Right now, someone is rearing a future leader. Nelson Mandala’s mother and father- did they know they were influencing greatness that would change the World? Or John F. Kennedy’s parents? Were they actively shaping him toward a path of intelligent service? I’ve raised three children and had the privilege and great pleasure of influencing three step children and now five grandchildren. Early on- in my 20’s -, somewhere in my vast reading as a ‘stay at home’ mother of three, I ran across a concept that impacted the lives of my children. It is the concept of ‘touching the palette’. Just as an artist has a palette of paints to create from, parents can provide an environment rich in texture and color that will stimulate children to find their destiny calling.

We all have things that taste good to us and others that we aren’t drawn to or even are repulsed by. Each child is a unique individual with bio-individuality and a personality, natural talents and giftings that will best express the irreplaceable aspects of that particular human being/child. This also is the “palette”; the taste-buds that determine the bent of a life, that I’m referring to.  But as a young mother, how would I have known what my children would become and what their destiny would be? How would I set up the scenarios for them to discover their passion and their gift to the World?

So the concept of ‘touching the palette’ encompassed liberating a World of potentials upon the landscape of childhood in the safety, supervision and security of the home by setting up vignettes in the environment came into my experience and into the lives of my children. There was a corner for musical instruments of every possible type, timeless music playing and a library of great musicians’ biographies. There was an art corner tucked away where messes can be tolerated and works in progress can develop over time and the artist’s lives to draw inspiration from. There was a well-stocked library – audio and books. Perhaps we’d raise a writer or a chef…there was a kitchen with child-sized measuring cups, whimsical spoons and colorful aprons. Outside, there was a virtual petting zoo of farm animals and the chance to develop animal husbandry; perhaps a veterinarian or a nurse would emerge from the care of others. There was a garden with little hoes and shovels and a hand seeded carrot pulled from the earth at age 2…  Inside hamsters, something called Duproses that my enterprising daughter ended up selling offspring to pet stores at a great profit, disgusting rats that I consented to crawl on me for the sake of being a good fearless mother in the presence of a developing child… dog and cats and fish… You see where I’m going with this. We step outside of our desires for a time to provide an entire palette of things for children to choose from hoping that something will spark our children’s interest and allow it to grow into the passionate fire that fuels their adult life. Variety is really and truly the spice of life.

The day I saw my two small sons literally 40’ up a fir tree  pounding nails for a tree fort, I tried – and succeeded – in ignoring my urge to call them down of out fear. Today they are successful custom-home builders with their own company and finish carpenters. The vignette that was provided was never intended to allow them to climb so high, but then we cannot censor our children’s dreams and aspirations. They may be higher than our own for them. Each of my children is a responsible, productive citizen and each is on a path of service to mankind in their own way. The grace of God combined with some good palette touching? Thankfully the parents of Ghandi and J.F.K. understood this. They gave free reign for the development of greatness and provided a multitude of arenas to discover the special gift that each possesses for the benefit of mankind. I can’t think of any other way they discovered they were destined to rule but in the nurture and protective encouragement of the home.

Right now, someone is rearing the future President of NHF. Because I was very late coming to join the Health Freedom Movement- in my early 50’s, I queried parents what it would take to develop the activist spirit in a child purposefully. Evidently I hit upon a loaded word “activist” unwittingly. What does that word mean- apart from our associations with it?  What does Wikipedia have to say about it?

“Activism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Activism consists of intentional efforts to promote, impede or direct social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing businesses, rallies, street marches, strikes, sit-ins, and hunger strikes.

Activists can function in roles as public officials, as in judicial activism. Arthur Schlesinger Jr. introduced the term “judicial activism” in a January 1947 Fortune magazine article titled “The Supreme Court: 1947.”^[1]

Some activists try to persuade people to change their behavior directly, rather than to persuade governments to change laws. The cooperative movement seeks to build new institutions which conform to cooperative principles, and generally does not lobby or protest politically.

There is also a distinction to be made between Activists and Activism, as a huge amount of activism is carried out by people who would not label themselves as activists. It is crucial to recognize this, otherwise you fail to recognize the amount of activism being carried out and risk marginalizing this type of social change as a specific form of activism i.e. as carried out by the activist. For example environmental activists’ that align themselves with Earth First, or Road Protestors would commonly be labeled activists, whereas a local community fighting to stop their park or green being sold off, or built on would not be classed as activists, yet they are still effectively carrying out very similar actions. In short Activism is not always carried out by Activists.^[2]”

I like the first sentence. We can attach all kinds of things to being an activist, but as a brand-spanking new activist I find myself compelled to share my knowledge because I HAVE TO- I CAN’T NOT… and so far, it is a complete gift to others. I can’t tell you how many intelligent professionals had no idea about NHF or Codex. They all thank me for taking time to share and to fight on their behalf by my association with NHF.

You may know my trigger was President Scott Tip’s excellent article on ‘Codex Avoids Implosion by Five Votes” in the Summer 2011/Volume 29/No.2 issue of Health Freedom News, the National Health Federation’s fine publication. If sharing the Ractopamine story awakens others to the need to create change, then an activist I am. From that leaping off point, I wondered, “If I were a young mother again today, how would I touch the palette of my children- the children intended to be drawn into activism?”

Mothers came forward on the National Health Federation’s Face Book page to offer very valuable advice. One of the mothers finds herself with a potential leader in her and her husband’s care. She tells the story of Caleb and I see how he is in a home that will allow his talents, gifts and skills to fully develop under careful ‘palette touching’.

In her words, “Caleb is the math brain who loves a good book or three a day… He likes his vitamins and takes them easily.  He wants me to talk to his class about the NHF and Codex and give all the students membership brochures for their parents.  Caleb told me he is wants to become a Scientist and share all his work with the NHF which he is going to join as soon as he’s old enough.  He’s all fired up already and wanting to share everything he can to get more members!  Maybe he should start an NHF pony league in school!”

She continues, “It really blew me away the way Caleb got so interested so fast.  Finding a way to get the information in their hands is key (to touching the palette). Caleb found out about health freedom by hearing me talk about different articles and issues. Before I knew it, he was reading over my shoulder and asking questions.”

Another parent contributes, “It is up to the parents to teach a child about taking medications and about health.” This is where the concept of ‘touching the palette’ is born- in the cradle of good parental care and that includes an excellent parental example. I know that my children “caught” more than they were “taught”. We are the books they read, without knowledge of reading skills.

Sometimes we have to wonder who is leading whom in example. “Caleb will be 13 this year.  He helps me distribute magazines and brochures at the pier. He’s always been a health nut as soon as he could read the expiration dates on food items. There is a healthy eating education part of health class at school. He was educating me way before I knew anything about Codex. There is an obesity problem in the U.S. and healthy eating is already being taught in classes all over the states. His teacher is thrilled with the work he is doing and he’s earning extra credit on his blog in Health Science”. In this case, it is ‘iron sharpening iron’ as these parents are committed to the cause of health freedom and their son is clearly mirroring their passion with an equal fervor of his own. Will he be the next President of NHF to protect our health freedoms by speaking Codex? Someone, somewhere is that child…What kind of mirror are we providing?

So what emerged from these casual conversations on National Health Federation’s Face Book page? Activism is a matter of individual gifting. Some are selecting a very young age, a path of service. They are fortunate if they are in a family that can provide an atmosphere to further the ‘touching of the palette’ but deep down, we know that they will achieve their destiny regardless. We must respect the individuality of each child and not push our will. We must be true to our own path and let them find theirs.

