Tag: FDA

Could FTC Censorship of Supplements Increase Violent Behavior?

Posted on by Bob Held

When we think about dietary supplements, we usually think of our physical health. But our mental and emotional health can also be helped with vitamins, minerals, herbs, and so on. The usual prescription for our emotional health is drugs.

 Antidepressants, for example, are the most widely prescribed type of drugs in the U.S. However, there are also several natural remedies for depression which studies show are as, if not more, effective than drugs. They are also safer than prescribed drugs for the patients. In fact, FTC censorship of natural remedies for depression could even put the family members, friends and neighbors of those patients in danger.

 How are antidepressant drugs dangerous to the family, friends and neighbors of the depressed person? According to a recent study, antidepressant drugs are among the top 10 legal drugs linked to violence toward others.

 The new study, conducted by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices and published in the journal PloS One, reviewed the items in the FDA’s Adverse Event Reporting System and isolated 31 drugs that have the most reports of violent behavior towards others.

 Researchers point out that, although the drugs may sometimes be given to those who already have a history of violent behavior, the propensity to violent behavior while taking these particular drugs stands out – even when history and other factors are considered. In other words, it really looks like the drugs themselves might be the problem.









 Here is the countdown on the top ten offenders:

 10. Desvenlafaxine (Pristiq), an antidepressant and anti-anxiety drug, is 7.9 times more likely to be associated with violence than other drugs.

 9. Venlafaxine (Effexor), also prescribed for depression and anxiety, is 8.3 times more likely than other drugs to be related to violent behavior.

 8. Fluvoxamine (Luvox), another antidepressant, is 8.4 times more likely than other medications to be linked with violence.

 7. Triazolam (Halcion), a benzodiazepine used to treat insomnia, is 8.7 times more likely to be linked with violence than other drugs.

 6. Atomoxetine (Strattera), used to treat the symptoms identified as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), is 9 times more likely to be linked with violence than the average medication.

 5. Mefoquine (Lariam), a treatment for malaria, is 9.5 times more likely to be linked with violence than other drugs.

 4. Amphetamines, various types, used to treat the symptoms identified with ADHD, are 9.6 times more likely to be linked to violence than other drugs.

 3. Paroxetine (Paxil), another antidepressant, is 10.3 times more likely to be linked with violence. And, by the way, is also linked with more severe withdrawal symptoms and a greater risk of birth defects than other similar medications.

 2. Fluoxetine (Prozac), the antidepressant everyone’s heard of, is 10.9 times more likely to be linked with violence than other drugs.

 1. Varenicline (Chantix), the anti-smoking drug, is 18 times more likely to be linked with violence.

 How’s that for depressing?

 So, what are the natural remedies that could help with depression so we can avoid this violent behavior? According to the Mayo Clinic, a few of the common herbal remedies and other supplements you might try include the following:

 “St. John’s wort. Known scientifically as Hypericum perforatum, this is an herb that’s been used for centuries to treat a variety of ills, including depression. It’s not approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat depression in the United States. Rather, it’s classified as a dietary supplement. However, it’s a popular depression treatment in Europe. It may be helpful if you have mild or moderate depression.

 “SAMe. Pronounced “sammy,” this is a synthetic form of a chemical that occurs naturally in the body. The name is short for S-adenosylmethionine. It’s not approved by the FDA to treat depression in the United States. Rather, it’s classified as a dietary supplement. However, it’s used in Europe as a prescription drug to treat depression.

 “Omega-3 fatty acids. Eating a diet rich in omega-3s or taking omega-3 supplements may help ease depression and also appears to have a number of other health benefits. These healthy fats are found in cold-water fish, flaxseed, flax oil, walnuts and some other foods.”

 The Mayo Clinic also mentions acupuncture, yoga and massage therapy as other options used to treat depression.

 Studies have also shown exercise to be effective. In fact, more effective than antidepressants.

 It’s not uncommon for depression to stem from physical conditions like nutritional deficiencies and imbalances, hormonal problems, allergies and so on. Strangely enough, antidepressant-deficiency isn’t among them.

 Check with your health practitioner to get tested and find out if one of those physical conditions applies to you. Chances are your regular family doctor won’t be trained in how to do that kind of testing – and if he or she does, count yourself very lucky – so it might be best to find an alternative, integrative or functional medicine practitioner to dig in and find out what’s doing on.

