Look up the word “geek” and you’ll find it defined as a term for someone who is really intelligent or knowledgeable, and obsessively interested in a particular subject. So let me say it’s an honor to be writing for this audience of intelligent people who are well-informed and care passionately about the natural health industry.
Many of you have participated in the collaborative and ongoing “All 4 Vitamin D” campaign to persuade Congress to make vitamin D3 eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits, which is part of the Farm Bill’s many programs. Let’s be clear that this request:
- Does not cost the government a dime;
- Is generally accepted as the consensus that vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are common;
- Is recommended.
In fact, while there may be differences of opinion about the amount of vitamin D to take, even the NIH has concluded that pregnant women should be taking 4,000 IUs daily. So why does a program that allows participants to purchase potato chips and ice cream not allow the purchase of vitamin D3?
I wish I had a good answer. What I can say is that our opposition comes from a variety of interesting sources. A statement by AMA President Gerald E. Harmon, M.D., posted on its website in reference to the Dietary Supplement Listing Act reads: “The dietary supplement marketplace is an uncertain place for consumers—so little transparency, so much confusion.” He went on to add that they appreciated the “bipartisan effort” of Illinois Democrat Sen. Richard Durbin and Indiana Republican Sen. Mike Braun to “introduce some clarity to this situation.”
More curious to me was the dissent of the FDA regarding research out of the University of South Carolina demonstrating that increasing vitamin D levels during pregnancy reduce preterm births by 60%. The FDA rationale? The study was flawed because it did not account for the possibility that these pregnant women, primarily women of color and utilizing public health services, might have been sunbathing with at least 50% of their skin exposed during the day, ostensibly while they were likely working multiple jobs, taking the public transportation, and tending to their families. When challenged, we were told by the FDA, “There is no room for logic in science.”
Given the current state of affairs on Capitol Hill, it would be easy to give up, unless you are part of a “geek nutrition squad” that is committed to being an educator and advocate for the health of all communities. According to the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), more than three-quarters of Americans report using nutritional or dietary supplements, with the vast majority of them identifying as regular users. Let’s do some math. With 100% of the 535 members of the House and Senate being Americans, statistically speaking, at least 401 of them use nutritional or dietary supplements. They, just like their constituents, are dealing with stress, sleeplessness, weight gain, and other issues relating to aging. Just like their constituents they, or members of their families, struggle to eat well so they take vitamins; have physicians who recommend vitamin D3, fish oil, and even magnesium! Therefore, it’s distinctly possible the majority of them are closet consumers of dietary supplements and almost certainly true that these men and women, and their families, need us more now than ever.
If you are a constituent, your Congressional representatives are your customers. We need to get back to the basics and create an advocacy toolbox that you can use to improve the health status of Congress, one member, one staff person, and one family member at a time. In this case, Congressional dysfunction works to our advantage. Because of their delays with revising the Farm Bill this year, we now have at least until the end of the year, and likely into the first quarter of 2024 to accomplish our goal.
More than 2,500 emails have been sent to Congress making our appeal to include vitaminD3 into SNAP.
This includes nearly 300 letters sent by retailers to their Congress representatives serving on the Agricultural Committee. Our consumer focused education campaign targeting broadcast media, led by expert registered dietitian Carolina Schneider, and sponsored by Naomi Whittel Brands and Nordic Naturals, has resulted in more than 13 million impressions (at the time of this writing) in the home states of the Senators and Representatives serving on the influential House Committee on Agriculture.
This work has long-lasting implications. Health education is a long game and we will be successful, if not this go around, then certainly when the bill comes up for revision again in another five years. How can I be so confident? This is an issue that galvanizes the community. It enables us to build a bigger, more diverse, and stronger alliance that can work on the foundational issues we know will change the trajectory of health, not just in our communities, but across the country. The Organic & Natural Health Association, with our partners SENPA, Natural Grocers, INFRA, and the Council of Holistic Health Coaches, represent well-informed, passionate people and companies. We are establishing our voice and uniting our efforts for this cause. Come “geek out” with us for the sake of access to healthy nutrition for all Americans! It takes less than five minutes to send your Congressional representatives a request to add vitamin D3 into SNAP. Organic & Natural Health has made it easy for you to take action now at: https://all4vitamind.com.
