FDA EPHEDRA BAN REVERSED BY US COURT!

Plus A Report From Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, M.D.
On What Is Really Causing Sudden Cardiac Death In Athletes

Contributed By Dr. Betty Martini
Mission Possible International
E-Mail: BettyM19@mindspring.com

Opinion By Consumer Advocate Tim Bolen



Posted: 15 April 2005


Originally Posted At: http://www.rense.com/general64/fda.htm

There is no question that the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is owned and operated as an adjunct to Big Pharma. It is.

FDA executives are at the beck and call of Planet Earth's pharmaceutical industry. They don't even bother to hide that fact. FDA leaders see their role as four things: (1) get as many mega-dangerous drugs as possible approved as fast as possible, with the least amount of testing, (2) turn a blind eye towards, and cover up as much negative drug information (adverse reaction) as possible (3) act as a marketing partner for Big Pharma, (4) use their authority to attack, and harass, Big Pharma's competitors for health dollars.

The US FDA is one of "Medicine's" top war tools in the battle raging, worldwide, between the forces for "Health" versus "Medicine." All over the US, flak-jacketed FDA thugs, accompanied by other government agencies, smash their way into "health" related establishments, screaming, battering, scattering, seizing, grabbing - establishing emotional and financial chaos to anyone who dares to compete with Big Pharma's interests - with some effect.

Despite this "health" is winning, everywhere.

One of Big Pharma's major competitors is the vitamin/supplement industry. Big Pharma wants to stop it, or slow it as much as possible, and they have two major tools working for them: (1) the US FDA, and (2) "Codex."

We'll talk more about "Codex" later.

The FDA, not long ago, attacked the supplement industry, using the ruse that "Ephedra," an ingredient commonly used in supplements worldwide for hundreds of years, was somehow so suddenly dangerous that it needed to be taken off the market, immediately. And, a ruse it was...

But yesterday, a Federal Judge in Utah smacked the FDA right in the face, hard. Read the press release below...

Court Rules in Favor of Nutraceutical

Park City, Utah (April 14, 2005) - Nutraceutical International Corporation (NASDAQ: NUTR) today announced an important court decision that it believes will benefit its retail customers and the public. On April 13, 2005, the United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Division, granted Nutraceutical,s motion for summary judgment against FDA in Nutraceutical,s lawsuit involving FDA,s Final Rule on Ephedra.

Mr. Bruce Hough, President of Nutraceutical, commented that yesterday,s decision "is, in our view, about protecting the public's access to safe and effective dietary supplements and in clarifying the meaning of the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). The Court's ruling clarifies the steps FDA must take to comply with the law in its regulation of dietary supplements.

Mr. Hough continued, "The Court made it clear that FDA has authority under DSHEA to remove unsafe dietary ingredients from the market. But the Court also clarified that FDA must follow DSHEA and cannot treat dietary supplements like drugs or medical devices. The Court made other important findings, pointing out that Congress intended that dietary supplements be treated as a subset of foods and, like other foods, are "presumed to be safe.

Nutraceutical and its subsidiary Solaray, Inc. marketed whole-herb ephedra as a dietary supplement from 1988 until April of 2004. At the time the Final Rule on Ephedra was issued, Nutraceutical and Solaray's product contained directions limiting dosage to 10 mg. or less of naturally occurring ephedrine alkaloids per daily serving. Under the Court,s Order, FDA's Final Rule on Ephedra has been remanded to FDA for further rulemaking consistent with the Order, and FDA has been enjoined from taking enforcement action against Nutraceutical or Solaray for the sale of dietary supplements containing 10 mg. or less of ephedrine alkaloids per daily dose. FDA has the right to appeal the Court's decision.

