THE FREEDOM TO MAKE INFORMED HEALTH CHOICES
It’s hard to believe that the constitutional right to make your own informed decisions about nutrients was wrested from the FDA regulators only twenty-five years ago!
And our own Skye, Durk Pearson, made that happen with a lawsuit that had to go to appellate court before it was finally decided in 1999.
“The safe harbor from “drug” status for dietary supplements bearing FDA-approved health claims did not always exist. Prior to 1984, the FDA took the position that a statement that consumption of a food could prevent a particular disease was “tantamount to a claim that the food was a drug . . . and therefore that its sale was prohibited until a new drug application had been approved.” Appeal No. 98-5043
Durk and Sandy were pioneers in anti-aging science—but they were also warriors for truth and free speech. In 1993 they wrote Freedom of Informed Choice: FDA vs. Nutritional Supplements, a powerful book that shook the foundations of how the FDA regulates supplements.
They exposed how the FDA was blocking truthful information about nutritional supplements from reaching the public and they argued that Americans have a constitutional right to hear the truth about nutrients—even if the FDA didn’t approve of the message.
Durk and Sandy showed how the FDA censored truthful, science-backed claims from reaching the public—delaying access to life-changing information about folic acid, fish oil, antioxidants, and more.
Even when science supported claims—like folic acid preventing birth defects or omega-3s helping the heart—the FDA wouldn’t allow them unless they were approved as drug claims. Durk and Sandy believed that was unconstitutional.
Their book became the legal foundation for Pearson v. Shalala, a landmark case that gave companies the right to share truthful, science-based claims with proper disclaimers. Pearson v Shalala created the entire multi-billion dollar US health supplement industry existing today.
Every dietary supplement you buy in a health food store contains the following disclaimer because of Durk Pearson: “These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.”
Pearson thus forced the FDA to allow truthful structure and function — but not medical — health claims as constitutionally-protected free speech. It was genius – resulting in the vast improvement of the health and longevity of hundreds of millions over the last quarter-century.
At Life Priority, we’ve worked with Durk and Sandy since 1994, and we’re proud to carry forward their mission:
√ To protect health freedom!
√ To share real science and “Designer Food” formulas
√ And to fight for your right to know!
Because truth in health isn’t just a message—it’s a mission.
~ Live Long & Prosper… Greg & Michelle
Greg and Michelle Pryor are the owners of Life Priority, a licensee of Pearson & Shaw nutritional formulas. They are long time subscribers to TTP.
