May 20th, 2008

To: Prime Minister Stephan Harper,
MP M. Bevilacqua,
MP T. Clement

Why are you pushing to pass Bill C51?

As a health food store owner, Registered and Certified Nutritional Consultant; I can not imagine the thought of what you are trying to do with my future and what you are willing to destroy. I’ve worked hard for where I am today. I wonder; not only for me but for other health food store retailers, respectable supplement manufactures, and Canadian distributors where are we going to be?

What are you going to do with all the health food store owners that will go out of business? Are you going to cover closure expenses, loans, bills, and pay product re-stocking fees? Are you going to pay compensation for our unemployment and provide us an education to suit your New Canadian Health Care Model. You care for your wellbeing; well what about ours?

Canadians have voted for you because we believe that you will protect us, it seems you want to protect us from ill researched natural products. While there are the few that are fly by night companies that use false claims, the vast majority of products on the shelves today are products with effective therapeutic properties. They follow the strict: Good Manufacturing Products protocol and are backed by some research, be it animal or human. Just look at all the respectable journals. For Example; The Journal of the American Medical Association, the Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine just to name a few. Vitamin E, A, C, CoQ10, ginseng, Echinacea, B vitamins, vitamin D, fish oils and many others are backed by so much positive research that it would be a crime to not allow the general public access to proven researched products. If 70% of our natural products were that dangerous for us, then why aren't more people dieing from there use.

One of the crucial efforts that you try to implement is less wait times and more hospital beds; 70% of Canadians using natural health products will help you with that!

Think about it... natural preventative measures will improve the Canadian health care system by strengthening the health of the individual.

Be the Canadian leaders you were meant to be, lead for Canadians not the European Codex or SW Pacific Australia, profits from the pharmaceutical industry will not create healthier Canadians.

If you pass Bill C51; my vote will NEVER be for the Conservative Party as long as I live in Canada.

Our freedom of choice and our health lies in your hands.

Virginia Candelaresi C.N.P., R.N.C.P
Angelo Greco C.N.P.
Nutritional Consultants/Health Food Store owners