Editorial Template

      The FDA has a ignored their responsibility to protect the health of American citizens regarding dietary supplements every since the FDA began years ago. The lack of realistic regulation has provided the opportunity for scoundrels to produce pills that have virtually no similarity to what they are promising. There is every likelihood that many people have died because they were not getting what they thought they were getting or were getting something that was devastating to their health due to improperly labeled dietary supplement ingredients.
      The FDA should start requiring submission to them, a sample of each pill to be sold, the full details regarding the benefits to be derived, the side effects, the quantity of each ingredient in each pill or capsule, and the percentage needed for each age group.
      Each supplement container should be packaged in a cardboard box along with detailed instructions for its use, including age groups, and a full disclosure brochure regarding the side effects for every type medical or physical condition that is likely to be affected by each supplement as well as the quantity of each ingredient in each pill or capsule.
      Also, should be included in the disclosure brochure, descriptions, color pictures, and details off symptoms that would notify recipients of the supplement: 1. what to be on the lookout for in the event that the supplement was causing an undesired or dangerous effect, and 2. what to look for to determine if the supplement is producing the desired and promised effect or results.
      Instead of extremely expensive continuous inspections and supervision of manufacture of the products, an extremely expensive penalty system should be required as an enforcement of the manufacturing and marketing of the supplements. In the event that the supplement is not manufactured correctly, labeled correctly, packaged correctly, or lacks adequate instructions for its use or monitoring the results, a very stiff penalty should be levied against the appropriate manufacturer or marketer. The penalty should be 2 percent of the net worth of the company violating the FDA regulation for each violation.
      These proposed regulations would be much more effective than the current regulation system of pharmaceuticals and the cost would only be a fraction of the cost of the current pharmaceutical regulation and enforcement. The current cost and delays of the pharmaceutical regulations is misguided and assumes that the American public is too stupid to follow instructions that should be provided as stated above.
      The same rules and packaging including instructions, etc., should be required for medicine that is prescribed by doctors because the oral instructions by doctors are rarely adequate and should be supplemented with the same instructions as stated above.
      If you are interested in protecting your health and your family's health, you should recommend these proposals to your lawmaker representatives in Washington and state legislature. The risks are unnecessary and many people die prematurely due to the unregulated dietary supplement industry. Do not let the current misguided deregulation mania wreck your health and finances.