Birth trauma preventable yet affects too many women
But experts say trauma can be prevented and is not a given when it comes to birth.
Giving birth is one of the most profound and life-changing events in a woman's life and should be predominantly positive.
Yet one in three women will experience birth trauma, either physically or emotionally, affecting their lives for years to come.
Birth Trauma Awareness Week is held each year to highlight the issue and provide support to women and their families who have experienced it.
It is also an opportunity to examine maternity care and ensure better outcomes for women and their babies.
Jess Pigram suffered from a life-threatening postpartum haemorrhage after giving birth to her daughter Shiloh in 2019.
She had to undergo two surgeries shortly after her birth and ended up losing 3.6 litres of blood - more than 60 per cent of her body's total amount - which resulted in her needing multiple transfusions.
"I'd just had my baby and all of a sudden there's all these people and I'm being rushed into the operation room ... there was a point where I thought I was going to die," she tells AAP.
While the physical recovery has been complicated by permanent pelvic floor damage, the mental trauma from the experience has also stuck with Ms Pigram for years.
It is often most acute around the time of her daughter's birthday which can be difficult to navigate.
"When you go through trauma, you never forget it," she says.
"I'll never be the same person I was, but that's okay because I have my daughter."
Ms Pigram said her wife Katie, who was also mistreated by hospital staff during Shiloh's birth, has been instrumental in her recovery.
Connecting with Birth Trauma Australia, the peak national charity dedicated to supporting women, people, fathers, partners and families after birth-related trauma, was also hugely important.
But looking back, Ms Pigram wishes she'd known how many women experience trauma during birth.
"It was so isolating at the time and I felt like no one understood," she says.
"I wasn't aware that one in three women experience birth trauma and it took a long time to realise how many other women are affected."
Rates of trauma indicate maternity services are doing something seriously wrong, former president of the Australian College of Midwives Jenny Gamble says.
"It's obscene that 30 per cent of women report that they had a traumatic childbirth," she says.
"The system is scaring and traumatising women about having a baby."
Studies have found women who have a traumatic birth experience will subsequently choose to either birth completely outside the system, invest in a private midwife or seek a planned caesarean.
Some may even decide not to have another baby after a previous traumatic experience.
A landmark inquiry into birth trauma by the NSW parliament attracted international attention as well as thousands of submissions from patients, doctors, midwives and experts around Australia.
The final report released in 2024 found the rates of birth trauma were unacceptable and made 43 recommendations, including an overhaul of the health system.
Chief among the recommendations was the need for accessible continuity of midwifery care, which experts have been calling for for years.
Hospitals that provide continuity of care, where a woman has access to the same midwife throughout her pregnancy, during the birth and postnatally, often have better outcomes for the mother, baby and care provider.
It's also more cost effective.
"We have this fantastic evidence that shows what needs to change but we have all these road blocks," midwife and Monash University lecturer Joy Kloester said.
"Birth trauma can be prevented, it's not a given, and the best way to prevent it is continuity of care."
Queensland recently appointed a chief midwifery officer, which Professor Gamble said was something all states and territories needed.
"We need to stop treating having a baby like an acute medical event," she said.
"It's a physiological event that requires a social and primary model of healthcare."
Research shows women who consider their birth experience positive do so not because of what happened medically but because they were heard and respected throughout the process.
For those who do experience trauma it's often because they felt like a body on a table.
"It's not about avoiding intervention but about ensuring the woman feels like the central person in that care ... being informed and respected is so essential," Ms Kloester says.
Birth trauma occurs on a spectrum, with obstetric violence at the extreme end.
One in 10 women experience obstetric violence in birth, recognised by the United Nations as a form of gendered violence.
Bernadette Lack is a midwife of almost 20 years and also works in pelvic health supporting women through her business Core and Floor Restore.
Her practice includes birth debriefs and she says many women apologise to her for becoming emotional when they share their stories.
"You carry your birth experiences with you until the day you die," Ms Lack says.
"Birth isn't just about a baby being born, it's about a mother being born too.
"Trauma isn't a memory, it's a reliving ... when people have experienced previous trauma, it can easily be triggered again by the smallest thing: a smell, a sound, a touch, a tone."
Recovering can also be financially inaccessible to many women who may have to see multiple care providers to address mental and physical trauma.
"Healing from birth can require huge investment," Ms Lack says.
But she wants women to know that it's never too late to begin the process of healing.
"There's often a lot of grief and people can feel scared to lean into their feelings (but) I believe the body is so capable of healing when you meet with the mind and body together," she says.
"I would love for more older women to come (for a birth debrief) because it would enable them to support the current birthing generation better and also so they don't have to continue living their life holding onto their trauma."