 When you get your recommended program, and if the FDA or FTC censorship hasn’t already put the manufacturers of these natural remedies out of business, you can follow your health practitioner’s advice and get the supplements you need. You may even get better, without side effects, and without giving your neighbor a black eye!

Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Wellness Truth Network and a clickable link back to this page.

FDA and FTC Censorship Does Not Focus on Preventing Real Health Risks

Posted on by Bob Held

Years ago, a doctor told me to stay away from hospitals. He was an M.D. – you would think his attitude would be somewhat different. What was the reasoning behind that advice? Patient deaths, injury and other mishaps were rampant in the hospital setting. As studies were done and the problems in hospitals were exposed, action was apparently taken to protect patients. However, according to recent studies, there has been very little improvement. Shouldn’t the focus of the FDA and FTC censorship be on protecting us from these dangers? Continue reading “FDA and FTC Censorship Does Not Focus on Preventing Real Health Risks” →

ANH-USA to File Health Claim for Vitamin D—and It’s All Thanks to You! (Plus a Vitamin D Update)

Posted on by Bob Held

Reprint from ANH-USA

In addition to this exciting announcement, we have some troubling news to report: more conflicts of interest over the Institute of Medicine’s vitamin D report, and more evidence from a top Harvard expert that the IOM recommendations fly in the face of good science. What is really going on here? Continue reading “ANH-USA to File Health Claim for Vitamin D—and It’s All Thanks to You! (Plus a Vitamin D Update)” →

FTC Censorship Has Its Site Set on the Wrong Target

Posted on by Bob Held

One of the worst things about FTC censorship of supplements is the attempt to take control of our health out of our hands and put it into the hands of those who may not have our best interests at heart. Many notables have warned us of this possibility. Some warnings were as long ago as the founding of the country. Continue reading “FTC Censorship Has Its Site Set on the Wrong Target” →

UK to Run Huge Campaign to Convince Citizens that Organic Food is Better

Posted on by Bob Held

 On the heels of the new Food Safety Modernization Act, which threatens the health of Americans and the livelihood of small and organic farmers, comes a wonderful story from the UK: The European Union is actually co-funding a $2.8 million campaign to spread the word in the UK that organic food is better for you. Continue reading “UK to Run Huge Campaign to Convince Citizens that Organic Food is Better” →

FTC Censorship of Nutritional Supplements That Help Diabetes

Posted on by Bob Held

When you’re talking about patrolling your street to ensure no one is breaking into your home or, once the deed is done, tracking down your stolen merchandise and the responsible criminals, ‘to serve and protect’ is a welcome mission statement. We all want to live in safe areas, and we’re willing to pay through our taxes for that protection. But some government involvement in our lives not only fails to serve and protect, it even prevents us from serving and protecting ourselves. Continue reading “FTC Censorship of Nutritional Supplements That Help Diabetes” →

Do You Have a Prescription for Those Walnuts? Wellness Truth Network challenges FTC censorship

Posted on by Bob Held

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA–(Marketwire – Jan. 5, 2011) – According to recent statements by the Wellness Truth Network (WTN) in Pasadena, CA., the FTC and FDA, who have a long history of censorship of natural remedies, are attempting to classify natural substances which are proven to help in the prevention of heart disease as drugs.

As the US population ages, big Pharma stands to make billions of dollars from patentable drugs for heart disease and other ailments related to aging. According to Bob Held, CEO of WTN, the actions of the FTC in suppressing and over-regulating natural remedies acts to protect the profits of the corporations to the detriment of the American population.

Held is embroiled in his own fight with the FTC over the promotion of natural remedies for Diabetes, which he is challenging in court. 

“If it can’t be patented by a pharmaceutical company, the chances are good that any health solution found in nature is being attacked by the FTC and FDA. A fifth grader could figure out who they are protecting, and it’s not the American people.”

As an example, Held points out, Diamond Foods, makers of Diamond Culinary Nuts, has cited clinical studies and other scientifically validated data on their web site, showing that the Omega 3 fatty acids found in walnuts “can help lower cholesterol; protect against heart disease, stroke and some cancers; ease arthritis and other inflammatory diseases; and even fight depression and other mental illnesses.”

