Check It Out: Did you know it’s illegal for natural health providers to share life-changing stories?
By Joan Janzen
Here’s a bit of medical humour for you.
Doctor: How is the little girl doing who swallowed ten quarters last night?
Nurse: No change yet.
Here’s another one.
Patient: I get heartburn every time I eat birthday cake.
Doctor: Next time, take off the candles.
Many times there’s a common-sense solution to health problems. In this regard, Marc Nixon conducted an online interview with Shawn Buckley, a lawyer who has provided legal advocacy for natural health products for 30 years. He’s also the founder and president of the Natural Health Products Protection Association (NHPPA).
Marc asked, “Wouldn’t it make sense to try the natural way (remedy) first, and if that doesn’t work, then go the medical route?”
“Many people have tried to use chemical drugs, and we’re not here to slam chemical drugs, but some of us have found our relief through natural health products,” Shawn said. The NHPPA invites people to share those personal stories.
A young mom told her story of suffering from restless leg syndrome. She couldn’t sleep; her muscles were twitching continuously, forcing her to get up and walk at night. Her doctor diagnosed her and prescribed a Parkinson’s drug. When she read the side effects, she chose not to take the drug and visited a naturopathic doctor, who told her she was magnesium deficient. Only days later, she was no longer in pain.
Another woman had suffered from Crohn’s disease. For thirty years, she took chemical drugs but kept having flare-ups when she would spend weeks at a time in the hospital. Finally, she visited a holistic practitioner, and now she’s well.
A Canadian woman said she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and told it was a terminal disease with no cure. She was prescribed Methotrexate, a chemotherapy drug used to slow down the disease. A year later, she was still suffering from chronic pain and went to see a naturopathic doctor. He cured her illness with nutrition and natural remedies. Now she isn’t taking any drugs and is not in any pain.
Unfortunately, it’s illegal in Canada for natural health practitioners and manufacturers to share these life-changing stories. “If you resisted Health Canada before as a natural health provider or practitioner, your maximum fine was $5,000. Now it’s up to $5 million a day. This sent shivers through the entire community,” he reported.
The natural health community is being smothered by regulations imposed by Health Canada. As a result, natural health product companies have spent billions trying to comply with the regulations.
“We are told we need this ever-stricter regulatory burden to keep us safe. In reality, the regulations are the danger,” he said. He gave the example of Canada’s recommended daily allowances.
“You pick up a bottle of vitamins with a recommended daily allowance (RDA), but it’s illegal for a supplement manufacturer to provide dosage amounts above the RDA. But if you follow the RDA, you’re guaranteed it’s not enough; however, it’s illegal for a supplement manufacturer to provide dosage amounts that you actually need to be healthy. I’ve defended more companies charged by Health Canada than all other Canadian lawyers combined,” Shawn added.
The lawyer asked three doctors how much training in nutrition they received, and they said maybe half a day of instruction. “The leading cause of chronic disease in Canada is malnutrition, and doctors aren’t trained in nutrition,” he added. He explained that malnutrition is caused by a steady decline in nutrients found in our fruits, vegetables and grains, which is why supplements are essential.
Shawn noted the third leading cause of death in Canada is chemical drugs taken as directed. He cited a federal court case where a psychiatrist reported under oath. He ran a company that got psychiatric drugs approved in Canada and said he was required to give Health Canada two blank clinical trials showing the drug works.
“He runs eight clinical trials to get the two that Health Canada needs to approve the drug,” Shawn said. “If it gets approved, it’s illegal for the chemical drug company to share with you the failed clinical research.” In other words, it’s illegal to share the reporting of those side effects in the failed trials. Censorship is a concern for both prescription drugs and natural products.
Someone listening to the interview commented: “I asked my rheumatologist about the effects of green peppers on arthritis. She said she can’t comment on that, at risk of losing her medical licence. I thought she was kidding, but she was serious.”
On October 25, the NHPPA presented a petition for the Charter of Health Freedom in Ottawa. It’s the third-largest paper petition in Canadian history. “The Charter of Health Freedom came about because ordinary Canadians were concerned about continuing to make health choices,” he explained. NHPPA started a Health Charter Tour on Vancouver Island on October 4 and drove the Charter of Health Freedom across Canada.
“Marching the charter across the land creates awareness so Parliament understands this is a real opportunity to enable Canadians to make the best health decisions possible,” Shawn concluded.