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For 10 years, Penny was treating her symptoms with the very thing poisoning her
Penny Thompson spent nearly 13 years and thousands of dollars trying to get a diagnosis for her "mystery illness", which paralysed her vocal cords, damaged her nerves and left her unable to work, socialise or study. Finally, last year, with a litany of specialists left scratching their heads, the NSW Illawarra region woman began to suspect that the very things she had been using to ease her symptoms were actually poisoning her. Now, grieving and overwhelmed by all she has lost over more than a decade, Ms Thompson, 61, of Wollongong, south of Sydney, has registered her interest in a class action against supplement giant Blackmores, as health practitioners and patients begin to realise the extent of vitamin B6 poisoning. "Before this happened, I was a bloody fitness instructor and now I struggle to work," she said. "I haven't been out socially at night for 10 years. I can't drive for more than 20 minutes. I can't go travelling, I can't go bushwalking. "I struggle to work in my garden at home and it took me nine-and-a-half years to complete a three year university degree. "I just feel overwhelmed, I get angry, I get full of grief for all I've lost." In recent months, there have been growing reports of toxicity related to vitamin B6, which is naturally found in meat, fruit and vegetables but which is also now added to many vitamin supplements, shakes and energy drinks and is present in thousands of products on the Australian market.. According to the Therapeutic Goods Administration, taking too much can cause nerve damage, which many people experience as peripheral neuropathy - or numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes. After an increase in reports about this condition, the regulator recently recommended stricter regulations and stronger warnings. It has also noted that there is no consensus on a safe level of B6. In May, Melbourne's Polaris Lawyers announced it was pursuing a class action investigation against Blackmores, on behalf of anyone who has suffered injuries after taking its supplements "containing higher than recommended levels of vitamin B6". A Blackmores spokesperson said the company was committed to the highest standards of product quality and consumer safety. "All our products, including those containing vitamin B6, are developed in strict accordance with the regulatory requirements of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)," they said. They said the company would "ensure full compliance" with any changes the regulator makes. Ms Thompson's health struggles began back in 2012, when she went to the GP complaining of numbness in her hands and feet. She had recently moved back to Australia, and was busy and tired working three jobs and buying a house, so started taking vitamin supplements "to give me energy". "I just didn't feel right and my hands and feet were a bit numb but my GP said it was my age, or probably menopause," she said. "I said, 'I've seemed to lose weight', and he just went, 'fancy a woman in her 40s complaining of losing weight, ha ha ha', so I just left it." "But I was getting more and more fatigued and so, in 2013, I started keeping a really detailed health diary because I thought maybe I had a food allergy because I thought I was being poisoned." That kicked off a "pretty expensive" 10-year journey of seeing specialists, including neurologists, ENT doctors, cardiologists, pain specialists, rheumatologists and having nerve conduction studies or tests for heavy metals poisoning. "I was always very thorough when I saw them, because I was studying science, and I was keeping these diaries and they'd always ask you on the new patient form, please list all your medications, prescription and non-prescription so I'd write this huge list of stuff down, but none of them said anything." By late 2019, when she was working as an English teacher at TAFE, she noticed her voice changing. "I was working about three days a week and I just noticed that my voice was starting to get very, very soft, very weak, very tired," she said. "It was when the drought was happening and there were lots of bushfires, smoke and dust and I thought that's what was causing it. "But that winter I'd had a doctor who said taking zinc was good for preventing respiratory disease - I wanted to choose the best and so I bought Blackmores Bio Zinc, but what I didn't realise was that it had 50mg of B6 in it." "I was popping these things every day, and I can see now that my symptoms - like headaches and migraines and gut pain and constipation were adding up, and by September my voice had become really weak and strained. "I just thought it was the dust and the bushfires and I just kept taking the B6, and then I'd lost my voice completely and had to give up work." As COVID hit, she was diagnosed with a completely paralysed left vocal cord, but was left without medical support. She began experiencing cramps, and started taking another supplement called Super Magnesium. "It also had 50 mg of B6 and, because I was getting all these migraines and I was pretty stressed because I'd lost my job and the whole COVID crap was starting, I was also taking Blackmores Executive Stress, which had another 25 milligrams of B6," Ms Thompson said. "At one stage that I was taking 125mg per day of B6, and just feeling worse and worse and worse." Years and many more appointments on, in September 2024, Ms Thompson saw a warning on the Therapeutic Goods Administration that made her suspect that her vitamins may have been poisoning her. She stopped taking them. "Magically, the gut pain, the constipation, the food intolerances all just disappeared within a couple of months," she said. "The anxiety lifted, the migraines eased off, the twitching and all that stuff just disappeared." "I've still got a base level of numb hands and feet, my voice hasn't improved and the fatigue hasn't improved. The weight loss and the muscle wasting has, in fact, got worse. "So I still can't work because I'm so fatigued and my voice is pretty crappy." In January, B6 poisoning hit the news, with the ABC's 730 running a report featuring patients who had similar symptoms and experiences to Ms Thompson. "I recognised my story and I just went, 'oh God, that's it'," she said. "I went back through all my diaries, 10 years of diaries, with orange highlighter