Earlier this year the company received a warning letter from the FTC stating that “Because of these intended uses, your walnut products are drugs within the meaning of section 201 (g)(1)(B) of the Act [21 U.S.C. § 321(g)(B)]. Your walnut products are also new drugs under section 201(p) of the Act [21 U.S.C. § 321(p)] [and] may not be legally marketed with the above claims in the United States without an approved new drug application.”

The absurdity of classifying a nut as a drug is not lost on Held. “According to this thinking, we’re not allowed to say that heart healthy foods provided by nature can be an option to the expensive and questionable pharmaceutical ‘solutions’.

“The tyranny of FTC censorship, and the threat they hold of financial ruin for anyone who dares say that healthy foods can help your body, has to end.”


Creative Commons Attribution: Permission is granted to repost this article in its entirety with credit to Wellness Truth Network and a clickable link back to this page.










Big Agri Works with FTC Censorship to Destroy the Health of Americans

Posted on by Bob Held

A friend was recently in Canada visiting friends and family. While there, she was thrilled to receive many jars of her friend’s mother’s jams, jellies and preserves. Rhubarb, strawberry, wild blueberry – she said they were delicious. The family used to have a fruit farm and they really know how to make delicious food with fresh, safe, natural ingredients. She also scored a big jar of raw, unprocessed honey, straight from one of the three hives owned and operated by her friend’s son. Continue reading “Big Agri Works with FTC Censorship to Destroy the Health of Americans” →

Why focus on health freedom? Because our future is worth protecting, says Health Ranger

Posted on by Bob Held

Reprinted from NaturalNews. We’ve been covering health freedom topics with great intensity lately, and that has taken away from our typical coverage of natural cures, herbal remedies, medicinal foods and so on. Some people are asking why we’ve shifted our focus, and I want to answer those questions with clarity and determination.

It’s one thing to know HOW to use herbs and superfoods, and there’s a wealth of knowledge to be gained in that area. But it’s another thing entirely to have ACCESS to those herbs and superfoods without being criminalized or harassed by the government in the process. I would say that unless you have access to those healing remedies, all the knowledge in the world of how to use them makes no difference.

Our access to natural healing remedies, superfoods and herbs is under constant threat. For example, the FDA has outlawed supplement companies and food companies from offering scientifically-validated free speech about their products. If a cherry company links to a scientific study on its website, providing a scientific basis for clinical evidence that cherries can help prevent gout, for example, the FDA sends them a threatening letter claiming they may be subjected to criminal prosecution, have their products seized, and even thrown in prison for selling “unapproved drugs.” (http://www.naturalnews.com/019366.html)

Both local and federal authorities, meanwhile, have declared war on raw milk producers, treating them like drug dealers with armed raids, arrests and criminal prosecutions. If milking a cow and selling that milk to your neighbor is now a federal crime, what other foods or natural substances might the feds go after next? (It looks like they may soon outlaw the selling of breast milk!)

With the passage of the recent Food Safety Modernization Act, the FDA will be moving forward with so-called Codex Alimentarius harmonization. It’s written right into the bill text (http://www.naturalnews.com/030863_f…). This law also requires the FDA to set up enforcement offices in foreign nations to run a global food safety scheme that will try to pasteurize, irradiate or fumigate virtually all foods entering the United States. This is an effort to kill these foods and destroy most of their nutritive qualities. “Safety” is just the excuse to sterilize your food.

This same law also gives the FDA authority to inspect and shut down backyard gardeners, small local famers, small greenhouse operations, people who sell items at the farmers’ market, and so on. No, these groups are not automatically exempt from the bill as was claimed by bill proponents: They must “apply” to be granted exemption by the FDA — a process requiring them to produce tax returns, safety documentation and a pile of paperwork that the FDA can choose to declare “insufficient.”

With our health freedoms under attack, it’s crucial that we take a stand and support our Natural Law rights (God-given rights) to grow our own food and medicine, to buy food and natural medicine, and to sell what we grow to our local neighbors and community members. All these rights are under assault by the federal government, and if we don’t work to oppose the tyrants who want to take away our access to healing foods, herbs and supplements, we may end up living in a nation where vitamins are outlawed (or at least the natural, food-based vitamins are), herbs are regulated off the shelves and local farmers’ markets are shut down.

