Natural health modalities and products belong in the Canada Health Act.

It is a curious thing, with all the discussion about Canada’s health care policies and programs that never is the importance of preventive medicine mentioned.  Nowhere do we hear mention of how important it is for Canadians to maintain their health in every way possible to keep the load off of a system that is designed for health interventions due to acute problems.

It is well known that when people take care of themselves, eat good food, take the appropriate supplements, get enough exercise, and, through the benefit of countless other lifestyle adjustments, require less medical interventions.  Most cancer studies will acknowledge that the best way to treat cancer is to prevent it.

So the questions:  Why do we not seriously consider ‘preventive’ medicine as part of our national health care policy discussion?  How can it be, with nearly 75% of our population utilizing natural health products ranging from vitamins and minerals, to herbal and homeopathic remedies in order to improve their health on a daily basis, that these Natural Health Products are not a formal part of our Canadian Health Care Plan?

These are not merely academic questions.  When we go to Naturopaths, Herbalists, Homeopaths or Nutritional Consultants for advice about our health, we pay for these services out of our pockets.  I do not think that most of these services should be paid for by the government directly but it would be of great worth if we were able to get tax receipts that could alleviate these costs at the end of the year.  An incentive to take better care of ones' own health.

When we buy Natural Health Products from the Drugstore, Health Food Store or Dispensary, we pay for them out of our pocket.  Again, I am not suggesting that the government should pay for these supplements.  Nevertheless we should be able to get tax receipts and benefit at tax time.  Incentives!

There is little doubt that keeping the population healthy is less expensive than attempting to apply expensive remedies and procedures to mend the damage caused by unhealthy lifestyles. There is less and less doubt that the appropriate use of Natural Health Products is part of maintaining a healthy population.  It is time for the Canada Health Act to reflect the importance of natural and complementary health care and encourage Canadians to learn more about these tools to good health and then include them in their daily lives.

Time to bring the regulation natural foods and supplements into political arena.

Just wrapping up after a weekend at the Canadian Health Food Association’s Expo West here in Vancouver; the industry is still vibrant and there were lots of fresh faces on the floor.

Having encouraged everybody, in a previous post, to go and ask any and all of the candidates currently running for office to:

1.       Restructure Health Canada with the Natural Health Products Directorate as a separate entity, removed from under the ‘drug’ based Therapeutic Products Directorate; and,

2.       Bring Natural Health Products (vitamins/minerals, herbs, homeopathics, probiotics etc. into the mainstream as part of Canada Health Act. 

I was encouraged to find that these ideas seem to resonate with suppliers and retailers of these products.

I am also hoping that consumers will also go and discuss with all of the candidates the issues surrounding the regulation of these products.  We know, without a doubt, that if people take care of their health by eating well, exercising and using the appropriate supplements they will need less of the invasive health care resources that should be reserved for the seriously ill.  This, in turn, will keep the overall cost of our national health care programs down and generally more affordable.

What are Natural Health Products?

Under the Natural Health Products Regulations, which came into effect on January 1, 2004, natural health products (NHPs) are defined as:

v  Vitamins and minerals

v  Herbal remedies

v  Homeopathic medicines

v  Traditional medicines such as traditional Chinese medicines

v  Probiotics

v  Other products like amino acids and essential fatty acids

NHPs must be safe to use as over-the-counter products and not need a prescription to be sold.

What to do?

Go to: www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/ follow the prompts and use the information. Send at least an Email (a letter is 100 to a 1000 times more effective) to the candidates in your riding and then, if you really want to get active, go to: http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/MainMPsCompleteList.aspx?TimePeriod=Current&Language=E and get busy contacting as many candidates as you can across Canada.

You can also take the core messages from www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/ and start asking questions and demanding the answers...get the press involved...make this an issue in this election. Whatever member gets elected, we want our issue on their mind.

I have been in this industry for approaching 40 years and I think the information at www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/ is solid, well thought out and reasonable and if we can convey these messages and achieve any of these goals we could have one of the best environments in the world for the regulated use of high quality Natural Health Products. There is work to be done and I think it’s time to get busy.

Wm. S. Reynolds

Wm. S. Reynolds & Associates

Former Executive Director of the Canadian Health Food Association

http://wmsreynoldsposts.blogspot.com/

NPA: Supplements backed by official health claims deserve tax breaks

NPA: Supplements backed by official health claims deserve tax breaks: "A Bill set to be introduced to Congress for the fourth time calling for tax breaks for dietary supplements backed by official health claims has a much better chance of success this time around, the Natural Products Association (NPA) has"

Natural Health Products are not drugs.