and calculated all the B6 and just went, 'Oh my God'." Then, armed with a print-out of an Illawarra Mercury -an ACM mastheadarticle on the issue, in which Fairy Meadow, Wollongong, GP Kate McCullough issued a warning about high doses of the vitamin, she managed to convince her doctor to run a test. She has since been diagnosed with "B6 hypervitaminosis", and in recent months registered her interest in Polaris' proposed class action, which she hopes might stop others from going through her ordeal. Already the law firm says its has received more than 900 inquiries about the class action. "I just remember at one point, my doctor said, 'oh gee, Penny, I hate to think we're missing something'," Ms Thompson said. "Of course, I'd given him all the big lists of all the supplements I was taking, but he didn't know anything about it. None of the specialists knew about it." "Despite all the media coverage this year, and repeated alerts from the TGA, most doctors and allied health professionals are still completely unaware of B6 toxicity, how serious the resulting symptoms can be and how widespread it is becoming. "I'm really hoping the class action will generate enough publicity to turn this issue around." "And I'm hoping that this kicks up so much of a stink that all of these vitamin companies and the energy drink companies and the processed food manufacturers, they all stop putting more than the recommended daily dose into their products. "I want everybody to know about it, so every doctor in Australia knows about it and we can stop the tide of this epidemic of poisoning." A Blackmores spokesperson said it had received no formal legal claim, but was aware of reports about the class action. Penny Thompson spent nearly 13 years and thousands of dollars trying to get a diagnosis for her "mystery illness", which paralysed her vocal cords, damaged her nerves and left her unable to work, socialise or study. Finally, last year, with a litany of specialists left scratching their heads, the NSW Illawarra region woman began to suspect that the very things she had been using to ease her symptoms were actually poisoning her. Now, grieving and overwhelmed by all she has lost over more than a decade, Ms Thompson, 61, of Wollongong, south of Sydney, has registered her interest in a class action against supplement giant Blackmores, as health practitioners and patients begin to realise the extent of vitamin B6 poisoning. "Before this happened, I was a bloody fitness instructor and now I struggle to work," she said. "I haven't been out socially at night for 10 years. I can't drive for more than 20 minutes. I can't go travelling, I can't go bushwalking. "I struggle to work in my garden at home and it took me nine-and-a-half years to complete a three year university degree. "I just feel overwhelmed, I get angry, I get full of grief for all I've lost." In recent months, there have been growing reports of toxicity related to vitamin B6, which is naturally found in meat, fruit and vegetables but which is also now added to many vitamin supplements, shakes and energy drinks and is present in thousands of products on the Australian market.. According to the Therapeutic Goods Administration, taking too much can cause nerve damage, which many people experience as peripheral neuropathy - or numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes. After an increase in reports about this condition, the regulator recently recommended stricter regulations and stronger warnings. It has also noted that there is no consensus on a safe level of B6. In May, Melbourne's Polaris Lawyers announced it was pursuing a class action investigation against Blackmores, on behalf of anyone who has suffered injuries after taking its supplements "containing higher than recommended levels of vitamin B6". A Blackmores spokesperson said the company was committed to the highest standards of product quality and consumer safety. "All our products, including those containing vitamin B6, are developed in strict accordance with the regulatory requirements of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)," they said. They said the company would "ensure full compliance" with any changes the regulator makes. Ms Thompson's health struggles began back in 2012, when she went to the GP complaining of numbness in her hands and feet. She had recently moved back to Australia, and was busy and tired working three jobs and buying a house, so started taking vitamin supplements "to give me energy". "I just didn't feel right and my hands and feet were a bit numb but my GP said it was my age, or probably menopause," she said. "I said, 'I've seemed to lose weight', and he just went, 'fancy a woman in her 40s complaining of losing weight, ha ha ha', so I just left it." "But I was getting more and more fatigued and so, in 2013, I started keeping a really detailed health diary because I thought maybe I had a food allergy because I thought I was being poisoned." That kicked off a "pretty expensive" 10-year journey of seeing specialists, including neurologists, ENT doctors, cardiologists, pain specialists, rheumatologists and having nerve conduction studies or tests for heavy metals poisoning. "I was always very thorough when I saw them, because I was studying science, and I was keeping these diaries and they'd always ask you on the new patient form, please list all your medications, prescription and non-prescription so I'd write this huge list of stuff down, but none of them said anything." By late 2019, when she was working as an English teacher at TAFE, she noticed her voice changing. "I was working about three days a week and I just noticed that my voice was starting to get very, very soft, very weak, very tired," she said. "It was when the drought was happening and there were lots of bushfires, smoke and dust and I thought that's what was causing it. "But that winter I'd had a doctor who said taking zinc was good for preventing respiratory disease - I wanted to choose the best and so I bought Blackmores Bio Zinc, but what I didn't realise was that it had 50mg of B6 in it." "I was popping these things every day, and I can see now that my symptoms - like headaches and migraines and gut pain and constipation were adding up, and by September my voice had become really weak and strained. "I just thought it was the dust and the bushfires and I just kept taking the B6, and then I'd lost my voice completely and had