Standard Process Lab in Criminal Lawsuit

[Guest guest]

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Royal Lee and Standard Process Laboratories

William T. Jarvis, Ph.D.

Standard Process Laboratories (SPL) is a division of Vitamin

Products Company (VPC), Milwaukee, Wisconsin. VPC was founded by the

late Royal Lee, DDS, who never practiced dentistry but used his

title of " doctor " to lend credence to his off-beat nutrition ideas.

In 1963, Lee was described by a prominent FDA official as " probably

the largest publisher of unreliable and false nutritional

information in the world. " [1] The following description appeared in

the medical news column of the Journal of the American Medical

Association, April 7, 1962:

 

Royal Lee, who for many years has been one of the leading sources of

nutritional quackery in this country, has pleaded no contest in a

criminal action at Milwaukee and is awaiting sentence for

distributing misbranded vitamin and proprietary remedies. He has

also consented to an injunction which will stop distribution of more

than 115 products claimed to be good for some 500 different diseases

and conditions [2].

 

Lee was eventually placed on three years probation and fined $800

plus $4,006 in court costs. Lee's VPC was fined $7,000 [3]. Such

mediocre penalties are clearly insufficient to stop the peddlers of

lucrative nutrition scams. VPC continues to sell questionable

nutrition products to this day. Dubious SPL products include ground,

dried animal glands (aka, " glandulars " ), ground dried vegetables

(eg, beets, radishes), Catalyn (which has been the target of more

than one FDA regulatory action), and more. The main boosters of SPL

products are chiropractors who practice pseudomedical nutrition

(i.e., make false and unsubstantiated claims for the medical

benefits of nutritional supplements that they sell). For a review of

these see Chapter 15, " Chiropractic Nutrition " in The Vitamin

Pushers, Prometheus Books, 1994.

 

Lee was a vociferous opponent of fluoridation, cooking in aluminum

pans, and pasteurizing milk [4]. Lee is linked to an off-

beat " study " by Frances Pottenger Jr., MD, of Glendale, California.

Pottenger caught stray cats and put them in one of two cages in his

back yard. The cats were fed either cooked meat and milk, or raw

meat and milk. Pottenger claimed that the cats fed cooked meat and

milk suffered from lowered fertility, impaired growth, and increased

birth defects. He claimed that their deterioration was so dramatic

that it included " germ plasm injury " causing them to pass acquired

anatomical defects along to their offspring [5]. The idea that

acquired defects are passed to succeeding generations is a

discredited feature of Lamarckian biology adhered to by a number of

fringe " scientists. " Pottenger also planted beans in the cages and

showed that the plants grew better in the raw meat and milk cage.

Pottenger wondered " what vital elements were destroyed in the heat

processing of the foods fed the cats? " [6] Pottenger's " study " is

still used by promoters of certified raw milk to discredit

pasteurization. Harold Stueve, marketer of Stueve's Natural

(formerly Alta Dena Certified Raw Milk) believes that heat ruins the

taste of milk. Stueve believed he could prove the superiority of raw

milk by raising pumpkin plants on raw versus pasteurized milk.

Stueve declared that " The Lord gives us everything in its wholeness,

and that's the way He meant us to keep it. " [7] Stueve did not

reveal where this principle had come in the face of all of the

Biblical references to burnt offerings which the people were told to

eat. Wilson provides extensive evidence that pasteurization does not

have adverse effects upon fertility, growth and development or birth

defects [8]. Pottenger's claim that cooking meat made it unhealthful

for cats is contradicted by the fact that all commercial cat foods

are cooked. An expert in pet food nutrition states that unless the

meat was " hard cooked " its proteins wouldn't be sufficiently

destabilized to create the problems described by Pottenger [9].

Pottenger gave credit to the Lee Foundation for Nutritional Research

for " valuable assistance " at the end of his article.

 

Pottenger's work is perpetuated by the Price-Pottenger Foundation

which is named after him and a dentist, Weston Price, a primary

figure in the history of dental pseudonutrition. Price expressed his

views in a book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration. Price stated

that tooth decay was a " tragic expression of our modern

degeneration " including " general physical degeneration, and facial

and dental arch deformities, and character changes. " He referred to

these as expressions of " race decay. " Price blamed such problems on

factors related to the modern diet including soil depletion, white

flour, sugar and pasteurized milk. Price is also cited as an

authority by proponents of the discredited link between diet and

criminal behavior.

 

Another contribution to quackery that can be attributed to Lee is

that he was influential in the development of the premier health

huckster, Kurt Donsbach (see " The mercurial Kurt Donsbach, Nutrition

Forum, March-April, 1987). Donsbach says that he worked for SPL from

1961 to 1965 in " research development and marketing. " According to

one of Donsbach's promotional brochures, " he had the opportunity to

help develop the (Lee) Foundation's findings on National

Malnutrition. " It is the false premise that the nation is

malnourished which is used to justify the use of the supplements

marketed by SPL and other such companies.

