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and Public Affairs Letter in Support of Rep. Davis (D-CA) Legislation April 5, 2004 The Honorable Susan A. Davis Dear Congresswoman Davis: The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) supports your legislation, the Dietary Supplement Access and Awareness Act (HR 3377) that allows the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the ability to monitor the health risks of dietary supplements by providing FDA the authority to investigate manufacturers and take necessary action against those who promulgate supplements having reported dangerous health consequences. ASPET is particularly pleased that this bill is comprehensive and addresses not only dietary supplements containing steroids but also other potentially dangerous products. ASPET appreciates your leadership on these important scientific issues that impact consumer health. Many U.S. consumers mistakenly believe that herbal products and dietary supplements are regulated by the FDA and scientifically proven to be safe and effective. The unregulated use of dietary supplements provides an additional risk magnified by the lack of analytical oversight and control in manufacturing practices. Sound pharmacological studies are needed to help determine the potential for interactions among herbal products, dietary supplements, and prescription drugs as well as chronic disease processes. ASPET believes that your legislation once again helps to explicitly raise important public health concerns that come from the unregulated use of products whose efficacy may be unproven and whose manufacturing standards are unregulated. ASPET hopes that Congress will address these public health issues through reexamination of the 1994 Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act. ASPET is a 4,700 member scientific society whose members conduct basic and clinical pharmacological research in academia, industry and the government. Our member’s research efforts help develop new medicines and therapeutic agents to fight old, new, and re-emerging diseases. We look forward to working with you in support of these efforts. Sincerely,
David B. Bylund ` |
