Question

.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has become a punching bag for politicians and business people who complain about federal regulations and laws. The FDA tries to make sure that food and medicines are safe, and what is wrong with that? 2 Critics who claim we are better off without the FDA should take a good look at the poor and dangerous quality of food and drugs that once were sold to Americans. We take it for granted today that boxes of cereal and canned foods are not contaminated and are accurately labeled. We take it for granted that bottles of prescription and over-the-counter medicines show correct dosages and instructions for safe use, and that their contents have been tested by scientists before being sold. We take it for granted that cosmetics and personal hygiene products are made from ingredients that will not harm us. Yet in reality, we should never take our safe foods, drugs, or cosmetics for granted. 3 Many household products were definitely not safe before passage of the 1906 Pure Food and Drugs Act. That law prohibited the interstate sale of tainted food and drugs that falsely advertised ingredients and remedies. Even so, drug and food makers still found legal ways to sell dangerous products, forcing Congress to strengthen the existing law by passing the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act in 1938. The revision of the law in 1938 remains important to the FDA′s authority to this day. Does anybody really want to go back to the days when people did not know what they were ingesting or rubbing onto their skin? 4 For example, Lash-Lure was a product sold in the 1930s to unknowing consumers as an eyelash dye. Unfortunately, it blinded many women. Today, women still tint their eyelashes, but thanks to the FDA they can be assured they will not be blinded. Another tragedy that can be attributed to lack of regulation was the children′s medicine that killed more than 100 people in

Answer 1

The FDA is vital in ensuring product safety and efficacy. While it protects the public from unsafe products, some patients may experience delayed access to new treatments due to the FDA's extensive testing requirements. Overall, the FDA's role is to minimize health risks and protect consumers.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plays a crucial role in protecting public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of drugs, biological products, and medical devices. The FDA also regulates the nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. Most federal laws concerning the FDA are part of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, first passed in 1938 and codified in Title 21, Chapter 9 of the United States Code.

While the benefits of FDA regulation are numerous, including preventing unsafe drugs and misleading labels from reaching the market, there are also unseen losers in this system. These are typically the patients and individuals who may suffer from the slower availability of potentially life-saving drugs due to the lengthy testing and approval process mandated by the FDA's stringent regulations. In some cases, this can lead to delays in access to new, innovative treatments, particularly for those with rare or life-threatening conditions.

Despite these challenges, the role of the FDA is fundamentally to minimize risks and protect the public. The tragedies of the past, such as the illness and deaths caused by unsafe medicines, underline the importance of rigorous FDA oversight. This ensures that while some may not benefit immediately from new medical advancements, the broader public is shielded from the potential harms of inadequately tested and regulated products.