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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Sneak Attack on Dietary Supplements

According to Scott Tips, president and legal counsel for the National Health Federation (NHF), harmonized global standards are enabling overall reduced vitamin and mineral levels in pill and food form. In February, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed changes to both the current Nutrition Facts panel on food labels and Supplement Facts panel on dietary supplement labels that prompt concern.

“While the food industry, media and general public focus on the proposed format changes, new wording and label design, there’s a danger to our health in the FDA harmonizing our Reference Daily Intake (RDI) of vitamin and mineral levels down to the extremely low levels of the Codex Alimentarius, which our organization has fought against for more than a decade,” advises Tips.

Although a few RDIs have been raised, if the proposed rulemaking is adopted, the NHF anticipates that the FDA will work to conform other recommended nutrient values to those of Codex. Support for this projection is based on an October 11, 1995, FDA pronouncement in the Federal Register to harmonize its food laws with those of the rest of the world.

The deadline for citizens to submit comments to the FDA ended on June 2, but we can still write to the Division of Dockets Management (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5360 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852. Mention Docket No. FDA-2012-N-1210 and insist that the FDA cease pushing its harmonization agenda.

For more information, visit Tinyurl.com/NHFCaseForNutrients.

apples pesticide-free orchards Action Alerts
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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