to give up work." As COVID hit, she was diagnosed with a completely paralysed left vocal cord, but was left without medical support. She began experiencing cramps, and started taking another supplement called Super Magnesium. "It also had 50 mg of B6 and, because I was getting all these migraines and I was pretty stressed because I'd lost my job and the whole COVID crap was starting, I was also taking Blackmores Executive Stress, which had another 25 milligrams of B6," Ms Thompson said. "At one stage that I was taking 125mg per day of B6, and just feeling worse and worse and worse." Years and many more appointments on, in September 2024, Ms Thompson saw a warning on the Therapeutic Goods Administration that made her suspect that her vitamins may have been poisoning her. She stopped taking them. "Magically, the gut pain, the constipation, the food intolerances all just disappeared within a couple of months," she said. "The anxiety lifted, the migraines eased off, the twitching and all that stuff just disappeared." "I've still got a base level of numb hands and feet, my voice hasn't improved and the fatigue hasn't improved. The weight loss and the muscle wasting has, in fact, got worse. "So I still can't work because I'm so fatigued and my voice is pretty crappy." In January, B6 poisoning hit the news, with the ABC's 730 running a report featuring patients who had similar symptoms and experiences to Ms Thompson. "I recognised my story and I just went, 'oh God, that's it'," she said. "I went back through all my diaries, 10 years of diaries, with orange highlighter and calculated all the B6 and just went, 'Oh my God'." Then, armed with a print-out of an Illawarra Mercury -an ACM mastheadarticle on the issue, in which Fairy Meadow, Wollongong, GP Kate McCullough issued a warning about high doses of the vitamin, she managed to convince her doctor to run a test. She has since been diagnosed with "B6 hypervitaminosis", and in recent months registered her interest in Polaris' proposed class action, which she hopes might stop others from going through her ordeal. Already the law firm says its has received more than 900 inquiries about the class action. "I just remember at one point, my doctor said, 'oh gee, Penny, I hate to think we're missing something'," Ms Thompson said. "Of course, I'd given him all the big lists of all the supplements I was taking, but he didn't know anything about it. None of the specialists knew about it." "Despite all the media coverage this year, and repeated alerts from the TGA, most doctors and allied health professionals are still completely unaware of B6 toxicity, how serious the resulting symptoms can be and how widespread it is becoming. "I'm really hoping the class action will generate enough publicity to turn this issue around." "And I'm hoping that this kicks up so much of a stink that all of these vitamin companies and the energy drink companies and the processed food manufacturers, they all stop putting more than the recommended daily dose into their products. "I want everybody to know about it, so every doctor in Australia knows about it and we can stop the tide of this epidemic of poisoning." A Blackmores spokesperson said it had received no formal legal claim, but was aware of reports about the class action. Penny Thompson spent nearly 13 years and thousands of dollars trying to get a diagnosis for her "mystery illness", which paralysed her vocal cords, damaged her nerves and left her unable to work, socialise or study. Finally, last year, with a litany of specialists left scratching their heads, the NSW Illawarra region woman began to suspect that the very things she had been using to ease her symptoms were actually poisoning her. Now, grieving and overwhelmed by all she has lost over more than a decade, Ms Thompson, 61, of Wollongong, south of Sydney, has registered her interest in a class action against supplement giant Blackmores, as health practitioners and patients begin to realise the extent of vitamin B6 poisoning. "Before this happened, I was a bloody fitness instructor and now I struggle to work," she said. "I haven't been out socially at night for 10 years. I can't drive for more than 20 minutes. I can't go travelling, I can't go bushwalking. "I struggle to work in my garden at home and it took me nine-and-a-half years to complete a three year university degree. "I just feel overwhelmed, I get angry, I get full of grief for all I've lost." In recent months, there have been growing reports of toxicity related to vitamin B6, which is naturally found in meat, fruit and vegetables but which is also now added to many vitamin supplements, shakes and energy drinks and is present in thousands of products on the Australian market.. According to the Therapeutic Goods Administration, taking too much can cause nerve damage, which many people experience as peripheral neuropathy - or numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes. After an increase in reports about this condition, the regulator recently recommended stricter regulations and stronger warnings. It has also noted that there is no consensus on a safe level of B6. In May, Melbourne's Polaris Lawyers announced it was pursuing a class action investigation against Blackmores, on behalf of anyone who has suffered injuries after taking its supplements "containing higher than recommended levels of vitamin B6". A Blackmores spokesperson said the company was committed to the highest standards of product quality and consumer safety. "All our products, including those containing vitamin B6, are developed in strict accordance with the regulatory requirements of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)," they said. They said the company would "ensure full compliance" with any changes the regulator makes. Ms Thompson's health struggles began back in 2012, when she went to the GP complaining of numbness in her hands and feet. She had recently moved back to Australia, and was busy and tired working three jobs and buying a house, so started taking vitamin supplements "to give me energy". "I just didn't feel right and my hands and feet were a bit numb but my GP said it was my age, or probably menopause," she said. "I said, 'I've seemed to lose weight', and he just went, 'fancy a woman in her 40s complaining of losing weight, ha ha ha', so I just left it." "But I was getting more and more fatigued and so, in 2013, I started keeping a really detailed