To: "Health Freedom, Codex Issues
Subject: "Vitamin B Supplements Exceed Safe Levels: Report" ("ConsumerLab + Media Unite to Manufacture Consent for "Tighter Regs")
From: John Hammell jham@iahf.com
Date: Tue, 08 Jan 2002 16:07:11 -0500
IAHF List: [See Reuters News Story Below My Comments- It Unfairly Attacks the Safety of B Vitamins-Urges Tighter FDA Regulation]
IAHF has reported previously that so called "ConsumerLab" of White Plains, NY, is frequently quoted by the wire services whose "news" stories are picked up by all major media for very wide exposure. Perhaps a big reason why "ConsumerLab" is quoted so much in attacks on the dietary supplement industry and supplements is because their VP, William R. Obermayer, PhD came to ConsumerLab directly from the FDA http://ConsumerLab.com/aboutcl.asp
Reuters News Service generated the outrageous news story below based on a ConsumerLab slam against B vitamin products (see http://ConsumerLab.com/results/vitaminb.asp). ConsumerLab's "findings" are being used here by Reuters to "manufacture consent" for additional, and totally unecessary FDA regulation of dietary supplements, and ultimately (although they don't specifically state this) they're beating the drum for "harmonization" to grossly restrictive international Codex "standards".
Of course neither so called "ConsumerLab" or Reuters bother to tell anyone that the "Institute of Medicine" at that National Academy of Sciences which generated the bogus, unscientific alleged "Safe Upper Levels" in supposed "question" here was funded heavily by pharmaceutical interests to generate the "report" that these so called "Safe Upper Levels" was "based on."
This "report" ("A Risk Assessment Model for Establishing Safe Upper Levels for Nutrients") never underwent a public comments period, and no one can get the raw data behind it because the National Academy of Sciences is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act (since they're a non profit organization and not part of the government.) The FDA and pharmaceutical industry which controls the FDA is hiding behind this fact.
Congressman Burton is a shill for the Pharma Cartel. He originally, and quite CORRECTLY issued a letter to the FDA demanding that they NOT put the aforementioned, very biased, unscientific, pharmaceutically funded "risk assessment" paper on the table at Codex. But then he caved to pharmaceutical pressure on March 20, 2001 when he WHITEWASHED the Codex oversight hearing and did not stand behind his letter: see http://www.iahf.com letters from congress, to see a gif file of this letter. Congressmen Paul and DeFazio attempted in vain to warn Burton of the need for REAL overisight on this issue in a letter that you can see at http://www.iahf.com by clicking on the spinning green disk to see a gif file. (See the Codex oversight section at http://www.iahf.com for more info.)
Their warning was ignored, and we're being set up. The FIX is in. I strongly urge everyone on the IAHF list to arm themselves heavily with information about this and to communicate with your congressmen and senators, but due to the fact that they are heavily in the hip pocket of the Cartel (http://www.fec.gov) I also urge you to arm yourself heavily and take daily target practice, because these bastards in Congress can't be trusted and we may have a real need for armed revolution in the future over the Codex vitamin issue.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20020108/hl/vitamins_2.html
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Some vitamin B supplements may contain more than the recommended amount of the nutrients, according to a new report by ConsumerLab.com.
ConsumerLab.com, a commercial testing company in White Plains, New York, conducted the study. For a fee, the company licenses its flask-shaped ``Seal of Approved Quality'' to companies whose products pass testing.
``Consumers should be aware that more than 40% of the products that we evaluated exceeded levels at which they are known to be safely tolerated--some having more than 10 times the upper limit,'' said Dr. Tod Cooperman, ConsumerLab.com's president, in a prepared statement from the company.
ConsumerLab.com tested 21 B vitamin supplement products. Some contained a single dose of a particular B vitamin while others included several. The eight B vitamins are thiamine (B-1), riboflavin (B-2), niacin (B-3), pantothenic acid (B-5), pyridoxine (B-6), cyanocobalamin (B-12), folic acid (folate) and biotin.
Nine of the 21 products exceeded established Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (ULs) for adults--''above which there is increased risk for side effects with regular use,'' according to the report.
ULs are established by the Institute of Medicine (news -web sites) of the National Academies.
The report notes that three of the niacin-only products exceeded the UL for niacin as did six of the seven B complex products. The UL for niacin is 35 milligrams (mg), while these products included recommended daily doses ranging from 400 mg to 510 mg.
``There may be good medical reasons for exceeding these levels, but there may also be significant side effects,'' Cooperman warns. ``People interested in using high doses of B vitamins should consult with a healthcare professional.''
In addition to those findings, ConsumerLab.com reports that one of the B complex products contained amounts of the nutrients lower than what was stated on the label.
The findings underscore the fact that vitamin supplements may benefit from tighter regulation.
Vitamin B dietary supplements are becoming increasingly popular due to last year's decision by the US Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) to allow manufacturers to tout recent findings about the ability of B vitamins to reduce vascular disease risk.