Category: Featured Articles

By Clair Lavender

When most people think of life without running water, they imagine distinct, far-away lands where people have to walk 15 miles in the blazing heat to get their home's water supply. However, this lifestyle is closer than most may think.

On the Texas border, along the Rio Grande River, there is a group of small communities known as The Colonias. It is in this area that more than half a million people live without running water in their homes.

Marissa Muñoz, an education graduate student, has visited The Colonias several times.

"They may or may not have paved roads, running water, sewage, electricity, a community center, et cetera," Muñoz said.

It is a common misconception that the people in The Colonias are illegal immigrants, Muñoz said. She emphasized that studies have shown that 90 percent of the people living there are U.S. citizens.

When B. Stephen Carpenter, an associate professor in the Teaching, Learning and Culture program, heard about The Colonias, he teamed up with Oscar Muñoz, the deputy director of The Colonias Program in the center for housing and urban development at A&M.

The two stumbled upon the pre-existing concept of a water filter made from 50 percent clay and 50 percent sawdust and struck proverbial gold. They contacted "Potters for Peace," a group that travels around the world working with local communities and distributing the water filter.

Carpenter and Muñoz recruited Richard Wukich, an art professor in Slippery Rock, Pa., Manny Hernandez, an art professor at Northern Illinois University, to help as consultants and technical advisors, and Bryan Boulanger, an assistant professor in the Zachary Department of Civil Engineering and part of the Environmental Water Resources Division at A&M. In addition to the professional consults on board, four graduate students have joined the program, including Muñoz.

Since the TAMU Water Project began, the team has gained support from many organizations and grant programs. The Academy for the Visual and Performing Arts at A&M, as well as the Mexican American and U.S. Latino Research Center, have provided generous grants that have aided in the production of the filters.

Carpenter travels four to six times a year on request, speaking about the filters and a plan for bettering the communities in The Colonias and other parts of the world.

Carpenter said the effects of the filters in the Dominican Republic have been immense.

"They hired people and let them make money by creating these filters," he said. "It's a micro-enterprise – an economic benefit."

The Water Project team has created 50 cone-shaped filters, mostly for demonstration. Carpenter said that besides the clay and sawdust, "the filters contain colloidal silver , which renders inert bacteria and other microbes."

The silver makes the filters more expensive, but is a key ingredient for producing potable water. The filters are being tested to see how effective they will be in filtering out poisons like arsenic and sulfur.

Carpenter hopes to build a ceramic studio on the Riverside campus to get the A&M community more involved and to strengthen the outpour of filters. The team hopes to build a facility in Laredo but for now, the team meets for "Filter Fridays" in Carpenter's garage, from which they take the filters to "Joy Pottery" in Bryan to fire the water filters.

The filter costs about $25 to create and comes with a five-gallon bucket big enough to hold the filter, a spicket to get the clean water out and a lid.

"We are hoping that some non-government organizations will purchase the filters and then we can distribute them for free," Carpenter said.

In his curriculum development and arts education research classes, Carpenter shares his story and concerns about water issues with his students. A couple of years ago, Carpenter brought in guest speakers Hernandez and Wukich to give a presentation to the class.

Students used information gleaned from the speakers in presentations they gave to their classmates over water, poverty and the artists' response based on the water filter project. The students also created curriculums.

Carpenter edited some of the projects and posted them on the TAMU Water Project blog for other teachers to download and use.

Schools from Virginia, Louisiana and Pennsylvania have shown the desire to use the curriculum in their classrooms.

"It teaches my students how to take real world experiences and look at them as educational experiences," Carpenter said.

by Pravakar Sahoo

Iodine deficiency is a major public health problem worldwide. The available information indicates that there are nearly two billion people with iodine deficiency worldwide. Though there has been substantial progress in the last decade, there remain challenges in achieving a sustainable elimination of IDD.

In India , IDD has been identified as a public health problem. Recognising the importance of elimination of IDD as a health and developmental goal, the Government of India launched the National Goiter Control Programme

in 1962; which was renamed as National Iodine deficiency Disorders Control Programme (NIDDCP) in 1992.

A total of 263 districts out of 324 were found to be endemic for IDD (i.e. prevalence of IDD is greater than 10 percent). It is estimated that more than 71 million individuals are suffering from goiter and other IDDs, while 200 million people are at risk for IDD.

For the elimination of IDD in India , the main strategy adopted under NIDDCP is iodisation of salt. In November 2005, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued a notification banning the sale of non-iodised salt for direct human consumption throughout the country under the Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA) Act to be effective from May 17, 2006

Iodine deficiency is the single most common cause of preventable mental retardation and brain damage in the world.

It also decreases child survival, causes goiters, and impairs growth and development. Iodine deficiency in pregnant women causes miscarriages, stillbirths, and other complications. Children with IDD can grow up stunted, apathetic, mentally retarded, and incapable of normal movements, speech, or hearing. Globally, 2.2 billion people (38 percent of the world's population) live in areas with iodine deficiency and risk its complications.

Iodine deficiency was once considered a minor problem, causing goiter, an unsightly but seemingly benign cosmetic blemish. However, it is now known that the effects on the developing brain are much more deadly, and constitute a threat to the social and economic development of many countries.

The effects of IDDs: On individuals – goiter, hypothyroidism, and loss of energy; in pregnant mothers – miscarriages, stillbirths and mentally retarded children; and in children – impaired mental and physical development, mental retardation, physical deformities and cretinism.

Effective and affordable technology exists to prevent iodine deficiency and the problems it causes. The most important are iodised salt and effective monitoring of iodine nutrition.

The solution is relatively simple. A teaspoon of iodine is all a person requires in a lifetime, but because iodine cannot be stored for long periods by the body, tiny amounts are needed regularly.

In order to deal with the situation, the National Iodine Deficiency Disorders Control Programme (NIDDCP) was started in Odisha in December 1989. It is a 100 percent Central Plan Scheme.

Among other things, the aim of the programme is to prevent IDDs by monitoring progress towards achieving long-range goals to create awareness among the people through IEC activities regarding use and benefits of iodised Salt.

Further, the programme in Odisha aims to conduct IDD/Goiter survey in remaining un-surveyed 20 districts in a phased manner taking help of the three medical colleges of the State.

Efforts are already on to achieve the goals. But robust and continuous government commitment and industry motivation were still essential.

Partnerships between governments and donors, between governments and salt producers, and among all those supporting elimination efforts need to be strengthened at all levels.

The salt industry must recognise iodisation as a fundamental responsibility. The government must work with salt producers to improve their capacity and producers must maintain and improve this capacity.

A continuous and effective monitoring system is also essential. Three types of monitoring are needed – covering the salt iodisation process from the factory to the household, the impact on a population's iodine levels, and the overall sustainability of the programme.

The tracking progress using all the three indicators (total goiter rate, urinary iodine excretion and salt iodine content) should be undertaken to sustain the efforts toward the elimination of IDD as a public health problem.

There is need to focus on behavior change communication to increase the consumption of inadequately iodised salt and sustain it thereafter.

Periodic monitoring with the focus on the iodine content of salt measured on a sample basis regularly is important to ensure that the consumption of adequately iodised salt exists at the household level.

Urgent monitoring of the availability and access of iodised salt to the public, and strengthening the information, education and communication programme for awareness building should be accorded top priority.