health diary because I thought maybe I had a food allergy because I thought I was being poisoned." That kicked off a "pretty expensive" 10-year journey of seeing specialists, including neurologists, ENT doctors, cardiologists, pain specialists, rheumatologists and having nerve conduction studies or tests for heavy metals poisoning. "I was always very thorough when I saw them, because I was studying science, and I was keeping these diaries and they'd always ask you on the new patient form, please list all your medications, prescription and non-prescription so I'd write this huge list of stuff down, but none of them said anything." By late 2019, when she was working as an English teacher at TAFE, she noticed her voice changing. "I was working about three days a week and I just noticed that my voice was starting to get very, very soft, very weak, very tired," she said. "It was when the drought was happening and there were lots of bushfires, smoke and dust and I thought that's what was causing it. "But that winter I'd had a doctor who said taking zinc was good for preventing respiratory disease - I wanted to choose the best and so I bought Blackmores Bio Zinc, but what I didn't realise was that it had 50mg of B6 in it." "I was popping these things every day, and I can see now that my symptoms - like headaches and migraines and gut pain and constipation were adding up, and by September my voice had become really weak and strained. "I just thought it was the dust and the bushfires and I just kept taking the B6, and then I'd lost my voice completely and had to give up work." As COVID hit, she was diagnosed with a completely paralysed left vocal cord, but was left without medical support. She began experiencing cramps, and started taking another supplement called Super Magnesium. "It also had 50 mg of B6 and, because I was getting all these migraines and I was pretty stressed because I'd lost my job and the whole COVID crap was starting, I was also taking Blackmores Executive Stress, which had another 25 milligrams of B6," Ms Thompson said. "At one stage that I was taking 125mg per day of B6, and just feeling worse and worse and worse." Years and many more appointments on, in September 2024, Ms Thompson saw a warning on the Therapeutic Goods Administration that made her suspect that her vitamins may have been poisoning her. She stopped taking them. "Magically, the gut pain, the constipation, the food intolerances all just disappeared within a couple of months," she said. "The anxiety lifted, the migraines eased off, the twitching and all that stuff just disappeared." "I've still got a base level of numb hands and feet, my voice hasn't improved and the fatigue hasn't improved. The weight loss and the muscle wasting has, in fact, got worse. "So I still can't work because I'm so fatigued and my voice is pretty crappy." In January, B6 poisoning hit the news, with the ABC's 730 running a report featuring patients who had similar symptoms and experiences to Ms Thompson. "I recognised my story and I just went, 'oh God, that's it'," she said. "I went back through all my diaries, 10 years of diaries, with orange highlighter and calculated all the B6 and just went, 'Oh my God'." Then, armed with a print-out of an Illawarra Mercury -an ACM mastheadarticle on the issue, in which Fairy Meadow, Wollongong, GP Kate McCullough issued a warning about high doses of the vitamin, she managed to convince her doctor to run a test. She has since been diagnosed with "B6 hypervitaminosis", and in recent months registered her interest in Polaris' proposed class action, which she hopes might stop others from going through her ordeal. Already the law firm says its has received more than 900 inquiries about the class action. "I just remember at one point, my doctor said, 'oh gee, Penny, I hate to think we're missing something'," Ms Thompson said. "Of course, I'd given him all the big lists of all the supplements I was taking, but he didn't know anything about it. None of the specialists knew about it." "Despite all the media coverage this year, and repeated alerts from the TGA, most doctors and allied health professionals are still completely unaware of B6 toxicity, how serious the resulting symptoms can be and how widespread it is becoming. "I'm really hoping the class action will generate enough publicity to turn this issue around." "And I'm hoping that this kicks up so much of a stink that all of these vitamin companies and the energy drink companies and the processed food manufacturers, they all stop putting more than the recommended daily dose into their products. "I want everybody to know about it, so every doctor in Australia knows about it and we can stop the tide of this epidemic of poisoning." A Blackmores spokesperson said it had received no formal legal claim, but was aware of reports about the class action. Penny Thompson spent nearly 13 years and thousands of dollars trying to get a diagnosis for her "mystery illness", which paralysed her vocal cords, damaged her nerves and left her unable to work, socialise or study. Finally, last year, with a litany of specialists left scratching their heads, the NSW Illawarra region woman began to suspect that the very things she had been using to ease her symptoms were actually poisoning her. Now, grieving and overwhelmed by all she has lost over more than a decade, Ms Thompson, 61, of Wollongong, south of Sydney, has registered her interest in a class action against supplement giant Blackmores, as health practitioners and patients begin to realise the extent of vitamin B6 poisoning. "Before this happened, I was a bloody fitness instructor and now I struggle to work," she said. "I haven't been out socially at night for 10 years. I can't drive for more than 20 minutes. I can't go travelling, I can't go bushwalking. "I struggle to work in my garden at home and it took me nine-and-a-half years to complete a three year university degree. "I just feel overwhelmed, I get angry, I get full of grief for all I've lost." In recent months, there have been growing reports of toxicity related to vitamin B6, which is naturally found in meat, fruit and vegetables but which is also now added to many vitamin supplements, shakes and energy drinks and is present in thousands of products on the Australian market.. According to the Therapeutic Goods Administration, taking too much can cause nerve damage, which many people experience as