A complete copy of the Court,s decision may be found at http://www.nutraceutical.com/courtruling

Health Radio personality Robert Scott Bell will be interviewing Nutraceutical President Bruce Hough this Sunday, April 17th, 2005, about the case, from 1:00PM to 2:00PM. Hough will be backed up by author Mike Fillon of "Ephedra: Fact and Fiction" fame. Robert's show plays nationwide, and can be found by going to his list of national affiliates.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with Robert Scott Bell and his show, the following commentary by Robert, on this issue says it all:

Of course, this vindicates author Mike Fillon and his book Ephedra: Fact and Fiction, confirming the faulty conclusion and sloppy science that led to the "banning" of a dietary supplement, while allowing its synthetic cousin, pharmaceutical pseudo-ephedrine to remain on the market, providing a cheap source of raw materials for the manufacture of "street" methamphetamines. You've got to hand it to the FDA for its sheer audacity and consistency in protecting pharmaceutical interests from having to genuinely compete with substances from nature.

The FDA's black eye keeps getting blacker. I hear the violins now.

It is getting really hard to find friends, these days, if you're Big Pharma. Merck recently announced that it can't find anybody to take over as its CEO.

Big Pharma isn't doing well, worldwide. Just a few days ago, in my newsletter article http://www.quackpotwatch.org/opinionpieces/ComingCodexWar.htm

The Coming "US Health Movement v. Big Pharma"

http://www.quackpotwatch.org/opinionpieces/ComingCodexWar.htm

Codex War..., I announced the demise, in EU Court, of Big Pharma's attempt to shut down the supplement industry. But little did I know at the time that day, Tuesday, April 5th, 2005, would go down in the annals as a double-whammy of Big Pharma's murderous intent.

Then I did "UK Parliament SMASHES Big Pharma"...

http://www.quackpotwatch.org/opinionpieces/tim%20bolen.htm

http://www.quackpotwatch.org/opinionpieces/UK%20Parliament%20SMASHES%20Big%20Pharma.htm

And, this story you are almost NOT going to believe. I'm going to have to convince you with data. To do that I'm going to tell you that you are going to have to do what I just did - you're going to have to read a 126 page report just issued by the British government titled"House of Commons Health Committee - THE INFLUENCE OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY"

The British government is setting up the "guillotine" for Big Pharma. There's going to be a "Bastille Day" in London. Sell your pharmaceutical stock - quick.

We are heading for a health care http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/nuremberg/nuremberg.htm

"Nuremberg..." And, it's about time...

Stay tuned...

Tim Bolen - Consumer Advocate

For EVEN MORE interesting and related articles go to

http://www.bolenreport.com


From Dr. Betty Martini, Mission Possible International - Read the Ephedra Story on http://www.wnho.net Click on Aspartame --- and now from Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, M.D. (and readers you can help save athlete's lives by forwarding these releases to all athletic organizations!!)

Athlete Alert: Renowned Neurosurgeon Identifies Aspartame & MSG in Sudden Cardiac Death

Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, M.D. explains the relationship between sudden cardiac death, especially in athletes, and excitotoxic damage produced by food additives and artificial sweeteners.

(PRWEB) April 14, 2005 -- Dr. Russell Blaylock, an author and neurosurgeon, explains the relationship between sudden cardiac death, especially in athletes, and excitotoxic damage caused by food additives and artificial sweeteners. -- By Russell L. Blaylock, M.D.

Over 460,000 people annually die of a disorder called sudden cardiac death, according to CDC statistics. This condition strikes otherwise healthy people who have experienced no obvious symptoms of heart disease prior to their abrupt deaths.

An alarming number young athletes are included in these deaths, in high schools and colleges as well as among professional athletes. While in some of these individuals cardiologists found evidence of coronary disease and scars from earlier silent heart attacks, there is one mechanism that's getting no attention at all: the excitotoxin damage caused by food additives and the artificial sweetener aspartame. This is despite growing evidence that the excitotoxic mechanism plays a major role in cardiac disease.

Previously, it was thought that excitotoxic food additives, such as monosodium glutamate and aspartic acid in aspartame, cause their damage in the cardiovascular centers in the brain stem and/or by over-stimulating sympathetic centers in the hypothalamus of the brain. Both mechanisms have resulted in sudden cardiac death in experimental animals.

