The FDA (Friend or Foe?)

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I recieved this from a friend who recieved it anonymously. Thought you folks would enjoy it.

March 6, 2001

Who Is going to watchout for us?

"Commercial meat is just loaded with nitrates that cause cancer. The highest rates of breast, colon, and prostate cancers occur in areas that have the most fat in their diets. All fried foods contain mutagens, toxins that damage cells and cause cancer. A USC study in 1994 revealed that children who eat more than 12 hotdogs per month have nine times the normal risk of developing childhood leukemia. Children born of mothers who eat hotdogs during pregnancy have double the risk of developing brain tumors. Nitrates turn to nitrites in the stomach which turn to nitrosamines and cause cancer. You probably enjoy a good barbecue. Just another way to increase your risk of cancer. Smoked meats and inhaling the smoke during cooking increases risk of lung cancer.

So you like shellfish-those crusty little bottom feeders are so full of mercury and PCB's (polychlorinated byphenyls), that you can just feel the cancer coming on. Now that I have you paranoid about what you eat, I might as well mention what you drink. Water is loaded with carcinogens; chlorine, fluoride, arsenic, and pesticides. The EPA, for example, identified the source of increased bladder cancer in New Orleans as coming from the drinking water. Chlorine kills bacteria, but too much of it damages the nucleic acid in cells that genetically programs growth. Fluoride fights tooth decay but it is a waste product of processing fertilizer and smelting aluminum. What a great way for companies to get rid of toxic waste, with the governments blessing!

Unfortunately, people are still getting bone cancers because the EPA ignored findings about the risk of fluoride. Even if you don't live in a community with fluorinated water, it's in water used to make beer, soda pop, fruit juices, and even cereal and spaghetti. If you don't believe me, look up the story about William Marcus, a senior toxicologist at the EPA who was fired for exposing the EPA whitewash on the dangers of fluoridation, calling it scandalous and bordering on scientific fraud. The EPA permits 4 ppm even though research reveals that as little as one ppm of fluoride in water weakens bones, mottles teeth, weakens tendons, causes wrinkling, and accelerates aging.

You can add the FDA to your list of known carcinogens. This is the agency that gives commercial interests permission to add carcinogenic substances to your foods and refuses to investigate foods for cancer producing substances. For example, the FDA estimates that 38% of our food supply contains pesticide residues and yet does little about it. The FDA permits food dyes to continue in use ten to fifteen years after they have been proven carcinogenic.

The FDA is not your friend. They are the protective arm of big business, particularly the pharmaceutical business, and not the protective arm of the people. In 1949 FDA commissioner Larrick stated that his brave band of FDA agents were fighting "the good fight against dried vegetables, mineral mixtures, vitamins and similar products." In the 1960's the FDA shut down a non-profit company formed by a group of heart patients who started a buyer's club for vitamin E based on Canadian research that vitamin E protects against heart disease. The FDA instructed the USPS to return orders stamped with "fraudulent". Isn't it amazing that the AHA in 1996, twenty years later nominates vitamin E one of the top ten health discoveries of the decade contributing to the prevention of heart disease. The fraud and deception repeatedly demonstrated by the FDA prompted Dr Bernard Rimland, president of the autism research institute of San Diego to plead with congress we don't need the FDA to protect our health, we need congress to protect us from the FDA!

Anonymous



-- T. Cappello (cappello@alltel.net), March 09, 2001

Answers

Can't believe this hasn't received any comments! I have also read that flouride was used in Nazi Germany to make the people passive and compliant. Makes you wonder, doesn't it...

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), March 13, 2001.

Thanks for posting this, Tif.....I especially find this line profound and true......."we don't need the FDA to protect our health, we need congress to protect us from the FDA"

ABout BBQ, I've often wondered if the alleged increased cancer risk has anything to do with the crap they put in commercial charcoal, as much or more than just grilling meats?

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), March 13, 2001.