Buy Iodine Liquid

by David Gutierrez

(NaturalNews) People who naturally carry a probiotic bacteria called Oxalobacter formigenes are 70 percent less likely to develop kidney stones than people whose dietary tracts lack the bacteria, according to a study conducted by researchers from Boston University and published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Researchers compared 247 people who suffered from recurring calcium oxalate kidney stones with 259 people with no history of kidney stones. They found that while 38 percent of the people in the healthy group had O. formigenes in their intestines, only 17 percent of people in the kidney stone group did.

"Our findings are of potential clinical importance," researcher David Kaufman said. "The possibility of using the bacterium as a probiotic is currently in the early stages of investigation."

Approximately 80 percent of all kidney stones are made of the compound calcium oxalate, which builds up in the kidneys in small, hard lumps. Kidney stones can also move into other parts of the urinary tract, causing intense pain, infection and even kidney failure. Kidney stones have a tendency to recur, meaning that a single person can suffer from them many times.

"For some people kidney stones can be an ongoing lifelong problem," Kaufman said. "And in some cases a stone can destroy kidney function before it is even identified."

O. formigenes is believed to prevent kidney stone formation by breaking down calcium oxalate in the intestinal tract before it can move into the kidneys.

The exact reasons for kidney stone formation are not known, but scientists believe that the problem is related to dehydration and a high rate of calcium excretion. Most patients are treated through the use of shock waves to break up the stones, a treatment that is only sometimes effective.

According to Derek Machin, clinical director of urology at University Hospital, Aintree, any more effective treatment would be a major advance.

Buy Probiotics

by Susan Thixton

(NaturalNews) Genetically Engineered grains have been in existence for several years, amidst many concerns from various organizations and individuals. Now, the FDA is set to approve Genetically Engineered Animals to be introduced into the food chain.

Ever since the beginning of Genetically Engineered grains, controversy has surrounded their safety. The Sierra Club initiated a national petition against Monsanto's genetically engineered wheat.

The Organic Consumers organization is equally against genetically engineered grains stating "Campaign activists are also demanding that corporations and governments heed the concerns of consumers, North and South, and remove genetically engineered corn and other foods and crops from the market, unless they can be proven to be safe for human health and the environment. Recently hundreds of US consumers have reported allergic reactions to the FDA after eating Kraft and other brand name products likely containing genetically engineered corn." http://www.organicconsumers.org/corn/in…

The Organic Consumers website also brings into light a potential cover-up by Monsanto not noticed by the FDA. A German court ordered Monsanto to make public a controversial 90 day study on rats that reported the animals fed genetically modified (GM) corn developed "allergies (increased basophils), in response to infections, toxins and various diseases including cancer (increased lymphocytes and white blood cells), and in the presence of anemia (decreased reticulocyte count) and blood pressure problems (decreased kidney weights). There were also increased blood sugar levels, kidney inflammation, liver and kidney lesions, and other changes."
http://www.organicconsumers.org/Monsant…

Now, the FDA is set to approve genetically engineered animals into the human food chain. From the FDA website: "Genetic engineering generally refers to the use of recombinant DNA (rDNA) techniques to introduce new characteristics or traits into an organism. When scientists splice together pieces of DNA and introduce a spliced DNA segment into an organism to give the organism new properties, it's called rDNA technology. The spliced piece of DNA is called the rDNA construct. A GE animal is one that contains an rDNA construct intended to give the animal new characteristics or traits."

The FDA plans to classify GE animals as a 'drug' until food products from these animals are recognized as safe. Currently the FDA website is accepting input from organizations and individuals on GE animals. To learn more and post your comments: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2008…

The FDA tells consumers: "GE animals currently being developed can be divided into six broad classes based on the intended purpose of the genetic modification: (1) to enhance food quality or agronomic traits (e.g., pigs with less environmentally deleterious wastes, faster growing fish); (2) to improve animal health (e.g., disease resistance); (3) to produce products intended for human therapeutic use (e.g., pharmaceutical products or tissues for transplantation; these GE animals are sometimes referred to as "biopharm" animals); (4) to enrich or enhance the animals' interactions with humans (e.g., hypo-allergenic pets); (5) to develop animal models for human diseases (e.g., pigs as models for cardiovascular diseases); and (6) to produce industrial or consumer products (e.g., fibers for multiple uses)." http://www.fda.gov/cvm/Guidance/guide187.htm

The same FDA document acknowledges the risks involved with GE animals. "A primary goal during the investigational phase of development of the GE animal is to ensure that edible products from the GE animals do not enter the food or feed supply without prior FDA authorization. Edible products include, but are not limited to milk, honey, eggs, muscle tissue, as well as other tissues such as liver, kidney, skin, and fat. We encourage you to provide a disposition plan for all classes of investigational animals and animal products. We recommend that all surplus investigational animals and their biological products be disposed of by incineration, burial, or composting, and that appropriate records be kept of animal identification and disposition. In some special cases, alternative disposition may be appropriate provided that our safety concerns are met (see Section III.C). 21 CFR 511.1 (b)(5)."

GE animals have probably already entered the food supply; the pet food supply. Please notice the wording of the following sentence quoted above 'We recommend that all surplus investigational animals and their biological products be disposed of by incineration, burial, or composting, and that appropriate records be kept of animal identification and disposition.' The words 'We recommend' should make pet owners very concerned. Since currently, despite Federal law that opposes this, the FDA allows 4-D animals (dead, dying, diseased, and disabled) and euthanized animals including expired laboratory test animals to be processed into pet food. There is little doubt GE test animals, including GE test animals 'gone bad', are as well processed into pet food. Pet owners can only guess at how long and how many GE animals have already been rendered becoming pet food ingredients.

Pet food should not be the dumping ground for waste materials of science or the processing of human food. Equally as disturbing is the FDA's blind eye to Federal regulations prohibiting this. Millions of pet owners unknowingly purchase dog food, cat food, or pet treats every single day that could contain a genetically engineered animal experiment gone bad, genetically modified grains, dead, diseased, dying or disabled animals, and animals that have completed their research use, including the test drugs within the animals; all labeled as 'premium', 'choice', or 'healthy' pet foods.

Please consider contacting your Representatives in Congress asking them to insist the FDA abide by Federal law and properly monitor the ingredients in pet food. Visit http://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/pages/… to read more about letters to Congress for safe pet food. Call the manufacturer of every pet food and treat that your pet consumers and ask if the meat ingredients are human grade/quality. Anything less than human grade meats could be from animal sources you would never consider feeding your pet.

When final approval of GE animals is set (it is sure to be approved just as GM grains were), no consumer will know if they are purchasing or consuming a GE burger, chicken wings, or steak. Just as right now consumers have no idea if a food or food ingredient is from a GM grain. At the very least, every U.S. consumer deserves to know if their food, or their pet's food, is a science experiment. Please visit the FDA website and post your comments to GE animals. http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2008…

Wishing you and your pet the best,

Susan Thixton

by Dr. Phil Domenico

(NaturalNews) The New York Times reported recently that American doctors regularly prescribe placebos to patients. The survey involved 679 randomly chosen internists and rheumatologists, among them about half reported recommending placebos regularly. Doctors in Denmark, Israel, Britain, Sweden and New Zealand responded similarly. The American doctors doled out headache pills, vitamins, antibiotics and sedatives most commonly. Though these placebos are not really inert, they are used primarily for their psychological effect. This may confer some benefit, so it is thought. The study is being published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

Ethically speaking, doctors deceiving patients with dummy pills is a little troubling, and not always harmless. Physicians are acting no differently than the "quacks" that they denigrate. Even worse, they dole out drugs with potentially dangerous side effects. Their drugs kill tens of thousands of people yearly, while vitamins harm virtually no one, and are often helpful. The doctor-patient relationship is supposed to be special, with high expectations about honesty and personal care. Yet, most of the time, it's ten minutes and it's out the door with prescription in hand. It doesn't matter what the scribble says, or what the health problem is, as long as we take our medicine gratefully. However, many people are not buying into the medical model anymore. In fact, to save money during the economic downturn, many patients are not renewing their prescriptions. Still, they would be wise to continue their vitamins.

