Letter from Natural Solutions Foundation

So far only one candidate, Dr. Ron Paul, has adopted a Health Freedom Plank that meets most of our concerns. Here it is:
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"Health Freedom
Americans are justifiably concerned over the government's escalating intervention into their freedom to choose what they eat and how they take care of their health.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in order to comply with standards dictated by supra-national organizations such as the UN's World Food Code (CODEX), NAFTA, and CAFTA, has been assuming greater control over nutrients, vitamins and natural health care providers to restrict your right to choose the manner in which you manage your health and nutritional needs.
I have been the national leader in preserving Health Freedom.
I have introduced the Health Freedom Protection Act, HR 2117, to ensure Americans can receive truthful health information about supplements and natural remedies.
I support the Access to Medical Treatment Act, H.R. 2717, which expands the ability of Americans to use alternative medicine and new treatments.
I oppose legislation that increases the FDA's legal powers. FDA has consistently failed to protect the public from dangerous drugs, genetically modified foods, dangerous pesticides and other chemicals in the food supply. Meanwhile they waste public funds attacking safe, healthy foods and dietary supplements
I also opposed the Homeland Security Bill, H.R. 5005, which, in section 304, authorizes the forced vaccination of American citizens against small pox. The government should never have the power to require immunizations or vaccinations."
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We will continue to report to you developments and invite you to send your message to the candidates, if you haven't already done so, click on Presidential Campaign Health Freedom Score Card, ( http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/568/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=13881  ) to ask the candidates these hard-hitting health freedom questions. Since 14 out of the 16 candidates don't give out their email addresses to concerned citizens such as you, we've had to use fax numbers to reach them. This costs us a significant amount of money for each fax sent, so we really need your help to enable us to continue to use this form of communication with the candidates. Every fax costs us over $1 to send. Do the math and you will see that over 74,000 emails represent a significant outlay. We believe that bringing health freedom questions into the center of the 2008 campaign is worth it. ...

Some quick news notes…

Apparent threats…we're hearing the Internet chatter that DHEA, a premier longevity nutrient, is under threat again and some people cite a pending bill by Senator Grassley. Our Washington sources made some inquiries for us among our friends "on the Hill" and we're told there is little chance of the bill getting anywhere as it only has two sponsors. We need to stay vigilant, since you can never tell when "the powers that be" will decide to advance the anti-DHEA bill; this again, one more example of the multisided attacks your freedom of choice face every day… and every day, we need to be there for you, protecting your interests.

…and victories too… You ru remember that we helped make certain that protection for supplements from the new powers of the FDA survived the compromise process that brought the differences between the House and Senate versions of the FDA Revitalization Bill into line. This bill was signed into law stating that supplements were specifically exempted from it. That's an indication of our collective power.

…The effort to further restrict compounding pharmacies, including their right to compound your bio-identical hormones, has once again failed, due to a substantial outcry from the public. Compounding pharmacies, of course, directly compete with mass market drug companies by making private formulations up for patients of the drugs and hormones they need according to the prescriptions their doctors write for them. FDA has been attacking them for years. We beat them back again.

…FDA finally issued the expected guidance on the new Adverse Event Reporting law that goes into effect in December. We have concerns about the new AER system, not because there is any significant danger to the public from nutrients, but because we are concerned the new system will ignore one of the prime causes of the few adverse events people report: drug - nutrient interactions. Since drugs change normal body function, they will often interfere with the metabolism of nutrients. When that happens, it is the drug that caused the event, not the food! But we are wary that the new reporting system can be used to blame nutrients and natural remedies when toxic substances in the environment, or toxic drugs taken by the individual, will be ignored as the caused of the harm. Again, another area that needs our vigilance…