or herbs, you will be affected.

If they do that, what herbs are cleared will increase in price. There are thousands of herbs and supplements that are not cleared. That means that many supplements and vitamins will be taken off the shelf.

You must do your part to let the FDA know you are against this.

They do not have your safety in mind. It has to door with the pharm companies and their push to control the herbal market place.

Right now this has already happened in Europe and it can happen here. The FDA is out of control. It is in bed with the drug companies...just look at the constant drug advertising on television.

Any supplement or vitamin introduced into the marketplace after 1994 will have to go through reams of paperwork and thousands of dollars to get cleared. They will have to prove with sales receipts and marketing material that they did sell their product before 1994. How many businesses have kept records back that far.

If the company changed the way they manufactured the supplement after 1994, which most have, they must go through the whole process.

You must show safety proof for 20 years......drugs only have to go through a few weeks to be be released to the public.....so why with herbs? It is one way to stop herb and vitamin formulations from being cleared.

This will effect all supplements including Fish Oil and Vit C....all of it. They are asking for manufacturers to give the same kind of proof that drug companies have to.....studies that cost billions of dollars. This is unnecessary and will put most companies out of business. The reams of unnecessary paperwork and legal costs will kill most businesses. You must hire an expert to figure out how to comply with the pages of paperwork.

When its all said and done, you will be left with no alternative other than drugs that destroy the liver and kidneys....you will have no choice but to do that.....This is serious and they will go ahead with this in the new year.

They must be stopped. It is overreach by the FDA and will be used with bias as the case now.

With Citizens for Health supporters already having generated over 11,000 letters to Congress demanding that the FDA’s NDI (New Dietary Ingredient) Draft Guidance be withdrawn.

The organization is now on a mission to collect 10,000 petition signatures in 10 days calling for Congress to withhold FDA appropriations until this unaccountable agency is held to account: by adjuring the FDA to withdraw the supplement-killing NDI Guidance and to cease and desist from reviewing and enforcing against dietary supplements and nutritional ingredients according to its willfully adversarial re-interpretation of the laws governing dietary supplements.

There is a petition that needs 10,000 signatures to be presented to the FDA .

We need your help to make that happen below:

Please take time to watch the video listed Below:
To help us in this effort, Australian truth rapper and activist Jody Lloyd, aka Trillion, helped produce our video "10,000 Signatures" - view it here.

Being almost halfway to 10,000 signatures in a little more than 2 days means we can certainly reach our goal - but only with your participation!

As always, thanks for being involved,

Please go here to this FDA site listed below and send the FDA your view against this guidance directly! Write them...call them....all of it!

It needs to be done now!

Although you can comment on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 10.115(g)(5)), to ensure that the agency considers your comment on this draft guidance before it begins work on the final version of the guidance, submit either electronic or written comments on the draft guidance within 90 days of publication in the Federal Register of the notice announcing the availability of the draft guidance.

Submit electronic comments against this to http://www.regulations.gov.

Submit written comments against this NCI Guidance to the Division of Dockets Management (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852. All comments should be identified with the docket number listed in the notice of availability that publishes in the Federal Register.

You can read the Nutritional Guidance paperwork here at this address below:

How many companies are going to have the money to submit to pages of regulations and hassel?

Why should vitamin and herb companies be subjected to more paperwork than a drug?

http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/DietarySupplements/ucm257563.htm

Readers Please Ask Questions!

2011-10-28T23:13:00.000-07:00

Readers,

Please leave me a note if you have questions or something is unclear. I will strive to answer them with my experience or research, if I don't know the answer. I appreciate notes left and comments. It is great to know that you read my blogs and appreciate them. I want to Thank all of you who read my blog and support it. You are great and again Thank You!

Kate, The herbladyisin

Why Herbs May Not Be Effective on Your Cold

2011-10-28T16:24:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

Well its winter with colds and flu season. You need to have certain herbs and vitamins on hand to head them off. The first one I take is goldenseal and Echinacea extract. I put two dropper-fulls in cranberry juice and drink them down about 3 to 4 times a day. I take at least three thousand Vitamin C in caps as well. I feel that Liquid Vit C or in caps is the fastest way for your body to make use of it. I don't do well with tablets. I then also take garlic powder caps and or an immune formula if needed. Oregano caps are also very effective on stubborn, severe infections.

The Brand Does Make a Difference:

The brand you buy does make a huge difference in the quality of the product and the benefits you derive from them. Poor quality equals poor results. I usually don't buy from the stores but if I have to, here are several name brands that I feel are good: Kyolic Garlic, Solaray, and Natural Factors. I usually buy most all my herbs from New Sun Herbs. Their extracts are first on my list. Please give me a call for prices and ordering.

The Factors that go into the Production of Herbs:

#1: The herb must be grown in the right soil and climate for its best quality.

#2: The herb must be grown for the proper time before it is picked. An example is ginseng which must be left in the ground for two years at least for its potency.

#3: It must be picked at the proper time and time of day. An herb picked too early or too late will have less value and potency. If it is flowers, roots, or leaves, there is a time when the oils are more present in the plants.
Picked at the wrong time, it may have less medicinal value.

#4: It must be dried properly or its value may be lost.

#5: It must be processed properly. If it is processed with too much heat, that is not good. Are chemicals used to process it and if so what are they and how do they effect the end product.

#6: It must be tested for bacteria, chemicals, animal feces, E-coli, heavy metals, and other environmental toxins including weeds and dirt. This is where allergies come in. If the herb contains any of the above, you many suffer from an allergy to those foreign materials.

Herbs from foreign countries can be a problem. Look for statements such as tested for heavy metals and contaminants, processed according to FDA standards, and listings for their stated percentage of medicinal oils.
If you are buying a generic brand with no labels that give you indication of its quality, you may be getting a product that will give you little benefit. An example is garlic oil caps. Most of the cheap brands are mostly oil with little garlic value. Garlic oil caps go rancid quickly as well. When you buy 1000 garlic oil caps from Costco, the quality may be low. They may have been on the shelf for months. I always buy garlic powder or extract. Garlic oil can be rubbed into a infants feet to help them. When it is rubbed onto the sole of the foot, it is taken into the body through the pores of the skin. It is them diffused into the infant's body. Get a quality brand of garlic oil and not the store brand. You should be able to smell the garlic caps unless it is a odorless brand. Keep it refrigerated and try not to open it any more than necessary.

I hope this clarifies this issue. I hope you stay well now that winter is here. Have a great week and Halloween! Kate the Herbladyisin

More On Garlic...for Colds, Flu and Emergencies

2011-10-19T14:06:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

Think Twice about a flu shot.

Reinforce your own immune system to fight off a cold!

My last blog was on herbs for the medicine chest with one of the most important ones being Garlic. With the current FDA trying to reclassify herbs as drugs, Garlic is even more important. The great thing about Garlic is that the FDA cannot get rid of it completely. It is a food that cooks worldwide use on a daily basis. You can grow your own easily even if you don't live in the country as we do. You can grow it even if you live in a condo. You can easily dry your garlic or make it into powder yourself. You can apply the cloves to infection as they did in the war before current antibiotics. You can make garlic oil at home as well. The FDA may be able to take it off the shelves as a supplement but its availability as a food is set. One way to get a good deal on either Garlic powder or garlic cloves is through outlets such as Costco. They generally have a better price. Keep your garlic powder stash in the freezer so it will last longer or in a cool, dry place in your house.

Garlic has been shown in thousands of studies in countries such as India, Russia, Japan, and China to work on Staph, Strep, E-Coli, and most bacteria and viruses. The Japanese and Chinese governments have spent many thousands on garlic research. These are quality double-blind studies. The research is there and valid. This research was around twenty years ago.

What I Personally Take in Herbs To Keep Well:

I use garlic combined with Goldenseal-Echinacea shooters ( herb extract put into cranberry juice) if I feel a cold coming on. I use extracts more often because I seem to feel the effects more quickly than with caps. Liquids are absorbed rapidly in the body. I also take several thousand Vitamin C for a few days. I may add an immune stimulant such as Reshi Mushrooms to the mix. It depends on the situation. I rarely get sick. I do not believe in Flu shots period.

I had a friend who was never sick. His doctor talked him into a flu shot and within two days he got really sick. He was sick for two weeks. He never again got a shot and to this day is rarely sick. He has a super immune system. Your body does have systems to fight these bugs if you give it the right stuff to fight with. You must also take the herbs and Vitamin C right when you start getting that hurt all over feeling or congestion. Don't wait until the bug gets set into your system. Drink plenty of fluids, home made chicken soup with garlic and onions, and rest is also important to get well quickly. If your use the shooters explained above, take a shooter at least 4 times a day. Use a whole dropper of the extract. You must keep fortifying the system with herbs to fight the bug with.

A few days ago, we had a computer repairman here at the house. Nice guy but was sick as a dog. He was coughing and hacking all over the kitchen. He was here for almost 4 hours. When he left, I put the dishes including his glass into the dish washer first. I then put my husband and I on a regimen of garlic, Goldenseal and Echinacea shooters. We did not get sick. When you are around lots of people who are sick, you must go on a prevention program of higher Vitamin C intake and garlic. If you are in a social job, buy Kyolic Garlic which will not make your breath smell.

Wash Your Hands, Phone, and Desk with Disinfectant!

Just today a headline article told that one out of 6 cell phones is contaminated with fecal germs. They did not wash their hands. This was found true over many areas tested. Washing your hands is so important in the program to keep well. When at work, wipe off your work tools such as phones and desk. People cough and sneeze all over your work area. They may pick their infected nose or wipe their mouth often when sick. This is often why the whole floor gets sick.

Well this is all for now.

Have a healthy week!. Leave me a note on what you use in herbal medicine when sick or to prevent getting sick.
Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

Please visit my websites at:

http://www.womenshealth-naturalsolutions.com and
http://www.moringa4healing.com

What's In Your Herbal Medicine Chest?

2011-10-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I am sorry for not blogging but my computer was down all of September. Getting a tech out to Mina was really a mess. We are five hours from Reno and the techs needed to come out from Reno because it was covered by warranty. It turned out to to have several problems including the system board, keyboard, and other elements.

Then on the same day the computer got fixed, we received our new baby chickens and were blessed with finding abandoned kittens. We had our hands full, including trying to finish the pen for the rabbits and the baby chickens. It was a lot of work. Now that the baby chickens are out into their pen in our shed, it's much less work.

These baby chicks and rabbits are part of my plan for the hard times ahead. Here in Mina, Nevada we have one store that is 44 miles away. The nearest Walmart is two hours away. We live out in the Nevada desert in a town with less than 100 people. You learn to shop effectively. I believe with the times ahead you need to be prepared in many ways. That includes water, extra food and supplies such as candles. One of the key issues in those preparations is herbal medicine. You need to have these on hand at all times. I am going to talk about these herbs over several blogs.

#1 is Tea Tree Oil

The first one of my list is tea tree oil. I use it for bites, scratches, cuts, and infections. It is one of the most effective oils to have on hand. We constantly get splinters in our hands which really hurt. The tea tree oil takes the redness and pain right out. You can put a few drops in your mouthwash to create an effective mouthwash for mouth or throat infections.

#2 is Garlic ( Garlic Cloves and Garlic Powder)

Garlic powder or crushed cloves can be used to stop infections both internally and externally. Garlic is another natural antibiotic that works against bacterial infections, and colds. Before penicillin there was garlic used in the wars. They placed crushed garlic cloves over nasty gunshot and knife wounds. Using garlic saved lives. Taking garlic internally works for colds and flu bugs. It is my 2nd choice for your medicine bag. In some cases it might be my first choice. It depends on the medical situation.

You need cotton bandages and tape as part of that medicine bag. One of the ways to use garlic is as a poultice over the wound. Clean cotton T-shirts would work in an emergency to cover the wounds. I always save old T-shirts for that purpose. Silver duct tape should be on hand in every household. It works to keep bandage material over a wound or to apply a splint. There are hundreds of uses for silver duct tape. It is great stuff for emergencies.

