<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> RE: <<<It is my personal opinion that the post by Len B. of the Discovery Group with the above subject heading is outrageous and innappropriate for the celiac list. >> I could not disagree more and would like to thank Len profusely for alerting us to an important developement in an area that is fundamental to the health of those with malabsorption symdromes. The only reason that I do NOT have REFRACTORY celiac is that I take large (much more than the RDA) does of vitamins. On each and every occassion during the last 17 years when I, for whatever reason, either ceased, or merely reduced dosages too much, on the vitamins I experienced a rapid return of defficiency sympotms. This is NOT medically unknown! A number of articles in medical journals dealing with prisoners of war who had suffered from marked malabsorption noted that many of them developed vitamin "dependencies" i.e.: they enjoyed normal health so long as they took large (in some cases very large) doses of vitamins but developed serious defficiences if the supplements were discontinued. Most of these were able to gradually reduce the dosages over many years but some were never able to entirely eliminate the "dependency". This certainly was MY experience. I shudder to think what my life would become if I was not allowed to purchase vitamins without a prescription! Given the frequent appallingly ignorant attitudes toward vitamins displayed by many physicians even today, I know that it would be very difficult to justify (to THEM) my needs for large amounts. Thus, even though they are exceedingly safe and non-toxic (far more so than virtually all drugs), I might be forced to emmigrate to a more tolerant governement rather than suffer the extreeme but totally preventable health problems I would experience without appropriate supplementation. (I suppose that I would be classifed as "refractory" celiac and that would be that! THANK YOU, Len for alerting us to this critical development! RE: << I suspect that the people who suffered severe and irreversible neurological damage from taking tryptophan are all supportive of their rights to take anything they please and will write to their congressmen in support of the Discovery Group. >> The problems caused by tryptophan supplements were NOT due to tryptophan but to a CONTAMINANT in the supplements. That could happen with ANY product, even a drug. That tryptophan continues to be banned years after the cause of the problem was discovered is inexcusable and, in my opinion, justifies concerns about having the government regulate things that are NOT the appropriate object of regulation. The people damaged from taking the tryptophan spplements were NOT damaged by the FDA's failure to ban tryptophan (no more than the people who were poisioned eating hamburgers at the Jack-in-the-Box were damaged by the failure to ban hamburgers!). They were damaged by the failure of the FDA to unsure that the product did not contain toxic contaminants. The extent of the government's hypocrital double standard in relation to vitamins and food labeling is exemplified by the insistance that all products containing phenyalanine (which are toxic to those few (far fewer than celiacs!) with phenylketonuria) be labeled as such (as they should be) but NOT requiring labeling for gluten and continuing the ban on tryptophan when there is no justifiable reason for doing so. << In a more serious vein, I do think the FDA should be invited to reply to the Discovery Group post. I think list subscribers might be surprised by what they learn.>> I would be VERY interested in hearing what they have to say about the ban on tryptophan (as well as some other safe and therapeutically useful substances). Jim Barron Chapel Hill NC [log in to unmask]