Recent example of how vitamins beat placebos starts with a study on overweight women taking chromium picolinate. Compared to placebo, chromium supplements significantly reduced food cravings and hunger levels (Anton et al., 2008). Increased intake of vitamin K2 reduced the build up of calcium in arteries that leads to hardening of the blood vessels (Beulens, et al., 2008). L-Carnitine significantly reduced both physical and mental fatigue and increased cognitive function in older people (Malaguarnera M, et al., 2007). Zinc supplements activated the production of brain factor that wards off depression and keeps nerve cells alive (Sowa-Kućma M, et al., 2008). Women who received vitamin E supplements had a significant 21% reduction in blood clots (Glynn RJ, et al., 2008). Pantethine, an active form of vitamin B5, significantly reduced LDL (bad) cholesterol while increasing HDL (good) cholesterol in several clinical trials (Binaghi, et al. 1990; Coronel 1991, et al.; Pins & Keenan, 2006). Overwhelming evidence on the incredible benefits of vitamin D, omega-3 fats, probiotics, and other important supplements are being reported, even by the medical "experts". So, rather than handing out placebos, physicians should be providing high quality multivitamins and mineral supplements, and teaching people about how to eat right to prevent illness. This is a much more intelligent and caring approach to patients than giving them placebos.

So, why do Americans buy into health care that has so little to offer? Why are we paying through the nose for medicine that ranks so low among nations? Despite enormous strides in food and vitamin science, the medical world is largely deaf to nutrition science. Profit-driven health care that preys on sickness is not where the best medicine can be found. Fortunately, efforts by the pharmaceutical industry to keep people ignorant of nutrition science are beginning to fail. People are seeking out naturopaths, nutritionists, or taking health into their own hands for many health concerns. Also, there are a few integrative physicians out there, who represent real health, if you're lucky to find one. Unfortunately, these practitioners do not accept most insurance plans, as insurance companies are also behind the times and do not cover dietary supplements or newer diagnostic tests.

What The New York Times report really says is that, at least 50% of the time, doctors have no clue how to help us. So, why not give people something that really helps, like vitamins or minerals.

by David Gutierrez

(NaturalNews) Supplementation grape seed extract can prevent the buildup of brain plaques that are associated with cell death and the development of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Alzheimer's Association, Constellation Brands' polyphenolics division, the Department of Veteran Affairs, the Japan Human Science Foundation, Mount Sinai Hospital, the National Institutes of Health, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and the University of California-Los Angeles, and published in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Researchers orally administered grape seed extract  to rats that are genetically predisposed to develop beta-amyloid plaques in their brains. These plaques are known to increase the risk of cell damage and death, leading to cognitive decline and a greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

Rats that had been given the grape seed extract underwent significantly less cognitive decline and had less in the way of beta-amyloid deposits.

"Our study suggests that grape seed-derived polyphenolics may be useful agents to prevent or treat Alzheimer's disease," the researchers wrote.

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting more than 13 million people across the world.

Lead researcher Giulio Pansinetti of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine speculated that grape seed extract might even stem cognitive decline in those who have not developed Alzheimer's disease.

The recent study is part of a growing trend to research the connection between diet and brain health. The largest food company in the world, Nestle, recently signed an agreement to jointly research the effects of nutrition on cognitive function with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. Nestle has pledged to contribute as much as CHF 5 million ($4.8 million) a year for the next five years to the research institute. After four years, the company will review the project with the option of extending the agreement.

by Mike Adams

(NaturalNews) NaturalNews has learned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is running a criminal extortion racket designed to drain cash from health supplement companies and shift it into the pockets of top FDA contractors.

This organized crime operation has been running for years, and it has operated with impunity because each company targeted by the scam feels isolated and alone, unable to face the astronomical legal bills of going to court and battling the FDA. So one by one, they agree to "settle" with the FDA for crimes they never committed. Part of the settlement, of course, involves the payment of FDA employees or contractors who pocket the money extorted from health companies.

NaturalNews has interviewed executives from three different companies who have been targeted for extortion by U.S. Food and Drug Administration employees. At their request, the names of those companies are being kept confidential until legal action being taken against them is resolved. Interviews have been recorded, with permission, with two of those companies and will be released to the public at a later date. Documents proving this FDA extortion racket are included here.

How the FDA extorts money from nutritional supplement companies

The FDA extortion racket works like this: FDA employees use keyword-scanning software to scan the web pages of natural health product and supplement companies, searching for terms like cancer, cures, treatment, remedies and other "forbidden" words. FDA employees then review the discovered pages to determine if they contain any words that might inform consumers of the health benefits of the nutritional products. FDA employees also look for links that might point web users to scientific articles from peer-reviewed medical journals that further explain the health benefits of specific foods, supplements or nutrients.

When offending words or links are found by the FDA, their extortion team goes into full swing. First, they contact the company and warn them to remove all information and links from their websites. This is the most important step from the FDA's standpoint, because by doing this, they can keep the health-conscious public in a state of nutritional ignorance about the scientifically-supported healing properties of natural supplements. Cherry products, for example, cannot link to scientific articles explaining the simple biological fact that cherries ease inflammation in human beings. Such links are considered "drug claims" by the FDA.

NaturalNews has even learned that companies are now being targeted for simply posting customer testimonials, even when those testimonials make absolutely no health claims. FDA and FTC agents are now threatening the owners of such companies with imprisonment if they do not immediately remove all customer testimonials from their websites and marketing materials.

If the company being targeted for extortion refuses to fully comply with the FDA's requests to remove all educational information from their website, the FDA then escalates the extortion tactics by threatening the company principals with arrest and seizure unless they agree to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to top FDA contractors and sign a "consent decree" where the company "admits" to committing various crimes (see below). This consent decree is a blatant violation of the Constitutional rights of U.S. citizens, of course, and it violates numerous sections of the Bill of Rights (Amendments #1 and #5, at the very least).

The FDA employees or contractors receiving the extorted money, it is claimed, are being paid to "review web pages" to make sure they don't contain anything that might inform consumers about the scientifically-validated benefits of the health products being sold. FDA extortion agreements specify that FDA employees should be paid the rate of $100 per hour, with no limit on the number of hours they may bill the company for. The extortion agreement also requires companies to pay for all the following:

• $100 per hour for the travel time of FDA employees.
• Hotel rooms for FDA employees.
• Storage fees for all products seized by the FDA.

The same agreement also requires the company to comply with FDA demands by never placing any links or "illegal" information on its website, where "illegal" means anything that offers an accurate description of the health benefits offered by natural health products.

The Consent Decree

Part of the FDA's strategy for oppression and control is to force targeted companies to sign a "consent decree" where they admit to crimes they never committed. NaturalNews obtained a copy of a public court document the FruitFast company was forced to sign due to FDA threats and extortion tactics.

You can view this document yourself at: http://www.NaturalNews.com/investigatio…

This document requires the FruitFast company to admit to crimes it did not commit; namely:

"Violating the Act, by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce articles of drug that are misbranded within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. SS 352(f)(1)."

