March 22, 7:07 PM · Add a Comment

ShareThis    Feed

.examiners_body img{padding:5px;}

Is the FDA trying to take away our rights?

Perhaps one of the greatest concerns of those who utilize herbs and supplements to support their overall health is that supplements will one day be regulated in a way that will limit access to these powerful tools. Since the US Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) was passed in 1994 which gave us the right to freely buy supplements, many have wondered if this would truly be the end of the battle.

Part of the concern comes from the fact that other countries do not have the same rights to supplements as people living in the US. The Guidelines for Vitamin and Mineral Food Supplements, as developed by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), has challenged other people’s rights to supplements throughout the world.

About two years ago there was a bit of an uproar over the FDA “reclassification” of vitamins, supplements and herbs, but it turned out to be a false alarm because it was determined that the new reclassification did not specifically propose any new federal laws beyond those already in place. However, that doesn’t mean that our health freedoms will always be protected. Make sure that you stay informed! Head here to join the National Health Freedom Action (NHFA) mailing list to make sure that you always have the latest information!

You probably haven’t ever heard of an antioxidant known as coenzyme Q-10.  It doesn’t exactly have a ring to it, but it is one of the vitamins and supplements that are coming to the forefront when it comes to fighting heart disease.  Coenzyme Q-10 is a vitamin-like substance that resembles vitamin E, but which may be an even more powerful antioxidant.   It also goes by the name ubiquinone.  

Coenzyme Q-10 is being hailed by scientists as one of the brightest new antioxidants around for postponing aging and preventing or treating heart disease.  It is most easily found in salmon, but it has been synthesized into a supplement that is available at health food stores.  Because it hasn’t been tested as much as other vitamins and supplements no one is quite sure of the dosage to take, but as you age, your body produces less of it.  This happens around the age of twenty, often leaving most people with a deficit by the age of forty.  Studies on the cells of aged and diseased hearts have shown them to have serious deficiencies of coenzyme Q-10.  The most sensible way to correct this appears to be to take coenzyme Q-10 as a supplement.

However, no one is quite sure how this untested antioxidant actually works.  What they do know is that coenzyme Q-10 is an antioxidant that works similar to vitamin E in that it protects fat molecules being oxidized or damaged by free radicals.  It does this by stabilizing the membrane of the fat cells and then (read more…)