Instead of getting your food from a neighbor, you’ll have to get it from a food factory that passes the FDA’s “safety” inspections even though it’s still injecting aspartame, sodium nitrite and MSG into its food products. (The FDA considers all those chemical food additives to be “safe,” believe it or not.)

Why protecting our freedoms is crucial to our health

If we do nothing and stay silent, it is guaranteed that our access to natural remedies and honest food will be stolen from us by tyrannical bureaucrats who incessantly work to protect the financial interests of Big Pharma and the sick-care industry. They don’t necessarily want you to be well. They don’t want you to buy local food. What they want is to turn consumers into cattle, where they feed you dead, processed foods and then make a fortune off the degenerative disease that inevitably develops as a result.

And they especially want you to do what you’re told and stop questioning vaccines. Stop questioning the chemicals in the food. Just eat it, swallow and buy into it.

What I seek to do, on the other hand, is protect our food freedoms by alerting you when those freedoms are under attack. I aim to expose the true agenda of the FDA and Big Government tyrants who are trying to take away your raw milk, take away your access to nutritional supplements and censor the truth about how natural remedies can prevent and even cure serious disease.


Health freedom protection is a team effort

In addition to NaturalNews, other health freedom organizations are also part of the leading edge of this fight: The Alliance for Natural Health (www.ANH-USA.org), the Natural Solutions Foundation (www.HealthFreedomUSA.org), and to some extent also sites such as the Farm-To-Consumer Legal Defense Fund (www.FarmToConsumer.org). Alex Jones even covers health freedom on his show (www.Infowars.com), and then goes on to warn about the Fed, FEMA camps and other similar topics. Authors such as Naomi Wolf, Lew Rockwell, Ed Griffin, Dr Gary North and many others are beating the freedom drum on other fronts that are just as important (the Fed, the police state, etc.).

We are, collectively, your early warning system. We are alerting you to the very real threats that are headed your way, and we’re trying to prevent the tyrants from taking over. The TSA is now shoving their hands down your pants at the airports (who would have even imagined that a decade ago?). The FDA is threatening walnut company founders with prison time for telling the truth about the health benefits of walnuts. The Fed is giving away trillions of dollars to foreign corporations. The President is granting health care waivers to McDonald’s and hundreds of other corporations that will be exempted from Obamacare regulations. The CDC keeps pushing flu vaccine propaganda based on junk science while avoiding any mention of vitamin D.

Need I go on? One by one, nearly every government agency is on a power trip, seeking to expand its power at the expense of your freedom. The tyrants are running loose in America, and if we don’t reverse this dangerous trend, there is absolutely no question where we will end up because history teaches this lesson well: A police state nation run by the wealthy elite corporatists who dictate government policy and centralize power into their own hands (while stealing it out of yours).

They want power over everything you do: What you eat, what you buy, how you save your money (did you notice U.S. banks don’t let you save money in foreign currencies?), what you think (TV programming), what you read (don’t read Wikileaks or you’ll never get a government job!) and even how you live and die (sick-care monopoly). The government does not want you to have free choice over your body, your mind, your finances or your future. They want to control your choices while giving you the illusion of choice. Sure, go out a vote every two years and see if it really makes any difference. The corporations already run Congress. Whether you vote Republican or Democrat, they still call the shots at the top.

Can’t we just meditate our way out of this?

There are quite a number of “create your own reality” people who believe we can all just meditate our way out of this. The thinking goes like this: Since we create our own reality, we can just sit in our rooms and imagine the world being a better place, and it will come true. I’m not trying to make fun of this position. There is merit to it, but as much as I value meditation, positive thinking and even to some extent the Law of Attraction, it is a mistranslation of those principles to think that we do not have to take a stand in the real world, from time to time, against those who would steal our freedoms from us.

What would have happened in India if Gandhi just sat around and meditated instead of leading his people on his famous resistance march to gather salt? That the British Empire outlawed salt in India and forbade is people from harvesting it is very much the same as the U.S. government outlawing raw milk or dictating the operations of small family farms. We are experiencing an historical rise of tyranny in America, and we must rise up against it or be overrun by it.

