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Articles Related to This Article: • Kentucky Sues Maker of OxyContin over Marketing Deceptions, Addictive Qualities of "Hillbilly Heroin" • The Addictive Nature of the Pain Killer OxyContin - One Man's True Story • In Sixteen States and Counting: Drugs Kill More People than Auto Accidents Support NaturalNews advertisers - Advertise with NaturalNews Nutrition Can Save America! FREE report by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, reveals why nutritional deficiencies are destroying America's health and economy... and how to restore America's future with real food.

Here's another opportunity to contrast the actions of the FDA's actions on prescription drugs versus herbal medicine. As you are probably well aware, the FDA aggressively bans herbs that cause just a few deaths. Ephedra's isolated problems were highly exaggerated and widely publicized in order to solicit an outcry that would justify the FDA's actions to ban the herb. And yet prescription drugs receive no such scrutiny. This story described how a prescription drug named OxyContin is being crushed and snorted by druggies to achieve a heroin-like high. Furthermore, the company making OxyContin distributed promotional videos to doctors that contained all sorts of unsubstantiated claims, such as the claim that fewer than 1% of users become addicted to the drug (many doctors would strongly argue with that).

So how is the FDA acting to protect the U.S. public against this heroin-like drug that's being improperly marketed across the country? It isn't. The investigation was conducted by the General Accounting Office (GAO), which had to actually yank the FDA's chain to get the agency to take a look at this drug. And now, six years after the drug was first introduced, the FDA has taken no steps whatsoever against the makers of OxyContin.

This is stunning news: the GAO, which is perhaps one of the last remaining honest departments in the federal government, is doing the FDA's job! That's why I'm a strong advocate of FDA reform and for creating an Internal Affairs department at the FDA so that somebody is watching over this irresponsible agency that continues to drag its feet when it comes to protecting the public from the dangers of prescription drugs.

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About the author: Mike Adams is a consumer health advocate with a passion for sharing empowering information to help improve personal and planetary health He has authored more than 1,500 articles and dozens of reports, guides and interviews on natural health topics, reaching millions of readers with information that is saving lives and improving personal health around the world. Adams is a trusted, independent journalist who receives no money or promotional fees whatsoever to write about other companies' products. In 2007, Adams launched EcoLEDs, a maker of energy efficient LED lights that greatly reduce CO2 emissions. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also the founder of a well known HTML email software company whose 'Email Marketing Director' software currently runs the NaturalNews subscription database. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and enjoys outdoor activities, nature photography, Pilates and adult gymnastics.


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Related Articles: • Kentucky Sues Maker of OxyContin over Marketing Deceptions, Addictive Qualities of "Hillbilly Heroin" • The Addictive Nature of the Pain Killer OxyContin - One Man's True Story • In Sixteen States and Counting: Drugs Kill More People than Auto Accidents	Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com Email this article to a friend Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/000147_oxycontin_prescription_drugs_the_FDA.html Reprinting this article: Non-commercial use OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link. Embed article link: (copy HTML code below): <a href = "http://www.NaturalNews.com/000147_oxycontin_prescription_drugs_the_FDA.html">FDA once again asleep on the job; the GAO investigates a dangerous drug manufacturer</a>