Were I a parent again today, I would broach discussion at the dinner table about World events that will impact them. I would encourage my children to see their body as a sacred trust, indeed ‘a temple’ that no one has the right to pollute with GMO foods, vet steroids (Ractopamine), fluoride and on and on. I would encourage them to find their own Voice- even at a very young age. What self-esteem that builds!

One last story…I had a young guest of 7 years last summer. He had some behavioral and attention issues that prompted him being put on a sugar-free diet and I was advised to cook to this diet prior to his coming. It was really how we already manage the kitchen here in a low glycemic fashion, being Nutritional Therapists. The change in him, according to the parents, was remarkable after adopting this healthy diet.

As I cooked breakfast for this family, this brave child let me know in no uncertain terms, “If there is sugar in anything that you cooked, I will not eat it.”  This impressed me beyond belief! I had a little 7 year old having the courage and fortitude to stand firm to his beliefs in the face of an adult!

Thankfully, we use honey, maple syrup and xylitol but the point was well made. I have never had a 7 year old dictate to me what came out of the kitchen much less an adult and I thought, “May more 7 years olds stand up and dictate to the school cafeteria what they will and will not put into their precious little developing bodies and mind – bodies and minds that will develop to lead us into the future.” It is possible to be an activist without having any knowledge whatsoever of the word. This child simply IS. It moved me in a way I will never forget. This child has a future….and we will reap the benefits of his courage and commitment.

Children are our teachers. They will lead us one day. How can we touch their palette to discover their unique and treasured gifts to the World? As always, your comments are welcome on the blog and we want to hear what you are doing to promote awareness and a sense of responsibility to fellow man and to the World in your lives and around your dinner table with your own children. We are all in this fight for health freedom together. There are many more experienced among our ranks. We would love to hear from you to encourage us all in our efforts to allow free expression among the children who are gravitating toward this path of service who are in our field of influence and care.

 

 

This opening, explanatory essay on Codex was written by President Scott C. Tips in 2007 and forms a body of work about Codex now available on Amazon. President Tips explains the historical progression of Codex.

Many have no idea what Codex is or how it has the power to impact and disrupt lives. Because we’ve come across so many lately who really seek to understand, it seems timely to reprint the first chapter of this compilation exposing Codex and how it works- often against the very health freedom it sets out to protect.We can remain ignorant, if we are, of this body. But in so doing we risk suffering further losses of freedom. We can arm ourselves with knowledge and each provide support for NHF’s work in the ways that are right for us, to stop the progressive loss of our health freedoms. We encourage you to share this article- or better yet – order the book on Amazon. Currently they are  out, but more are on the way for you to help enlighten friends and family in ways they can fight again the progressive loss of freedom in this supposed ‘land of the free’.

Codex Alimentarius
Global Food Imperialism

As is often the case with governmental programs and the ostensibly good intentions that are professed to accompany them, the implementation of those programs and the resulting effects upon the individuals affected by them are invariably negative. Whether it has been the American government’s 35-plus-year-old failed “War on Cancer” or its equally-long and equally unsuccessful “War on Drugs,” for example, each massive increase in taxpayer money thrown at the problem by the government has not resulted in a cure or solution but simply more bureaucracy, more tunnel-vision as to the path to take, and an ever-receding goal still stretching out of reach.

It is perhaps the prime example of the “Law of Unintended Consequences.” This law of nature (which says that an action or program will have the opposite or at least unexpected effect of that intended) seems to dog government actions no matter what they are. And Codex Alimentarius, an international intergovernmental program, enjoys no special exemption from this Law.

Codex Alimentarius is actually a noble concept. The idea – at least the idea put forth to the public – has been for countries throughout the World to adopt a uniform food standards that would allow the free and unhindered flow of food goods among countries and to consumers. This is an idea with which many of us can agree and even embrace. But, as you will read in this book, the actual implementation of this laudable ideal is falling far short of the ideal itself. Indeed, the implementation of this ideal is having the opposite effect of its stated purpose.

The Food Code

Codex Alimentarius is Latin for “Food Code.” It is, and is to be (since the process is still ongoing), a set of standards covering many different categories of food. The Codex Alimentarius Commission is the international body establishing these global trade standards for foods. Created in 1963 as a result of resolutions passed in 1961 at a Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) conference, and now sponsored jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the FAO of the United Nations, Codex has some 27 active committees dealing with various food and food-labeling issues from fish and infant-feeding formulas to food additives and vegetable proteins. And each committee is hosted in turn by a particular country that provides both the chairman and the meeting place in that country.

The stated goal of the Commission is to promote and protect the health of the public. This follows from the FAO’s own stated purpose of “achieving food security for all” and its desire “to make sure people have regular access to enough high quality food to lead active, healthy lives.” With the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995, and the subsequent institution of various trade and other agreements, an additional goal of removing barriers to trade has also emerged.

CCNFSDU

The committee concerned with food supplements is the one with the annoyingly long acronym: the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU), which is hosted and chaired by Germany. Typically, the CCNFSDU meets in Bonn, or near Bonn, every November, although the committee meeting in October-November 2006 took place in Chiang Mai, Thailand in deference to Third World sensibilities.

As its name implies, the CCNFSDU covers a number of agenda items in its meetings, including the ever-controversial infant formula standards, dietary fiber guidelines, proposals for nutrient-content claims, and risk analysis. The CCNFSDU chairman is Dr. Rolf Grossklaus, a German functionary who wields considerable control over the proceedings and who only occasionally faces revolts from the delegates attendees and only then if he has been particularly high-handed.

The delegates to these committee meetings are themselves almost universally regulatory bureaucrats and functionaries themselves, largely out of touch with the interests of the consumers they purport to represent. The United States delegation, for example, consists of the U.S. Representative, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) employee, and her assistant delegate, yet another FDA who may or may not be listened to by the FDA delegate, depending upon whose interests they represent. To make sure that these private individuals who plump up the U.S. Delegation are properly hamstrung, the FDA requires as a condition of their attendance that they sign a petition form promising that they will not lobby other countries’ Codex delegates at these meetings.

For two years, I myself was a member of the U.S. Delegation attending the CCNFSDU meetings in Bonn, Germany. I found that the views I expressed on behalf of the National Health Federation (NHF), a nonprofit health-freedom organization representing the views of thousands of pro-supplement and pro-health individuals, mostly fell on deaf ears.

It was not until 2002, when the then-U.S. delegate, Dr. Elizabeth Yetley, refused to let me continue being on the delegation that I was spurred into action to obtain official Codex-recognized status for the NHF as an International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) and could then attend and speak out at the CCNFSDU and other Codex meetings unfettered by FDA handcuffs. Indeed, it is really thanks to Dr. Yetley’s refusal, which completely backfired, that the NHF could begin to have an impact at Codex meetings. And we are still the ONLY health freedom organization who can speak, and therein lays our power. Often, in speaking out at the meetings, the NHF has taken a position opposite to that of the United States, which U.S. position the NHF has found to be antithetical to the very principles of health freedom upon which the United States was founded.

The Guidelines

Despite the often-fierce First World-versus-Third World battle over infant formulas, this particular committee achieved even more notoriety and thus the object of focus for health-freedom activists around the World in 1994 when it took up more directly the issue of vitamin-and-mineral food supplements. In doing so, it began establishing “guidelines” intended to govern the international trade in vitamins and minerals.

Interestingly enough, these Codex Guidelines for Vitamins and Mineral Food Supplements are intended to apply only to those jurisdictions (read, countries) where supplements are regulated as foods. Where they are regulated instead as drugs, such as in supplement-hating Norway, these Guidelines are more of a curiosity than something of importance. So, the game has been rigged almost from the beginning. In a bureaucratic form of “heads I win, tails you lose,” the Guidelines will clamp down on both the quality and availability of supplements being sold as food while having no effect on those supplements legally classified as drugs.

