If you are not aware by now, the FDA and "Big Pharma" have joined forces in a legislative push toward classifying, evaluating and regulating nutritional supplements as toxic compounds. Should their efforts be successful, the resulting paperwork, mandatory fees and general "red tape" will be more than any small or medium-sized supplement manufacturer could ever hope to absorb. The upshot is that they will have to immediately stop producing their products. And thousands of natural dietary supplements will disappear over night with only the costly, synthetic (pharmaceutical) versions remaining.

If you feel that  having the option to pay $20.00 for a bottle of a synthetic One a Day from Walmart or buying nothing at all represents a reasonable choice, then please ignore this post. But if you view your freedom to have other choices as a basic and fundamental right, please read Dr. Mercola's most recent post on the subject:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/09/14/vicious-at...

In a nutshell, S.1310 (the Dietary Supplement Labeling Act of 2011) introduced at the end of June by U.S. Senator Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) is, using Byron J. Richards' words, "an alarming regulatory nightmare that is trying to treat vitamins as if they are drugs."

Its stated purpose is to:

"...improve the safety of dietary supplements by amending the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require manufacturers of dietary supplements to register dietary supplement products with the Food and Drug Administration and to amend labeling requirements with respect to dietary supplements."

As is typical of most diabolical laws, it initially sounds harmless enough. But there's more. Durbin's bill goes hand-in-hand with new FDA regulations that amend the definitions for new dietary ingredients (NDI's) and, together, they can threaten your health and freedom of choice--and further serve to strengthen the fatally flawed paradigm of health and medicine.

We've seen proposed legislation that sorely threatens your health and well-being before, but this time they're really hitting hard with the intended goal of leaving you without the freedom of choice.

He goes on to write:

"The elimination of health options is required for the control of a population, while the preservation of health freedom is a leading indicator of the overall freedom within a society… [T]he control of health options is as important as the control of food and money. Big Pharma influences Republicans by aligning itself as a corporate conglomerate that is too big to fail, one that should be free of prudent safety regulations or reduction in grotesquely inflated prices. It fights against drug safety at every turn, while at the same time lobbying to pass laws that lock in sales or eliminate its competition.

The media plays along, as Big Pharma is a wonderful source of advertising dollars that are in no small part made possible by taxpayer funding of Big Pharma drug sales. While Big Pharma sees many aspects of the dietary supplement industry as competition, it is also the case that many pharmaceutical companies are in some aspect of the dietary supplement industry, often as raw material suppliers.

Big Pharma does not want to see the dietary supplement industry eliminated, it wants to see the small and medium sized independent businesses in the dietary supplement industry eliminated and it wants to own the industry. Their key strategy to accomplish this at this time is to lobby to pass costly laws and regulations which they can comply to and which other smaller, independent companies cannot."

Be forewarned: This is not the time to doze off on the sidelines. Durbin's bill and the FDA proposed mandates for NDI's are a poorly-veiled attempt to usurp your rights and health freedom. As Richards writes:

"This chess game is being played with a pathetic opening strategy based on imaginary safety problems. The gambit requires an ignorant public for its success."

It's time to prove them wrong yet again, just like we did in 1994. The open comment period on the FDA's proposed guidelines expires on September 30, 2011. It's vitally important for everyone to file a written protest and not allow them to rewrite the intent of the DSHEA law. Durbin's bill and the FDA proposal pose a direct threat to your health and well-being, so please, step up and defend your right to continue using natural, dietary supplements--and to gain access to new products with demonstrated efficacy by following this link: http://www.capwiz.com/lef/issues/alert/?alertid=51641606&type=CO.