What "drugs" did the FruitFast company introduce that were "misbranded?" Cherries, it turns out. Cherry juice concentrate was being sold with the accurate statement that it helped eliminate gout (which it does). This, according to the FDA, was enough to magically transform cherry juice into an "unapproved drug" and cause it to be "misbranded."

It also requires targeted companies to contractually agree that they have:

"…removed all claims from Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, and in any other media that cause that product to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act; and

(ii) removed, from their product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and websites owned or controlled by Defendants, references to or endorsements of any other website that conveys information about Defendants' products that cause those products to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act."

This means, of course, that these companies can no longer even LINK to other websites, including websites of scientific journals that discuss the proven health benefits of such natural products (foods, herbs, etc.)

The truth is now subject to FDA approval

Once a company removes all educational information and links from their website, they are then required to submit to draconian measures of "censorship enforcement" by the FDA. This is fully explained in this section of the FDA's Consent Decree: (bolding added for emphasis)

Within ten (10) calendar days of FDA's request for any labels, labeling, promotional materials, and/or downloaded copies (on CD-Rom) of any internet websites owned or controlled by Defendants or websites referenced by, endorsed, or adopted directly or indirectly by Defendants, Defendants shall submit a copy of the requested materials to FDA at the address specified in paragraph 19.

Within twenty (20) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall submit to FDA a certification of compliance, signed by each of the individually-named Defendants in this matter, each Defendant stating that he: (a) has personally reviewed all of Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and the internet websites referred to in paragraph 8 above; and (b) personally certifies that the product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and internet websites strictly comply with the requirements of the Act and its regulations and do not include unapproved or unauthorized claims that the products cure, mitigate, treat, prevent and/or reduce the risk of disease. Thereafter, Defendants shall submit certifications of compliance every three (3) months for a period of two (2) years.

Furthermore, the FDA then requires that the company being targeted by the extortion racket hire a person (called the "expert") to enforce all this censorship the company has agreed to.

As you'll note in the language below, this "expert" must be paid $100 an hour, for an unlimited number of hours, to conduct surprise inspections of the company's administrative offices, warehouses and fulfillment centers:

Within fourteen (14) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall retain an independent person or persons (the "expert")… who by reason of background, experience, education, and training is qualified to assess Defendants' compliance with the Act, to review the claims Defendants make for all of their products on their product labels, labeling, promotional material, any internet websites owned or controlled by Defendants, including, but not limited to, the websites referred to in paragraph 8 above. At the conclusion of the expert's review, the expert shall prepare a written report analyzing whether Defendants are operating in compliance with the Act and in particular, certify whether Defendants have omitted all claims from their product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, and in any other media, that make any of their products drugs and/or constitute unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act. The expert shall also review Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and websites owned or controlled by Defendants to determine whether these include any references to or endorsements of any other websites that convey information about Defendants' products that cause those products to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act, and certify in the written report whether Defendants have omitted any such references or endorsements. The expert shall submit this report to FDA and Defendants within thirty-five (35) calendar days of the entry of this Decree. If the expert reports any violations of the Act, Defendants shall, within seven (7) calendar days of receipt of the report, correct those deviations, unless FDA notifies Defendants that a shorter time period is necessary.

In other words, this section requires the company being targeted to pay the "Expert" huge fees to make sure it doesn't "illegally" link to other websites that might tell the truth about the health products in question.

FDA tyranny unleashed

So what happens if the company slips up and does something illegal like, let's say, posting a clickable link to a science journal that discusses research citing the health benefits of cherries? As you'll see below, there are no limits to the action the FDA can take in retribution, including the seizure of all company assets and the arrest of its principals.

Specifically, the Consent Decree forces company owners to agree to the following:

If, at any time after this Decree has been entered, FDA determines, based on the results of an inspection, the analyses of Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, or websites referenced by, endorsed, or adopted directly or indirectly by Defendants that convey information about Defendants' products, a report prepared by Defendants' expert, or any other information, that additional corrective actions are necessary to achieve compliance with the Act, applicable regulations, or this Decree, FDA may, as and when it deems necessary, direct Defendants, in writing, to take one or more of the actions:

A. Cease manufacturing, processing, packing, labeling, holding, and/or distributing any article(s);

B. Submit additional reports or information to FDA;

C. Recall any article(s) at Defendants' expense; or

D. Take any other reasonable corrective action(s) as FDA, in its discretion, deems necessary to bring Defendants and their products into compliance with the Act, applicable regulations, and this Decree.

Surprise inspections, secret police and non-stop persecution
Just to keep the targeted company in a state of constant fear (which is why I have labeled the FDA a terrorist organization), the FDA forces it to agree to surprise inspections where it must pay FDA "compliance officers" to rummage through their product shelves and paperwork, looking for evidence of non-compliance:

Duly authorized representatives of FDA shall be permitted, without prior notice and as and when FDA deems necessary, to make [surprise] inspections of Defendants' facilities and, without prior notice, take any other measures necessary to monitor and ensure continuing compliance with the terms of this Decree. During such inspections, FDA representatives shall be permitted prompt access to buildings, equipment, in-process and finished materials, containers, labeling and other materials therein; to take photographs and make video recordings; to take samples of Defendants' finished and unfinished materials and products, containers, labels, labeling, and other promotional materials; and to examine and copy all records relating to the receipt, manufacture, processing, packing, labeling, promoting, holding, and distribution of any and all Defendants' products in order to ensure continuing compliance with the terms of this Decree. The inspections shall be permitted upon presentation of a copy of this Decree and appropriate credentials. The inspection authority granted by this Decree is separate from, and in addition to, the authority to conduct inspections under the Act, 21 U.S.C. §374.

And just to make sure the company is further driven into bankruptcy, the FDA requires them to PAY for all these surprise "compliance" investigations! As stated in the Consent Decree:

Defendants shall reimburse FDA for the costs of all FDA inspections, investigations, supervision, reviews, examinations, and analyses specified in this Decree or that FDA deems necessary to evaluate Defendants' compliance with this Decree. The costs of such inspections shall be borne by Defendants at the prevailing rates in effect at the time the costs are incurred. As of the date that this Decree is signed by the parties, these rates are: $78.09 per hour and fraction thereof per representative for inspection work; $93.61 per hour or fraction thereof per representative for analytical or review work; $0.485 per mile for travel expenses by automobile; government rate or the equivalent for travel by air or other means; and the published government per diem rate or the equivalent for the areas in which the inspections are performed per-day, per-representative for subsistence expenses, where necessary. In the event that the standard rates applicable to FDA supervision of court-ordered compliance are modified, these rates shall be increased or decreased without further order of the Court."

Are you getting the picture here? The FDA can simply show up on a "surprise" inspection, bring ten FDA agents, bill the company for thousands of hours, and bankrupt the company while padding its own pockets.

Doesn't this sound a lot like the King's Consent Decree against the American colonies? The FDA's agreement reads amazingly like a document a King might force his subjects to sign as he's taking over their land and gold, imprisoning them in his kingdom.

But it gets better: The FDA also requires the Defendants to reveal all sorts of details about their business operations:

"Within ten (10) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall provide FDA a list of all domain names and IP addresses they use to market or describe any product, regardless of whether such sites mention specific products Defendants sell.

Defendants shall notify the District Director, FDA Detroit District Office, in writing at least fifteen (15) calendar days before any change in ownership, character, or name of its business.