The NHF – along with the freedom-loving South African delegate, Antoinette Booyzen – fought hard to prevent or at least slow down the establishment of the recently-adopted Guidelines for Vitamin and Mineral Food Supplements. Obviously modeled after the European Union’s Food Supplements directive of 2002, these Guidelines take an anti-health-freedom, bureaucrat-friendly approach to natural substances that purports to protect health and lives through severe restrictions upon the sale and information given about vitamins and minerals. Yet, by making health-saving information about vitamins and minerals virtually impossible to obtain and by limiting consumer access to health-benefiting vitamins and minerals at levels that will actually make a physiological difference, these arguably well-intentioned regulators are ensuring the ill-health of future generations. Used to a toxicological model of dealing with substances they know little about and, hence, mistrust, these Codex bureaucrats are painting everything in their path with a very wide rush and the same color paint. Again, the Law of Unintended Consequences is at work here.
In November 2004, at the Bonn, Germany CCNFSDU meeting, South Africa and the National Health Federation were the only delegations opposing approval by the Committee of these harsh Guidelines. According to Codex procedural rules, the Guidelines were then required to be submitted to the next regular meeting of the Codex Alimentarius Commission for final review and approval. So it was, then, that at the July 2005 Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting in Rome, Italy (and with Mrs. Booyzen absent), the NHF was the One and Only Voice – out of literally hundreds of attendees – to speak up and oppose the Commission’s adoption of the Guidelines.

It is important to remember, though, that at present these Guidelines are nothing more than a framework, with maximum permitted upper levels for vitamins and minerals to be slotted in under a risk-assessment approach. Ever fearful of vitamins and minerals, which they have never understood, the Europeans are striving to keep a firm lid on the maximum permitted upper levels. And, unfortunately, instead of opposing this straightjacket, the Americans, Canadians, and many others are willing – even eager – midwives to the process.

While the birthing process still has a few years to go, in the regulatory timescale, this is the merest blink of an eye. To us, bureaucrats move glacially slow; but in their strange Einsteinian universe the few years left to complete and fill in the Guideline’s framework is a heart-pounding rocket-ride to the stars.

Harmonization

What many health-freedom activists around the World have long ago realized, however, is that these euphemistically called “guidelines” will be used not only to exclude high-potency American dietary supplements from the European marketplace but they will also be used, either directly or by way of example, to stifle the domestic national markets in supplements as well through a leveling process called “harmonization”.

Importantly, though, harmonization of food standards is not just a Codex process but is a deliberately-planned interlocking process being fitted together through a number of treaties, “agreements,” and regulatory “handshakes” that, once in place, will make it nearly impossible for any countries’ citizens to shake themselves free of this straightjacket. These harmonization processes include, but are not limited to, the World Trade Organization, the Sanitary and PhytoSanitary (SPS) agreements, the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBA) agreement, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the Trilateral Cooperation Charter, and the planned North American Union (NAU).
And if any of you are still under the illusion that any government, but especially the American government, is a supporter of health freedom or a protector of health-freedom rights in any way, then you need only look to the actions and words of the FDA. This Agency has not only announced its intention to harmonize U.S. laws and regulations to international standards but it has been acting upon the World stage for years to do just that. It does not matter to the FDA that the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA) was passed by Congress in order to protect certain of the health freedoms of Americans. The FDA has always hated this law, which removed FDA’s arbitrary enforcement powers (but not, as is often claimed, its regulatory powers), and has been seen that although it cannot yet directly repeal DSHEA, it can and will outflank DSHEA through harmonization with anti-freedom rules, regulations, and ‘guidelines.”

It is not the purpose of this Foreword to explain how this process of harmonization will affect the North American and other global markets in general and dietary supplements in particular, but rather markets in general and dietary supplements in particular, but rather through the following collection of articles gathered together and presented to you in this compilation – written as they were by many of those individuals who have monitored, argued, and written about Codex over numerous years – you will more completely grasp what many have realized and argued is nothing more than a net slowly descending over our collective heads to benefit a few.

Many have claimed that somewhere along the way Codex was hijacked by financial interests antithetical to the true health interests of consumers. Using propagandistic phrases such as “the need to protect consumer health,” these commercial interests have allied themselves with the naturally future-fearing tendencies of government bureaucrats to suppress the rapidly rising use of dietary supplements. What better way to eliminate the competition than to suppress it with regulatory and legislative handcuffs? The pharmaceutical industry, with a global market of more than $600 billion will act, and has been acting, to protect its commercial interests.

The Players

As will be evident from reading this collection of articles and essays, there are many players in this drama. While Sepp Hassslberger, a Bavarian living in Rome, Italy, was probably the first to privately call attention to the Codex threat, and while the National Health Federation began following Codex from afar in 1995-1996, it was John Hammell of the International Advocates of Health Freedom (AIHF) – to my knowledge – who first publicly pulled the alarm bell on Codex in 1996 with his very first article on the subject, republished in National Health Freedom’s publication available on Amazon, Codex Alimentarius, Global Food Imperialism.

Around the same time, Suzanne Harris, a Kansas-City based journalist with degrees in law and political science, began reporting on international Codex meetings at the suggestion of the NHF and with partial funding from the NHF. Her investigations and articles also helped educate many of us to developing events at Codex.

As did Dr. Mathias Rath and his Foundation, which had not only been monitoring Codex meetings but actively demonstrating them as well with large crowds, big signs, and speaking events. While I did not think his demonstrations were effective, Dr. Rath, to his credit, has poured much of his own personal money into fighting Codex restrictions on vitamins and minerals.

Then , in early 2000, with much of my time spent in Europe, I suggested to NHF president Maureen Kennedy Salaman that NHF start sending me to the CCNFSDU meetings in Berlin. Not hesitating even a second, she agreed and the path for the Federation to start regularly attending what up to then it had only been monitoring and reporting on was established. In June 2000, I attended my first Codex meeting and wrote a report – found here – on what transpired. Coincidentally, and although I did not meet them at this Codex meeting, both Sepp Hasslberger of LaLeva and Tamara Theresa Mosegaard of MayDay also attended this Codex meeting for the first time as members of their respective countries’ delegations.

The following year’s meeting in Berlin (with the meeting dates then changed to the Fall) saw the beginning of the involvement of the American Holistic Health Association (AHHA), with both Susan Negus and Suzan Walter attending several Codex meetings and reporting their own observations and conclusions.

Many others have since been inspired to become more familiar with and involved in Codex work. These include Paul Anthony Taylor of both NHF and the Rath Foundation (who began attending Codex meetings in 2003), Diane Miller of the National Health Freedom Coalition, Carolyn Dean of Friends of Freedom International, Brenna Hill of the American Association for Health Freedom, and, more recently, Robert Verkerk of the Alliance for Natural Health. The absence of other, unnamed here, is not intended to slight them in any way, but will probably be more a reflection of my memory, or lack thereof.

Importantly, award-winning film-maker Kevin Miller researched, wrote, filmed, and produced an excellent documentary on Codex Alimentarius called We Become Silent that features some of the individuals mentioned above and presents much information on Codex in an educational and entertaining way. Oscar-winning actress Dame Judi Dench narrates the film.

At the same time, the other players in this Codex drama include the CCNFSDU chairman Dr. Rolf Grossklaus, the EU/EC Codex representative Basil Mathioudakis, Dr. Elizabeth Yetley and her successor, Dr. Barbara Schneeman, as the U.S./FDA delegates, Dr. John Hathcock of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, James Turner and James Gromley of Citizens for Health, and the International Alliance of Dietary Food Supplement Associations. Often at crossed swords with the writers in this book, these individuals and organizations have figured large at Codex meetings or otherwise participated in some way.