peripheral neuropathy - or numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes. After an increase in reports about this condition, the regulator recently recommended stricter regulations and stronger warnings. It has also noted that there is no consensus on a safe level of B6. In May, Melbourne's Polaris Lawyers announced it was pursuing a class action investigation against Blackmores, on behalf of anyone who has suffered injuries after taking its supplements "containing higher than recommended levels of vitamin B6". A Blackmores spokesperson said the company was committed to the highest standards of product quality and consumer safety. "All our products, including those containing vitamin B6, are developed in strict accordance with the regulatory requirements of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)," they said. They said the company would "ensure full compliance" with any changes the regulator makes. Ms Thompson's health struggles began back in 2012, when she went to the GP complaining of numbness in her hands and feet. She had recently moved back to Australia, and was busy and tired working three jobs and buying a house, so started taking vitamin supplements "to give me energy". "I just didn't feel right and my hands and feet were a bit numb but my GP said it was my age, or probably menopause," she said. "I said, 'I've seemed to lose weight', and he just went, 'fancy a woman in her 40s complaining of losing weight, ha ha ha', so I just left it." "But I was getting more and more fatigued and so, in 2013, I started keeping a really detailed health diary because I thought maybe I had a food allergy because I thought I was being poisoned." That kicked off a "pretty expensive" 10-year journey of seeing specialists, including neurologists, ENT doctors, cardiologists, pain specialists, rheumatologists and having nerve conduction studies or tests for heavy metals poisoning. "I was always very thorough when I saw them, because I was studying science, and I was keeping these diaries and they'd always ask you on the new patient form, please list all your medications, prescription and non-prescription so I'd write this huge list of stuff down, but none of them said anything." By late 2019, when she was working as an English teacher at TAFE, she noticed her voice changing. "I was working about three days a week and I just noticed that my voice was starting to get very, very soft, very weak, very tired," she said. "It was when the drought was happening and there were lots of bushfires, smoke and dust and I thought that's what was causing it. "But that winter I'd had a doctor who said taking zinc was good for preventing respiratory disease - I wanted to choose the best and so I bought Blackmores Bio Zinc, but what I didn't realise was that it had 50mg of B6 in it." "I was popping these things every day, and I can see now that my symptoms - like headaches and migraines and gut pain and constipation were adding up, and by September my voice had become really weak and strained. "I just thought it was the dust and the bushfires and I just kept taking the B6, and then I'd lost my voice completely and had to give up work." As COVID hit, she was diagnosed with a completely paralysed left vocal cord, but was left without medical support. She began experiencing cramps, and started taking another supplement called Super Magnesium. "It also had 50 mg of B6 and, because I was getting all these migraines and I was pretty stressed because I'd lost my job and the whole COVID crap was starting, I was also taking Blackmores Executive Stress, which had another 25 milligrams of B6," Ms Thompson said. "At one stage that I was taking 125mg per day of B6, and just feeling worse and worse and worse." Years and many more appointments on, in September 2024, Ms Thompson saw a warning on the Therapeutic Goods Administration that made her suspect that her vitamins may have been poisoning her. She stopped taking them. "Magically, the gut pain, the constipation, the food intolerances all just disappeared within a couple of months," she said. "The anxiety lifted, the migraines eased off, the twitching and all that stuff just disappeared." "I've still got a base level of numb hands and feet, my voice hasn't improved and the fatigue hasn't improved. The weight loss and the muscle wasting has, in fact, got worse. "So I still can't work because I'm so fatigued and my voice is pretty crappy." In January, B6 poisoning hit the news, with the ABC's 730 running a report featuring patients who had similar symptoms and experiences to Ms Thompson. "I recognised my story and I just went, 'oh God, that's it'," she said. "I went back through all my diaries, 10 years of diaries, with orange highlighter and calculated all the B6 and just went, 'Oh my God'." Then, armed with a print-out of an Illawarra Mercury -an ACM mastheadarticle on the issue, in which Fairy Meadow, Wollongong, GP Kate McCullough issued a warning about high doses of the vitamin, she managed to convince her doctor to run a test. She has since been diagnosed with "B6 hypervitaminosis", and in recent months registered her interest in Polaris' proposed class action, which she hopes might stop others from going through her ordeal. Already the law firm says its has received more than 900 inquiries about the class action. "I just remember at one point, my doctor said, 'oh gee, Penny, I hate to think we're missing something'," Ms Thompson said. "Of course, I'd given him all the big lists of all the supplements I was taking, but he didn't know anything about it. None of the specialists knew about it." "Despite all the media coverage this year, and repeated alerts from the TGA, most doctors and allied health professionals are still completely unaware of B6 toxicity, how serious the resulting symptoms can be and how widespread it is becoming. "I'm really hoping the class action will generate enough publicity to turn this issue around." "And I'm hoping that this kicks up so much of a stink that all of these vitamin companies and the energy drink companies and the processed food manufacturers, they all stop putting more than the recommended daily dose into their products. "I want everybody to know about it, so every doctor in Australia knows about it and we can stop the tide of this epidemic of poisoning." A Blackmores spokesperson said it had received no formal legal claim, but was aware of reports about the class action.