Clean water is important. We keep about 20 gallons of water on hand. You certainly don't want to wash a dirty wound with foul water. When we moved here there was a bad leak on the water line. We used bottled water until the line got repaired. All of us should have emergency water at home. Make sure you rotate your water, using it up and refilling the bottles. Water after it sits for awhile will grow algae unless you treat it with drops of chlorine bleach or iodine.

Will close for now. Next few blogs will cover for herbs needed for your emergency medicine bag.

Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

Essiac Tea and Its Properties

2011-08-31T14:52:00.000-07:00

I want to tell you about Essiac tea.

The original formula came from Rene Caisse in Ontario, Canada in 1888. Yes, it has been around for a long time. She learned about it from a patient who had received help from a Chippawa Indian neighbor for her cancer. She began giving the formula to her sick patients with cancer. Many were cured. Several physicians using her formula successfully tried to get it cleared for general use in the government. This failed. She eventually turned the formula over to the Resperin Corporation of Ontaria for $1.00, hoping they could get the clinical trials and studies needed to get it cleared. They never did get it cleared as a drug but its use has helped thousands over the years. It is one of the best bets in alternative medicine for cancer.
The Essiac Report : Canada's Remarkable Unknown Cancer Remedy

Does it always work? No. Neither does chemo or radiation work in many cases and destroys the immune system in the therapy. Nothing is 100 per cent a cure. I would place my bets on Essiac any time.
The Essiac Handbook

BOOKS & MEDIA Bridge of Hope (The Essiac Story) Demers

Have I used it? Yes but not for cancer. I have talked to others who have. I used Essiac with the addition of Cat's claw to reduce my fibroid tumors. It took time but it worked. I avoided a hysterectomy. I still take it often to keep my liver and blood cleaned out. I fell off steps years ago onto a wrought iron plant stand. I swelled up and was in severe pain. I had no insurance so treated myself. That fall damaged my kidneys and liver function. I took Essiac for a year after than fall and I recovered for the most part. On occasion, I still need it to keep them working properly. I know it works and it is very effective. If I ever do get cancer, I will take it for that. You either believe in alternative medicine or you just talk about it. I live that view. I use alternative medicine and know it works. You must use the right herbs for the right problem. So lab tests can be useful and exams as well. You must take enough of the herbs, often enough, and for enough time to secure healing. Your body does not heal on your time table. The quality of the herbs cannot be understated. It is all necessary to get the end result....healing. I am going to be talking about herbs and alternative cancer treatments. It is hard to find on websites. You should have options even if you choose not to use them. You have the right to that knowledge in making your decision.So over the next few weeks, we will go over some of these.

Essiac, the original formula, contains Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella), Burdock (arctium lappa), slippry elm (ulmus fulva), and turkey rhubard or rheum palmatum. The version I take contains Cats Claw as well. I persoanlly feel the addition of Cats claw makes the formula even more effective.

Sheep Sorrel is used to clean out the blood. It helps a weak stomach, stimulates appetite, and is used against nausea and vomiting.

Burdock medicinal properties lie in the roots of this plant. It acts as a diuretic and diaphoretic. It also cleans out the blood and aids digestion. It is used with sore throats and coughs.

Slippery Elm is a tree where its bark is medicinal. Slippery elm helps heal gut and digestion problems. It soothes and helps ulcers. It can be made into a gruel and eaten for food. It is nutritious. It heals mucous membranes in the gut and stomach. It is gentle enough to give to babies or baby animals with diarrhea.

Turkey Rhubarb grows in China and Tibet. It root is medicinal. It contains tonic and digestive properties. It has been used successfully with dysentery.

Cats Claw: Very potent detoxifier for the whole body.
NOW Foods Cat'S Claw 5000, 120 Vcaps

These herbs are brewed in a stainless steel pot with pure water. The formula must be stored in amber bottles in the refrigerator and used within two weeks. One place to get the dried herbs to make the formula is Herbal Healer Academy here....http://www.herbalhealer.com/essiac.html . This is where I buy my dry herbs. I do add the Cats Claw to this formula when I make it. They do also sell the original formula in a bottle already prepared. Drink the Essiac in cranberry or grape juice. I actually enjoy the taste of it this way.

If you don't want to take it in a liquid form, you can buy it from Natures Sunshine. Natures Sunshine has really high quality products. I have used their products through the years, as well as New Sun. A treatment plan for cancer involves dietary changes and immune system support. Essiac is one part of that plan I would use if I had cancer. I would go to a holistic doctor and have his help with my treatment. There are treatment centers that use herbs and alternative therapies.....and can give you help to beat cancer. I will list some cancer treatment centers in this blog to help you get a research head start.
Bye for now...Kate the Herbladyisin
Nature's Sunshine E-Tea 100 capsules

Tea Tree Oil Heals Sore Throats and Sore Mouths

2011-08-29T17:01:00.000-07:00

Here is a formula for the speedy healing of a sore throat or sore mouth:

Take Tea Tree Oil Extract
Put 5 drops of tea tree oil and a pinch of salt in a half glass of warm water and stir.
Gargle several times, holding it in your mouth for a min or so
Do not swallow the liquid.

You can add the tea tree oil to any mouthwash to make it more antiseptic and healing. This also helps for sore teeth, gums and abscesses. It is very effective and speeds your recovery and healing.

For chest colds, put 5 to 10 drops in 4 to 6 cups of warm water or in a vaporizer and inhale it into your lungs.

Put tea tree oil on bites or stings. It takes the itching and pain away quickly.

I drove a splinter under my nail three days ago. I could not get it out. So I just kept putting tea tree oil on it and within a day all the redness and pain was gone It would have been gone sooner, had I not dug under the nail with a needle. That did not help at all. It is amazing how hurtful a tiny splinter can be. I now know why they used that for torture in ancient times. I work with wood and animals on our little homestead. I use
tea tree oil on a daily basis for most everything. It is always in my purse, our car, and readily available.

One day we were visiting my daughter in Fresno. There was a guy moving out some construction materials with a hoist. He disturbed some bees that had taken up in that stack of old wood. He had several stings. He was hurting. I took out the tea tree oil right there and gave him the bottle. We saw him the next day and giving him that oil immediately really cut down on his pain and swelling. He insisted on paying me for the bottle. He was indeed thankful. So this is one oil that should be included in your emergency kit always.

I have many more personal stories on using tea tree oil, so write me any questions. I have used both products listed on this blog at one time or another.
See you next blog. Kate, the Herbladyisin

Fighting Staph Infections, MRSA Infections With Herbs

2011-08-22T14:55:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

One of my granddaughters got bit by a spider. After 4 days it got ugly and they took her to the hospital. It was full of pus and blood, very nasty and painful. They told my daughter, they consider all infections like this as MRSA infections, even before the blood tests are in.

Her infection did turn out to be MRSA. She now has three abscesses on her body. Even though she is being treated by antibiotics, the staph is spreading still. She asked me what else she could do to wipe the staph out of her blood system. This is the advise I gave her and have used on my own problems.

I do advise you to see a doctor with a bite or wound that gets nasty quickly. If you have blood poisoning from the wound, it may take IV drug interaction to stop the infection. If you see red streaks coming from the wound with swelling, redness, and pain, that means more than likely, blood poisoning. This can happen with a dog bite or cat scratch. Blood poisoning can result in amputation of a limb. It spreads in hours. It can kill you. My husband got deeply scratched by our cat. There were red steaks coming from the wound by the next day. He needed IV treatments twice a day for a month to stop it. It got nasty and lethal quickly.

Even after seeing the doctor, I would still do the following: Often antibiotics do not work. You still need to build up the immune system, use the Vitamin C, and put tree oil on the wound. If you put the tree oil on the wound, you may both prevent it from becoming nasty or lessen the severity of the infection. This means within minutes of receiving the bite or wound. Tea tree oil also takes the pain out of bee and wasp stings, and other bites.

Take antibiotics at different times from herbal antibiotics such as oregano or garlic. Do not take them together.

#1: Apply tea tree oil immediately to the area of the wound and any new areas. Reapply several times a day. If it is in the mouth, rinse your mouth out with water and a few drops of tea tree oil. It will taste ugly but it really does a good job of killing the infection.

#2 Give Vitamin C (1000 mgs dose) several times a day orally. You are fighting a bad bacteria that overcomes the bloodstream. It can set up in any weak area including the bladder, kidneys, heart, lungs, almost anywhere in the body. If it keeps popping up in a new abscess, it means it is in the bloodstream. Most all abscesses, boils, styes, and nose boils are always staph. The staph spreads easily by touching the area and through the blood system itself. You must neutralize it in the blood system.

Vitamin C given by an IV can stop a dangerous infection but the FDA has made it illegal to do this. That is a real shame, because when it has been done, it is highly effective and safer than drugs.

Oral Vitamin C cannot do the job that Vitamin C given in an IV will do. It has to do with how the body assimilates Vit C or drugs in an IV situation. It is like giving antibiotic pills versus shots. It is all in the delivery of the drug into the system.

I knew a man years ago with cat scratch fever. The infection was so bad that he was going to die. The traditional antibiotic IV in the hospital was not working. The doctors wanted to amputate his arm. He pleaded with his private doctor to administer the Vit C - IV. It worked, saving his limb. The doctor got his license taken away because he went against the AMA rules in this emergency situation. This is a true story and shows the bias against alternative medicine.

#3: Take oregano caps at least 4 times a day....two or three caps at a time. Oregano is a natural antibiotic and a potent one. Take Cats Claw caps as well because it is a potent detox for the blood system.

#4: Take an immune stimulant to help the body fight against the staph infection. Improving the immune function is really important.

You must take these herbs in large doses to fight off staph. It is dangerous and can be deadly. Take them until the bite or wound is completely healed and for a few days after.

Staph kills 19,000 Americans a year, more than AIDS. MRSA infections are unaffected by the majority of antibiotics. They do have a couple of new ones but those two will sooner or later become ineffective.

I hope this gives you some idea of how I use herbs and Vitamin C against bacterial infections, flu, or other infections. Oregano is just one of the natural antibiotics used in herbal medicine.

All for now....Kate, the herbladyisin

Do You Want The Majority of Herbs and Supplements Taken Off the Shelves? Read this Post Please!

2011-08-12T18:13:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks,

Your access to Moringa, herbs, vitamins, and supplements is now threatened and in serious danger.

You had better realize why you need to read my other posts especially the one listed below on what the FDA is trying to do to stop your access to herbs and Moringa leaves!

The FDA and Customs controls what foods, herbs, and supplements you have access too.

Moringa leaves may be a food but is advertised on websites as a prevention for disease.

Indian doctors use it to help prevent diabetes and high blood pressure.

This is fine in India to do this. Indian doctors use herbal medicine and preventive medicine.

Here those same usage claims are illegal and will incur the FDA Wrath and punishments. Here it is against the law to tell how an herb can help a health problem. You cannot list it on the herb package or in the advertising in most cases. This is true even when there are double blind studies to prove the claim. It does not matter that herbal medicine is used by doctors in many countries. It does not matter that there are hundreds of good double-blind research studies to back up a claim from many different countries. All of this is discounted period. The FDA and AMA are in bed with the drug companies. They have been bought out by the money and power the drug companies possess. This is the truth of what is happening. You need to realize that the FDA and AMA is fraught with corruption and greed.

Here is the US, those true claims put it in a new classification.... a drug which is unregulated.

This means the FDA have the right to take it off the shelves, no matter where it is grown. They can make it illegal to buy it.

In September if you don't step up and protest this, Moringa leaves may be unavailable unless you grow your own trees. This is a real serious threat to our freedoms here.