Last, but certainly not least, a very important player at Codex meetings has been Antoinette Booyzen, the South African delegate. It was Mrs. Booyzen who, courageously and usually alone among national delegations (although supported by NHF), stood up and faced the ire and even ridicule of the Chairman and many others for daring to speak out for the right of all persons to exercise their right to consume healthy, nourishing foods and supplements. Her undaunted courage at these meetings was an inspiringly frequent occurrence.

What the Future Holds

Although the Codex Alimentarius Commission has adopted the Guidelines, there are still two arenas in which this health-freedom drama will play out. These are the two that bear the most watching.

First, since the Guidelines are nothing more than a framework, they are not useable until the maximum permitted levels are established through the application of risk analysis and risk assessment. So, the fight here will be over how high the vitamin-and mineral potencies will be set, with the pro-health-freedom forces agitating for the highest possible levels and the pro-pharmaceutical interests wanting to minimize the upper levels (and hence the effectiveness) as much as possible. The science is on the side of the proponents of health freedom, but the “beauty” of science merged with politics is that it can be easily manipulated to say whatever its manipulators want it to say. The future will tell us whether truth and scientific integrity prevail or whether politics as usual will rule.

The second arena will be the application of the Guidelines domestically within each country’s national boundaries, otherwise known as “harmonization.” Already, countries are lining up like lemmings to accept whatever cliff-edge Codex standards would have them jump off.

As in the case of the development of Codex standards, harmonization is not simply a process, it has actually become a way of thinking. Numerous countries, institutions, and individuals have come to accept harmonization as inevitable. In a sort of “Borg-like, resistance is futile” fog of mind, they have ceased to question the value of harmonization, or to compare the advantages with the disadvantages, or especially to consider that there might be a far better way to handle the health issues presented to them.

 

It has been often said that to know the future one should remember the past. It is for this reason that the Foundation for Health Research has – with the kind permission of the authors whose works appear herein – compiled and published the ensuing collection of articles in one place so that you, the reader, may see and follow the historical progression of thought on this important Codex issue, an issue that will profoundly affect everyone’s health in the years to come.

Scott C. Tips
President, Foundation for Health Research
April 4, 2007, the European Union

Frequently we at NHF find questions running along the same general lines coming into our Inbox. We want to take this opportunity to discuss them publicly with you, our NHF blog family, and we invite your comments on the blog. If you would like a question or concern covered for future blogs, simply direct the question to thenhf@thenhf.com and we will post them.

Don from Iowa writes:

“Regarding H.R.3380: Why move the date to 2007? Why not 2012 or forever, permanently taking our precious dietary health food supplements out of their reach.”
(http://www.thenhf.com/article.php?id=3099)

Dear Don,

Thank you for your very generous donation to NHF. Without stalwart supporters such as you, the Federation would not be able to accomplish nearly as much as it has. Your support is more critical than most realize.

In answer to your very pertinent question about H.R.3380; you are absolutely right, why 2007? Why not 2012 or forever? That’s what I personally wanted. But our wishes met political reality and the NHF was forced by political reality to go with what we thought we could accomplish politically with a bill in this Congress, this Session.

Of course, we preferred actually removing the definition of a “New Dietary Ingredient.” But, we figured better saving thousands of supplements than none at all. Our strategy too is that if we get this bill passed into law, then it will set a precedent for the future. When yet more supplements (post-2007) accumulate and become subject to FDA regulatory excesses , then we will go back to the trough and extend the date again, or maybe as you & I think, even get the “forever” date that we want.

Thank you Don again for your support and I hope this answers your question.

Best wishes to you,

Scott C. Tips, President and General Counsel
National Health Federation ~Your Voice for Health Freedom TM

     I had a funny, but sobering, experience when I was in Southern Europe two years ago, meeting with a company and potential client that wanted to start marketing its dietary supplement powders into the United States. I looked at their product labels and immediately realized that as good as their products were, they suffered from a major drawback – they contained aspartame as their sweetener. “What?” I was asked in disbelief, “That would be a problem in the United States?” Yes, it most definitely would be, at least to the health-food retail market that they sought to enter. They weren’t laughing.

Unfortunately, as with so many others, they were simply ignorant of the dangers of aspartame and had used it in their powdered supplements as sweeteners. They had never read the Congressional testimony of Dr. M. Adrian Gross, a former senior FDA toxicologist, who said, “Beyond a shadow of a doubt, aspartame triggers brain tumors” and that “by allowing aspartame to be placed on the market the FDA has violated the Delaney Amendment, which forbids putting anything in food that is known to cause cancer.”

Herein lies the problem: While many of us and our friends and colleagues recognize that aspartame is a dangerous, carcinogenic toxin, there are too many who do not. They have bought into the G.D. Searle and Company propaganda line that claims aspartame is a healthy alternative to sugar and that studies “show” it to be safe to consume. As a result, over the last two decades, we have seen approval for this toxin’s use in many different food and beverage products grow almost astronomically. Now it can be found virtually everywhere. It is ubiquitous. In fact, it is hard to avoid now.

Codex Alimentarius

It is with this growth as a background, and with decades of opposition to its approval, that we at the National Health Federation (NHF) – the World’s oldest health-freedom organization and the only one accredited to attend and speak out at the Codex Alimentarius meetings – sought to oppose aspartame standards not just at the national level but at the Codex level.

    Codex Alimentarius, as many of you already know, is an international body organized back in the early 1960s under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for the two-fold purpose of eliminating international barriers to food trade and protecting the consumer from unsafe foods. To that end, Codex created various committees to develop food standards and guidelines for those foods and beverages each substantive committee was considering (some other committees were charged with developing measurement and general operating principles). One of those committees was known as the Codex Committee on Contaminants and Food Additives. Note the combination.

Many years later, the Committee was broken apart into two separate committees, one called the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food (CCCF) and the other the Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA). Why is this dull Codex history of any importance? Because aspartame approval had been obtained in the previously joined Committee and then Codex consideration of additional standards for aspartame use in many other foods and beverages was moved over to CCFA when the Committee split.

Although NHF had covered other Codex meetings since the mid-1990s, this Committee was not one that NHF could afford to attend until 2008. At that meeting, on behalf of NHF, I spoke out against any approval of any standards that would allow aspartame to be used in either foods or beverages. My pleas, unfortunately, fell on deaf ears. The aspartame industry had already done its damage with this Committee. So, too, with the more recent CCFA meeting held in China last March. NHF submitted written comments to the Committee (see http://www.thenhf.com/files/pdf/AspartameCRD.pdf) opposing aspartame’s food use. Again, our urgings to stop aspartame were not heeded; but I have found that even though our words seem to be at times of no use, over time they have a cumulative effect.

We have seen this happen with the CCCF and melamine use (melamine, a man-made toxin that contaminates infant formulas), where our lone voice in 2009 has now been joined by ten other strong voices that actually stopped one melamine standard from being approved last year by Codex. (Read about it at http://www.thenhf.com/article.php?id=2947.) And NHF’s virtually sole efforts at the 2009 Codex nutrition committee meeting in Germany halted the adoption process for “dumbed down” Nutrient Reference Values (essentially RDIs) that would have, for example, lowered the daily requirement for Vitamin C from an already ridiculous 60 milligrams per day down to 45 milligrams per day! Our solitary voice has caused a snowballing effect that has resulted in these NRVS having been stymied at three successive, annual Codex meetings! (See http://www.thenhf.com/article.php?id=3109)

So, with enough effort and ammunition to back that effort, it will be possible to impact aspartame at the Codex level, that is, the global level. We have already shown that other ill-advised Codex standards can be impacted when enough heart-felt and persistent action is taken to stop or change them.