If Defendants fail to comply with any of the provisions of this Decree, including any time frame imposed by this Decree, then, on motion of the United States in this proceeding, Defendants Brownwood Acres and/or Cherry Capital shall pay to the United States of America the sum of one thousand dollars ($1,000) in liquidated damages per violation per day so long as such violation continues.

Should the United States bring, and prevail in, a contempt action to enforce the terms of this Decree, Defendants shall, in addition to other remedies, reimburse the United States for its attorneys* fees, investigational expenses, expert witness fees, travel expenses incurred by attorneys and witnesses, and administrative court costs relating to such contempt proceedings.

And finally, just to make sure everybody knows who's in charge, here's what the agreement says about final judgment:

All decisions specified in this Decree shall be vested in the discretion of FDA and shall be final.

In other words, the FDA is the King. It is above the law. It answers to no one but itself.

Welcome to the United States of Tyranny, FDA style.

The full text of the FDA's agreement, including the names of the top FDA criminals who signed it, is included at the end of this article.

This brand of tyranny is reserved for health supplement companies
While the FDA gives drug companies a free pass of easy approval for dangerous drugs, this Consent Decree is the kind of treatment it slams down upon health product companies. As you can see from the text in the decree, above, this is a document of outright tyranny and oppression.

Any company signing this document gives the FDA all the tools it needs to drive that company completely out of business. Sadly, dozens of companies have signed this in just the last year. The FDA's reign of terror is working. It's putting health companies out of business and forcing them to censor themselves. It even forces them to remove all web links to information sources like NaturalNews.com or peer-reviewed science journals.

This is all part of the FDA's campaign of health illiteracy — a war of disinformation being waged against the American people. It is a secret war being fought out of the view of the mainstream media (which refuses to report this story) and far from the scrutiny of the U.S. Dept. of Justice (which doesn't care about the real tyrants running loose in this country).

As I have often stated here on NaturalNews.com, the FDA is an out-of-control, rogue agency engaged in acts of terrorism against the American people. By itself, it is negligent in the deaths of tens of millions of Americans, and it has taken it upon itself to increase the body count by making sure consumers have zero access to honest, truthful, scientifically-validated information about the healing properties of health supplements.

The FDA, by any account, is a much greater threat to the security and safety of the American people than any terrorist group, and if the U.S. really wanted to fight terror and tyranny, it would start by arresting top FDA officials at gunpoint. Those targeted for arrest and prosecution should also include the lawyers and paper pushers involved in this very agreement (see their names on the legal documents at the end of this article).

In my view, these people are the real criminals at work here. They are the masterminds of this campaign of extortion and terror being leveled against health companies by the rogue U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Much like Hitler's top generals, they play an important role in the mass disinformation that's resulting in the needless death of millions of people. By any account, they are all guilty of crimes against humanity and should be arrested and prosecuted as such. We should all be so fortunate to live to the day where we can see these white-collar criminals behind bars, perhaps sharing their jail cells with other war criminals from the Bush Administration.

Sign this or you'll be arrested

What you haven't yet seen in all this is the barrage of threats leveled against companies if they don't sign this Consent Decree! Company executives receive both written and verbal threats from top FDA "enforcement officers" who claim they will "throw you in prison" if you don't sign the agreement.

Every major health trade show hosts an FDA compliance officer (much like a Nazi Gestapo officer) whose job it is to walk the show floor and threaten companies into compliance. This includes shows like Expo West and Expo East, where show organizers also serve as de facto FDA agents themselves, barring the participation of exhibitors who dare to tell the truth about their natural products. This smacks of KGB secret police operations in the former Soviet Union. But secret FDA police are now a reality in the United States of America.

NaturalNews has learned of numerous verbal threats from FDA compliance officers directed at health supplement companies during trade shows, including threats to "put you out of business," "throw you in prison" or "take every last dollar you've ever earned."

FDA compliance officers are the foot soldiers of the agency's war against the truth. They seek out any health claim that might inform consumers about the properties of nutritional supplements, then they work to squash such statements before they become too well known. In essence, they are censorship officers who enforce nutritional illiteracy and prevent knowledge from being shared.

As such, they are acting not merely as secret police on a mission to destroy small American businesses; they are actually agents of disinformation, bent on destroying knowledge and enforcing a system of mandatory ignorance. This is entirely consistent with the FDA's history of ordering the destruction of recipe books that promoted the use of the natural herb stevia, among many other examples of information suppression.

The FDA's campaign of health illiteracy and enforced ignorance

It is the FDA's position that there is no such thing as any food, beverage, supplement or herb that has any health benefit whatsoever. Merely making such a claim instantly qualifies your product as a "new and unapproved drug," according to the FDA.

Officially, the FDA claims all health products are inert and have no properties other than their macronutrients (fiber, carbohydrates, protein, etc.).

There is only one class of substances that have any biological effect on the human body, the FDA claims: Pharmaceuticals. Only those patented, synthetic chemicals are allowed to be described as having benefits to human health.

This convenient position is entirely consistent with the protection of the profits of drug companies. It's no coincidence that the drug companies fund the FDA through "user fees," and most FDA employees are dependent on drug company money… except, of course, those FDA people earning their living by extorting millions of dollars from health product companies.

The upshot of the FDA's campaign against health supplements is that most of the American people remain nutritionally illiterate, oblivious to the scientifically-validated health benefits offered by tens of thousands of different nutrients, plants, supplements and products. To say that zinc speeds healing, or that vitamin D prevents cancer, or that resveratrol lowers high cholesterol is common sense in the scientific community, but it's a crime in the eyes of the FDA.

It's time to stop the FDA's reign of terror over health supplements

It is time to end the FDA's extortion racket, restore Free Speech rights to health supplements, and bring the organized crime kingpins at the FDA to justice.

NaturalNews is organizing a list of companies who wish to help fund legal action against the FDA. We intend to take part in a lawsuit against the FDA that would reign in the FDA's control over nutritional supplements and defend health freedoms for American consumers.

To do this, we need to gather information from those companies who are willing to help fund this legal action, which may cost several hundred thousand dollars. If you represent a company willing to take part in this legal action against the FDA, contact us now at [email protected]

Simply email us your name and contact phone number. We'll contact you to continue the conversation. Any information sent to us is kept strictly confidential. We will refuse to turn over such information even with a court order.

With enough support from the natural products community, we will take part in the reporting and grassroots organization of this legal action.

We must stop the FDA now

It is the belief of NaturalNews that the FDA is being run as a system of organized crime, using the exact same extortion tactics as the Mob. Through intimidation, censorship and threats of imprisonment, the FDA is right now extorting tens of millions of dollars from the very same health supplement companies you depend on to bring you lifesaving, disease-reversing products.

Even worse, the FDA is getting away with it. Backed by the threat of imprisonment and the ability to conduct armed raids against health product companies (see the history of armed FDA raids against vitamin companies here: http://www.naturalnews.com/021791.html ), the FDA is able to overpower health product companies when they stand alone.

The industry must band together if it hopes to defend itself against this tyranny. A lone villager cannot defend himself against a band of marauders, but an organized and well-defended band of villagers can fight off attackers many times their size. If it wishes to survive, the natural products industry must band together and defend itself against the FDA. It must take back its right to tell the truth about health supplements, and it must forever banish censorship and ignorance from the health products marketplace.