On the other hand, would anyone want to do away with the FDA entirely? Someone has to try to protect the food and drug supply. Are they overzealous occasionally, no doubt. But then, half-measures don't work either. Take BSE in Britian when it was first confirmed. Their Department of Agriculture said tell us if you have a suspect case and if confirmed we will order your entire herd destroyed but only pay you 50% of their market value and disposal cost. So if a farmer found a suspected case, the animal was put down and the SSS method employed, allowing BSE (MCD) to spread further. At lease with F&MD they have learned their lesson on full compensation in exchange for cooperation.

On BBQ, as I remember the story scientists cooked steaks, scraped off some of the burn and found it did include carcigens (sp?). Asked with they did with the steaks afterwards, the reply was "We ate them." One need not forgo BBQ. You can use pre-made charcoal or brickettes which contain only natural material. Avoid those you can light just with a match or the use of lighter fluid. Most brickettes are a powdered coal and clay mixture compressed together. Most of the ash you see is the binder. Read the bag and if you don't like what's in them, look for another brand. Now if you want to lay out about $1,800, SnowFlame (see thread on Heat - Other) sells one which burns whole kernel corn.

Gracious, some of my nieces and nephews were just about raised on hotdogs and none of them have health problems.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), March 14, 2001.


Although I don't always agree with the FDA, I can't lay the blame on them for all these "alleged" cancer causing ingredients, nor can I totally blame the commercial companies who sell the stuff. It is us, Americans, super consumers, who demand the flavors and the sparkling smile of white teeth and feel good products. You read one person's take on something and because it is anti-government think it must be total truth...I think the truth is somewhere in the middle. I shudder to think where we would be without the FDA. Wake up folks. Just like cigarette smoking is PROVEN without a shadow of doubt to cause cancer, yet, millions choose to smoke. You complain if the government opposes certain dangerous drugs for use and gripe when the FDA allows nitrates in hot dogs and bacon for the flavoring that you love, yet willingly eat the stuff. Make up your minds. No wonder the FDA makes some poor decisions...how can you please a population like ours that knowingly poisons ourselves with anything that tastes good or gets you high, or makes you look good...yet opposes any intervention to protect us from ourselves and insure the purity of the drugs and food we consume. Look at thyself; it is much too easy to blame the government for all our shortcomings.

-- JimR (jroberts1@cas.org), March 15, 2001.

Would I want to do away with the FDA? Just about.........their role would be a tiny fraction of what it is now. I would want them to certify that what was on a label, was in the bottle or package.I will determine for myself, thanks anyway, whether or not whats in there is good for me. As for drugs, except for in extreme emergencies, I don't believe we need any of them anyway. About the example of the British government not being zealous enough with Mad Cow, that assumes you believe the govt line about it coming from scrapies. Well there's plenty of evidence, and more coming all the time, that that's hogwash, and the government's program of forcing farmers to drench all cattle with organophosphates is the real cause.

And for Jim, you say "Just like cigarette smoking is PROVEN without a shadow of doubt to cause cancer, yet, millions choose to smoke." Theres the key word CHOOSE. They SHOULD have the right to smoke, as long as its not in my face. Its a choice. If I choose to treat my children's or my animals illness (if I had any illness) with herbs or old fashioned remedies, then I should have that choice, without interference from anyone. If I dont want to do vaccinations I shouldnt have to. If I want to buy raw milk from my neighbor across the road, I should be able to. If I want to sell my homegrown and processed chickens to whomever is eager to buy them, I should have that right. Your statement about the government opposing dangerous drugs gave me a chuckle! That would be the day! When was the last time they did that?? There are a million dangerous drugs, fully approved by our FDA, in pharmacies right now! Every single one of them has side effects, many deadly serious side effects......yes, they are doing a great job of protecting poor ignorant us. But try to get them to do a study on the efficacy of herbal treatments or natural remedies that dont involve their pharmaceutical bedpartners and you're outa luck, it aint gonna happen, unless of course its a negative warning , which always occurs when something herbal (read low-profit) starts to get big sales. (st johns wart, for example)

No, thank you, I have nothing good to say about the FDA. I firmly believe they kill many more people than they help, every single day of the week.

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), March 16, 2001.



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