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2000:
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October
20, 2000 |
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Who
Do You Trust? They
say, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions."
This cynical axiom can easily be applied to the bodybuilder's
worst bureaucratic nightmare--the Food and Drug Administration. The
intentions of the FDA, at least in its original conception, were
noble.
Their role was designed to act as watchdogs for the consumer.
Before a drug can be approved for nationwide distribution,
it must first pass a series of tests in order to determine
its safety.
Fair enough.
We should be grateful that such an organization exists, for
without it, any wacko would be able sell whatever he wanted,
regardless of the product’s potential harm. The FDA is a
necessity, or what some people would consider a "necessary
evil."
Its negative perception stems from the fact that many of its
decisions have been tainted by lobbyists, public opinion, and
ignorance.
Such influence is what's responsible for taking the
bodybuilder's most powerful tool, anabolic steroids, and classifying
them a scheduled drug on par with narcotics such as cocaine and
heroin.
Steroids are an easy target because most citizens are
ill-informed to their benefits.
Unlike narcotics, however, no rehabilitation programs exist
for steroid users.
Why should they?
Steroids are not addictive or mind altering.
Their use poses no threat to society.
Nevertheless, if you're caught with them...you're going to
jail. It's
fascinating that the criminalization of drugs is meant to be in the
people's best health interest, yet if someone takes the drugs,
they're prosecuted and persecuted.
That doesn't sound like the people's best interests are at
heart.
Is something else going on here? If
drugs are sold illegally, doesn't that mean the pharmaceutical
companies’ profits are cut into? Damn straight!
And like any business, drug companies don't like anyone
working their side of the street.
This is what makes the FDA such a great ally to big business,
namely the American Medical Association and the large pharmaceutical
companies. Is
this to suggest that the FDA is corrupt?
No way!
That would be as cynical as thinking that politicians lie or
lawyers defend people who they know to be guilty and, as we all
know, that never happens. Maybe
it's more a matter of ignorance than illicitness.
In the case of steroids, the FDA classifies all steroids as
"androgens."
Therefore, it doesn't matter whether it's Anadrol or Anavar;
to this herd, it's all the same.
Frustratingly, even novice bodybuilders with a minimal
knowledge of steroids can tell you that the above two substances are
as different as gunpowder and gummy bears.
Then again, bureaucrats aren't paid to think--they're paid to
make and enforce laws.
Power corrupts.
Add stupidity into the mix and the results are swifter and
more lethal. A
few years back, the FDA got its hands into the supplement arena.
Depending on whom you speak with, the intent was either to
protect the public from products making false claims or it was an
attempt from the AMA and pharmaceutical companies to halt the sale
of products which may work as well as drugs.
The fine folks over at the FDA probably weren't aware of
this, but by putting a possible ban on the sale of many supplements
from protein powders to vitamins, they were tinkering with another
staple of bodybuilding ammunition.
But it isn't only bodybuilders who use supplements.
Millions of Americans have discovered the benefits derived
from over the counter products.
This caused an outcry against the FDA's actions.
Tens of thousands of people wrote to their congressmen
demanding the continued non-prescription sale of food supplements.
Suddenly, it wasn't just the "fringe society" of
bodybuilders who were upset.
It was normal people! People who vote!
That got the attention of Congress.
And it encouraged the passage of the Dietary Supplements
Health and Education Act of 1994, better known as the DSHEA. The
DSHEA was set up specifically to deal with supplements.
According to the statement release: the DSHEA acknowledges
that millions of consumers believe dietary supplements may help to
augment daily diets and provide health benefits.
Congress' intent in enacting the DSHEA was to meet the
concerns of consumers and manufacturers to help ensure that safe and
appropriately labeled products remain available to those who want to
use them.
In the findings associated with the DSHEA, Congress stated
that there might be a connection between dietary supplement use,
reduced health care expenses, and disease prevention. Maybe
we're actually making progress with the red tape machine. Through
the DSHEA, Congress expanded the meaning of the term "dietary
supplement" to include substances such as herbs and prohormones.
This is where things started getting interesting. DSHEA
now determines and defines what the FDA has to do in order to pull a
supplement off the shelves, or not allow it in the first place (more
red tape).
This has become a raging battle between the FDA and
proponents of DSHEA.
It would seem that bodybuilders should be rooting for DSHEA
because of its leniency.
When interpreting a substance's validity, DSHEA allows more
potentially beneficial compounds to be marketed.
But that's a double-edged sword. More
and more supplement companies are making claims outside of what the
FDA has allowed in the past.
If interpretation and restriction of claims gets too liberal,
anyone can say anything about any product!
And, that's been the state of affairs in the last few years.
In other words, if I wanted to sell freeze dried goat feces
and claim it "helped lower LDL levels," I'd have a pretty
good shot of getting away with it. There
is currently a new form of prohormone on the block, which can
technically be considered a prosteroid!
Although there are many intriguing possibilities surrounding
this compound, it is still a virtually untested product.
You might think more testing would take place before its
release.
Think again.
Whoever gets it out first will claim to be the "great
innovators of new technology!" This will then force other
supplement companies to follow suit.
If it turns out the product has an unforeseen problem, or
even if it works a little too well, that's going to get the FDA
pounding on the doors of every major company faster than some
fitness models can drop to their knees in the judge's dressing room.
This
action will most probably instigate an investigation surrounding
many of the current supplements we now take for granted such as
Aminos, Tribulus, Acetyl-L-Carnitine,
Methoxyisoflavones, DMAE, Gingko, SAMe, Yohimbe, and Ephedra--to
name just a few!
Zinc and magnesium formulations will still be available,
however, so we'll just have to depend on that to get huge.
(I will now remove tongue from cheek.) As
it stands, DSHEA and the FDA are at each other's throats, each
pushing the envelope of ethicality and legality in an effort to
obtain control.
The FDA is still taking substances that clearly fit the
description of a "dietary supplement" and, according to
the DSHEA, not following protocols to remove them from the
marketplace.
They don't have to prove that the product is dangerous.
All they have to do is say that it’s an “unapproved new
drug.” Case
in point.
Last year, all of the GHB mimickers such as 1,4-Butanediol or
GBL products like Enliven, RemForce, Blue Thunder and Renewtrient
were pulled from the shelves even though they were clearly a
nutritional supplement.
Of course, these products had intoxicating effects if misused
and, as can be expected, they were.
But it left supplement suppliers and health food store
outlets holding the bag.
Naturally, it's better than being sued by some moron who
takes nine times the recommended dose, but none of this would have
occurred had the DSHEA not allowed the product's release in the
first place.
It also showed that the FDA is pretty much going to do what
it wants to do. Where
does all this leave us?
It's hard to say.
Whenever people’s choices are mandated, a mess is sure to
follow.
Wherever unscrupulous supplement distributors are allowed to
do business, consumers will be suckered out of money.
In the meantime, the best approach is to remain educated on
the details, stay abreast of the fluctuating regulations, and choose
your supplement sources wisely.
Keep in mind, things can change at any time.
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