The FDA will not stop its reign of terror, you see, until every health supplement companies is silenced, every company founder is imprisoned and every consumer is enslaved in a state of outright nutritional illiteracy. They will seize products and let them rot in warehouses; they'll recruit armed law enforcement personnel to conduct SWAT-style raids on vitamin shops; they'll extort millions of dollars from health companies and pocket the profits; and they'll do it all while burning taxpayer dollars and claiming they're working to "protect" consumers from natural health products like cherry juice concentrate, which is of course so incredibly dangerous that we need an entire government agency just to make sure we don't find out it might ease arthritis inflammation.

What you can do right now to help halt the FDA's reign of terror

As a consumer, you can use your voice to help stop the FDA from destroying the natural products marketplace. Simply go to www.ReformFDA.org and sign the petition there.

It's sponsored by the American Association for Health Freedom (AAHF), an organization fighting to end the FDA's tyrannical rule over the health of the American people.

Sign that petition and spread the word: NaturalNews and the AAHF are working together to bring back honesty, freedom and free speech to the health supplements industry, and we need your help to get it done.

You can also protest the FDA with your Congressperson or Senator. Contact them and insist that they support efforts to end the reign of FDA tyranny and reestablish Free Speech rights for nutritional supplement companies.

Notably, Rep. Ron Paul has sponsored the Health Freedom Protection Act, which you can read here: http://www.StopFDACensorship.org

Grab your cameras, folks

Finally, NaturalNews urges those in the natural health community to go out and buy video cameras and still cameras and start snapping photos of rogue FDA agents arresting people, seizing products, accepting bribes or other outrageous acts. We cannot simply lie down and let the FDA march in to our company warehouses and seize products. One video can change the world. It's up to you to get that video recorded and get it to us here at NaturalNews. Use our feedback form to contact us: www.NaturalNews.com/feedback.html

We've also opened up an audio tips line, where FDA employees who wish to leak information to NaturalNews can anonymously call us and leave a message: (323) 924-1664

With your help, we will soon start publishing videos and photos showing FDA agents directly engaged in acts of tyranny against health companies. And for those who'd like to earn some extra money snapping photos, we're willing to pay you for photos of FDA "compliance officers" walking trade show floors where they threaten companies in person. Contact us for details if you're a photographer with a long lens who would like to start earning money snapping photos of FDA agents engaged in their dirty work.

It's time to shed light on the real actions of the FDA. We can no longer sit back and allow this criminal organization to operate in secret. But grabbing the public's attention all comes down to getting this on video. This is the YouTube era. If it's not on video, it doesn't exist. But if it's on video, we can likely get it on mainstream news. (I can see it now: the FDA raids a warehouse and handcuffs the screaming, crying business owner. And why? Because their bottle said, "Eases inflammation." The public won't stand for it.)

The FDA, of course, will have its own people doing the same thing to people like me. They're trying to catch us eating at McDonald's or going through the local pharmacy drive-thru. All I can say about that is they'll be waiting a long, long time to see that day!

Please forward this story to everyone you know. We the People must either prevail in this fight for our freedom, or we will all end up illiterate, imprisoned or silenced. The FDA will take away your rights, your speech and your health, and it will laugh all the way to the bank while it steals your hard-earned money. It will break every law, ignore every court order and commit every crime necessary to bring health companies into line… UNLESS we fight back and do our part to end this grave threat to our health, safety and freedoms.

The FDA is the enemy of the People. It is a criminal organization bent on destroying American freedoms and consumer health. It operates with impunity, using its own secret compliance officers, wreaking death and destruction across our nation like a dark plague unleashed. If we hope to ever regain our health, our freedoms and the basic human right to tell the truth about the healing properties of simple foods, then we must bring this agency to justice and prosecute its mob bosses for their many crimes against the People.

It is time to stand up for your health freedoms, or lose them forever. Please join me in this courageous stand against tyranny and oppression.

– Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com

The Full Consent Decree of Permanent Injunction
Here's the full text of the Consent Decree in case you want to read it yourself.

February 12, 2008 3:11 PM

RONALD C. WESTON, SR., CLERK

U.S. DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

v.

BROWNWOOD ACRES FOODS, INC., and CHERRY CAPITAL SERVICES, INC. d.b.a. FLAVONOID SCIENCES, corporations, and STEPHEN C. de TAR and ROBERT L. UNDERWOOD, individuals,

Defendants.

Plaintiff, United States of America, having commenced this action by filing its Complaint for Permanent Injunction, and Brownwood Acres Foods, Inc. ("Brownwood Acres") and Cherry Capital Services, Inc., d.b.a. Flavonoid Sciences ("Cherry Capital"), corporations, and Stephen C. de Tar and Robert L. Underwood, individuals (hereafter collectively, "Defendants"), having appeared and consented to the entry of this Decree without contest and before any testimony was taken, and the United States of America, having consented to this Decree;

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED as follows: 1. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this action and has personal jurisdiction over all parties to this action.

CIVIL NO

1:08-cv-148

HON Paul L Maloney

US District Judge

CONSENT DECREE OF PERMANENT INJUNCTION

2. The Complaint for Permanent Injunction states a cause of action against Defendants under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. §§ 301-397 (the "Act").

3. Defendants violate the Act, 21 U.S.C. § 331 (d), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce new drugs within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. § 321 (p) that are neither approved under 21 U.S.C. § 355(a), nor exempt from approval pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 355(t).

4. Defendants violate the Act, 21 U.S.C. § 331 (a), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce articles of drug that are misbranded within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. § 352(f)(1).

5. Defendants violate the Act, 21 U.S.C. § 331(a), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce food that is misbranded within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. §343(r)(1)(B).

6. Upon entry of this Decree, Defendants and each and all of their directors, officers, agents, representatives, employees, attorneys, successors, assigns, and any and all persons in active concert or participation with any of them who receive actual notice of this Decree by personal service or otherwise, are permanently restrained and enjoined from introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce any product unless and until:

A. An approved new drug application or abbreviated new drug application filed pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 355(a) or (j) is effective with respect to the product; or

B. An effective investigational new drug exemption filed pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 355(i) is in effect for the product; or

C. The product's claims comport with an authorized health claim set forth in 21 C.F.R. § 101.72-101.83; or

D. Defendants have received a letter of enforcement discretion for a qualified health claim from FDA for that product; or

E. Defendants have:

(i) removed all claims from Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, and in any other media that cause that product to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act; and

(ii) removed, from their product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and websites owned or controlled by Defendants, references to or endorsements of any other website that conveys information about Defendants' products that cause those products to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act.

7. Upon entry of this Decree, Defendants and each and all of their directors, officers, agents, representatives, employees, attorneys, successors, assigns, and any and all persons in active concert or participation with any of them who receive actual

notice of this Decree by personal service or otherwise, are permanently restrained and enjoined from directly or indirectly doing or causing to be done any act that:

A. Violates 21 U.S.C. § 331(d), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce new drugs within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. § 321 (p) that are neither approved pursuant to 21 U.S.C. § 355(a), nor exempt from approval pursuant to 21 U.S.C. §355(i);

B. Violates 21 U.S.C. § 331(a), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce articles of drug that are misbranded within the meaning of 21 U.S.C.

§ 352(f)(1); and

C. Violates 21 U.S.C. § 331(a), by introducing or delivering for introduction, or causing to be introduced or delivered for introduction, into interstate commerce food that is misbranded within the meaning of 21 U.S.C. § 343(r)(1)(B).