You need to write letters to your representatives against S. 1310, the FDA, and Obama.

IF you don't stop this it will be put into effect. Thousands of supplements including Moringa leaves will not be sold according to the new law. So read the FDA post I have put on this blog and act. We are losing our rights every year, because we fail to even try to act against the government. Are you going to sit back and watch Moringa leaves be taken out of the marketplace? Read the FDA blog on this site.

http://herbladyisintoday.blogspot.com/2011/08/fdas-scheme-to-reclassify-nutrients-as.html

I post this hoping some of you actually read this and the FDA post...then do your part to stop them.

Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

FDA Law You Need To Stand Up Against and Why

2011-08-06T18:33:00.000-07:00

NEWS RELEASE

THE FDA's SCHEME TO RECLASSIFY NUTRIENTS AS DRUGS
By Byron J. Richards, CCN
August 06, 2011

The FDA and Senator Durbin’s latest attack against the dietary supplement industry should leave consumers for natural health options at affordable prices up in arms. This attack will target some of the most popular and effective dietary supplements, removing them from the free market and placing them under control of large pharmaceutical companies. This move will drastically drive up the price of dietary supplements while severely limiting access to extremely safe and effective nutrients. For example, the GlaxoSmithKline prescription drug version of DHA fish oil (at a therapeutic dose) sells for $189 a month, whereas the equivalent, therapeutic amount of molecularly-distilled DHA sells for $35 a month in the dietary supplement marketplace. Proven to lower triglyceride levels at therapeutic amounts, it is not surprising that DHA is one of the first nutrients the FDA plans to go after. Other powerful nutrients, such as curcumin and resveratrol, are soon to follow.

This is the second article in what will be a series of articles on this critical topic. In my first article, “Senator Durbin & the FDA Viciously Attack Dietary Supplements,” I outlined the scope and nature of the attack and called readers to take action. And it is still critically important that you do take action, so please visit the TAKE ACTION page immediately following reading this article.

The newly-proposed FDA regulations are complicated. We are just beginning to understand the full scope of their ploy. The FDA is hoping that the complexity of their regulations will confuse consumers so they do not understand the coming changes and resulting repercussions. It is my job to give you some concrete examples of how this will affect you.

It is not just DHA, curcumin and resveratrol that are slated for pharmaceutical industry takeover, hundreds of other nutrients and herbs are at risk. The unfortunate reality is if the FDA is allowed to carry out their illegal strategy then thousands of products currently on the market are likely to be deemed “misbranded drugs” and forced off the market under the FDA’s criminal campaign to wipe out an industry, and ultimately gain even greater power and profit.

The Pharmaceutical Industry’s Perfect Storm of Economic Collapse

Mapping the human genome was supposed to usher in the next generation of pharmaceutical “wonder” drugs. Scientists would identify a gene or set of genes causing each and every disease. New biotech drugs operating at the genetic level would fix the problems or compensate for them, ushering in “The Golden Age of Cures” and reaping huge 21st century profits for the pharmaceutical conglomerate.

This wishful thinking is not the case. Their first biotech drugs have caused more death and injury than benefit. At the same time, rapid advancements in tools to analyze gene function made it obvious that Mother Nature already provided a treasure trove of potential golden cures—natural, safe and effective substances already widely utilized in the dietary supplement industry.

Multiple circumstances threaten hundreds of billions in drug company profits. Their pipeline of new drugs with widespread consumer application is scant, as they gamble their future on dangerous biotech drugs with limited use. Hundreds of their top-selling drugs are losing patent protection in the next few years, exposing them to generic competitors and massively driving down inflated profits. Widely-publicized adverse side effects and unnecessary deaths caused by many commonly-used pharmaceutical drugs have cast suspicion over their entire industry.

On the political front, Congress is looking for ways to control health care costs, even suggesting incentives for making people well—a far different tune than paying for lifetime drug prescriptions that seldom improve health. In fact, the gene science is actually proving that Western Medicine’s drugs are damaging the human genome and are a significant cause in the onset of many of the diseases of aging—the very diseases they are pretending to treat.

Pharmaceutical companies define their primary assets as patent-protected drugs, giving the drug 15 to 20 years of product sales with no competition. It is vital for them to figure out a strategy to turn dietary supplement ingredients, especially those that could be used for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, depression, Alzheimer’s, and cancer treatment into drug company “assets,” eliminating from the free market many of the most helpful dietary supplement ingredients while drastically driving up prices for consumers.

The Poison-Dispensing Era of Western Medicine

Until the advent of the new gene-regulating drugs, virtually all medications worked on the principle of poisoning the function of a cell or enzyme system to hopefully produce a change that the doctor thinks “beneficial.” If taking a drug results in a better-looking blood sugar, blood pressure, or cholesterol number, then doctors automatically assume the person is healthier. Rather, health has nothing to do with it. It is in the financial interests of drug companies to dispense more and more drugs, on an ongoing basis.

There is a night-and-day difference in quality of health between a person who has good numbers because they are healthy and a person who has reasonably-looking numbers because they are poisoned with drugs. Studies using high doses of metabolic and cardiovascular drugs to attempt to drive numbers down to the levels of healthy people invariably injure and even kill the participants—clearly failing to improve health quality and extend lifespan.

To make matters worse, the pharmaceutical industry fraudulently hides the actual risks of the drugs from both patients and doctors. This includes slanting, to blatantly falsifying, studies routinely published in medical journals and used for marketing, illegally promoting off-label use of drugs, using funding to bribe research universities to publish only favorable results and blacklisting researchers who refuse to accept, and paying influential doctors to present their data as independent research at medical meetings.

The scope and magnitude of the drug safety issue is a nightmare. In 2006 the Institute of Medicine (IOM) conducted interviews with FDA management and hundreds of FDA employees to ascertain issues leading to drug safety problems. Widespread conflict of interest and many other issues led IOM investigators to label FDA management as dysfunctional. Little has changed.

The Gene-Experimentation Era of Western Medicine

The human body is no slouch when it comes to elaborate complexity. It is often the case that the same exact gene signal is “good” or “bad” depending on the context in which it is activated. In fact, the same genes often behave differently in different areas of the body. Unlike earlier toxic drugs that force cell and enzyme behavior at a rather crude level, biotech drugs turn gene signals “on” or “off” at a powerfully fundamental level of cell function. Unfortunately for consumers, our understanding of genes is in its infancy. There is daunting complexity in gene regulation, making use of any gene-regulating drug highly questionable.

One example of this problem involves diabetes drugs Avandia and Actos, which turn on the gene PPAR gamma. This gene signal helps to break down triglycerides. These drugs also stimulate the formation of new fat cells, which are more metabolically fit and therefore produce more adiponectin that stops insulin resistance. Thus, in theory, they are potentially great drugs for lowering triglycerides and benefiting people with type 2 diabetes. As these drugs became blockbusters it was soon observed that the patients taking them were experiencing devastating side effects. These drugs have no way to know the context in which they should be operating. They activate PPAR gamma in the wrong places, such as the heart, leading to a 40 percent increased risk for heart failure or heart attack. Additionally, inappropriate PPAR gamma activation in bones causes them to break more easily.

The FDA rushed these drugs to market despite the objections of its own safety supervisor who wanted employ a black box warning for heart failure. In other words, the FDA knew about the risks but prevented the public from understanding them, and still allowed the drugs to go to market. This was a major scandal at the FDA. The FDA has finally restricted Avandia, but Actos remains available in full swing. Actos has recently been highly restricted in Europe, but in America, the FDA continues to drag its feet. This is likely because the FDA has mud on its face for approving these biotech nightmares in the first place and would rather consumers suffer injury and even die than look bad. The mainstream media fails to aggressively report on or investigate this tragic issue as they are large recipients of drug company advertising dollars. Even when one of their own, Tim Russert, was likely killed by Avandia or Actos, they turned a blind eye.

DHA is a Superior and Intelligent Gene-Regulating Nutrient

The plot thickens. Nature’s nutrient DHA, typically in fish oil, is a powerful activator of PPAR gamma, helping to break down triglycerides as well as make new metabolically-fit fat cells that boost adiponectin and help fight type 2 diabetes—the exact objectives of Big Pharma’s Avandia and Actos. DHA is a near-miracle nutrient for the heart and overall cardiovascular health and also supports strong bones. It has all of the benefits of Avandia and Actos and none of the side effects.

And this is why Big Pharma is so interested in taking over many dietary supplement ingredients. The nutrients know how to work in harmony with gene function in the human body, since nutrition was a key part of human evolution. These nutrients appear to have inherent intelligence that no drug could possibly have. They understand the context of the gene signal and thus support the beneficial gene activity. They know how to behave differently in different areas of the body to promote healthy function at every turn.

Under the FDA’s new draft guidance that redefines the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), the FDA targets many nutrients for elimination from the market, and DHA is one of them. DHA is a component of fish oil, which is a pre-DSHEA nutrient. This means that it should be grandfathered in and not subjected to the newly-published New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) guidelines.

Various companies have been able to concentrate the DHA as well as remove toxins from the oil, enabling consumers to take higher amounts of the most important ingredient in fish oil. Consumers can now easily and safely reach doses of DHA that are consistent with studies showing extreme health benefit. Such doses of DHA are known to be safe, have been tested in clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and are consistent with the amounts consumed by people who regularly eat fish.

The FDA’s point man on NDI guidance issues, Daniel Fabricant, has been telling the supplement industry what to expect. In a recent webinar he was asked, “Should it be necessary to submit an NDI notification over a small change in the ratios of the long chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA to DHA in one fish oil supplement versus another? Is this really a big safety issue?” Shockingly, Fabricant responded “If it is a different ingredient, a different chemical entity, then it should trigger an NDI notification.”

Fabricant is saying that any modification of basic fish oil should trigger an NDI notification. This is utter nonsense, but it is exactly what the FDA is attempting to do. What Fabricant did not bother to say to the supplement industry webinar audience was that an NDI application for modified fish oil would be denied, since GlaxoSmithKline already has a fish oil prescription drug on the market called Lovaza. Again, shocking.

Yes, the new guidance document makes it clear that if an existing drug contains any form of the nutrient DHA, a NDI will not be allowed (section IV.C.8-11). In other words, if modified DHA did not require an NDI notification, it qualified as a grandfathered nutrient, an obvious part of fish oil. But if the FDA decides that the newly manufactured form of the nutrient, in this case DHA, is different than its typical concentration in food, it can require that nutrient to have an NDI notification. By retroactively applying this definition to nutrients that compete with drug applications, that nutrient will automatically be denied NDI status. As of now, this is the intended fate of DHA. It is gravely unfortunate, as DHA is one of the most beneficial and effective nutrients offered by the dietary supplement industry.

This is a blatant power play to hand the entire high-grade DHA market to GlaxoSmithKline, one of the largest drug companies in the world. Lovaza already costs five to seven times what a similar amount of high-grade DHA costs—imagine how high their price will go up when there is no competition.

The Rise of Epigenetics

The new frontier of science is the field of epigenetics. A true genetic change means there is a change in the DNA sequence. Epigenetics explains factors that are not such DNA changes. Rather, epigenetic changes relate to how genes are expressed. Some are set in response to early environmental influences such as prenatal malnutrition or nutrient deficiency. As cells split and divide, however, epigenetic factors play a large role in determining life-long human health and are strongly linked to poor health and the onset of disease. Epigenetic weaknesses magnify during aging and are major factors in the cause of cancer, heart disease, neurological and cognitive disorders, obesity, diabetes, infertility and sexual dysfunction.

This new science is finding that when toxins interfere with the human genome, they can cause lasting damage in the form of adverse epigenetic changes which can occur at any point in one’s life. This is not simply an issue of pollution. Researchers are now demonstrating that regular use of many drugs can cause adverse toxic epigenetic changes, a finding that has alarming implications today’s medical practices. Up to this point in time, drug safety has not involved studying the impact of any drug on epigenetics. Science now has the ability to see what is going on in this realm. The pharmaceutical industry and the FDA, unsurprisingly, have no interest in understanding and considering this new, ground-breaking information as the public would significantly reduce their intake of drugs.