The Australian
an hour ago
- The Australian
Australian supplement company Blackmores facing potential class action lawsuit
Australian supplement giant Blackmores is facing potential class-action lawsuit, over claims that excessive levels of vitamin B6 in some of the company's over-the-counter products have led to serious health complications. Dominic Noonan-O'Keeffe began taking Blackmores supplements in May 2023 to support his health, ahead of the birth of his first child. Unaware the magnesium product contained potentially 'toxic' levels of vitamin B6, he claims he soon developed severe symptoms – including fatigue, headaches, muscle spasms, heart palpitations, and loss of sensation, according to Polaris lawyers. Doctors later diagnosed him with neuropathy linked to excessive B6 intake. Despite stopping in early 2024, Mr Noonan-O'Keeffe claims he continues to suffer daily from nerve pain and other symptoms. Polaris Lawyers – who are representing Mr Noonan-O'Keeffe, the lead plaintiff in the potential class-action – allege they later discovered the magnesium product contained about 29 times the recommended daily intake of vitamin B6. Mr Noonan-O'Keeffe claims he suffered lasting health impacts after taking Blackmores Magnesium+. Picture: Supplied Polaris Lawyers is now investigating a proposed class action against Blackmores for the excessive B6 levels in their vitamin supplements. 'It's alarming to walk down the vitamin aisle of any chemist in Australia and see vitamin supplements containing levels of B6 which are far and above the recommended daily intake,' Polaris Lawyers Founder and Principal Nick Mann said. 'What happened to Dominic is tragic, but he is not alone – we are aware of reports that excessive levels of B6 in over-the-counter supplements may have caused lasting injuries to hundreds of Australians. 'Polaris Lawyers is currently investigating a class action on behalf of anyone who has suffered injuries as a result of excessive levels of B6 as a result of taking Blackmores vitamin supplements.' Blackmores is one of the country's biggest supplement providers. Picture: Supplied In an interim decision report released in June, the TGA acknowledged no clear consensus on a safe vitamin B6 level that fully prevents peripheral neuropathy. The decision proposed rescheduling products containing over 50mg per day as 'Pharmacist Only Medicines.' A Blackmores spokesperson said they were aware of the TGA's proposed changes. 'At Blackmores, we are committed to the highest standards of product quality and consumer safety. All our products, including those containing Vitamin B6, are developed in strict accordance with the regulatory requirements of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA),' the spokesperson said. 'This includes compliance with maximum permitted daily doses and the inclusion of mandated warning statements. 'We acknowledge the interim decision issued by the TGA and we will ensure full compliance with its final determination.' Amelia Swan Journalist Amelia Swan joined News Corp as a cadet reporter in 2024. Amelia Swan
The Advertiser
5 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Australia called to lift on global health as US yields
Australia must come to the party with more money to combat climate-related health issues, antimicrobial resistance and future pandemics. That's the bottom line of research that indicates the well-off nation is not pulling enough weight on the world stage to understand, anticipate and respond to emerging international health threats. The Australian government spent just under $630 billion on health between 2017 and 2023, according to a report commissioned by the Australian Global Health Alliance. About $35 billion was directed to health and medical research but just $2 billion was specifically set aside for global research. The country must increase and realign its funding to address and anticipate global health challenges more effectively, the report said. "Despite commendable efforts, Australia's investment in global health research lags behind its international peers," it said. "Key areas such as the impact of climate change on health, antimicrobial resistance, and pandemic preparedness are notably underfunded." Alliance executive director Selina Namchee Lo said the global scientific community was successful in rapidly delivering vaccines and treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. But where it fell short was equity, with some of the hardest-hit countries missing out. "What we're saying is equity is not optional for global health," Dr Lo told AAP. Another report, also commissioned by the alliance with Pacific Friends of Global Health, detailed the impact of two Australian-backed global public private partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. Australia has collectively poured more than $2.5 billion into The Global Fund and Gavi since 2000, helping to immunise more than 100 million children and save lives in the region. But the country's level of foreign aid has been been in "significant decline" since 2012, stagnating at $US3 billion annually over the past seven years. The multilateral aid landscape is "under pressure" after the US and UK reduced their commitments, the report said. It comes after US President Donald Trump's administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development, cutting funding to its aid programs worldwide. Dr Lo, who has nearly three decades experience in global and international health, said the abrupt exit of USAID left communities "in the lurch". "It's never good to have one group, whether it's a philanthropist or a country, be a monopoly," she said. "Because when they pull out, this is what happens." The Indo-Pacific still accounts for 25 per cent of global infections, with 6.7 million people in the region living with HIV and malaria rampant in Papua New Guinea. Pacific Friends of Global Health chair Brendan Crabb wants Australia to take up the mantle. "As the US administration