8. Within ten (10) calendar days of FDA's request for any labels, labeling, promotional materials, and/or downloaded copies (on CD-Rom) of any internet websites owned or controlled by Defendants or websites referenced by, endorsed, or adopted directly or indirectly by Defendants, Defendants shall submit a copy of the requested materials to FDA at the address specified in paragraph 19.

9. Within twenty (20) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall submit to FDA a certification of compliance, signed by each of the individually-named Defendants in this matter, each Defendant stating that he: (a) has personally reviewed

all of Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and the internet websites referred to in paragraph 8 above; and (b) personally certifies that the product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and internet websites strictly comply with the requirements of the Act and its regulations and do not include unapproved or unauthorized claims that the products cure, mitigate, treat, prevent and/or reduce the risk of disease. Thereafter, Defendants shall submit certifications of compliance every three (3) months for a period of two (2) years.

10. Within fourteen (14) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall retain an independent person or persons (the "expert"), without personal, financial (other than the consulting agreement between the parties), or familial ties to Defendants or their immediate families, who by reason of background, experience, education, and training is qualified to assess Defendants' compliance with the Act, to review the claims Defendants make for all of their products on their product labels, labeling, promotional material, any internet websites owned or controlled by Defendants, including, but not limited to, the websites referred to in paragraph 8 above. At the conclusion of the expert's review, the expert shall prepare a written report analyzing whether Defendants are operating in compliance with the Act and in particular, certify whether Defendants have omitted all claims from their product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, and in any other media, that make any of their products drugs and/or constitute unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act. The expert shall also review Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, and websites owned or controlled by Defendants to determine whether these include any references to or endorsements of any other

websites that convey information about Defendants' products that cause those products to be a drug and/or contain unapproved or unauthorized health claims within the meaning of the Act, and certify in the written report whether Defendants have omitted any such references or endorsements. The expert shall submit this report to FDA and Defendants within thirty-five (35) calendar days of the entry of this Decree. If the expert reports any violations of the Act, Defendants shall, within seven (7) calendar days of receipt of the report, correct those deviations, unless FDA notifies Defendants that a shorter time period is necessary.

11. If, at any time after this Decree has been entered, FDA determines, based on the results of an inspection, the analyses of Defendants' product labels, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, or websites referenced by, endorsed, or adopted directly or indirectly by Defendants that convey information about Defendants' products, a report prepared by Defendants' expert, or any other information, that additional corrective actions are necessary to achieve compliance with the Act, applicable regulations, or this Decree, FDA may, as and when it deems necessary, direct Defendants, in writing, to take one or more of the actions:

A. Cease manufacturing, processing, packing, labeling, holding, and/or distributing any article(s);

B. Submit additional reports or information to FDA;

C. Recall any article(s) at Defendants' expense; or

D. Take any other reasonable corrective action(s) as FDA, in its discretion, deems necessary to bring Defendants and their products into compliance with the Act, applicable regulations, and this Decree.

12. Any cessation of operations as described above shall continue until FDA notifies Defendants in writing that Defendants appear to be in compliance with the.Act and the requirements of this Decree, and that Defendants may resume operations. Such notification by FDA may not be unreasonably delayed.

13. Duly authorized representatives of FDA shall be permitted, without prior notice and as and when FDA deems necessary, to make inspections of Defendants' facilities and, without prior notice, take any other measures necessary to monitor and ensure continuing compliance with the terms of this Decree. During such inspections, FDA representatives shall be permitted prompt access to buildings, equipment, in-process and finished materials, containers, labeling and other materials therein; to take photographs and make video recordings; to take samples of Defendants' finished and unfinished materials and products, containers, labels, labeling, and other promotional materials; and to examine and copy all records relating to the receipt, manufacture, processing, packing, labeling, promoting, holding, and distribution of any and all Defendants' products in order to ensure continuing compliance with the terms of this Decree. The inspections shall be permitted upon presentation of a copy of this Decree and appropriate credentials. The inspection authority granted by this Decree is separate from, and in addition to, the authority to conduct inspections under the Act, 21 U.S.C. §374.

14. Defendants shall reimburse FDA for the costs of all FDA inspections, investigations, supervision, reviews, examinations, and analyses specified in this Decree or that FDA deems necessary to evaluate Defendants' compliance with this Decree. For the purposes of this Decree, inspections include FDA's review and

analysis of Defendants' claims for their products in the product labels, labeling, promotional materials, any and all websites owned or controlled by Defendants, and any and all websites referenced by, endorsed, or adopted directly or indirectly by Defendants that convey information about Defendants' products. The costs of such inspections shall be borne by Defendants at the prevailing rates in effect at the time the costs are incurred. As of the date that this Decree is signed by the parties, these rates are: $78.09 per hour and fraction thereof per representative for inspection work; $93.61 per hour or fraction thereof per representative for analytical or review work; $0,485 per mile for travel expenses by automobile; government rate or the equivalent for travel by air or other means; and the published government per diem rate or the equivalent for the areas in which the inspections are performed per-day, per-representative for subsistence expenses, where necessary. In the event that the standard rates applicable to FDA supervision of court-ordered compliance are modified, these rates shall be increased or decreased without further order of the Court.

15. Within ten (10) calendar days after the entry of this Decree, Defendants shall provide a copy of this Decree, by personal service or certified mail (restricted delivery, return receipt requested), to each and all of its directors, officers, agents, representatives, employees, successors, assigns, attorneys, and any and all persons in active concert or participation with any of them (including "doing business as" entities) (hereafter collectively referred to as "associated persons"). Wthin thirty-five (35) calendar days of the date of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall provide to FDA an affidavit of compliance, stating the fact and manner of compliance with the provisions of this paragraph and identifying the names and positions of all associated persons who

have received a copy of this Decree and the manner of notification. In the event that Defendants become associated, at any time after the entry of this Decree, with new associated persons, Defendants shall: (a) within fifteen (15) calendar days of such association, provide a copy of this Decree to each such associated person by personal service or certified mail (restricted delivery, return receipt requested), and (b) on a quarterly basis, notify FDA in writing when, how, and to whom the Decree was provided.

16. Within ten (10) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall post a copy of this Decree on a bulletin board in a common area at any of their manufacturing or distribution facilities, and shall ensure that the Decree remains posted for a period of twelve (12) months at each location.

17. Wthin ten (10) calendar days of entry of this Decree, Defendants shall provide FDA a list of all domain names and IP addresses they use to market or describe any product, regardless of whether such sites mention specific products Defendants sell. Defendants thereafter shall notify FDA within ten (10) days of any change to this list (either additions or deletions).

18. Defendants shall notify the District Director, FDA Detroit District Office, in writing at least fifteen (15) calendar days before any change in ownership, character, or name of its business, such as dissolution, assignment, or sale resulting in the emergence of a successor corporation, the creation or dissolution of subsidiaries, franchises, affiliates, or "doing business as" entities, or any other change in the corporate structure of Defendants Brownwood Acres or Cherry Capital, or in the sale or assignment of any business assets, such as buildings, equipment, or inventory, that may affect compliance with this Decree. Defendants shall provide a copy of this Decree to any potential successor or assignee at least fifteen (15) calendar days before any sale or assignment. Defendants shall furnish FDA with an affidavit of compliance with this paragraph no later than ten (10) calendar days prior to such assignment or change in ownership.

19. All notifications, certifications, reports, correspondence, and other communications to FDA required by this Decree shall be addressed to the Director, FDA Detroit District Office, 300 River Place, Suite 5900, Detroit, Michigan 48207.