Codex Is Important

Often with the cry “Think globally but act locally” ringing in my ears, I am asked by others about the real importance of Codex to local communities. It seems to many people that the States and Federal government are the main culprits enacting increasing legislation to shut down healthy foods, from raw milk to new dietary supplements. And that is true – up to a point. However, through various Treaties (the World Trade Organization, as well as the CAFTA, Sanitary and Phytosanitary, and Technical Barriers to Trade agreements) and national legislation, the United States has become increasingly bound by treaty obligations and law to incorporate Codex standards into our domestic food laws.

     Legislators will say that exceptions are built in so as to protect domestic legislation such as the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), which has protected supplements since its passage. Yet, the reality is that we are being hemmed in by a regulatory fence of Codex guidelines and standards that our own Department of Agriculture and Food and Drug Administration have chosen to follow whenever and wherever possible.

Moreover, our own food industry loves Codex guidelines and standards because then it can then sell more of its debased food products throughout the World without trade barriers and their accompanying costs. Using Codex food standards that favor debased and contaminated foods, these big food corporations then have trade portals that are window-pane clear while truly healthy products slam up against opaque barriers. That is how our World is being crafted these days.

But Your Voice Is More Important

For those of us tired of seeing our healthy food and dietary-supplement choices slowly whittled away by uncaring and greedy government officials and industry fatcats, there is much that can be done to counter these losses. We are certainly not powerless, as was proved so amazingly before when we all banded together and overwhelmingly petitioned Congress to pass DSHEA, which it did unanimously. To this very day, Congress is still afraid to directly attack DSHEA and must content itself with snipping away at its corners and letting the FDA and Codex do its dirty work for it.

Our previous NHF president would always remind us that “Politicians don’t see the light, they feel the heat!” So, I would urge all of you to educate yourself thoroughly on all of the issues that stir your passions. Then, being fully informed, be what I call “Persistently Vocal.” That is, don’t just contact your Congressional representative once and then let the matter go; contact him or her by every means possible: e-mail, telephone, correspondence, and even personal visits at their offices. Then, once you have finished that set of contacts, start over again. And be sure to include contacting family, friends, and work colleagues to enroll them in the campaign.

Remember, too, that letters to the editor of various publications, even submitting the more widely read Op-Ed pieces, as well as writing on Internet Blogs can be very effective means of motivating people and changing public opinion. Always, “Challenge, Challenge, Challenge.”

Perhaps, most importantly, join with others of like mind to act together to make effective change. That could be your local professional associations, it could also be active health-freedom organizations such as the National Health Federation (www.thenhf.com). The NHF has been active protecting your health for almost six decades now. Whether you knew it or not, NHF has been your voice for health freedom.

As important as it is, aspartame is only one of many issues that affect our health. If we want to protect both our rights as practitioners and as consumers, we need to take action now at Codex, national, and local levels to protect and even advance our health freedoms. Not only our health but our children’s health depends upon it.

As Margaret Mead once wrote, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” You and the rest of us are that small group, and we can and will change the World.

 

 

Adytum’s Charity of Choice: The National Health Federation (www.thenhf.com) The ONLY Health-Freedom Organization TO ACTUALLY BE “YOUR VOICE FOR HEALTH FREEDOM”

Join NHF for $36 and get 1 Night at Adytum Sanctuary@ 50% off, Any Suite!
With your $100 NHF Donation, get 2 Nights at Adytum Sanctuary at 50% off, Any Suite!
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Adytum has chosen the National Health Federation as our charitable giving FOCUS because of our mutual commitment to keeping our body/mind/spirit ‘temple’ with integrity through right choices and honoring the body/vessel and in so doing, maximizing our power and work on behalf of others in this World.

Abundant, vibrant health starts with choice but ultimately it ends in fighting to retain our freedom to choose….Kat Carroll, NTP

In this spirit, each one of you who becomes a member of the NHF (www.thenhf.com)– just $36, will enjoy one magical night at Adytum for 50% off in any suite of your choosing. Those that give $100 or more, indulge for two enchanted nights at 50% off each night in the Castello Adytum in complete, pampered luxury (think “Champagne on Ice…”.) That is just over $100 a night for a $220 a night luxury Suite with territorial water views by day and a front row seat to the Milky Way by night in the seductive warmth of the Salt Water Hot Tub.

For the outrageously logical $1000 donation your romantic adventure at Adytum is on us! This offer will go throughout the end of May and excludes all major holidays. With your membership you will also receive a quarterly magazine, Health Freedom News, the same one that ignited my internal activist and the one I now write for…with a sophisticated readership of over 20,000 like-minded people it will expand you like no other. This is worth the membership price ALONE if you value current research, issues and perpetual growth in your life… “I am always learning…” Michelangelo

Gifts to NHF are not tax deductible because you get the famous Health Freedom News; if you need a tax deduction, then donate to Foundation for Health Research, our sister organization.

As a volunteer, I want very much to speak out against the issue you will learn about below –Ractopamine- the VET Steroid on your dinner plate – at the Codex meeting in Rome this July. I will also be attending the Codex meeting in Ottawa, Canada in May where GMO labeling is being decided. Do you know that your United States Delegate (FDA employee…) said, “The American people are too stupid to make up their mind about this issue.” Incredible…Have we been underestimated?

Thank you for making it possible for me to go and represent YOU and YOUR family by your loving and generous gift! If you want to read about my ‘Inner Activist Awakening’ read on. If not, book NOW at www.adytumsanctuary.com and let’s get on with our mutual Adventures!

As you know, my “inner activist” was released this August when I read an article in Health Freedom News, the National Health Federation’s fine magazine. The article was by President & General Counsel, Scott C. Tips on something I couldn’t even pronounce and never heard of: Ractopamine. It turns out; no one I asked had heard of it either yet our U.S. Delegate to the Codex meetings, where global standards are set said that the U.S. was in FAVOR of it. So why is this kept under such wraps that even the smartest among do not generally know about? Who stands to lose major world trade profits Ractopamine fails to pass again at Codex this July in Rome, Italy?

Ractopamine is a veterinary steroid drug, created by Eli Lilly’s vet arm: the Evil Elanco. Ractopamine makes turkey, pigs and cattle shift nutrients from fat production over to lean mass production. At first glance, it sounds okay and my uncle who was a pig farmer, would have loved the $3 per pig net gain in profit, but the reality is that it not only makes the animals ill to the point of death but we end up eating this poison. Since they are bypassing the standard 14-28 day clearance time before slaughtering a medicated animal a shocking 20% of this veterinary steroid taints the meat and YOU and YOUR FAMILY will eat it! Shocked? Yes, me too. Do you realize the cumulative effect of multiple meat meals a day with vet meds in it??? Next time you pass the meat aisle, just think about what’s lurking in there….it can send you to the hospital thinking you’re having a heart attack or a panic attack at best. Are you ready for dinner?

You know, I’m a vegetarian but I have children and grandchildren and elderly parents who regularly eat all three – sometimes in a single day! It is just wrong to put profit over people…Remember that this is the same drug company that brought DES and Human Bovine Hormone to market and both were passed- then banned AFTER the problems surfaced…problems they knew about all along.

Side effects of humans consuming this vet drug (which is clearly labeled “Not for human use”) is increased heart rate and vessel constriction as well as being a carcinogen….Want to come to dinner? A little panic attack and/or heart attack for dessert and a whopping BIG medical bill even IF you have insurance…. We’re having some doped meat…Oh, and bring your health insurance card. We may be going for a little ride- a fast one in the ambulance.

