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From: EAP
Date: 03/13/01
Time: 12:58:32
The problem is not the FDA; they only approve drugs for use in the USA, right? The FDA does not patent anything. Drug companies make the drugs and they are the ones to patent them. People sue the drug makers because they have all the money; they don't sue the FDA.
In my humble opinion, some (many?) herbal supplements might never get FDA approval. They claim to do a lot but do they really? Could the claims stand up to rigorous chemical and scientific testing? I'm thinking in particular of a current NYC radio ad that says "Take one pill every night and the pounds will melt away while you sleep." Yeah, right.
Some people (myself included) are sceptical of herbal supplements because they are unregulated. A few weeks ago on 60 Minutes they asked Andrew Weil, who endorses some herbal supplement, to explain why the contents of the supplement were different than what was listed on the bottle. He did not have an answer.
To each his own, but I'm glad that I took PPIs for a while (even though I eventually developed side effects I couldn't stand). They DID control my constant heartburn and gave me over a year of no heartburn. And I'm also glad I had the surgery. The only thing that's going to control my Barrett's is stopping the reflux into the esophagus. And the surgery has done that, so far. I don't think that I'd feel as reassured if I was digesting the contents of someone's back yard.
I'm not sure where you stand, Beegs. One day you are all for tradidional medicine and the next you are all for herbalists and naturopaths. Maybe you should decide which road to take before your symptoms progress too far.