Natural Health Products are not drugs.

It is election time here in Canada, so for you activists out there if you want to do something real and constructive for the regulation of Natural Health Products in Canada, I have a task for you all.  It is easy, does not take much time and can put OUR issues in front of all our elected Canadian officials, regardless their party affiliation.  AND IT IS A POSITIVE THING TO DO.

There are a variety of messages that you can offer but most important, please take the time to actually deliver the message.  Natural Health Products and the Natural Health Product Directorate should be removed from the Therapeutic Products division of Health Canada. And the use of Natural Health Products should be incorporated into Canada’s National Health Policy.  An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.  Nowhere is this truer than in our health policies and procedures.

What are Natural Health Products?

Under the Natural Health Products Regulations, which came into effect on January 1, 2004, natural health products (NHPs) are defined as:

ü  Vitamins and minerals

ü  Herbal remedies

ü  Homeopathic medicines

ü  Traditional medicines such as traditional Chinese medicines

ü  Probiotics

Other products like amino acids and essential fatty acids

NHPs must be safe to use as over-the-counter products and not need a prescription to be sold.

What to do?

Go to: www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/  and follow the prompts.  Send at least an Email (a real letter is 100 times better) to the candidates in your riding and then, if you really want to get active, go to: http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/MainMPsCompleteList.aspx?TimePeriod=Current&Language=E

And get busy communicating with as many candidates as you can across Canada. 

Or simply take the core messages from www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/  and start asking the questions and demanding the answers...get the press involved...make this an issue in this election.  Whatever party forms a government is less important than insuring that our issues are on their mind.

I have been in this industry for approaching 40 years and I think the information at www.nhpsnotdrugs.ca/  is solid, well thought out and reasonable and if we can convey these messages and achieve these goals we could have one of the best environments in the world for the regulated use of high quality Natural Health Products.

Bill Reynolds

Reynolds & Associates

Former Executive Director of the Canadian Health Food Association

Fabricant: ‘The natural products industry must embrace scientists’ | United States content from New Hope 360

Fabricant: ‘The natural products industry must embrace scientists’ United States content from New Hope 360

food and egypt

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egypt, wall street

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Re: Egypt, the middle east and the rest of us.

It is extremely  unsettling to watch the events unfolding in Egypt as I write this.  Hosni Mubarak has certainly been a stabilizing force for the past while in the region, strong arm or not, and it is unfortunate that he and his colleagues are not able to see the writing on the wall and accede to the demands of the Egyptian people.  It is clear that he and his colleagues are well past time and it is equally clear that the Egyptian people are well ready to take on some modifications to their 'democracy'. 

What could have been a remarkable transition has now given the very radical elements that were apparently so feared, the opportunity, and a legitimate voice, to oppose any real or perceived repressive measures.

It is generally not a good thing to witness a military coup but at this instant, a military coup in Egypt may be the only short term way out of the situation.  The army has, to outward appearances, been a moderating influence and has managed to place themselves between some of the more aggressive groups on the street. 

The greater problem, however, is that this extreme discord in Egypt sets the tone throughout the middle east and, instead of encouraging rational and peaceful dialogue based on compromise to ease this transition, we have resistance and a violent reaction from the ruling party that encourages and legitimizes violent reaction from clearly repressed peoples.

If Mubarak could have found the way to step aside gracefully and started the transition process immediately he well could have diffused what is likely to become a firestorm throughout the region.

How this affects the rest of us is that it gives, to the organizers of such recent events in Canada as the G7 and the G20, justification to create a locked down, police state like, environment in such extremely peaceful cities as Toronto.  For months preceding these conferences we were warned of 'violent elements' who would try to 'upset' the meetings.  The instant any confrontational behaviour surfaced, we were immediately told that the massive police presence had been necessary to control the mobs.  Eventually we find out that the few miscreants, less that 1-2% of the crowds in the streets, probably could have been controlled by a dozen police men with fire hoses.

And the whole event probably could have been diffused by legitimate, democratic forums for communication, led by statesmen/women.  Unfortunately these people, our elected and/or appointed leaders, are engaged at  virtually the same level of rhetoric.  Rather than taking every opportunity to espouse true ideals, respect others whose ideals my appear to be at variance, and then engage in discourse and, when necessary, compromise to find solutions; we rather to choose to debate with hyperbole and live in fear.  With police 'protection'.  Another opportunity missed.