When I called Donn’s brother, Dr. Ron Carroll, and asked what would happen if I brought my 86 year old father or 2 year old grandson in for emergency treatment having a reaction to ‘dinner’, he said they would never even know what they were treating because “we don’t even have veterinary medicines in our drug toxicity screens.” He would administer Beta Blockers to slow the heart, run an EKG’, order the tox-screen and basically create “a very large ER bill trying to figure out what was wrong.” And send you home with more medicine than you came in with. In the final analysis, it will become a socioeconomic issue. When word gets out, won’t YOU buy organic meat? Low-income people will consume this and the already over-burdened medical system of the United States will collapse under symptom managing because our US delegate thought we were willing sacrifices to Eli Lilly’s greed.

160 countries around the World, including China which spent a lot of money researching the problems associated with Ractopamine, banned import and export of the tainted meat. When President and General Counsel, Scott C. Tips spoke against Ractopamine passing as a global standard in Geneva last year, he was able to persuade a few other countries against adopting the US stance. So even though our FDA employed US delegate was willing and eager to get it passed – selling out our health for US profit, President Scott C. Tips, working through the National Health Federation funding that got him there to represent us, worked for me, for my father, for my grandchildren and my whole family and YOU while many of us were quietly unaware there was even a problem being debated of this magnitude. I don’t even take aspirin…I’ll be damned if I let our government feed us VETERINARY STEROIDS on our dinner plates every day. If this doesn’t move you, I don’t know what will….

Complacency leads to annihilation – of your health and of your freedom. Kat Carroll, NTP

I will be forever grateful to the work that health freedom fighters have done for me and my family, and continue to do. Am I ashamed for being “asleep” for most of this vital work? Yes…But no more. Donn and I have a corporate membership for our two businesses, and then I came on board as a volunteer for NHF in October. It’s my passion.
Ractopamine is just one of many issues up for decisions at Codex this year for the whole World, and the general purposes of NHF dovetail so perfectly with our commitment at Adytum to healthy food and freedom of choice for health care and what we choose to put into our bodies.

Ractopamine reminds me of rape. It is, at best, a forced entry upon an innocent victim.

Can you explain it any other way? Or do you want to line up for a spoonful of designer drugs made for turkeys, cows and pigs and agree that you need it for your own personal health and wellness plan? Thought you were smarter than that…

I became NHF Membership Director most recently and in that role, I’m asking you to help me to get to Rome, Italy this July 2012 where the Ractopamine issue comes up again for debate. Believe me; I will be speaking against it loud and clear along with President and General Counsel, Scott C. Tips and other delegates from the National Health Federation.

The reason I chose to work with NHF is that they are the ONLY health freedom federation that can speak at Codex, where these standards for the World are set. They can also submit papers and correct the ‘inadvertent omissions’ Codex is famous for committing.
NHF has a Voice, YOUR VOICE, therefore they have real power to speak for YOU!

They are also the most experienced health-freedom organization, having been around since before I was born- 1955- and I might add, before any of the other health-freedom organizations were born too…NHF has a lobbyist in Washington, D.C. as well and always has. NHF is working for us every day! I like the fact they run a very lean organizational structure. Most of us are volunteers and donations go right to the front-lines of the battle. You don’t see me out of my 1998 Toyota Pickup because of this new job…I’ve met enough of the directors and key players and they aren’t in a hot new car either. In fact, what I see is a lot of dedicated, passionate, intelligent professionals who are mad as hell and they aren’t going to take it any more…and neither should YOU. It’s your family we’re talking about. It’s your children, your grandchildren and the legacy you will leave. This is serious, my friends…

These are important issues- and just a few among many others discussed there during the week of solid meetings. One of our guests actually thanked me for being willing to go attend these meetings on behalf of her and her family. That gave me reason to pause… Another guest took home the magazine and immediately joined at the corporate level of $200. She wrote a scathing editorial on the Ractopamine issue- it really speaks to mothers in particular. We are in charge of feeding our family good healthy food for heaven’s sake…The thought of cumulatively poisoning our families with a drug never intended to enter humans…all for the sake of American greed- well, it got me mad enough to finally wake up and it did the same for her!

I humbly ask you for your support of the NHF (www.thenhf.com) and you will, in exchange, enjoy Adytum at the lowest rate you ever will and you will incur our eternal gratitude for seeing the big picture and being willing to step into the fray. God bless you for it…

This powerful little book, Healing Waters, will change the way you think about water if you’re not already familiar with its concepts. The book review appears in the winter issue of Health Freedom News, which comes quarterly with your membership.

If you’re not current with your NHF membership, you are missing out on inspiring, life-enhancing articles as well as the chance to join us in the fight for health freedom. We are gearing up for GMO labeling in May in Ottawa, Canada and addressing, once again, the Ractopamine issue (Vet steroid in our meat supply) in Rome, Italy in July with other Codex appearances in between.

Since the National Health Federation is the ONLY health federation that is allowed to speak and submit papers at these global standard setting meetings, it is imperative that we have your financial backing in order to be there. Tax deductible donations can be made directly to Foundation for Health Research. Memberships go directly through the National Health Federation. Remember your friends and family this holiday season and get them access to this excellent publication and work that NHF is doing on your behalf! Meantime, enjoy the synopsis of Ben Johnson’s excellent book!

Healing Waters: The Powerful Health Benefits of Ionized Water By Ben Johnson, M.D., D.O., N.M.D. (ISBN 978-0-7570-0328-8; Square One Publishers, 2011; www.squareonepublishers.com; paperback, 124 pages; $15.95)

“All water is not created equal and it is the structure of water within our bodies that ultimately determines health or sickness.” Dr. Mushik Jhon, Korean scientist and expert on ionized water.

Healing Waters is an inspiring book on strategies to achieve optimum health using alkaline, ionized water. Packed with scientific studies from around the World, it claims that ionized, alkaline water will restore the basic foundations of health. Many of us have read Dr. Fereydoon Batmanghelidj’s book on the healing power of water for common ailments, diseases, obesity – even cancer was influenced. Batmanghelidj researched while in an Iranian prison on political prisoner charges, overstaying his sentence because his research was so compelling.
Dr. Johnson shows how simple chronic dehydration combined with acidosis, having a system that is acidic versus alkaline, is the source of numerous health problems. Dr. Kancho Kinanaka, pioneer in ionized water treatment asserts, “People with high blood pressure also suffer from acidosis “virtually without exception.”
We are approximately 65% water in composition. Many of our bodily processes are pH dependent so it proves a wise strategy to meet these basic needs for proper hydration and a proper acid-alkaline pH balance.
Structurally alkalinized, ionized water is the same as the water from mineral-rich glaciers; the same water reputed to keep the Hunzas free of disease and extending longevity. It is known as “living water” because it is compatible with our bodily fluids. Its smaller cluster size and hexagonal structure enable it to travel quickly through our bodies to reach cells and tissues for rapid assimilation. It not only hydrates, but it alkalizes and oxygenates the body fostering optimum health.
In addition to water, oxygenation is a crucial foundation of health. Since cancer- and disease-causing microorganisms thrive in low-oxygen, acidic environments, focusing upon the body’s two most abundant substances- water and oxygen, is indeed intelligent strategizing to create true health. The beauty of this living water is that it can be made at home with a specific ionizing unit for which Dr. Johnson provides numerous resource references.
Combined with a healthy, alkaline-based diet, we have a strong framework to create vibrant health and increase energy. The author delves briefly into proper food combining, thus reducing the fermentation that adds to the body’s acidic load.
A fascinating aspect of this book reveals that ionized, alkaline water has an oxidation reduction potential, also known as redox potential or ORP, which is better than many common antioxidants. First he compares it with tap water that is oxidizing with an ORP reading of +400mV to +500mV and mineral water which is slightly better with a +200mV reading, yet is also oxidizing. However, alkaline, ionized water reads -250mV to -350mV so it’s plentiful in the extra electrons it needs to donate to stop free radical activity. Understanding living water’s ORP readings creates an exciting strategic approach to elevate immune function. Alkaline, ionized water has better antioxidant capacity than Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and beta-carotene, which are nearly nine times heavier than alkaline ionized water.

