FDA. Do you trust them ?

[kvnchrist]

One of the most frightening things I can think about is have a government bureaucracy to look into what we eat and the drugs we take into our bodies. Seeing that they are apart of government and that money and big businesses run this country, the idea that something somewhat like Stevie Wonder as a school crossing guard is standing as a watchdog for an industry that is so vital to the American citizen.

 

Has this department been on the leading edge of healthier foods or making sure that the new drugs don't kill us, by their side effects, while they try to save us from something far less severe. Are we paying for a bloated government department that takes it's job as seriously as those who were supposed to check the emergency shutdown equipment on the B.P. oil well, or those who concocted the Fast and Furious fiasco?

[marharth]

Trust them more then the corporations that do everything for profit.

 

I would rather have someone there to regulate them then no one at all.

[kvnchrist]

Trust them more then the corporations that do everything for profit.

 

I would rather have someone there to regulate them then no one at all.

 

 

My question is who much influence does these corporations have on these departments. The pharmaceutical drug companies, for one are a big lobby group in Washington. They, as well as the health insurance companies were intimately involved in Obamacare, which is why I'm so skeptical of that.

[marharth]

Trust them more then the corporations that do everything for profit.

 

I would rather have someone there to regulate them then no one at all.

 

 

My question is who much influence does these corporations have on these departments. The pharmaceutical drug companies, for one are a big lobby group in Washington. They, as well as the health insurance companies were intimately involved in Obamacare, which is why I'm so skeptical of that.

They may have influence, but its better for them to have some influence and still have regulation then none at all.

[lemonfan1]

I don't trust the FDA. I don't believe for one moment the Nutritional "Facts" you can find on food products either, since legal trickery is used to trick people who don't look closely enough. For example, certain cans of soda. What makes up a serving? Half the can. Who drinks HALF a can of soda? No caffeine in your drink? Ah! But they don't have to tell you about the ingredients which naturally contain that caffeine. Think your product has no calories per serving? If there's a decimal, companies are allowed to round that decimal down. If it's 0.9, it's written as 0. So be careful with those sauces.

 

I pretty much don't trust anyone in these positions anymore. I leave it up to me to decide what's good and right for me. Doctors prescribing all sorts of drugs and making money off of it, vets doing the same thing, FDA approving harmful products and then not being held responsible when its harming people. I sound kind of cynical, but I'm not wrong. At least not with the stuff in my area.

[HeyYou]

The FDA is rather hit and miss.... It's a cycle.

 

Drug company comes up with new drug to treat some disease or other.

 

Company does lab testing for X number of years.

 

Company shows EDITED lab results to FDA. (who are bureaucrats, NOT scientists....)

 

FDA approves drug for human use.

 

5 to 10 years later, same drug is found to have side affects associated with long-term use. Generally, these side affects are worse than what the drugs were designed to treat.

 

Drug is pulled from market.

 

Class action lawsuits are filed.

 

How many times have you seen this happen? Todays "wonder drug" is tomorrows class-action lawsuit......

[Deleted472477User]

they're as subject to being bought (bribed) by corporations as much as anything else in government, so I don't trust them very much at all.

[crimsonblade1]

As long as there are corporate lobbyists, the government is compromised to the interests of corporation and cannot be trusted to be non partial when it comes to corporations.

[HeyYou]

As long as there are corporate lobbyists, the government is compromised to the interests of corporation and cannot be trusted to be non partial when it comes to corporations.

 

So long as corporations are considered "people" for purposes of campaign donations/advertising, and can spend millions on lobbyists, there is no hope.

[crimsonblade1]

As long as there are corporate lobbyists, the government is compromised to the interests of corporation and cannot be trusted to be non partial when it comes to corporations.

 

So long as corporations are considered "people" for purposes of campaign donations/advertising, and can spend millions on lobbyists, there is no hope.

 

Hope is the wrong word I would use. It only means the elected officials who take money from corporate lobbyists put the interests of its citizens secondary to that of those who contribute the most to their campaign.

 

And no I don't trust my government as far as I can throw it.

Edited September 30, 2011 by crimsonblade1