On the hand, research on dietary ingredients is showing them to be powerful regulators of epigenetics and some show extreme promise for helping to treat metabolic disease and even cancer. Nutrients are showing that they possess “intelligence” and are able to tell the difference between a stressed and struggling cell (one with epigenetic weaknesses) and a cell with cancer. In the case of the stressed cell, the nutrients can fix it. In the case of the cancerous cell, the exact same nutrient can actually help kill the cancer without any adverse side effects—even overcoming mechanisms that make cancer resistant to drug treatments. Two of the very best nutrients in this category are curcumin and resveratrol, making them potential prizes for the pharmaceutical industry.

As I reported in my recent article, “Curcumin Helps Change Gene Function to Combat Cancer,” curcumin and resveratrol are under extensive genetic study at the MD Anderson Cancer Center. Regarding cancer, these researchers are at the forefront of all things drug and biotech. The last commissioner of the FDA, Andrew von Eschenbach, was in charge at the MD Anderson Cancer Center before joining the FDA. Researchers at the MD Anderson Cancer Center are practically drooling over the virtues of curcumin and resveratrol. Some quotes from their recent study include the following:

Recently, natural compounds, such as curcumin, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), and resveratrol, have been shown to alter epigenetic mechanisms, which may lead to increased sensitivity of cancer cells to conventional agents and thus inhibition of tumor growth. Curcumin (diferuloylmethane), a yellow spice and the active component of the perennial herb Curcuma longa, commonly known as turmeric, is one of the most powerful and promising chemo-preventive and anticancer agents, and epidemiological evidence demonstrates that people who incorporate high doses of this spice in their diets have a lower incidence of cancer. Furthermore, epidemiological evidence exists indicating that there is a correlation between increased dietary intake of antioxidants and a lower incidence of morbidity and mortality…. How curcumin exerts its powerful anticancer activities has been thoroughly investigated, and several mechanisms of action have been discovered…. curcumin exerts its biological activities through epigenetic modulation.

Extensive research over the past five decades has indicated that curcumin reduces blood cholesterol levels; prevents low-density lipoprotein oxidation; inhibits platelet aggregation; suppresses thrombosis and myocardial infarction; suppresses symptoms associated with type II diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and Alzheimer disease; inhibits HIV replication; suppresses tumor formation; enhances wound healing; protects against liver injury; increases bile secretion; protects against cataract formation; and protects against pulmonary toxicity and fibrosis. These divergent effects of curcumin seem to depend on its pleiotropic molecular effects, including the regulation of signal transduction pathways, and direct modulation of several enzymatic activities. Most of these signaling cascades lead to the activation of transcription factors.

Interest in the effects of dietary compounds such as resveratrol which activate class III HDACs (sirtuins) is growing rapidly because of their demonstrable role in extending lifespan and in reducing, or delaying, age-related diseases including cancers…. Resveratrol, a natural compound found in the skin of red grapes and a constituent of red wine, is believed to play a significant role in the reduction of cardiovascular events. Multiple studies have shown that resveratrol can activate sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), a histone deacetylase, and inhibit p300. Sirtuins, the class III HDACs, are widely distributed and have been shown to regulate a variety of physiopathologic processes, such as inflammation, cellular senescence and aging, cellular apoptosis and proliferation, differentiation, metabolism, stem cell pluri-potency, and cell cycle regulation.

Experimental evidence accumulated in the recent years clearly supports the idea that dietary nutraceuticals such as curcumin have great potential as epigenetic agents.

These researchers go on to cite all of the human safety and efficacy trials with curcumin, resveratrol and many other natural substances.

This is not dietary supplement companies extolling the virtues of these powerful nutrients. These are mainstream drug development researchers, stunned by the ability of nutrients to regulate epigenetics to support health and at the same time combat diseases that plague large numbers of people. The inherent capacity of these nutrients outshines that of any drug.

There should be no question in anyone’s mind as to why the pharmaceutical industry wants to claim these powerful nutrients as patent-protected drug assets. The question is more about how they plan to pull off this major scheme, this heist, from the dietary supplement industry.

Curcumin (tumeric) has been around for thousands of years and is consumed in very large amounts in Eastern and Middle Eastern cultures. This means the basic spice is protected by DSHEA. Unfortunately, curcumin has relatively poor bioavailability and raw material companies have sought to produce purified extracts with advanced production technology and combine curcumin with other nutrients such as piperine, which can elevate the biological activity up to 2,000 percent. Researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center have conducted cancer research specifically with one such curcumin product, made by Sabinsa, and found it very promising.

Under the proposed FDA guidelines for NDIs, such curcumin extracts would retroactively become NDIs as they were not available prior to 1994. The immediate impact would be the removal of curcumin from the dietary supplement market while submitting an NDI application. Sabinsa, however, has already been granted several investigational new drug applications for their curcumin complex as they work with researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Under the new FDA guidelines the net result would be eliminating all high grade curcumin extracts from the dietary supplement market, as no NDI will be granted for any ingredient that is under investigation as a new drug. Sabinsa, a dietary supplement raw material supplier, will be able to sell its rights to its curcumin compound to the highest pharmaceutical bidder while all other competing curcumin extracts, including Sabinsa’s product, will be forced off the dietary supplement market.

It is a similar story for resveratrol, which is also under investigation as a new drug. In fact, numerous highly-effective and therapeutic extracts will be targeted in this way by the pharmaceutical industry. The FDA has a glaring conflict of interest and can easily approve investigational new drug applications for any nutrient of interest to the pharmaceutical cartel, automatically blocking them from entry or existence in a competitive dietary supplement marketplace. Dietary supplement companies could spend millions trying to get the FDA to pass a NDI application. The FDA just sits on the NDI application, to ultimately approve the nutrient as an investigational new drug and deny the dietary supplement company’s NDI application.

Consumer options for therapeutic nutrition will rapidly dwindle. What is left on the market will be far more expensive and many nutrients will no longer be available without prescription. Once the pharmaceutical industry gains control of the nutrient, the new price will be ten to fifty times what consumers pay now.

A Call for Consumer Action

The most important force capable of preventing skyrocketing prices and the elimination of therapeutic nutrition from the dietary supplement marketplace is you, the consumer. If you wait to act until the products actually begin to disappear, it could be too late. Act now and help preserve your right to a wide range of these powerful and valuable dietary supplement ingredients and products at affordable prices. Say NO to the FDA’s illegal strategy to help drug companies take over the dietary supplement industry. Go to the TAKE ACTION page and, please, let your voice be heard.

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Byron J. Richards, Board-Certified Clinical Nutritionist, nationally-renowned nutrition expert, and founder of Wellness Resources is a leader in advocating the value of dietary supplements as a vital tool to maintain health. He is an outspoken critic of government and Big Pharma efforts to deny access to natural health products and has written extensively on the life-shortening and health-damaging failures of the sickness industry.

His 25 years of clinical experience from the front lines of nutrition have made him a popular radio guest who callers find impossible to stump. He has personally developed 75 unique nutraceutical-grade nutritional supplement formulas with a focus on thyroid nutrition, healthy weight loss supplements, cardiovascular nutrition, and stress management.

FREE Subscription to Byron's Health Newsletter, click here.

E-mail: byron@truthinwellness.com

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Click here for the permanent link to this news release, use this link to inform others.

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National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals' rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings.

Cayenne, Vitamin C , and Tips for Headaches including Migraines

2011-08-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

I hope all of you had a great week. The weekend is here so have a healthy weekend. If you are prone to headaches, caffeine withdrawal headaches, or headaches period, I have some helpful advice. I know a lot about the subject, my husband is prone to headaches.When I first met him, he was on a lot of prescription drugs for his blood pressure, for allergies and migraines. He suffered migraines every day and migraines that kept him in bed. I might add that later we found out his condo had mold and mildew. The whole bathroom and hallway had to be redone. The company we hired did not take proper measures, and we got really sick. In fact, the mold got into my husband's lungs. He coughed for several months. It was really bad. It took a long time for me to get him to try alternative medicine. One of the reasons he finally agreed to try it was because he was sick from the mold. His standard medicine doctors could offer little to help him. He was pretty stubborn. With him, his headaches had more than one factor. We have been together going on 6 years and married for two of them. He is now off all drugs, his blood pressure is normal, his weight is normal, he walks twice a day, and his allergies/migraine headaches are few and far between. His doctor is very pleased that his health is so improved, even if it was by alternative medicine. I am telling you this from experience.

When I was young, I had horrible allergies. I went through allergy tests, scratch allergy tests, allergy shots, and lots of allergy medicine. I did not discover alternative medicine until I was in my early thirties. I worked for doctors in those years. I suffered with the allergies and the side effects from the allergy medications. I was a zombie. I am very sensitive to medication of any kind. We used to have a house that needed the lawn to be mowed. My eyes would swell shut when I mowed. The first thing I tried when I got into alternative medicine was Vitamin C. I discovered if I took two thousand Vitamin C before I mowed, my eyes did not swell shut and I didn't have a sneezing fit and congestion for hours afterward. I have rarely had problems in the thirty years since with allergies. This house is one of the rare times.

Foods like milk, corn, and pork plus many others can cause headaches. The food issue needs a blog just by itself. So we will go into that later. This will include all the chemicals, preservatives, and dyes. I wanted in this blog to go some other causes for headaches and some tips for relief.

Stress reduction and hormone imbalances are also involved in headaches as well. So I will give those topics their own blog as well. Headaches are one of the hardest health problems because of the multiple causes for them.

It is rare that frequent headaches stem from one cause only. After reading the next blogs, you need to track the cause of yours. The information you read here, will help you to find those causes.

Step #1: Read the side effects of the drugs you are on. Headaches may be one of the side effects. He found out his eye drops were part of the problem. When he changed brands, the headaches decreased.

Step # 2: Rid your rooms of clutter and boxes. They collect dust. Keep your bedroom especially clear of clutter and dust. That will help your headaches. Get rid of old carpet if possible and replace with tile or wood. Get rid of old dusty curtains that are dust collectors. Wash them if they won't fall apart. Buy dust mite covers for your pillows and mattress. Throw away old stained pillows and covers. If your sofas are falling apart, they need to go. If the material is rotting, they need to go. All of this is important in allergies and headaches.

Step #3: Vitamin C: His allergy headaches are greatly reduced with Vitamin C. We live in a climate where there is a lot of dust and wind. We also are living in a house with mold and mildew problems. For the first time since I met him, he is having problems with headaches. I am even having them. We have come to the conclusion that we will be moving from this house. The money needed to take care of the bad ceiling and beams is too much and the trailer is not worth that. The trailer is 35 years old. So we will be moving in September.

Toxic House? Move or Do Mold Remediation: If you have moved to a house that proves to be toxic, you either have to fix it or move. Living in it will have a huge, dangerous impact on your health. How do you know its the house? Well in this case, when you turn off the air cleaner, you start sneezing after two hours, and get so congested you can't breathe. That is not a good sign. The air cleaner is rarely turned off and the filter is cleaned twice a week, changed every other month.

Step #4: Cayenne in The Morning and At Night Before Bed. Take one cap of cool cayenne with yogurt or food. Yogurt is the best food to take with cayenne. Cool Cayenne is easier on the tummy for most folks. Do not take more than one cap unless you know your body. You will find taking cayenne this way will prevent some of your headaches if not all of them. If you are in the beginning of a migraine, take a capsule of cayenne with yogurt and you might be surprised. My husband has one vise and that is coffee. I might add he drinks more of it than he should. He gets caffeine withdrawal headaches. Well he had one the other day, and was scheduled to work early. He works at the post office. I gave him one cap with yogurt and it stopped the migraine in its tracks. He was fine the rest of the day. He is now taking them twice a day again. Part of the renewal of his headaches is due to this house and the mold. I have found the last week, that the cayenne has stopped my headaches resulting from this house environment. The cayenne has made a huge difference in my ability to work. Taking cayenne does not solve the base problem for the headaches. That must be moving from the house but it certainly does help until we can move. We are actively looking for a new place.