A particularly deadly combination occurs in young athletes: Low magnesium intake, high calcium intake, low intake of omega-3 fatty acids and excitotoxins in food additives. Strenuous exercise, especially in extreme heat, depletes the body's magnesium stores, as does consumption of carbonated drinks and taking calcium supplements. Also adrenalin secretion, increased during exercise, intensifies heart muscle irritability and further loss of magnesium as well. When calcium supplements are taken in the face of an existing magnesium deficiency, both magnesium and calcium are driven into the bones, producing a sudden magnesium-depletion crisis.

Low magnesium produces seizures and causes sudden cardiac arrest. In a classic experiment it was found that stressing magnesium-deficient animals resulted in an almost 100% mortality from sudden cardiac arrest. Adding magnesium reduced mortality dramatically. A considerable body of evidence has shown that low omega-3 fat intake significantly increases the risk and severity of cardiac arrhythmias, the main cause of sudden cardiac death.

A number of studies have shown that Americans are significantly deficient in these protective fats. Finally, recent research has shown that the brain is not the only tissue having glutamate receptors. Numerous glutamate receptors have been found both within the heart's electrical conduction system and the heart muscle itself.

When an excess of food-borne excitotoxins, such as MSG, hydrolyzed protein soy protein isolate and concentrate, natural flavoring, sodium caseinate and aspartate from aspartame, are consumed, these glutamate receptors are over-stimulated, producing cardiac arrhythmias. When magnesium stores are low, as we see in athletes, the glutamate receptors are so sensitive that even low levels of these excitotoxins can result in cardiac arrhythmias and death.

This is especially so when combined with the other factors mentioned. Under such condition, free radicals and lipid eroxidation products build up within the muscle cells, leading to the same outcome.

High consumption of aspartame adds an additional cardiac muscle toxin: methanol. A number of studies have shown that consuming aspartame and MSG (and similar excitotoxins) together greatly magnifies the toxicity.

Young people live on junk foods, most of which contain a number of excitotoxic additives. Several studies have shown that the levels consumed by our youth equal those that cause damage in experimental animals. Humans are 5X more sensitive to these toxins than any animal.

The same factors operate in older individuals. Most people over age 50 years are depleted of magnesium, have low omega-3 fat intakes, are under stress and take a number of medications which compromise nutrition, especially magnesium levels. Because seniors are more likely to have coronary artery disease plus other medical conditions, their risk of sudden cardiac death is even higher.

Both athletes and those over age 45 should take magnesium supplements, antioxidants, omega-3 oils, eat more vegetables and avoid foods and artificial sweeteners containing excitotoxins such as aspartame and MSG. This accomplishes a lot more than attempting to rescue a victim with an external defibrillator after the fact.

Dr. Blaylock's web site is http://www.russellblaylockmd.com. He is author of "Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills and Health & Nutrition Secrets to Save Your Life." He can be seen in the movie on aspartame, "Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World."

Copies are available from Cori@soundandfuryproductions.com [Also see the page at: http://www.wnho.net/sweet_misery_movie.htm]

Case histories now being taken on aspartame and brain tumors from New York, New Jersey, Illinois and Mississippi in the last three years. Send to BettyM19@mindspring.com (Dr. Betty Martini, 770-242-2599) Read Bressler Report at http://www.dorway.com/bressler.txt

Also, The FDA blamed deaths on ephedra and removed it from the market. The FDA records on ephedra were reviewed by the renowned neuroscientist Dr. John Olney who founded the field of neuroscience called excitotoxicity and tried to prevent the approval of aspartame and said ephedra is safe.

The Ephedra story is on http://www.wnho.net

In the movie, "Sweet Misery," Diane Fleming is interviewed from prison. Her husband, an aspartame addict, who played basketball several times a week, died and she was charged with his death. Several experts have written affidavits that Charles Fleming died from aspartame.

Contact:

Dr. Betty Martini
Founder, Mission Possible International
9270 River Club Parkway
Duluth, Georgia 30097
770-242-2599
http://www.dorway.com

Aspartame Toxiocity Center: http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame

Aspartame Information List: http://www.wnho.net