What would have happened in colonial America of Paul Revere, instead of riding his horse to warn his neighbors that the British were coming, just sat in his living room and tried to think positive thoughts instead? Quite possibly, Americans might still be British subjects today.

If you want proof of what happens when you sit around and meditate instead of taking a real-world stand against oppression and tyranny, just look at the Tibetan Buddhists. You won’t find a more peaceful, dedicated group of wise meditators anywhere on the planet. I’ve visited Buddhist temples on high mountaintops in Asia. I’ve spent time with these people face to face, and I have incredible admiration for them. I’ve read many books written by the Dalai Lama and have incorporated several Buddhists principles into my own life. But even I cannot deny the fact that the Chinese government rolled right over them throughout mainland China, destroying their temples, arresting their priests and sending their congregation members into the gulag.

The Dalai Lama lives in exile! And why? Because the Chinese government stampeded over them. Meditation doesn’t stop bullets. And when evil is running rampant across our lands, evil must be met with force… and then stopped cold.

I’m not faulting the Buddhists for choosing meditation over armed resistance. It is a legitimate spiritual decision to avoid violence and refuse to take part in any resistance movement, but once you choose that path, the outcome is never in doubt: Big Government will roll right over you because governments incessantly desire more power, and they will always seek to secure more power at any cost. Even if it means eradicating an entire religion.

Real action is needed to preserve liberty

So for those who believe they can sit in candle-lit rooms and meditate our way out of tyranny, I thank you for your positive vibes, but I will not limit my own actions to such passivism. I know from my time in this world, having lived in numerous countries and spoken different languages around the world, that those who retain freedom are those who actively defend it. Eternal vigilance, as Jefferson said, is the price of freedom.

My goal with NaturalNews is to be eternally vigilant; to help protect our food freedoms, our access to natural healing herbs and supplements, and to secure our natural law rights to grow our own food (and medicine) and sell it to our neighbors if we so choose. Our right to grow food and to engage in free commerce of our food is a “natural law” that exists as an even higher authority than the Constitution itself. It is a law of God and nature. We are born with it. No bureaucrat, no tyrant and no government can take it away from us (but they will try).

I believe in Liberty, I believe in America’s founding principles, and I believe in the Bill of Rights. And I will fight to defend it. Nowhere in the world is there another country that is more free than America once was. This freedom is worth fighting for.

I was not so adamant about this point until recently, when Big Government began reaching down our pants at the airport and the S.510 food safety bill passed. Today, I cannot stand by idly and do nothing while our food freedoms are threatened. Codex harmonization is on the horizon. The Department of Homeland Security has us all spying on each other at Wal-Mart. The GMO conspiracy is very real and very powerful, and they want us all to eat their poisonous corn and soy products so that we become diseased and infertile.

I will resist this effort with every ounce of breath in my body. I will continue to work to expose the dangers of vaccines, GMOs, fluoride, MSG and other chemicals, and I will do my best to promote the healing properties of natural foods, healing herbs, superfoods and nutritional supplements.

We continue to grow our reach and expand our audience by the day! Our video site is exploding in popularity (www.Naturalnews.TV), our news site reaches millions of readers each month, and we have a lineup of video mini-documentaries coming in 2011 that will absolutely blow your mind.

Along with people like Jesse Ventura, Alex Jones, Jonathan Emord and James Turner (and many others), we are winning the fight against tyranny. We are Journalism 2.0 — it’s the new journalism where you can’t buy us off, you can’t control our message, and you can’t stop us because we are powered by the People who support our efforts, who believe in our mission and who absolutely will not stop until they are free.

That’s why I do what I do. That’s why I work 16 hour days and spend nearly every waking hour thinking of new ways to spread knowledge, enlightenment and a message of FREEDOM for our collective future. And that’s why I’ve been writing about health freedom rather than the specific properties of medicinal herbs and nutrients. It is crucial that we protect our natural rights to food and natural medicine, even it is means putting other projects to the side for the moment.

I thank you for your ongoing support in this mission. Our future is, in every way, worth fighting for. And with your help, we can make sure that future is one based on freedom rather than tyranny.

– Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Editor of NaturalNews.com

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030872_health_freedom_natural_law.html#ixzz19ifZi8w1