Choose Your Cayenne Wisely: There are many brands of cayenne out there. Some are hotter than others. If you have never taken cayenne before, buy the one that is milder on the tummy. Ask the clerk to help you find a brand that is considered cool cayenne. It is like buying hot peppers, some are rated much hotter than others.You must be a smart shopper who asks questions and reads. If you are sensitive to spicy foods, try a half cap first. Just take apat the capsule and dump half out.

Step #5: Buy houseplants For Your House Environment: They take in chemicals and help purify the air. In my next blog I will go into which ones and how it works. In an article from Dr. Mercola, there was a science experiment where they added certain house plants to a house filled with toxins. The plants did an amazing job to help purify the air. I might add that mold and mildew is not taken in by the plants. Even Dr. Mercolas $800 state of the art air cleaner does not solve the problem of mold and mildew. He was very clear on that point. So the next article will be on houseplants that purify the air.

I do hope these tips give you some relief. If any of you do try them, leave me feedback on how well they worked. I may be able to give you some help to make your program work better.

Is Your House Toxic? Mold and Mildew

2011-08-01T11:52:00.000-07:00

Is Your House Making You Sick?

Many of you are living in old houses or houses with water damage. We moved into one in April. We are in the process right now of trying to fix our living room roof, damaged by the swamp cooler in the past. I have not had problems with allergies or sneezing in 25 years, until now. We have a heavy duty air cleaner in the living room where the damage is, but that only helps. How do I know it helps? When we turn it off, I will get congested and go into a sneezing fit within two hours of turning it off. I have had head aches and brain fog, not feeling right. It is not affecting my lungs at this point but depending on the type of mold, can get into your lungs. When it does, you may get breathing problems or asthma. You may get a lung infection that will not go away despite treatment. A chronic cough is typical. You may feel overall toxic or unwell. You may feel abnormal fatigue or nausea. The lungs are enclosed so treatment is difficult by either standard or alternative medicine. You can get seriously ill.

What can you do? I personally take 3000 mgs of Vitamin C a day which does stop the congestion and sneezing. Getting to the base problem of redoing the ceiling damage, is the most important thing. If you don't have the money to fix it, try to stay out of that area. Repair the roof, so it does not get worse. Above all wear a face mask when working on that area. I now wear a mask when I dust and clean the room. I wear a mask when I clean the air filter. You must clean the air filter weekly in a house with problems.

Lung Support and Mold Detox Formulas: One of the steps you can take when living in a toxic house is to take a lung support formula and go through a mold detox program. There are formulas that are specifically for detoxifying the lungs. It is important to try and clear your body of the toxins. I also am taking an immune formula to help my body stay strong. Environmental toxins are a overload on the body as a whole and on the immune system. That is just common sense, if you think about it. How can it not be? You must give your body some tools to fight the onslaught.

Steps To Take:

Try to replace or repair all that damage, ASAP.

Replace old carpet and install tile if possible.
Replace old drapperies
Replace moldy areas of the wall and treat with bleach.
Try to dust and clean often wearing a mask.
Try to keep the clutter down, again because of the dust.
Avoid using chemicals in the house if possible.
Buy a good air cleaner for your house and have one installed if there is a room with mold damage.

Closing off for now, Kate, The Herbladyisin

Humira: Exchange Joint Pain Relief for Kidney Failure. The Evil of Drug Ads

2011-07-23T17:51:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks,

My husband and I were watching a movie. Every half an hour, there was a drug ad. I am really enraged at the brain washing going on in this country.

Drug companies are spending billions to get you on their drugs.

I can understand wanting to be out of pain but at what cost:?

Do you not listen to the ads?

Humira, as an example, is given for joint pain relief in RA. Now RA is a debilitating disease, but do you listen to the ad. Most of the ad is devoted to warning you of immune system compromise, of liver damage, kidney damage, and heart damage.

Three quarters of the ad is how it can destroy the rest of your body leading to death. How are you gaining in goal to become healthy? You will have less joint pain but end up dying because of immune system failure or kidney failure.....did you gain anything in the long run? The only ones gaining anything, are the drug companies who are making billions off this drug.

There are alternative herbs and therapies for joint pain and inflammation.

How do I know? I take a formula. I had one car accident and one fall off stairs that really did damage to my knees. I have not needed knee surgery. I take a herb combination with Chinese herbs...have for a number of years. I also take Tumeric. I am rarely in pain. The herbs are not damaging my immune system or my liver and kidney. We walk our dogs a mile twice a day. The herbs do not create a new knee but sure is better than drugs. If any of you are reading this, leave me a message or ask questions.

I do sell the herbs I take but if you want to buy them from someone else, go ahead. I sell these herbs because my husband and I take them, my brother-in-law takes them and my father-in-law takes them. He does not believe in alternative medicine but he had such horrible side effects from the drugs his doctor gave him, he could not play golf. He takes the herbs because they help his pain with no side effects. He plays golf. You do not have to be in pain. There are options.

Let me know if you want more information. Prescriptions drugs will solve your current problem, maybe, but destroy your overall health in the long run. The choice is yours

Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

By the way in 1975 I worked in a clinic for doctors. I believed in the system. I helped order drugs for the clinic every week. I got taken out by the drug reps every week, so in their eyes, I would help convince the doctors to buy their products. I ate well. I did this for 5 years until modern medicine with their drugs nearly ruined my youngest daughter. She was born with a compromised immune system. All they knew to do is put her on one antibiotic after another for a straight year. I will tell you how I got into alternative medicine in the next blog. I well know the cost of drugs on the body. She has compromised kidney function to this day, because of the drugs. I know what I am talking about......

Treating Dysplasia and Chronic Ear Infections In Dogs

2011-07-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

We have an Australian shepherd, named Jack, that we got as a save dog. He had ear problems when we got him. Originally he had an old foxtale in his ear that was buried. We spent 1000 bucks on vet bills that included antibiotic packs. Nothing worked on his ear. He was just miserable. I then began searching on the internet and found a product called Zymox which is an enzyme that dissolves the bacteria and infection. We bought it and it gave him relief within a week. The redness cleared up, the black crudd disappered and we were elated. I have to say that at first we had to put it in daily for months. Now we have to dose the ear on and off but at times not at all. As soon as he started trying to scratch at it, we begin the treatment again. I am going to give you the url. Its a great product. I buy it from Amazon which saves a little bit.

Now along with chronic ear infections, he suffers from displasia. Just about a year and a half ago, we nearly had to put him down. He got so bad, he could not move his hind end or support his hind legs. He had no control of his bowels. We were sick. The vet told us there was not hope and to put him down. That would cost 200.00. I was not ready to give up. I spent a day researching and found a product called Arthro-ionx by vetionx. I expressed mailed the stuff and prayed. Jack is large and we were carrying him to get him outside. Three days later we got it. The pages of reviews said it could take a week or two to see the difference. We gave him tripple doses the first day in the afternoon. We had him out on the porch because of his bowel problems. We got up the next morning to let our Laso out, and Jack struggled onto his feet. He walked like a drunk sailer but he managed to get out a few feet to the lawn. We cried. We gave him another tripple dose and in the afternoon he walked shakily a few feet further. That night he also again had control of his bowels. He slept in our bedroom that night. The next morning he was well enough to go into the yard slowly. He continued to improve rapidly and dramatically. I have never seen in animals or humans such a incredible recovery.

He is still great. He runs and goes up the stair easily. He is not in pain. He is happy. The medicine had to be given daily for the first year. I give it to him less at times. I watch his hips as we walk them. I also give him Liquid glucosomine with MSM as well. This is a dog, the vet said had no hope. This was a dog we were told to put down. So at the bottom of this post I am including the link to these products. They are not cheap but they are a savior in vet bills and to give quality of life to your dog.

Zymox- an enzyme formula for dogs with chronic ear infections. The formula I use has hydrocortisone in it. The product also comes without hydrocortisone. Buy it through amazon

Arthro-ionx http://www.vetionx.com/arthro-ionx.php A homeopathic formula for hip dysplasia and arthritis. It is amazing stuff.

FDA with New Rules To End Our Right to Supplements

2011-07-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

This is reposted from the ANH Organization that helps preserve your access to herbal supplements. This is critical for you to read, to sign the petition to your govt reps, and to repost to tell others about. Do your part! Sign the petition today.

FDA Guidelines a Perversion of Congressional Intent

July 12, 2011

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The FDA is trying to turn a simple notification system for new supplements into a totally arbitrary approval system. Let’s tell the FDA that supplements are not drugs and ask Congress for help!

Last week we told you about FDA’s draft guidance on New Dietary Ingredients, which allows FDA to arbitrarily deny the sale of any supplement created (or said to be created) in the past seventeen years! Already this has become an explosive issue, with media attention from numerous quarters. The FDA will no doubt call everything that is being said “an overreaction.” We expect them to say, “It’s only draft guidance! It’s not legally binding!” But don’t be fooled. Just because the agency is calling it “draft guidance” doesn’t mean this thing doesn’t have teeth.

If you’re a supplement manufacturer or distributor or possibly even a health food store, and you don’t file a NDI “notification” (actually a request for approval) for each ingredient in each product developed since 1994 in just the way prescribed by the FDA, and the court later decides the FDA is right, then you are guilty of product “adulteration,” which is punishable by jail.

The FDA will also say that they have no intention of destroying the supplement market. This is true for now. The FDA knows they can’t just disapprove all supplements developed or modified since 1994, at least not all at once. But they can double or triple the price of supplements and they can gradually disapprove more and more of them over time until there is little left but drugs. Those of us opposing this new FDA guidance are not using scare tactics. The threat to supplements is real and urgent. This has to be stopped now, or over a long period of time supplements as we know them may disappear.

The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA) was landmark legislation. The NDI notification system that DSHEA outlined was supposed to be about notification, plain and simple, with only occasional response from the FDA. In fact, before this draft guidance was published, Sens. Tom Harkin and Orrin Hatch—the two principal authors of DSHEA seventeen years earlier—wrote to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, to underscore their expectation that the guidance be consistent with the intentions of DSHEA. “In DSHEA,” they wrote, “Congress made clear that consumers should continue to have access to dietary supplements that meet the law’s definition [and] should also refrain from erecting barriers that will inhibit or needlessly delay consumer access to safe products.”

To quote DSHEA itself: “Congress finds that:

the Federal Government should not take any actions to impose unreasonable regulatory barriers limiting or slowing the flow of safe products and accurate information to consumers;
dietary supplements are safe within a broad range of intake, and safety problems with the supplements are relatively rare;
and legislative action that protects the right of access of consumers to safe dietary supplements is necessary in order to promote wellness.”

In nearly every provision of the draft guidance, the FDA simply disregards clear and compelling evidence of the law’s intent.

FDA: We Will Decide What Supplements Can Be Sold

By turning what was meant to be a pre-market notification system into a pre-approval system, the FDA becomes the ultimate arbiter of what dietary supplements will and will not be available.

The FDA does this by simply not “filing” (which means accepting) any NDI notifications they don’t like. It may be because the notification does not meet rigid FDA specifications. Or it may be for any reason, however arbitrary.

ANH-USA has gone through the NDI notifications publically available, and we can confirm that a large number of NDI notifications, we think a majority, have been rejected—and this was before the new guidance spelled everything out, complete with handy flowcharts. Now it will be even harder for an NDI to be accepted, greatly diminishing consumer access to dietary supplements. The FDA even wants human trials, even if a supplement already exists and has just been slightly modified.

