Here is an e-mail I received last year:
Dear Tom Green,
Hello USANA family, this is Brett Blake, Vice President of International
Marketing for USANA Health Sciences, Inc. Below you’ll find copies of the
press release and Olympic proposal USANA is issuing to the media today. We
would invite you to read and become familiar with the release and would
invite you to forward the release to reporters in your home town newspaper
if you are comfortable doing so. Please refer them to Peter Van Duser
(801) 954-7627 if they have any questions about our news release or the
proposal to Chairman Pound.
USANA Health Sciences Calls for IOC to Certify Supplements
Proposal for Industry/IOC Cooperative Effort
SALT LAKE CITY – USANA Health Sciences Vice President of Research and
Development, Tim Wood, Ph.D., today called for an IOC-administered
certification program for nutritional supplements. According to Dr. Wood,
supplement manufacturers would submit their products for testing and
receive certification that the products were safe for athletes to use. A
media briefing on the proposal is scheduled for Friday, February 8, at the
Utah Media Center, located in the ExpoMart, 230 West 200 South.
‘We are proposing that the IOC use the scientific capabilities at its
disposal to provide guidance for the athletes, rather than merely issuing
threatening declarations to athletes that provide no practical solutions,’
said Wood. ‘That must change, and we can take the first steps toward
improving that situation while we’re all here in Salt Lake City.’
Wood’s proposal calls for manufacturers to work with IOC-sponsored
anti-doping agencies to establish standards for the design and production
of supplements suitable for Olympic level athletes. ‘Since these agencies
are reportedly testing supplements now - without publishing meaningful
results - clearly this testing could be used to certify products and
manufacturers and to guide the athlete’s choice,’ said Wood.
Currently, several IOC anti-doping agencies have condemned all supplements
and warned athletes to take none. But for athletes like US Speedskater, Amy
Peterson, that is not a feasible solution, ‘I have taken vitamins and
minerals for fifteen years now and have been through dozens of IOC
anti-doping tests, and have always passed them. I am going to continue to
take supplements and work with my coaches and my team doctors to identify
products I can trust.’
Jason Parker, an Olympic hopeful on Canada’s speedskating team, believes
that athletes are responsible for learning about the supplements they take,
but says that better information from the governing bodies would be very
helpful. ‘That is one thing they haven’t done for us: they haven’t let us
know what companies and products to avoid.’
Dr. Denis Waitley, a former member of the USOC’s sport medicine council,
which at the time had oversight of the anti-doping work said: ‘Not all
supplements are created equal and there should be some way to distinguish
from performance enhancing supplements and basic personal nutritional
supplementaion,’ Waitley, who currently serves as a member of the Board of
Directors of USANA Health Sciences, added, ‘An IOC-sanctioned certification
process would serve Olympic athletes by exposing poor manufacturers and
encouraging more manufacturers to follow existing pharmaceutical-grade good
manufacturing practices (GMPs). It would also negate the fear that
thousands of athletes live in today as they follow the advice of health
experts.’
Wood outlined his proposal in a letter sent to Dick Pound, chairman of the
World Anti-Doping Agency, and Jacques Rogge, the president of the IOC. A
letter was also sent to US Senator Orrin Hatch, inviting him to help bring
manufacturers together to discuss this issue with the IOC and other
relevant athletic federations.
Senator Hatch was instrumental in the development and passing of the
Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), which guides the FDA’s
regulation of the nutrition industry. The proposal for the establishment of
an IOC certification program will be presented to the media and the public
in a briefing to be held at the Utah Media Center at 1:00 PM, Friday,
February 8.
USANA Health Sciences, Inc., develops, manufactures and distributes
nutritional products that are sold directly to preferred customers and
distributors throughout the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, the
United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand. More
information on USANA can be found at http://usanahealthsciences.com.
#
For more information, press only:
Peter Van Duser Tel: 801-954-7627, peter.vanduser@us.usana.com
February 7, 2002
Honorable Jacques Rogge
President
International Olympic Committee
Chateau de Vidy
1007 Lausanne, Switzerland
Via Facsimile: 41 21 621 6216
Dear Mr. Rogge:
USANA Health Sciences, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of high
quality nutritional supplements. We have been privileged to support and
sponsor the US and Canadian Speedskating teams and we are aware that our
products are used by world-class athletes in many sports and by thousands
in their personal fitness and health regimens. In response to recent media
reports about WADA, USADA and other Olympic organization’s concerns with US
manufactured nutritional and dietary supplements, we are making the
following proposal.
As responsible members of the supplement industry USANA would welcome the
opportunity to work with the WADA, the IOC, and others to establish a
supplement certification program. We envision a program that would require
supplement manufacturers to follow advanced quality guidelines, to conduct
rigorous product testing, and/or submit to third-party quality inspections.
Manufacturers who successfully participate in the program would be
certified as suppliers of supplements safe for use by Olympic athletes.
We believe that such a program could be designed and implemented in a
fairly straightforward manner. We also believe that the majority of
reputable supplement manufacturers would be able to meet the program
requirements with relatively minor modifications to their manufacturing
guidelines. Our conviction is that this program is essential. Surveys show
that about half of high performance athletes take nutritional supplements.
Even after recent warnings, more than 40% of the athletes competing in the
Olympics take a multivitamin multi-mineral product. With such widespread
acceptance and us of these products, studies also show that only a very
small minority of athletes (less than 3%) ever test positive for a banned
substance.
USANA Certification Proposal
Page 2
We do not view the nutritional supplement industry to be an ‘industry out
of control.’ Rather it is an industry that needs to raise the bar on
quality. Perhaps just as importantly, the industry needs to adjust and
amend its manufacturing practices to meet the special needs of athletes and
the growing role of drug testing in athletics.
In the United States, US Senator Orrin Hatch has been a leader in promoting
legislation for this industry and he has recently responded to IOC concerns
by introducing amendments to provide the FDA more resources to enforce
existing regulations. Although it would not be within the scope of his
customary responsibilities as a United States Senator, we believe that
Senator Hatch would be an outstanding person to facilitate discussions
between manufacturers and IOC representatives. We would welcome the
opportunity to meet with you and to discuss the proposal in greater detail.
We believe that the implementation of a program such as this will provide
consistency in the application of anti-doping standards and will give
athletes, trainers and sports organizations clear guidelines as to which
supplements are to be trusted. We look forward to working with the WADA,
the IOC and others to move this process forward.
Sincerely,
Tim Wood, Ph.D.
Vice President Scientific Operations
Cc: Dick Pound, WADA
US Senator Orrin Hatch
We will cover this issue in more detail in a media briefing Friday at 1pm
at the UTAH Media Center in Salt Lake City. We also have radio and video
news releases available for electronic media upon their request.
Thank you,
Brett A Blake
Vice President, International Marketing
USANA Health Sciences, Inc.
bblake@usana.com
