Day 101 - U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

The Food and Drug Administration is a government organization that is "responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation, and by regulating the manufacture, marketing, and distribution of tobacco products." They are also responsible for "advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medicines and foods more effective, safer, and more affordable; and helping the public to get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medicines and foods, and to reduce tobacco use to improve health."

In their proposed strategic plan for 2011-2015, the FDA has set fourth four cross-cutting strategic priorities to focus on for the next five years; including

1. To advance regulatory science and innovation.
2. To strengthen the safety and integrity of the global supply chain.
3. To strengthen compliance and enforcement activities to support public health.
4. To expand efforts to meet the needs of special populations.

In addition to these four cross-cutting strategic priorities, the plan also consists of four strategic goals and long-term objectives:

1. To advance food safety and nutrition by ensuring the safety of the food supply from farm to table as well as by promoting healthy dietary practices and nutrition.
2. To promote public health by advancing the safety and effectiveness of medical products; which will be done by advancing human drug safety and effectiveness, advancing biologics safety and effectiveness, advancing medical device safety and effectiveness, and advancing animal drug safety and effectiveness.
3. To establish an effective tobacco regulation, prevention, and control program.
4. To manage for organizational excellence and accountability.

To learn more about the FDA's Strategic Plan for 2011-2015 or about the FDA organization, visit the FDA's Official Website.

Like my statement about the USDA, the FDA has also experienced a lot of corruption and is often talked bad about. However, I respect the values and missions that the organization is founded upon and I believe that they can do a lot of good in the safety and regulation of our medications and food products.

Exercise: For those of you working out today… today is an I.M. swim workout day. Make sure to get a good distance of each stroke today!

Eat: One of my absolute favorite foods are sweet potatoes, which are also full of vitamins and minerals. Sweet potatoes are full of vitamin A, fiber, vitamin C, potassium, manganese, and beta-carotene. While a sweet potato contains slightly more calories than a similarly sized plain potato, it does have more beta-carotene and almost two times more fiber. Tomatoes are also a widely eaten vegetable and they contain vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, potassium, and lycopene. Finally turnips also have some great benefits; such as fiber and vitamin C.

Relax: When I woke up this morning, I began my day by sitting down and drinking a good cup of joe while playing Harvest Moon. Gotta love mornings!