Enough With the Supplements Already

I'm borrowing liberally from a piece by TC Luoma over at T-Nation about yet another attempt by Congress to legislate human behavior and take away another personal freedom.

On May 26th, Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced a bill that would ban DHEA. This legislation, S. 1137, would classify DHEA as an anabolic steroid and remove it from the market. Similar legislation is expected soon in the House of Representatives.

First of all, DHEA is a naturally occurring hormone with a wide range of benefits ranging from boosting immunity to improving mood and sleep patterns. Additional research shows that it might be a valuable tool in fighting obesity, cancer, and even Alzheimer’s disease. In no way shape or form is it an anabolic steroid.

So what's the big deal? A lot of you are thinking, "Oh, it’s just DHEA. I don’t have any use for that supplement, anyhow." Maybe you don’t have any use for it, but that’s not the point. The point is that it has to stop somewhere, and the time to draw the line is now. It’s DHEA today, but tomorrow, it’s creatine. Don’t believe me? Creatine is already on their list of targets.

After that, it could be amino acids, or fish oil, or any of the things we use to improve our body and our health. The supplements will probably still be around, but they’ll be made by giant pharmaceutical companies and you’ll need a prescription to get them.

This may sound alarmist, but pharmaceutical companies wield immense power. Vioxx, made by Merck, was recently found to double patients' risk of heart attacks and strokes. Thousands of wrongful-death and injury lawsuits have been filed based on claims the company hid Vioxx's risks. Was Merck condemned by the government the way companies who produced ephedra or prohormone products were? Not a chance. Merck voluntarily removed Vioxx from the shelves. No congressional action needed? Why not? I don't know why but you can bet lobbyists and campaign contributions certainly helped.

And with Congress grandstanding--with extreme ignorance, I might add--about steroids and fanning the flames of overreaction, there seems to be a which hunt on our hands. Anything that the government can't regulate is a target of suspicion, paranoia, and a Congressional subpoena.

Again, DHEA is a non issue for the majority of people who use supplements. But first they took away ephedrine. Then they took away prohormones. And Congress is not done. Not by a long shot.

For some reason, it's okay for people to slowly kill themselves with cigarettes or take presription meds whose side effects have probably killed more people than all the supplements combined. But since those two industries are "regulated" by Congress and contribute millions of dollars to campaign coffers, regulated death is okay.

If you want to do something about it, the people at the Sports & Fitness Supplement Association (SFSA) have made it ridiculously easy for us to do so. Just click here to go to the "Save Our Supplements" website.

It’s time. Time to make a stand. Time to stand up for personal freedoms.

Again, my thanks and apologies to TC Luoma for pirating his words. His piece is much better than mine.