By keeping the body more alkaline, the blood pH supports increased oxygenation and even prevents Alzheimer’s disease by insuring that the brain’s required need for 20% of the body’s daily supply of oxygen is met. The heart requires more than all other muscles, so heart disease is prevented too.
The acid water that is dispensed out of the water-ionizing unit mentioned in the book has had its use in homes as well as hospitals for disinfecting and killing bacteria associated with ten of the most-common hospital infections – even MRSA. “Most of these infectious agents were completely deactivated within 30 seconds of being inoculated with the (acid) water; the others were killed in 5 minutes.” This was from a 2004 Russian study.
Acid water maintains beautiful skin and hair, is anti-aging, and combats eczema, psoriasis, shingles and other skin problems. It improves the body’s ability to grow healthy skin in diabetics with ulcers, heals bedsores and aids in wound healing. Additionally, it is antibacterial for teeth and gums.
Even houseplants love it and it’s great to clean fresh produce and rinse sprouts with.
By coalescing foundational tactics using alkaline, ionized water combined with a balanced diet and proper food combining, Dr. Johnson writes a compelling case for investing in health through the inclusion of living water in our daily life.

I suddenly realized that we were all here, spending time on this, because NHF had reacted so strongly and persistently two years ago. NHF had caused this. It felt good….

Acknowledged as being rather outspoken, NHF started off its participation in the meeting on Monday, November 14th, with a bang, speaking out at every turn in favor of broadening the Terms of Reference (i.e., mandate) given to the Electronic Working Group (subcommittee) for establishing NRV standards for nutrients so as to include science other than just FAO/WHO scientific findings. Most delegates – still uncritically genuflecting at the altar of FAO/WHO science – defer to their science in adopting numbers to insert into such standards. Forgotten is the great World of Science that beckons beyond the narrow cultish confines of FAO/WHO science. NHF’s view is that when Codex considers adopting any standards, it should look far and wide at all pertinent science, whether it comes from FAO/WHO or not.
Amazingly, after all, NHF’s near solitary and obstinate opposition to the vitamin-and-mineral NRVs back in 2009 had killed their momentum on the path towards adoption. But for that opposition, they would, by now, have been well along the 8-step track to adoption by Codex. The 2010 Committee meeting in Santiago, Chile saw even more opposition and a request by the Committee for FAO/WHO to come up with a report on NRVs, which they did just in time for this November 2011 Committee meeting.
So, as I sat there on Monday and leafed through the rather impressive 39-page FAO/WHO report, and listened while the WHO representative presented the report and the Committee then discussed it, I suddenly realized that we were all here, spending time on this, because NHF had reacted so strongly and persistently two years ago. NHF had caused this. It felt good.
The CCNFSDU created an Electronic Working Group charged with reporting to the Committee at next year’s meeting with its recommendations for NRVs for vitamins and minerals. The NHF will be part of this eWG. This means that – for a third year in a row – no dumbed-down vitamin-and-mineral NRVs were adopted at Codex.

It’s been brutal today because I spoke out today on Saturated Fatty Acids and how they (Codex Nutrition Committee) were setting the NRVs (essentially RDAs) too low in preference for polyunsaturated fatty acids. I told them how necessary saturated fatty acids were to the human diet and that, among other things, even Mother’s milk is 54% Saturated Fatty Acids.

The Chairwoman Pia Noble did not like what I had to say at length on the subject because she refused to let me speak thereafter! Basically, these dinosaurs are set in an old mentality that equates dietary saturated fat intake with heart disease! Old school and out-dated thinking and they are not even using good science. Only Malaysia, the International Dairy Federation, and the National Health Federation pointed out the fallacy here, and for more than 30 minutes the Chairwoman deliberately ignored my button being pressed down to be allowed to speak.

I am going to speak with her directly tomorrow morning as I didn’t have a chance tonight. And this is not the first time she has done this. The former Chairman of this Committee was a saint compared to her . . . .

So an NRV standard for Saturated Fatty Acids (SFAs) was forced on us today that says that SFAs should not consist of any more than 10% of the energy (20 grams) in the daily diet. Consumers are to be pushed instead to unhealthy Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs) because Codex thinks those are healthier. It’s really absolute nonsense and the sad fact is that they will all die younger because of it, taking many other, innocent people along with them. (supporting PUB MED link is at the end of this post)

But get this: Within hours of approving this limit, the Codex delegates were all treated to a Saturated Fatty Acid-rich meal of fatty meats and other foods by the German Dietetic organization! I would bet that they got a great majority of their dinner energy from saturated fat, certainly far more than 10%! But no one evidently saw the irony except us at NHF and a couple of others who dined with us.

- Scott Tips, NHF Head of Delegation, at Bad Soden am Taunus, Germany

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20071648

As the World turns its focus to Veterans of past wars this November, the National Health Federation puts the spotlight equally on the wars our Veterans have fought without guns. Employing skill, savvy, wisdom and a great deal of persistence and innovative thinking Charles Crecelius shares some of his fascinating stories and experiences when he was on the front lines as President of the National Health Federation.

Rosemary, Charles’ assistant and I have been emailing back and forth since President Scott Tips and I interviewed Charlie at his home last month. His interview in full will appear in the Winter Issue of the Health Freedom News. Rosemary writes, “Charles has been busy revisiting the past through the collection of old publications he has to help refresh his memory.

I think this is so great for him to review his past when he was that freckled red haired dynamo keeping all those tops spinning around like he did. I think he has some things to add about trying to get the NHF started in Australia or some reasons why the seeds he planted there didn’t take root at the time he was working on that. He is just making notes now after reading your composition. While you are waiting to hear specifics from him, I’ll give you a copy of something I scanned some time ago to keep you entertained.”

It was clear Charles, at 90 is the consummate blogger and will keep us all entertained and inspired for hours with his stories. So we share them here, in his own words, the words of a seasoned fighter who was hard at work all over the World when some of us were still in grade school, helping to protect our freedom and healthy way of life. Hats off to you Charles Crecelius!

“One project I had some fun thinking about– Health monopolies put on a meeting on health quackery. Without knowing it we had scheduled a convention for the same city on the same day. That was fortunate. My wife, Jeanette and Clinton Miller (lobbyist for NHF) decided to try to attend their meeting which was close by. They were refused admittance to the meeting on health quackery. After that we kept our ears to the ground and found out where and when the next quackery meeting would be held. So on the same day at the same time we scheduled an anti-monopoly meeting with no exhibits, just anti-monopoly speakers. When it was over, we discovered that our meeting received more publicity…newspaper column inches, radio and TV. They had lost. We saw no more reports of future quackery meetings.”