20. If Defendants fail to comply with any of the provisions of this Decree, including any time frame imposed by this Decree, then, on motion of the United States in this proceeding, Defendants Brownwood Acres and/or Cherry Capital shall pay to the United States of America the sum of one thousand dollars ($1,000) in liquidated damages per violation per day so long as such violation continues. For the purposes of this paragraph, a "violation" is defined as each time any Defendant introduces or delivers for introduction into interstate commerce any product that is accompanied by (on the product's label, labeling, promotional materials, websites owned or controlled by Defendants, or in any other media) a claim(s) that causes the product to be a drug or constitutes a health claim within the meaning of the Act, unless the product is an approved new drug or such claim is authorized by FDA.

21. Should the United States bring, and prevail in, a contempt action to enforce the terms of this Decree, Defendants shall, in addition to other remedies, reimburse the United States for its attorneys* fees, investigational expenses, expert witness fees, travel expenses incurred by attorneys and witnesses, and administrative court costs relating to such contempt proceedings.

22. All decisions specified in this Decree shall be vested in the discretion of FDA and shall be final. If contested, FDA's decisions under this Decree shall be reviewed by the Court under the arbitrary and capricious standard set forth in 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(A). Review shall be based exclusively on the written record before FDA at the time the decision was made. No discovery shall be taken by either party.

23. If, in FDA's judgment, Defendants maintain a continuous state of compliance with this Decree and the Act for a period of three (3) years after the date of entry of this Decree, and FDA has not notified Defendants that there has been a significant violation of this Decree or the Act during such time, the government will not oppose Defendants' petition to the Court to dissolve the Decree.

24. This Court retains jurisdiction of this action for the purpose of enforcing or modifying this Decree and for the purpose of granting such additional relief as may be necessary or appropriate.

IT IS SO ORDERED:

Dated this_day of_, 2008.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

FOR PLAINTIFF

CHARLES R. GROSS
United States Attorney Western District of Michigan

W. FRANCESCA FERGUSON
Assistant U.S. Attorney

ALAN J. PHELPS
Trial Attorney
Office of Consumer Litigation Department of Justice Civil Division P.O. Box 386 Washington, D.C. 20044

OF COUNSEL:

JAMES C. STANSEL
Acting General Counsel

GERALD F. MASOUDI
Chief Counsel
Food and Drug Division

ERIC M. BLUMBERG
Deputy Chief Counsel, Litigation

MICHELE LEE SVONKIN
Associate Chief Counsel for Enforcement United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of the General Counsel

The silver-based procedure has been so successful in clinical tests, that one patient who had sustained three crushed fingers in an accident grew new tissue immediately. Within 2-1/2 months, skin coverage was complete and there was normal, full sensation, good blood supply and all joints had a normal range of motion. If left untreated, the 3~year-old electrician's fingers would have fallen off after turning black with gangrene, and he would have been left with a totally useless hand. In fact, his orthopedic surgeon recommended amputation of al1 three fingers, but the patient requested silver-ion therapy that was successful.

The mechanism by which silver ions help rebuild tissue has been studied for more than a decade by Robert O. Becker, M. D., Becker Biomagnetics, Lowville, New York. Becker first reported his findings at the First International Conference on Silver and Gold in Medicine, cosponsored by The Silver Institute in 1987.

In the decade since, this technique has been used in a clinical setting at Mountain Medical Specialties in Lakemont, Georgia, where hundreds of patients with various wounds have recovered. In addition, a laboratory study conducted by the U.S. Army Institute for Surgical Research in Fort Sam Houston, Texas, showed that laboratory animals with burn wounds treated under controlled conditions experienced shortened time for reconstruction with silver-nylon dressings. Recovery of skin function was faster when electric current was applied compared to no application of electric current.

Becker discovered that when positively charged silver ions are electrically introduced into wounds with a proprietary silver-coated nylon fabric used as the positive electrode, large amounts of primitive embryonic stem cells are produced. These stem cells are responsible for the reconstruction of destroyed tissue at a pace considerably faster than if the wound had been left to heal by itself. In other cases, the wound might not heal at all without the introduction of these stem cells

"The advantages of this technique," says Becker, "are the ease of use, use of the patient's own cells, no immune reaction, no need to use human fetusus as a source of stem cells, no need for anti-rejection drugs and it is economic." [bag – the pharmas just hate that]

On September 29, 1998, Becker received a U.S. patent (5,814,094) for the devices, materials and techniques involved in regeneration of tissue using silver ions.

After several hundred cases, Becker believes that the technique works in three stages. The first stage is the chemical combination of the highly active free silver ions with all bacteria or fungi present in the wound that are inactivated within 20 to 30 minutes. The second stage occurs over the next few days. Silver acts on fibroblast cells (the cells that normally cause wound healing by scar formation) to cause them to revert to their embryonic state, becoming stem cells. These cells are universal building blocks whose role is to reconstruct new tissue regenerating the original structure rather than simply to form scar tissue only.

In the final stage, silver ions form a complex with the living cells in the wound area to produce immediately convertible stem cells. As stem cells flood the wound, they are rapidly converted into new, mature normal tissues of the types present before the wound occurred. The end result of this conversion is complete restoration of all anatomical structures including nerves and blood supply with no scar formation. In all cases treated, no evidence of argyria (discoloration of skin) or any other side effect was noted.

No other known treatment provides sufficient numbers of the embryonic or stem cells required for true regeneration of damaged or destroyed tissue in humans and animals. This success indicates that there is the potential not only for the healing of near-surface wounds, but for regenerative repair of internal organs such as the heart, liver, brain and the spinal cord.

Prior research at the National Institute of Health (NIH) as far back as 1959 by Drs. Schwartz and Mertz had proved that Chromium was an essential nutrient and lacking in most Americans diet. Dr. Henry Schroeder, MD, PhD, graduate of Columbia and Yale, and professor at Dartmouth Medical School stated in 1973 that "…the typical American diet, with about 60% of its calories from refined sugar, refined flour, and fat…was apparently designed not only to provide as little chromium as feasible, but to cause depletion of body stores of chromium." He compared tissue levels of chromium in teenagers and those years old in Americans to those of three other cultures that did not follow Western dietary choices in the Mideast, Southeast Asian, and African communities.

He discovered little change in the non-American cultures but dramatic decreases in Americans. Almost 25% of Americans had no detectable levels of chromium by age 40! That was more than 30 years ago and things have become markedly worse as each generation of mothers has less and less chromium to give to their preborn children. Pushed by many additional factors that cause us to eat more and more chromium-deficient foods such as powerful/addictive appetite stimulant excitoneurotoxins (MSG, Aspartame, Splenda) that are found in large amounts (no legal upper limit) in nearly all processed foods in stores and restaurants, we are now reaping a whirlwind of Obesity, Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease at younger and younger ages.

We can no longer call the most common type of Diabetes-Adult Onset because it now occurs in many children as young as 6-8 years old. But the situation is not hopeless because we have available to us food grown GTF (Glucose Tolerance Factor) Chromium which if taken correctly (at 100micrograms three times daily) and consistently over 6-12 months time can ease symptoms e.g. pain and improve the clinical course with the best part being that the improvements can be documented on regular blood tests of fasting blood sugar, cholesterol, LDL, HDL, HemoglobinA1C, triglycerides among others. Get your GTF Chromium today and along with some basic dietary changes and some
exercise, fresh air and sunshine, you can expect some positive changes in your life!

A spokesperson for the Browns did not return a request for comment. An NFL representative said the league has no statement on the issue.