July 2006

Consumer group opposes AER legislation

Although a number of parties, including the National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA), the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), and the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), are in support of the proposed adverse event legislation for dietary supplements, at least one group is opposed.

The American Association for Health Freedom (AAHF) feels that the proposed legislation, S.3546, the Dietary Supplement and Non-Prescription Drug Consumer Protection Act, falls short of the public’s best interests. despite enduring gratitude to the bill's originators and long-time dietary supplement advocates

According to AAHF, S.3546 would amend the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the reporting of “serious” adverse events for both over-the-counter drugs and dietary supplements to the Food and Drug Administration. This is one step closer towards treating dietary supplements more like pharmaceuticals.

AAHF is the politically active voice for healthcare practitioners and their patients. It believes that dietary supplements, as concentrated nutrient forms, should continue to be handled as conventional food.

AAHF bases its concerns on the method of submission of AERs and also doubts the efficiency of the S.3546 requirement to submit adverse events. There is a potential for abuse of the system since supplements could be blamed in place of other causes, such as pharmaceutical or recreational drugs, genetic sensitivities, food intolerances, or alcohol abuse, among others.

Source: American Association for Health Freedom, www.healthfreedom.net

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