Despite Ban, Ephedra Will Remain In Common Cold-Flu Medications

[Guest guest]

Ephedra is unsafe for some companies to sell and safe for other companies to

sell.

 

My my, different rules for different people. If they want to hold herbs and

nutrients to unreasonable standards then I think it only fair that we hold

pharmacuticals and over the counter meds to the same unreasonible standards. Of

course that will never happen.

 

It is a rigged game with rigged rules conducted by rigged umpires and rigged

judges.

 

Frank

 

 

http://healthy.net/scr/news.asp?Id=8212

 

Natural Product Consultant: Despite Ban, Ephedra Will Remain In Common Cold-Flu

Medications

 

 

Provided by PR Newswire on 1/2/2004

 

 

 

 

Back to Healthy News

 

 

DENVER, Jan 02, 2004 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Despite the FDA's proposed ban

on ephedra in diet supplements, high doses of its active ingredient will remain

in many over-the-counter drugs used by millions of Americans every day,

according to Rob McCaleb, a natural product consultant with the international

law firm of Greenberg Traurig LLP and founder and president of the Herb Research

Foundation.

" Even after the proposed ban takes effect, anyone, even children, will be able

to walk into a drug store, grocery or even convenience store and buy FDA-

approved 'safe and effective' products consisting of heavy doses of ephedrine.

This includes some of the biggest and most profitable over-the-counter products

on the shelves of every major pharmacy in the country, " said McCaleb.

Ephedrine, used in over-the-counter drugs for treating asthma and congestion,

and pseudoephedrine, used as a nasal decongestant, are the two main compounds in

the plant ephedra, or Ma Huang, which has been used for these purposes since

long before modern science or medicine was conceived.

" The proposed ban has the potential to affect the nation's leading

pharmaceutical companies, who will have to protect those products from a

domino-effect ban, " said attorney Jim Prochnow, a shareholder of Greenberg

Traurig. Prochnow regularly teams with McCaleb on drug and supplement projects

worldwide. " Both supplement and over-the-counter drug manufacturers are staring

into the abyss of the loss of a major ingredient. " Prochnow has represented

numerous diet supplement companies over the last 13 years.

" There were two major OTC decongestants. One, PPA (phenylpropanolamine), fell a

few years ago for safety reasons. It was the major active ingredient in leading

cold medications. Now there is just one, pseudoephedrine, " he said.

" The FDA has decided that it is willing to go to court to maintain that the

Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, the industry's and the

public's 'Bill of Rights' with respect to food supplements, empowers the FDA to

ban or declare 'unsafe' an entire class of substances rather than having to

proceed on a product-by-product basis. "

The FDA has stated that consumers should not take ephedrine alkaloids because

they are unsafe (in supplements). Yet, the FDA allows their use in OTC drugs.

" The FDA is in an untenable position from a toxicological standpoint, " said

Prochnow. " Generally, 25 mg of ephedrine has the same safety and the same risk

if taken for weight loss or asthma. It's either too dangerous for consumers to

self-medicate with, or it is not. We are evaluating the FDA's position and the

possible impact of this decision on other supplement ingredients, because this

may signal new risks for the industry and for the public's right to access

self-care health products. "

About Greenberg Traurig LLP

Greenberg Traurig LLP is among a select group of international law firms with

more than 1,000 attorneys. In the United States, the firm is ranked No. 12 as

reported in The National Law Journal's listing of the country's largest law

firms. Globally, the firm's 1,100 lawyers and governmental professionals in 21

offices bring experience and creativity into every client relationship, from

emerging companies to Fortune 500 corporations - in achieving and managing their

goals. For additional information about Greenberg Traurig, visit the firm's Web

site at www.gtlaw.com.

SOURCE Greenberg Traurig LLP

CONTACT: Rob McCaleb, cell, +1-303-598-2803 and Jim Prochnow, cell,

+1-303-808-5195, both of Greenberg Traurig LLP

URL: http://www.prnewswire.com

http://www.gtlaw.com

 

 

Copyright © 2004 PR Newswire. .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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