Why Will Codex Alimentarius Make Harmless Dietary Supplements Illegal?

Why Will Codex Alimentarius Make Harmless Dietary Supplements Illegal?

I have had cancer twice and today I am alive because natural dietary supplements are available. The European Union Directive on Dietary Supplements, if adopted by our country (and this is entirely probable), would make these supplements unavailable to me, thus signally my demise. – Pinellas Park, Florida resident

What Is Codex Alimentarius?

"Codex Alimentarius" – even the name itself sounds pernicious. Codex Alimentarius is an international commission set up to regulate food standards and safety, its mission to "protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade" on an international level. By standardizing dietary supplement safety, Codex Alimentarius aspires to "harmonize" supplement trade among nations.

While this may sound like a good idea, in reality Codex Alimentarius, created by the World Health Organization and the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, could spell the end of free access to at least 300 dietary supplements. The new regulations would make many dietary supplements illegal, and treat others like prescription drugs.

Codex Alimentarius and Pharmaceutical Motives

The problem with the Codex Alimentarius committee, writes Maureen Salaman, is that "the delegates that make up and decide on the CODEX mandates are 90% members of giant multi-national pharmaceutical corporations." Under the guise of increasing safety standards, the real goal of these pharmaceutical corporation delegates will be to restrict dietary supplements from consumers and push pharmaceutical drugs instead.

As an example, Salaman explains that DHEA, a hormone steroid anti-aging supplement, is now illegal in Canada, with felony charges and jail time as consequences for possession.

Another example is LaneLabs. Though no complaints were ever filed, nor were their products shown to endanger health, the government ordered LaneLabs to stop producing their cancer supplement products and to refund all consumer money since 1999.

300 Dietary Supplements Will Be Banned

Paul Taylor says Codex’s "Food Supplements Directive" was already passed by the European Parliament in 2002, and will take effect August 2005. "It will ban, on grounds of safety, almost 300 forms of vitamins and minerals from being sold within the EU – many of which have been sold for decades and are the same forms of nutrients that are found in food itself." Other measures will require higher restrictions on labeling, packaging, and maximum and minimum amounts of nutritional substances.

Scott Tips, a National Health Federation delegate lobbying against Codex Alimentarius, says the new measures will make it easy for pharmaceutical corporations to outlaw dietary supplements due to insufficient safety research or to new studies showing possible dangers. "If researchers want to argue that Vitamin C is dangerous above a certain level, then they will find or create ‘scientific’ studies that support their position," Tips says.

U.S. Involvement in Codex Alimentarius

Once Codex Alimentarius’ standards are finalized in the European Union, all member nations will be required to follow the same standards or face sanctions. Considering the pharmaceutical stronghold in the U.S., experts believe the U.S. will readily agree to the EU’s restrictive guidelines on dietary supplements, and use its "obligation" for international trade standards as an excuse for wholeheartedly following new, pharmaceutical-favoring restrictions.

While the acquiescence appears to be propelled by the idea "free trade harmonization," it is more likely fueled by profit motives of "pharmaceuticalization."

Supplement Safety Concerns Distorted

The targeting of dietary supplements by Codex Alimentarius under the guise of protecting consumer health is a complete delusion, says Paul Taylor. Dietary supplements account for merely .0001 percent of all deaths, compared to the 5.18% of pharmaceutical-related deaths each year.

In fact, while JAMA reports 90,000 to 160,000 deaths per year from properly prescribed drugs, the number of deaths from dietary supplements averages a mere 5 per year, says Tips. (For an interesting comparison of the leading causes of death, from bee stings to cancer, see this statistical chart .)

Action You Can Take

If Codex Alimentarius passes, your freedom to buy dietary supplements may soon be considerably restricted. The leading US organization fighting Codex Alimentarius is the National Health Federation (NHF), a non-profit organization that lobbies for freedom of access to dietary supplements and other natural health products.

As a conscientious consumer, you can take at least four measures to protect your access to health freedom:

1.  Write your congressmen and representatives, letting them know that you do not support the Food Supplement Directives or Vitamin and Mineral Guidelines of Codex Alimentarius and that you wish for them to vote against it.

2.  Make a contribution to National Health Federation to increase their lobbying power against Codex Alimentarius.

3.  Learn more about Federal Bills Designed To Restrict Dietary Supplements (published on the National Health Federation’s website).

4.  Donate to England’s Alliance for Natural Health, a non-profit organization fighting the European Union’s Food Supplements Directive.

References

Bloomington, Minnesota. "Vitamins/Supplements." Letters to Leaders – Health. Congress.org.

Pinellas Park, Florida. 5 Sep 2004. "European Union Directive on Dietary Supplements." Letters to Leaders – Agriculture/Food .

Salaman, Maureen. "Codex Alimentarius: International Threat to our Health Freedoms." August 2003.

Taylor, Paul. "Codex Alimentarius – A threat to your vitamin supplements?" 22 March 2004.

Tips, Scott. "Rearranging the Deck Chairs on the Titanic." Jan 2004. Whole Foods Magazine. The National Health Federation.

Tips, Scott. "The Other Shoe Drops." June 2003. Whole Foods Magazine. The National Health Federation.