Fwd: Dr Rath Newsletter of 12.11.2003: Codex 2003 – What Really Happened?

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Dr Rath Newsletter of 12.11.2003: Codex 2003 – What Really Happened?

Dr Rath's Health Foundation

Wed, 12 Nov 2003 14:57:58 +0000 (GMT)

 

Codex 2003 –

What Really Happened?

The Codex Committee on Nutrition and Food for Special Dietary Uses (Codex for

short) met in Bonn this year from 3-7 November, to progress their proposals to

ban information and health-related messages concerning vitamins and minerals and

also to reduce the maximum permitted amounts of these essential nutrients to

levels at which they would no longer be effective.

 

Codex has been trying for the last seven years to introduce these banning

regulations, but thanks to the combined protests of thousands of people from the

health movement behind Dr. Matthias Rath and the Dr. Rath Health Foundation,

they have been prevented from carrying out their unethical plans.

 

Codex has been infiltrated by pharma-cartel interests, whose influence extends

beyond the official delegations and into some of the so-called natural health

freedom organisations who have observer status at the Codex meetings. Some of

these organisations were already celebrating victory before the Codex meeting

ended, based upon flawed analysis of the proceedings. Such claims subsequently

proved to be unrealistic, indicating the level of influence that the pharma

interests wield within these organisations.

 

The Dr. Rath Health Foundation remains one of the few truly independent, natural

health promoting organisations that actively participate in public health policy

debates worldwide and is thus able to provide clear, objective and accurate

analysis of the events at the 2003 Codex meeting.

So what really happened?

The “Proposed Draft Guidelines for Vitamin and Mineral Food Supplements” were

advanced to Step 5 of an 8-step process at the 2003 session, after a high level

of agreement amongst the delegations on most of the sections. Draft proposals

can be adopted as full Guidelines at step 6 in this process, if there is

unanimous agreement within the Codex committee. Far from declaring victory

therefore, continued vigilance and action is necessary. The fight goes on.

 

The most significant aspects of the current Codex proposals are as follows:

 

The South African delegation's bold attempt to introduce positive support for

natural health therapies into the Codex machinery was thwarted by the committee.

South Africa proposed that Codex should highlight the role vitamins and minerals

play in the prevention of chronic diseases, as laid out in the WHO's report

“Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases” This expert

consultation document clearly confirms that nutritional intervention can reduce

the incidence of diabetes, heart attacks, high blood pressure and many other

chronic diseases that have reached epidemic proportions worlwide.

Ignoring the recommendations of its own parent body (the WHO) the Codex

committee chose to ignore the South African proposals.

The South African delegation has, however, been asked to coordinate a working

group that will develop proposals for new and revised nutrient reference values

(figures for average daily intake requirements amongst normal populations -

NRV's for short) that may form part of the establishment of the upper safe

levels limits (see below). The inclusion of NRV's in this process will be

debated again at the next Codex meeting in 2004.

Comment : We should all applaud the excellent work done by South Africa and

continue to give their delegation and the other delegations supporting their

position, all the help and support they need to ensure that the level of

scientific knowledge and evidence that goes into the setting of NRV's truly

reflects the reality that vitamins, minerals and other natural substances can

prevent common diseases, as set out in Dr. Rath's declaration at the World

Summit in 2002 entitled, " Health For All by the Year 2020™ "

 

The Codex committee spent so long arguing about other matters on their agenda

that they ran out time to consider the proposals on health claims. This debate

has therefore been postponed until next year.

Comment : The extra time that this development offers the health freedom

movement to continue the fight against Codex should not be wasted.

 

The idea that recommended daily allowances (RDA's) should form the upper limits

for vitamin and mineral dosage levels has finally been rejected by the Codex

committee.

Comment : A positive move for natural health. RDA's represent merely the minimum

daily intake level for vitamins and minerals for the avoidance of deficiency

disease problems and the idea that RDA's should form the upper limits for these

nutrients has always been ridiculous.

 

The Codex committee decided that their vitamin and mineral Guidelines will apply

in jurisdictions that regulate these supplements as foods, whilst removing the

option for national authorities to make a regulatory choice between food and

drug law for regulation of these supplements.

Comment : This may indicate that national authorities that currently regulate

these products as drugs will continue to be able to do so. Countries will not

however be able to change regulatory approaches for supplements once these

Guidelines are enacted. Yet another good reason to continue the battle to

protect free access to essential vitamins and minerals worldwide.

 

The sources of vitamin and minerals to be used in supplementary products should

be safe and bio available forms as laid down by FAO/WHO standards or other

recognized international or national standards.

Comment : The possibility that this provision may lead to arbitrary restrictions

on the available sources, as was the case with the provisions of the EU's Food

Supplements Directive, cannot be discounted.

 

The influence of the EU within Codex has grown measurably this year and their

delegation is trying forcefully to persuade Codex to adopt the framework for

vitamin and mineral regulation, already laid down in Europe, on a worldwide

basis.

Comment : The EU will become a full member of Codex in 2004, which makes support

for and implementation of the Dr. Rath Health Foundation EU-Referendum goals

more important than ever. The EU will act on behalf of 25 countries in next

year's Codex meeting.

 

The maximum daily dosage level for vitamins and minerals is to be set by

reference to “upper safe levels” established by scientific risk assessment.

Comment : This was the section upon which most of the ‘victory for health

freedom' claims were based. At first sight, the abandonment of reference to RDA

levels in setting upper limits for vitamins and minerals seems to be a victory.

In reality, the proposed terms upon which upper safe limits may be set are open

to wide interpretation and manipulation and could still result in arbitrarily

low upper limits that are not much better than RDA levels.

 

This approach is being pioneered by the Australian delegation who will probably

be asked to chair the committee responsible for setting upper safe limits, if

this section is agreed. It is therefore important to know that Australia already

regulates vitamin and mineral supplements as drugs and not as foods.

There is no scientific justification for any upper limits to be set for vitamin

and mineral intake, but if we do have to have them, let them be based on true

science and real observed effects. The role of South Africa (see earlier

comments) will be pivotal here.

 

Conclusions : The influence of the health freedom movement and the work of the

South African delegation to Codex have brought about a number of victories for

natural health freedom this year. At the same time, whilst some completely

absurd ideas like using RDA levels as upper limits have finally been removed,

this year's Codex meeting has accelerated the move toward overall proposals that

may have a very damaging effect on the availability of essential vitamins and

minerals worldwide in the future.

 

It is therefore of paramount importance that all those interested in preventing

free access to these vital substances from being compromised remain vigilant and

engaged in the fight. The Dr. Rath Health Foundation is leading the continued

resistance to Codex plans and calls for a united effort in pursuing the goal of

vitamin freedom for all.

 

We have won some skirmishes but the main battle goes on!

 

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