 

References

Barrett S, Herbert V. The Vitamin Pushers. Prometheus Books, 1994,

p.292.

Bureau of Public Information, American Dental Association. " Comments

on opponents of fluoridation, " J Amer Dental Assoc 1965;71:1173.

Milwaukee Journal, April 24, 1962.

Milwaukee Journal. March 24, 1953. In J Amer Dental Assoc 1965, op

cit.

Pottenger FM, Jr. Am J Ortho Surg, 1946;32:467-485.

Pottenger, op cit. p.484.

Jones RA. " Raw milk: a holy war over health, " Los Angeles Times,

August 31, 1984, p.1+.

Wilson GS. The Pasteurization of Milk, London: Butler & Tanner, Ltd,

1942.

Jarvis WT, Kravitz E. p.295. In Pollack and Kravitz, Nutrition in

Oral Health & Disease, Lea & Febiger, 1985.

Copyright Notice

© 1996, National Council Against Health Fraud.

With proper citation, this article may be reproduced for

noncommercial purposes

 

 

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This article was posted on January 30, 2001.

[Guest guest]

What an interesting article to read through. The Price Pottinger

group is held in extremely high esteem by many groups that follow a

very strict belief in whole foods. I liked the part about all pet

foods being cooked before canning. Uh huh, & how many of those pet

foods are actually healthy for ones pets? The article leaves me

mulling over a few issues, & wanting to dig even deeper...

[Guest guest]

---Isn't it though! Standard Process is considered to be one of the

most effective supplements if not THE most effective supplement

available!! My eldest son was absolutely *cured* of CFS taking these

infamous *quack* black radish supplements mentioned in the

article!!!!!

So if it works extremely well,...as it does, I ask what is the

problem?. So,I have a different perspective. If Standard process had

not been available to my son when he needed them, he could have

suffered for years or quite possibly even died.

He was horribly affected by the Epstein-Barr virus and could not

function well.

Our freedom to purchase quality supplements is apparently being

compromised. I'm concerned about our fate if this trend continues. I

was not aware of the extent of the inquiries into the efficacy into

our precious supplements.

If they were not available to me right at the moment, I know my

health would deteriorate and that quite swiftly. :-(

 

JoAnn Guest

angelprincessjo

Melanoma

Friendsforhealthnaturally

http://canceranswer.homestead.com/AIM.html

 

In Gettingwell, " vache920 " <vache920> wrote:

> What an interesting article to read through. The Price Pottinger

> group is held in extremely high esteem by many groups that follow

a

> very strict belief in whole foods. I liked the part about all pet

> foods being cooked before canning. Uh huh, & how many of those

pet

> foods are actually healthy for ones pets? The article leaves me

> mulling over a few issues, & wanting to dig even deeper...

[Guest guest]

vache920 wrote:

 

> What an interesting article to read through. The Price Pottinger

> group is held in extremely high esteem by many groups that follow a

> very strict belief in whole foods. I liked the part about all pet

> foods being cooked before canning. Uh huh, & how many of those pet

> foods are actually healthy for ones pets? The article leaves me

> mulling over a few issues, & wanting to dig even deeper...

 

I wonder too. Sugar is not healthy for humans, if only because it causes

dental decay even though we brush our teeth. I wanted to buy some snacks for

my daughter's dog. The ones I checked had the second or third ingredient as

sugar with some other derivatives in a lesser quantity - and dogs do not

brush their teeth! What a horrible creation!! I am starting a writing

campaign to some dog food manufacturers.

Morton

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Really, sugar in dog snacks? I had no idea. I never really buy the

things. Hmm, when I go to the grocery store the next time I hope to

remember to pull a few dog snack boxes & read the ingredient labels.

Was this in Milk Bone type products or the fake bacon type stuff or

what? *curious*

[Guest guest]

vache920 wrote:

 

> Really, sugar in dog snacks? I had no idea. I never really buy the

> things. Hmm, when I go to the grocery store the next time I hope to

> remember to pull a few dog snack boxes & read the ingredient labels.

> Was this in Milk Bone type products or the fake bacon type stuff or

> what? *curious*

 

I picked out only a few of the more known, to me, brands. They are:

Milk Bone

Pedigree Brand Jumbone

Pupperoni

Tomorrow, I expect to look at the others.

 

Morton

[Guest guest]

Hmm, well, I admit I have a sugar habit, so perhaps if I start eating

Milk Bones for their sugar content the taste would be appalling

enough to finally break my sugar habbit?

 

 

Vache

*here kitty, kitty*