The method of introduction of new drugs or nutrients has always been the same - repeated randomized controlled trials (RCTs). After many RCTs, and many dollars later, a new standard of care is born or a new drug is introduced. The Institute of Public Health, Cambridge, UK reports it takes about 17 years for standard of care to be changed after research has been completed. Do we really have to wait that long? In our modern era of the Internet and instant gratification is it adequate to wait 17 years for a new treatment? How many people will become sick in those 17 years?

Organic & Natural Health Association (ONHA) and Venable LLP have partnered with GrassrootsHealth to define and implement a new paradigm, one that studies nutrients within a population and measures health outcomes; one that doesn't rely solely on RCTs to bring a new product or standard of care to market. These new studies should concentrate more on finding clinical relevance to complement statistical significance.

On December 10, 2014 we announced this partnership with ONHA. There will be changes in the future as we integrate nutrient research into GrassrootsHealth, but if you want to find out more, or understand why we want to take this approach - please attend a webinar this Friday, January 23rd at 2 p.m. EST.  

"Randomized clinical trials do not accomplish what's needed for companies when it comes to the legal definition of 'competent and reliable scientific evidence' and the emphasis regulators place on statistical and randomized clinical trials jeopardizes the importance and relevance of measurable evidence-based clinical outcomes," said Todd Harrison, partner at Venable, LLP, and president of Organic & Natural. "The expertise GrassrootsHealth has in population-based nutrient research embodies the paradigm shift we know is required to ensure consumers have access to safe, quality ingredients and natural products that improve health. They will provide information to individuals as to how a nutrient may be affecting them personally."

Some people may say that it can't be done, but GrassrootsHealth has effectively done this with D*action. With a cohort of over 7,000 people - we have measured the effectiveness of one nutrient - vitamin D. We ask our population to fill out detailed questionnaires and from that data and their vitamin D blood measurement we have been able to publish peer-reviewed papers that have done much to change the view of vitamin D - not the least of which is that 40-60 ng/ml is not only safe, but effective in preventing disease.

With O&N, we will be adding more nutrients to our database - to start to track other nutrients which have an effect on D and on disease prevention - specifically, vitamins K2, calcium, and magnesium.

Learn about these nutrient-based studies and how you can participate during the webinar - Friday, January 23rd, 2 p.m. EST.