If the FDA does not “file” (approve) the NDI notification, and a supplement manufacturer, distributor, or possibly health food store still markets the supplement, the FDA considers the supplement an adulterated product. This makes the manufacturer or distributor vulnerable to FDA enforcement—including seizure of their products, injunctions, fines, and jail.

DSHEA: Supplements Are Not Drugs or Food Additives

Built into the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C) are pre-approval food additive provisions. But under DSHEA, dietary ingredients were intentionally exempt from those food additive provisions, to ensure that the FDA would not ban new supplement dietary ingredients as illegal unapproved food additives.

Moreover, in the Congressional Record of August 13, 1994, the DSHEA authors explain the purpose of DSHEA is to “clarify that dietary supplements are not drugs or food additives” and that “regulations relating to food additives are not applicable to dietary supplements and their ingredients used for food additive purposes.” Since dietary supplements are also specifically not drugs, it is counter to congressional intent to push the approval standard in the NDI notification closer to the pharmaceutical standard.

According to DSHEA, all dietary ingredients on the market before 1994 are grandfathered in—that is, they are not considered new supplements (NDIs), and are therefore not subject to the NDI notification. But FDA interprets “chemical alteration” very broadly, and so the agency is demanding an NDI notification for every reformulation and every new combination of any dietary ingredient, even those marketed before 1994. This FDA interpretation essentially ensures that many—and eventually, most—dietary ingredients currently on the market will be considered an NDI, subject to notification, and therefore to disapproval.

This, too, is clearly counter to congressional intent. It sets up supplement manufacturers to fail, and will turn most of them into alleged criminals if they persist in selling supplements not specifically approved by the FDA. At the very least it will cause supplement costs to soar. Supplement costs are high enough already—too high for many Americans to buy them, no matter how much they benefit health and thus reduce costs over the long run.

The 75-Day Waiting Period

DSHEA says that a manufacturer or distributor has to submit a notification 75 days before it is introduced on the market. It makes no mention of any requirement for FDA to respond, because notification was assumed to be a routine event. FDA then takes that requirement and twists it to say that a supplement manufacturer must wait 75 days after FDA files (accepts) the notification before the product can be marketed. And depending on how much additional information the FDA requires, it can be a while before the FDA files or, as noted above, FDA may choose not to file the notification at all—ever. The product is then in limbo and can only be sold at great legal risk.

And who must submit the NDI notification? “Either the manufacturer or distributor of a dietary supplement that contains a NDI, or the manufacturer or distributor of the NDI.” But what, in FDA-speak, does “distributor” mean? Could it include health food stores? If so, this puts an absurd burden on mom and pop stores trying to offer healthy alternatives to the public—especially if no one else filed a NDI in the supply chain. It would certainly seem to apply to larger companies, like Whole Foods, who distribute supplements under their own label.

The FDA should limit the NDI notification requirement to ingredient or supplement manufacturers, not sellers. Putting that burden on sellers—making them file a notification if they learn that their supplier hasn’t done so—essentially turns them into FDA enforcers. We think that smacks of police state tactics. Make everybody turn everybody else in or be arrested yourself.

The Question of Synthetics

Synthetic vitamins and supplements still have to comply with the NDI notification process if they were not a dietary supplement ingredient before 1994. The FD&C Act repeatedly includes synthetic vitamins and minerals with natural ones in its definition, and NDI notifications for synthetic vitamins and minerals have been filed in the past.

However, the draft guidance makes clear that the FDA does not consider synthetic botanicals to be NDIs at all: “A synthetic copy of a constituent of a botanical was never part of the botanical and thus cannot be a ‘constituent’ of a botanical that qualifies as a dietary ingredient. Similarly, a synthetic version of a botanical extract is not an ‘extract’ of a botanical…because it was not actually extracted from the botanical.”

What does all this gobbledygook mean? Bear with us, because it is important. It means that while new formulations of both natural and synthetic minerals are required to make NDI “notifications,” synthetic molecules derived from plants are not included. Why? Because these molecules might easily be made into a new drug by a pharmaceutical company.

The FDA is saying that synthetic botanicals can never be sold as a supplement and must always be treated as drugs. No surprise, of course. The FDA, if it had the power, would treat everything as a drug and require the full drug approval process, no matter what it does for cost or availability.

Both the FDA proposed NDI guidance and the dangerous Durbin bill (see our new article on Durbin in this issue) seek to give the FDA broad new authority to disapprove supplements or supplement ingredients on totally arbitrary grounds, with no rules or standards. If allowed to stand, over time this will drastically reduce the number of supplements and supplement potencies, raise prices substantially, injure our ability to take care of our health, raise healthcare costs, stifle supplement innovation, and cost millions of jobs in the supplement industry.

We are expanding our previous Action Alert to include Congress. They have the power to fix this, since it was they who passed DSHEA and set forth its guidelines. If you sent a message to the FDA alone before, don’t worry, we will see that your previous message gets to Congress too. Or you can send another one. If you haven’t yet sent a message, please be sure to do so. The future availability of supplements is at stake.

TO SEND YOUR MESSAGE TO THE FDA AND CONGRESS

Click THIS LINK to go to the Action Alert page. Once there, fill out the form with your name and address, etc., and customize your letter. We have a suggested message for you, but please feel free to add your own comments to the letter.

We’d also love to hear your comments about this article—just add your thoughts below—but remember that the messages below are only seen by our ANH-USA readers and not the FDA, Congress etc.

Vitamin C and the Law

2011-07-07T16:24:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks,

Some of my background includes the study of Orthomolecular Medicine. I studied it to help my daughter when she was around 10 years old. It was what helped my youngest daughter to get well. That was some twenty years ago, when the science was still new.

Even today, this form of therapy is hidden from the public by the AMA. They do not want you to know the truth. They are intent on pushing drugs and pushing down alternative medicine and herbs.

I am going to be publishing some information to help you learn and understand about Orthomolecular Medicine. This form of medicine uses vitamins, minerals and amino acids to correct deficiencies in the body and in the brain chemistry. There are links at the bottom of this article for further investigation.

Do investigate with an open mind. All you see on TV is drug commercials. They are making billions on these drugs which in the end destroy your liver and kidneys.

Some of them play havoc with your immune system.

If you get rid of joint pain but destroy your liver and kidneys, have you really gained anything. Is your health really improved?

You really need to think folks when listening to these ads. Listen and remember the side effects versus what they are being prescribed for. You need to think and see what is happening in this country. If we don't start seeing the real picture, we will be slaves to the pharmaceutical companies and the drugs they are pushing.

Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, November 11, 2010

Vitamin C And The Law
A Personal Viewpoint by Thomas E. Levy, M.D., J.D.

(OMNS November 11, 2010) As a patient, you have the right to any therapy that is not prohibitively expensive, established to be effective, and not prohibitively toxic.

Any physician, or panel of hospital-based physicians, claiming that vitamin C is experimental, unapproved, and/or posing unwarranted risks to the health of the patient, is really only demonstrating a complete and total ignorance or denial of the scientific literature. A serious question as to what the real motivations might be in the withholding of such a therapy then arises.

A doctor has the right to refuse to see you or treat you. A doctor does not have the right to deny you any therapy that is inexpensive and known to be effective and nontoxic; if there is toxicity involved, the patient can discharge his responsibility for such toxicity with proper informed consent. A doctor does not have the right to deny you consultation with another doctor that may have conflicting medical points of view.
Just as ignorance of the law is no sound defense to legal charges brought against you, ignorance of medical fact is ultimately no sound defense for a doctor withholding valid treatment, especially when that information can be easily accessed

While a hospital may or may not have a legal right to dictate to its physicians what they may or may not do, the patient and the family of the patient have the legal right to sue that hospital for any negative outcome that is perceived to directly result from such interference in patient care.

The patient and the family of the patient also have the right to sue any physician that refuses to administer an inexpensive, nontoxic therapy that is established to be of use in the medical literature, such as vitamin C, especially when no other options other than permitting the patient to die are offered. Doctors have a very strong herd mentality, and they do not thrive well when forced to deal with a lawsuit alone, and possibly not even with the backup of their malpractice insurance company, which would seriously question why an approved medicine such as vitamin C was withheld from the patient. Remember that any insurance company always looks for a legal way not to pay expenses or settlements.

In a court of law, legal decisions regarding medical issues are usually decided by comparing a doctor's actions (or inactions) to the accepted standards of medical practice in the community in question. The legal sticking points relate to how different that community might be from others, and whether the accepted standard of practice is too far deviated from overall mainstream medicine norms.

The legal system struggles with reconciling something well-established in the medical literature, but not reflected in the standard medical textbooks. A case involving withheld vitamin C would not currently have any direct legal precedent of which I am aware, but there are multiple reasons to believe that the time is ripe for the law to rule for the patient's right to receive vitamin C in the hospital over the doctor's "right" to withhold it.

The time for changing the view of vitamin C by the law and mainstream medicine has arrived. Over the past 20 years, many more doctors have begun to routinely give 50 grams (50,000 mg) or more of vitamin C intravenously on a regular basis to patients with the entire gamut of medical conditions. These doctors have come from the same medical schools and postgraduate training programs as their unlike-minded mainstream counterparts, meaning they have the same traditional credentials and warrant equal consideration.

The law recognizes that there is no one perfect medical approach to a patient. Having an increasingly large body of doctors who recognize the importance of vitamin C will allow the courts to permit an additional "school of thought" as long as enough traditionally-trained doctors think that way. The question yet to be legally determined is, How many such doctors is "enough?"

Under United States law, the long-standing Frye standard (1923) held that expert opinion based on a scientific technique is admissible only where the technique is generally accepted as reliable in the relevant scientific community. This standard made it almost impossible for any technique embraced by a minority, however competent or appropriately trained, to ever coexist with, much less supersede, a technique embraced by the larger scientific community. Basically, majority always wins, and minority always loses.
The Daubert standard (1993) finally replaced the Frye standard. Daubert held that the court should:

Evaluate whether the science can be or has been tested
Determine whether the science has been published or peer-reviewed
Consider the likelihood of error (quality and quantity of the data)
Evaluate the general acceptance of the theory in the scientific community

If the court is so inclined, the evaluation of general acceptance in the scientific (medical) community does not have to invoke the "majority rules" nature of the earlier Frye standard. Rather, it can allow the consideration that enough scientific studies embraced by enough qualified doctors could prevail legally. However, any final ruling would be heavily dependent on the particular facts of the case and the precise intervention requested of the court.

The principles of Daubert do not assure a victory for vitamin C proponents in a court of law, but they do allow an objective judge to see that the body of evidence supporting vitamin C usage is clearly established in the mainstream medical literature, warranting a thorough legal evaluation as to why it is not yet a permissible therapy. These principles allow for much more flexibility than the earlier Frye "majority rules" standard.
Also, with any individual case in which a doctor refuses to administer vitamin C and serious damage (including death) occurs, a strong legal case can be now be made that the burden of proof falls with the doctor to show:

That the therapy was exceptionally expensive, toxic, and/or unproven
That the patient's best interests were somehow best served by withholding vitamin C

Always try to make an alliance with your doctor and avoid an adversarial relationship if at all possible. Theoretically, if your doctor really wants to do what is best for the patient and is not more concerned with being told what to do, much stress and conflict can be avoided by all. However, do not hesitate to let your doctor know directly that you will avail yourself of all your rights or your family member's rights as a patient to optimal health care if so forced.

A very common "out" in all of these scenarios is to suggest that "further studies" should be done. More information is always useful, but vitamin C has already been researched more than any other supplement, or even most pharmaceutical drugs, in the history of the planet. Don't allow another 70 years of research to transpire before its proper use begins.
Stand up for your rights today. The way medicine is practiced will never change until the public demands it and the law legitimizes it. Remember, it's your body and your health. Doctors are answerable to you, not you to them.