Here Charles lists his U.S. Projects as President of The National Health Federation:

“There were two major projects, one, our food supplement legislation, two, our conventions. Clinton Miller did an excellent job shepherding our bill through both Houses of the US Congress. He quickly sensed the need to keep it a non-partisan bill. After a Republican Representative Hasmer introduced the bill in the House of Representatives, it needed to have an early Democratic co-sponsor. It took a few years to go back and forth getting that kind of sponsorship. It has to be kept somewhat balanced Republican and Democratic sponsorship as it moves forward. It took a few years to accomplish but in the end it was voted yes by every member of the House and the Senate then moved on to President Ford who gave his approval. The bill stated that vitamins and minerals were foods for special dietary use not the hundreds or thousands of words on pages that most bills are comprised of.”

Another: “Los Angeles put the issue of fluoridation on the ballot. We put on the large bill boards that used to line the highways across the nation including Los Angeles…we put signs on the L.A. billboards showing a skeleton drinking a glass of fluoridated water. With other publicity as well, we defeated fluoridation in Los Angeles. The press used the illustration of David vs. Goliath in their article.”

“There were two important court cases which our Science Director Dr. John Yiamouyiannis took on. He won both cases, one a State case, the other local. Although he won both, the cases required additional legal action to accomplish the victories and we lacked funds to follow through. John disqualified any testimony on their side of anyone who was only repeating information like a parrot would and had done no original research. Trying to discredit him, they would ask all kinds of questions trying to discredit his scientific qualifications such as “What is the value of Pi?” He would say, “Do you want it in decimal or fraction?” and he would peal off both. After he gave his testimony, the judge wanted to know when he would come back again. The judge enjoyed his testimony so much.”

It’s clear that Charles Crecelius has not only had a tremendous impact on the World, but he also had a life filled with fun and adventure achieving it for the sake of each of us today. Charles, you are an amazing inspiration and at 90 you show absolutely no signs of slowing in your commitment to global health freedom. We thank you and will honor you by seeking to match your level of commitment and sacrifice with our own efforts.

Sylvia, the NHF’s Vice-President, graciously gave me 45 valuable minutes of her time on a brisk November evening when I called her at her home in Pittsburgh, asking for advice on how to build the membership of the National Health Federation.

“If we like what we do, we will do it well. I believe in it!” she said without hesitation. I agreed that I was eating, sleeping, and breathing NHF. “You’re passionate, like the rest of us,” she observed. Isn’t it great to associate with other passionate, committed individuals all working for a common end – Health Freedom?

Hailed as the woman who had signed up large amounts of members – from 35 to 60 at a health conference, I knew that she was one who could give valuable direction to fuel my growing passion to see NHF surging ahead with renewed life and collective power. I asked her to speak to all of us who want to see NHF grow in strength and effectiveness as a positive catalyst in the World. She was sure to include her husband Joe in her successful pattern. “He is a jewel. We do everything together.” I sensed the power of the team at home and the impact on the NHF community because of this remarkable unity.

For those of us members who run our own businesses or manage businesses for others, we know that the minute we let the intensity of our focus slip, then our business will mirror the shift of attention in a loss of clients, revenue, and their enjoyment of the great things we have to invest in them or do for them. Everyone loses when our concentrated energy diminishes.

The best way to build a business – or a Federation in this case – is through a dedicated and attentive drive with small steps taken daily that lead to consistent, positive progression. The power of our collective focus will lead to efforts we each use to build the case and cause for Health Freedom helping us all; in fact, the whole World.

Since most of us would agree we want to leave the World a better, freer place, Sylvia’s successful techniques and strategies can give us all valuable direction. She’s been practicing what she teaches since the 80s. We each bring our own special talents and gifts to the effort, not trusting that what the founding members established in 1955 will remain unless we all continue to recreate it every day. We hope that you too will share your own ways with the rest of your Federation ‘family’ by contributing your comments to this post.

Sylvia is such a great conversationalist and she spoke freely of her many years in the health-freedom world. “Find ways to connect with like-minded individuals. Go to health fairs, even if you don’t host a booth, and hand out the Health Freedom News magazine – you know I never travel anywhere without them. I leave them at privately owned health-food stores. We need to talk to people!”

When I asked her about the growing apathy among many people and the feeling that there was simply no way they could change the system, she remarked, “People are slowly learning there are other choices.” Depending on what field they work in often determines if they can or will share their knowledge.

Sylvia shared a story about speaking to a group of nurses at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Her daughter, who worked in the medical offices there, arranged the talk. Sylvia was reluctant to accept and actually found herself a bit nervous at the prospect of addressing the medical community, which felt like enemy territory. In the past it usually hadn’t yielded pleasant results. One time, she’d actually been asked to leave in similar circumstances. She was very clear about never diagnosing, but instead phrasing her suggestions in reference to her own self, “If I had cancer, I would … You don’t want to end up in jail.” I knew she wasn’t kidding.

Sylvia decided to risk “tomato stains on her powder-blue suit” as she taught the standing room only group of nurses, many with Cokes in hand, how to juice for health and the benefits of each variety of fresh juices in the body. The nurses all enjoyed samples of fresh carrot, apple, and other juices and surprised Sylvia by sharing their gratitude at the end of her talk. “When are you coming back?” But, they all admitted no matter how right it was, they would be fired for discussing any of it with patients of the hospital.

“So focus your efforts on like-minded individuals,” she told me over and over again. “Don’t waste your time where you will not be received or they can’t use the information you gave them. Target places where these people will be, such as health fairs and you will have a captive audience. Find these groups and join them.” Sylvia understands the power of leveraging her time and energy.

I knew the often prohibitive cost of hosting a booth at a health fair. Sylvia said, “Just go to the health fairs and talk to other attendees. You don’t have to have a booth. Hand out magazines. Share the current issues with people that are related to health and politics, bills… If you happen to know the speaker, ask for just a few minutes to share the mike before they begin and tell the audience about the NHF and the great work we do for them – many of whom do not even know we are working on their behalf. It isn’t hard to convince this group of people.” It was clear that Sylvia knew the issues and explained them in a compelling manner.

Sylvia reminds me of a flowing brook. She is effervescent, determined, and takes the path of least resistance with people in the use of her time, energy, and passion. She loves what she does. Her intense desire for health freedom is her driving force. She has found the easiest ways to help others grow to the next level in their own commitment to health.

Sylvia isn’t selling memberships, she is empowering people to have their voice carried around the World by the NHF delegate at the Codex meetings. This is one of NHF’s defining factors: It is our Voice for Health Freedom. No other group can make that weighty claim. Clearly a leader from the word ‘go,’ Sylvia endows others with the resources and connections they need to transform their desires into reality through support and work as a member of the NHF. She inspires me as a new member so very greatly. I shared with her our increasing emphasis on social media using Face Book, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other social media to continue to inspire and encourage each other to make positive progression in this fight for health freedom. Our energy will feed off each other and we will make great strides. Iron sharpens iron.

Our talk turned to Maureen Salaman, past President of the NHF. Sylvia knew her personally and said I would have loved her. I myself only knew of her through the many books on my library shelves that Maureen had written over the years that came to me by way of my health-loving mother.

“She dedicated her whole life to health and to helping people. Maureen was fabulous and we enjoyed a wonderful rapport.` She was ‘life.’ She was beautiful, compassionate, and caring.” Sylvia explained that she introduced Maureen to Pittsburgh and arranged for her appearances on Christian television shows there.

“Pittsburgh became Maureen’s second home. There were many times we would enter a speaking engagement together at noon and Maureen was still signing books at 7p.m., reluctant to leave until the last person had their autograph and many times a personal consultation with her on health issues. Maureen is sorely missed . . . .” Sylvia trailed off, but I assured her, “You are our inspiration now.” Again, without hesitation, she replied, “Together we will make it happen.” Read more about Sylvia at http://www.thenhf.com/page.php?id=141 and share your own ideas with us on keeping NHF healthy and viable in the coming years.