Thomas Edward Levy, M.D., J.D. is a graduate of the Tulane University School of Medicine and the University of Denver College of Law. He board certified in Internal Medicine and is also a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology. He was admitted to the Colorado Bar in 1998 and the District of Columbia Bar in 1999. Dr. Levy is on the Editorial Board of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service.

References:
Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923)
Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 509 U.S. 579 (1993)
An expanded version of "Vitamin C and the Law" by Dr. Levy is available as a free pdf download at http://www.tomlevymd.com/downloads/VC.NZ.Sept.2010.pdf or http://www.doctoryourself.com/VC.NZ.Sept.2010.pdf

Nutritional Medicine is Orthomolecular Medicine
Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org
The peer-reviewed Orthomolecular Medicine News Service is a non-profit and non-commercial informational resource.

Editorial Review Board:
Ian Brighthope, M.D. (Australia)
Ralph K. Campbell, M.D. (USA)
Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D. (Canada)
Damien Downing, M.D. (United Kingdom)
Michael Ellis, M.D. (Australia)
Michael Gonzalez, D.Sc., Ph.D. (Puerto Rico)
Steve Hickey, Ph.D. (United Kingdom)
James A. Jackson, Ph.D. (USA)
Bo H. Jonsson, M.D., Ph.D. (Sweden)
Thomas Levy, M.D., J.D. (USA)
Jorge R. Miranda-Massari, Pharm.D. (Puerto Rico)
Erik Paterson, M.D. (Canada)
Gert E. Shuitemaker, Ph.D. (Netherlands)
Jagan Nathan Vamanan, M.D. (India)
Andrew W. Saul, Ph.D. (USA), Editor and contact person. Email: omns@orthomolecular.org
To Subscribe at no charge: http://www.orthomolecular.org/subscribe.html
To Unsubscribe from this list: http://www.orthomolecular.org/unsubscribe.html

Tumeric Treats Knee Pain Without Kidney Killing Drugs

2011-06-13T18:01:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago, I fell down some stairs and nearly broke my left knee. Of course, I had no health insurance so I wrapped it up with an ace bandage and kept working. It had swelling, and pain but eventually got better. It never got well and I was in some degree of pain all the time. The only way I could even walk for exercise was with it wrapped. I have tried several Chinese anti-inflammatory herb combinations and nothing touched the pain.

Last month, we got given some herbs by a friend who works at a health food store. Among the bottles were Turmeric with Bromelain. I decided that I would try it for the knee pain after researching it for hours. I took three capsules three times a day as was the recommendations from the research. I did not expect it to work since nothing else had.

Four days later I woke up and realized my knee didn't hurt. I thanked God for some relief but expected it at any moment to return. This is a month later and the pain is still gone. It has been such a beautiful gift to walk the dogs without pain, to turn in bed without pain, and just be able to move pain free. My partner who was supposed to have knee replacement surgery has had almost 70% relief. My youngest daughter who was recently diagnosed with Lupus has had considerable relief from pain in joints and her whole body. I have been amazed at what it has done in our family.

Turmeric is the yellow spice in mustard and curry. Its active ingredient is Curcumin.. Turmeric (Curcuma longa), a flowering plant in the ginger family, has been long used in Ayurvedic and Chinese medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent, a remedy for digestive disorders and liver problems, and as an effective treatment for skin diseases and wound healing.

Today, in a large number of scientific studies, Turmeric is being investigated in the United States for these medicinal properties, particularly its ability to reduce inflammation in patients with inflammatory rheumatic disease.

Research shows that Curcumin is known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity and that investigators are studying a potential role of curcumin against cancer, Alzheimer's disease, psoriasis and cystic fibrosis.

Research Turmeric on the internet and you will find many comments and some studies that show how well it works in relieving knee pain. Turmeric and Bromelain is the best combination because the Bromelain also acts as an inflammatory agent. There are few companies that sell the two together. The one I take is manufactured by Natural Factors and I buy it online. At the health food store it cost almost 20 dollars but online when I buy 6, it costs only $9.85. That is a huge savings when both my partner and I take it.

Turmeric is on the FDA's safe (GRAS) list and is considered a safe health food when recommended supplement doses are not exceeded. However, pregnant women and anyone with gallstones should avoid taking turmeric unless under a doctor's supervision

This article is just to share this information. I have gone over a year in severe knee pain and nothing I tried worked. The only other choice was high powered pain medicine which I cannot handle and don't believe in. This demonstrates that often there is an answer other than surgery or pain medicine but it takes experimentation to find the answer. I do hope that this might help some of you reading this article and are suffering. I thank God every day that I can walk without pain now.

Why Its a Must to Grow Your Own Medicinal Herbs

2011-06-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

Today I want you to really understand why it is important to start both your own vegetable garden and herb garden as well. The food we eat comes from many lands and is hauled by truck and airplane. You have no idea on the quality of the soil or the conditions that fruit or vegetable was planted under. If you plant your own garden, you have fresh produce. If you have a condo, grow vegetables in containers. Stick a tomato in a container out on your apartment patio. If you have no sunlight, buy a grow light.

Why grow herbs when you can buy them online? I hate to tell you folks, that this may not be an option in the future if the FDA and AMA have any say. They would rather have you on drugs. In England right now starting in May, herbal supplements are getting taken off the shelf. England has made it so difficult to get herbs approved with their new regulations that hundreds of supplements cannot be sold there. They are trying to pass laws everyday here to do the same. Your right to buy supplements may be cut off by laws going up for passage in many states. Growing your own herbs is not only cheaper but will give you access when these laws are passed. In any climate setting, there are herbs you can grow in containers and small gardens. You just have to do the research on your climate conditions and the conditions each herb needs. It it really important to start this now, not later. It takes awhile to get a big enough plant to eat from. You might need several containers but do it. Do it for your own health, your future health, and the quality of your life. For more information on how to grow medicinal herbs, visit my other blog at Growing Moringa and Medicinal Herbs

Signing off, Kate Feer, the Herbladyisin

Zero Deaths from Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids or Herbs

2011-06-08T15:43:00.000-07:00

Hi, I am reprinting this with permission. I believe in Orthomolecular Medicine and the education they deliver. You won't see this stuff in mainstream news.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, January 5, 2011

Poison Control Statistics Prove Supplements' Safety Yet Again

(OMNS Jan 5, 2011) There was not even one death caused by a dietary supplement in 2009, according to the most recent information collected by the U.S. National Poison Data System.
The new 200-page annual report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers, published in the journal Clinical Toxicology, shows zero deaths from multiple vitamins; zero deaths from any of the B vitamins; zero deaths from vitamins A, C, D, or E; and zero deaths from any other vitamin.

Additionally, there were no deaths whatsoever from any amino acid, herb, or dietary mineral supplement.

Two people died from non-nutritional mineral poisoning, one from a sodium salt and one from an iron salt or iron. On page 1139, the AAPCC report specifically indicates that the iron fatality was not from a nutritional supplement. One other person is alleged to have died from an "Unknown Dietary Supplement or Homeopathic Agent." This claim remains speculative, as no verification information was provided.
60 poison centers provide coast-to-coast data for the U.S. National Poison Data System, "one of the few real-time national surveillance systems in existence, providing a model public health surveillance system for all types of exposures, public health event identification, resilience response and situational awareness tracking."
Over half of the U.S. population takes daily nutritional supplements. Even if each of those people took only one single tablet daily, that makes 155,000,000 individual doses per day, for a total of nearly 57 billion doses annually. Since many persons take more than just one vitamin or mineral tablet, actual consumption is considerably higher, and the safety of nutritional supplements is all the more remarkable.
If nutritional supplements are allegedly so "dangerous," as the FDA and news media so often claim, then where are the bodies?

Reference:
Bronstein AC, Spyker DA, Cantilena LR Jr, Green JL, Rumack BH, Giffin SL. 2009 Annual Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers' National Poison Data System (NPDS): 27th Annual Report. Clinical Toxicology (2010). 48, 979-1178. The full text article is available for free download at http://www.aapcc.org/dnn/Portals/0/2009%20AR.pdf
The data mentioned above are found in Table 22B, journal pages 1138-1148.

For Further Reading:
Download any Annual Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers from 1983-2009 free of charge at http://www.aapcc.org/dnn/NPDSPoisonData/NPDSAnnualReports.aspx

Nutritional Medicine is Orthomolecular Medicine
Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org
The peer-reviewed Orthomolecular Medicine News Service is a non-profit and non-commercial informational resource.

Editorial Review Board:
Ian Brighthope, M.D. (Australia)
Ralph K. Campbell, M.D. (USA)
Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D. (Canada)
Damien Downing, M.D. (United Kingdom)
Michael Ellis, M.D. (Australia)
Michael Gonzalez, D.Sc., Ph.D. (Puerto Rico)
Steve Hickey, Ph.D. (United Kingdom)
James A. Jackson, Ph.D. (USA)
Bo H. Jonsson, M.D., Ph.D. (Sweden)
Thomas Levy, M.D., J.D. (USA)
Jorge R. Miranda-Massari, Pharm.D. (Puerto Rico)
Erik Paterson, M.D. (Canada)
Gert E. Shuitemaker, Ph.D. (Netherlands)
Jagan Nathan Vamanan, M.D. (India)
Andrew W. Saul, Ph.D. (USA), Editor and contact person. Email: omns@orthomolecular.org
To Subscribe at no charge: http://www.orthomolecular.org/subscribe.html
To Unsubscribe from this list: http://www.orthomolecular.org/unsubscribe.html

Moringa Oleifera Up Against FDA Misuse of Power.

2011-06-01T19:07:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends,

This is how the FDA shut our business down last January. What happened to our business is happening all over the United States. You need to hear this story before you make the decision to import herbs. Our business was new, not a year old yet. We had started on a shoestring budget. We had ordered two previous shipments of Moringa powder, caps, and teas from India by Fed Ex. Those first two shipments were delivered without a hitch. We were not expecting trouble. At this point in the business, we decided to change companies because we wanted to carry Organic Certified Moringa products. We wanted to give my customers the best product available. We spent two months checking out companies and their claims of organic status. Most of them could not give me proof when pushed. We finally found a company who had real certifications and a good reputation. They told us they would ship the order by a air freight shipping company, not UPS or Fed Ex. We agreed, having no idea what we were in for by agreeing to that shipping procedure. We had no real import experience from a business standpoint. That was our first mistake, lack of experience.

The Nightmare Begins: The shipment came into LA, then was trucked down to San Diego to a holding office. I had no idea that I was required to obtain a custom broker for the needed paperwork to get the package released. We called around and were shocked at the cost. The lowest custom broker charged three hundred dollars. The paperwork takes time to be approved. The holding office gives you three, free days, then they charge $30 dollars a day hostage fees. Even with the paperwork, you must then wait until customs clears it. It took over the three free days, for customs agents to even get to our package.. Customs flagged it for intense examination. That means they take it apart and send in samples. This can take days or weeks depending on the time. It was a week before the holding office let us take the package home, even though we could not use the product or sell it. It had to wait to be cleared by the FDA and Customs office first. We left with paying the holding office over a hundred dollars. So we bring it home, torn apart by customs and the FDA. Agents. Customs had taken out $25.00 of product for samples, so that was irritating. It is interesting that in the end, more product was missing than marked on the FDA paperwork. The agent had gone back to inspect my order three times, even though the samples were removed the first trip. So what did she do the other two visits. Even the holding office, said that was strange behavior. We now have the order in the house but can't touch the product. We call all our customers and give them the bad news. The order cost which originally $400 had now incurred another $400 in expenses.

Delay After Delay: Well it seemed that the labs were jammed so it was a month before they would tell us anything. We had no idea what compliance issues the order might have. After 4 weeks, they informed us that the order was refused. Stress when up several hundred points with that call. We had to wait for another week to receive their official letter.

#1 Problem Was Label Violations: The product did not express the weight of the product in ounces an pounds. The labels would have to be reconditioned. Problem is you must have a permit to touch the product, its label, or make changes to the label. That would cost lots of bucks plus months of paperwork. You must pay for the inspections to get the reconditioned labels approved. You have three tries at your cost, and then you lose. They give you no help. There are 15 pages of FDA label regulations to suffer through, even to the label size and where on the bottle they must go. There are rules to font sizes and approved label fonts. You are supposed to hire a specialist to help you figure this all out. I asked questions, and they refused any answers.

Customs Issues: Customs had an issue with the label because it did not state,'Product of India', on it. Now the label stated that the leaves were grown and manufactured in India on two parts of the label but did not state the exact words they wanted. Customs would allow me to add those precise words but FDA rules said I couldn't without the proper paperwork from them. I was sick.

How To Comply: When I called the FDA to understand how we could comply with the ounces and pounds issue, they said they could not give us any legal advice. We were advised to obtain a FDA lawyer to determine how the label should be correctly brought up to compliance.That would cost several hundred dollars and time. We found out the lawyers only win against the FDA about fifty percent of the time. We did not have the money.

Greatest Problem # 2: The label from the Indian company gave the website address and phone number for problem issues. That was up to speed according to FDA rules. In India, Moringa is used to prevent health problems like high blood pressure and diabetes. They make many health claims for the medicinal benefits of Moringa on their websites. This is against the FDA law here. You cannot state health claims for your herbal products in most cases. If you do, the herb is then considered a drug and subject to millions of dollars of research and years of double blind studies. So because of that, I was in violation of 'the importation of an unapproved drug '. There was no way to bring this up to compliance. My product was refused entry.

Send Back or Destroy: Now I was given two choices, I had to export it back to India or destroy it under FDA supervision. I could not abandon it for then I would be charged three times the worth of the package. If I did not bring the product back, I was subject to be put in jail. The cheapest route turned out to be to have it destroyed under supervision. The import broker was allowed to do that in their facility at the cost of another $200. If I had a large order or cargo shipment, it could have cost thousands of dollars more for the destruction procedure. Sending it back would have even been more money. It was very painful both mentally and financially to destroy a perfectly good shipment. The stress of the whole thing made me sick. I lost all of my customers who could not wait to buy their product, they needed it now. The business was shut down with no product to sell and $1000 was out in customs and custom broker charges. We were told by the holding company, that the FDA always gives packages that don't come through Fed Ex, a intense examination. He told us that it was happening more often. It is interesting to note, that the same agent who inspected our package, and deemed it with violations, got paid to destroy it. There was never any explanation to why more product was missing than listed on the paperwork. Our custom agent, said that happened all the time. Where does that unlisted missing product go? You might also find it interesting, that a friend ordered the same exact shipment, except through another state, and her order was passed through customs with flying colors. All these questions have no answers. All that red tape, delays, and trumped up violations make the FDA a lot of money. It also puts companies out of business.

Problem #3: Now that the package was refused entry, our company was put on a red flag list for the future. We were a new importer, who had imported a package that did not pass inspection. We would then be given this treatment the next time around. Moringa leaves would be considered a unapproved drug in the future by the San Diego Customs off ice and the FDA there. So importing in the future would be impossible. This is exactly how it went down. It cost us money and the Moringa sales part of our business. Right now it is hard to buy the Moringa powder in the United States as a reasonable cost. All the India companies state health claims on their sites, because Moringa is used by Indian physicians for health and the prevention of disease. So none of the companies labels are going to pass the FDA criteria.

Difference Between A Personal Order and Business Order for Resale: When you order Moringa product personally from these companies, the shipment is given a special pass through as a personal order. If you import it as part of a business, you are subject to intense regulations and inspections. That is how we got my first orders through Fed Ex and did not even realize how we got it so quickly and easily. It still has to go through inspection but is passed through by an exception of law as a personal order. As a business, you are supposed to have FDA resale clearance.

What Now? We have moved to Nevada now which may help but after losing all that money, my incentive to order from India is filled with doubt and fear. It could happen again with another shipment. If you are a small company, you cannot afford the money to go through this. Our whole first season of sales was lost to those costs. We were new, starting with a shoestring budget. Even with a larger company, fighting the FDA can cost thousands of dollars, losing in the end. This is just my story, and the loss, although devastating to us, was nothing as compared to other companies. In some future blogs, I will give you real life experiences that are happening everyday. This is how the FDA is putting companies out of business. You are accused of selling unapproved drugs, if you state anywhere that herbs or vitamins might help or prevent a health problem. Every vegetable or spice has healthy benefits including garlic and cayenne. So are they going to stop us from buying garlic cloves or cayenne. This is an incredible misuse of their power. So this is why I am not selling Moringa products at the present time except through Amazon. I don't have to worry about losing my shipment to FDA red tape. Amazon can afford to refund your money, if you can't receive your products.

Importing herbal products is a highly risky business even with experience. I would ask you to fully research this topic before you spend any money. It can be a real nightmare. I do hope with this blog and other stories, you will see the discrimination and efforts by the FDA to stop the sale of herbal supplements. It is happening now folks. We need to stand up to the FDA and this misuse of power.

God Bless You, Kate The Herbladyisin

Moringa Oleifera Products

2011-05-31T19:47:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

Two of the great products I take and sell on my websites are Moringa Powder and Moringa in Capsules. Moringa leaves are one of the most nutritional foods on the earth. Moringa leaves are being used in projects to end starvation in countries like Africa. It is because of its nutritional value. Visit My Moringa Business to learn more. I grow the trees in our nursery and will be shipping them throughout the United States by the end of the year. Since Moringa trees are dormant in the winter, I still must supplement with product. My trees, as of yet, do not produce enough leaves for the whole year. In fact right now they are being raised in our porch and greenhouse. Here are links to quality Moringa products: When I buy powder or caps, I buy them from the company below who actually sells both products. Greenhouse is their American name. Yelixir is the one they use in India.

Butterbur-Herbal Allergy Relief

2011-05-31T11:51:00.000-07:00

Research again confirms that herbs work without the side effects! Everyday research from various parts of the world shows how effective herbal medicine is. This research bite is about Butterbur

New research studies coming from both German and Swiss research has proven that Butterbur is effective at reducing symptoms of allergies and specifically grass related allergies. Allergy problems affect millions world wide. The herb was tested against Cetrizine, a highly prescribed allergy medication. After two weeks, the patients taking herbs were doing as well as the patients taking the drug. The problem most patients have with allergy medications is side effects such as getting sleepy and setting up resistance so their effectiveness dwindles with time. Butterbur is also used effectively against Migraines as well. Butterbur can be purchased at your local health food store or online. It would be worth a trial to see if it helps. You need to take it for at least a month to give it a full trial. Please review the sites below to research this topic in more depth.

References:

Butterbur-Effective Against Allergies

Butterbur and Migraine Relief

Living Slower Is Good For Your Health

2011-05-31T10:51:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

This blog comes from sunny, peaceful Mina, Nevada

We have now lived in Mina, Nevada for almost two months. I sit here writing you with more peace than in a long time. I knew when we lived in San Diego, that the traffic, freeways, and life clutter really got to my nerves. Here is Mina, a town of under 200, my stress level has gone down a number of points. Since the nearest town is 33 miles away with no shopping malls, we only go to town when we really need to. Once in awhile you go further away when you want clothes or bigger items. There is no traffic, no fuss, peace and quiet with very little rules. Most people just go about living their life quietly. When was the last time you could say that? So much of the gas we use and the shopping we do is not necessary or needed. We spend a lot of money on junk food and house junk as well. We see something on a end display, not on our list, and it ends up in our cart. How much of the stuff we buy really gets used and it really needed? We have really cluttered out life with trips to the store, and trips to the mall we don't need. I now have much more time to write and work on my nursery than when living in the city. We use neighbor resources for help and items they may have sitting around. Perhaps part of the severe stress and anxiety in your life is a life schedule you could reduce. Think about it. Your health will thank you.

God Bless you! Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

Alternative Medicine In The News- Changes and New Views

2011-05-28T14:38:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends,

I have had a lot of changes in my life the past half year and have not been updating this blog. We moved from California to Nevada with entailed a complete disruption of our business and life. I am sorry about that. I do appreciate the people who did stop by and view it. I will be posting some important posts on how our rights to herbs and vitamins are being violated. We need to stand up now before we lose any more of our right to choice. Please come back weekly to view the new posts. I want to make this blog one you will return to because it stimulates you and makes you think.
God Bless You !

Next blog will be on how my efforts to buy Moringa Powder were shut down by the FDA in November. It is a story that is happening to supplement companies everywhere. You need to know how they are trying to destroy alternative medicine.

Have a Great Day!

Kate Freer, The Herbladyisin

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Lead In Your Lipstick! Beware!

2006-05-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Ladies What you don't know about the ingredients in your lipstick
may be very BAD for your health:

Lead Found in Many Lipstick Brands:

The Brands which contain lead are:

1. CHRISTIAN DIOR

2. LANCOME

3. CLINIQUE

4. Y.S.L

5. ESTEE LAUDER

6. SHISEIDO

7. RED EARTH (Lip Gloss)

8. CHANEL (Lip Conditioner)

9. MARKET AMERICA-MOTNES LIPSTICK.

The higher the lead content, the greater the chance of causing cancer.

After doing a test on lipsticks, it was found that the Y.S.L.lipstick contained the most amount of lead.

Watch out for those lipsticks which are supposed to stay longer. If your lipstick stays longer, it is because of the higher content of lead.

Here is the test you can do yourself:

1. Put some lipstick on your hand.

2. Use a Gold ring to scratch on the lipstick.

3. If the lipstick color changes to black then you know the lipstick contains lead.

Please send this information to all your girlfriends, wives and female family members.

Alternative Medicine In The News

Your Right To Buy Herbs and Vitamins will be gone in 2012 if you don't Act Now!

Readers Please Ask Questions!

Why Herbs May Not Be Effective on Your Cold

More On Garlic...for Colds, Flu and Emergencies

What's In Your Herbal Medicine Chest?

Essiac Tea and Its Properties

Tea Tree Oil Heals Sore Throats and Sore Mouths

Fighting Staph Infections, MRSA Infections With Herbs

Do You Want The Majority of Herbs and Supplements Taken Off the Shelves? Read this Post Please!

FDA Law You Need To Stand Up Against and Why

Cayenne, Vitamin C , and Tips for Headaches including Migraines

Is Your House Toxic? Mold and Mildew

Humira: Exchange Joint Pain Relief for Kidney Failure. The Evil of Drug Ads

Treating Dysplasia and Chronic Ear Infections In Dogs

FDA with New Rules To End Our Right to Supplements

This is reposted from the ANH Organization that helps preserve your access to herbal supplements. This is critical for you to read, to sign the petition to your govt reps, and to repost to tell others about. Do your part! Sign the petition today.

FDA Guidelines a Perversion of Congressional Intent

Vitamin C and the Law

Vitamin C And The Law A Personal Viewpoint by Thomas E. Levy, M.D., J.D.

Tumeric Treats Knee Pain Without Kidney Killing Drugs

Why Its a Must to Grow Your Own Medicinal Herbs

Zero Deaths from Vitamins, Minerals, Amino Acids or Herbs

Poison Control Statistics Prove Supplements' Safety Yet Again

Moringa Oleifera Up Against FDA Misuse of Power.

Moringa Oleifera Products

Butterbur-Herbal Allergy Relief

Living Slower Is Good For Your Health

Alternative Medicine In The News- Changes and New Views

Lead In Your Lipstick! Beware!

Vitamin C And The Law
A Personal Viewpoint by Thomas E. Levy, M.D., J.D.