dramatically steps back from global health leadership, Australia has a critical opportunity to convene and partner with Asia Pacific countries to advance the health priorities of the region," the Burnet Institute chief executive said. Australia must come to the party with more money to combat climate-related health issues, antimicrobial resistance and future pandemics. That's the bottom line of research that indicates the well-off nation is not pulling enough weight on the world stage to understand, anticipate and respond to emerging international health threats. The Australian government spent just under $630 billion on health between 2017 and 2023, according to a report commissioned by the Australian Global Health Alliance. About $35 billion was directed to health and medical research but just $2 billion was specifically set aside for global research. The country must increase and realign its funding to address and anticipate global health challenges more effectively, the report said. "Despite commendable efforts, Australia's investment in global health research lags behind its international peers," it said. "Key areas such as the impact of climate change on health, antimicrobial resistance, and pandemic preparedness are notably underfunded." Alliance executive director Selina Namchee Lo said the global scientific community was successful in rapidly delivering vaccines and treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. But where it fell short was equity, with some of the hardest-hit countries missing out. "What we're saying is equity is not optional for global health," Dr Lo told AAP. Another report, also commissioned by the alliance with Pacific Friends of Global Health, detailed the impact of two Australian-backed global public private partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. Australia has collectively poured more than $2.5 billion into The Global Fund and Gavi since 2000, helping to immunise more than 100 million children and save lives in the region. But the country's level of foreign aid has been been in "significant decline" since 2012, stagnating at $US3 billion annually over the past seven years. The multilateral aid landscape is "under pressure" after the US and UK reduced their commitments, the report said. It comes after US President Donald Trump's administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development, cutting funding to its aid programs worldwide. Dr Lo, who has nearly three decades experience in global and international health, said the abrupt exit of USAID left communities "in the lurch". "It's never good to have one group, whether it's a philanthropist or a country, be a monopoly," she said. "Because when they pull out, this is what happens." The Indo-Pacific still accounts for 25 per cent of global infections, with 6.7 million people in the region living with HIV and malaria rampant in Papua New Guinea. Pacific Friends of Global Health chair Brendan Crabb wants Australia to take up the mantle. "As the US administration dramatically steps back from global health leadership, Australia has a critical opportunity to convene and partner with Asia Pacific countries to advance the health priorities of the region," the Burnet Institute chief executive said. Australia must come to the party with more money to combat climate-related health issues, antimicrobial resistance and future pandemics. That's the bottom line of research that indicates the well-off nation is not pulling enough weight on the world stage to understand, anticipate and respond to emerging international health threats. The Australian government spent just under $630 billion on health between 2017 and 2023, according to a report commissioned by the Australian Global Health Alliance. About $35 billion was directed to health and medical research but just $2 billion was specifically set aside for global research. The country must increase and realign its funding to address and anticipate global health challenges more effectively, the report said. "Despite commendable efforts, Australia's investment in global health research lags behind its international peers," it said. "Key areas such as the impact of climate change on health, antimicrobial resistance, and pandemic preparedness are notably underfunded." Alliance executive director Selina Namchee Lo said the global scientific community was successful in rapidly delivering vaccines and treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. But where it fell short was equity, with some of the hardest-hit countries missing out. "What we're saying is equity is not optional for global health," Dr Lo told AAP. Another report, also commissioned by the alliance with Pacific Friends of Global Health, detailed the impact of two Australian-backed global public private partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. Australia has collectively poured more than $2.5 billion into The Global Fund and Gavi since 2000, helping to immunise more than 100 million children and save lives in the region. But the country's level of foreign aid has been been in "significant decline" since 2012, stagnating at $US3 billion annually over the past seven years. The multilateral aid landscape is "under pressure" after the US and UK reduced their commitments, the report said. It comes after US President Donald Trump's administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development, cutting funding to its aid programs worldwide. Dr Lo, who has nearly three decades experience in global and international health, said the abrupt exit of USAID left communities "in the lurch". "It's never good to have one group, whether it's a philanthropist or a country, be a monopoly," she said. "Because when they pull out, this is what happens." The Indo-Pacific still accounts for 25 per cent of global infections, with 6.7 million people in the region living with HIV and malaria rampant in Papua New Guinea. Pacific Friends of Global Health chair Brendan Crabb wants Australia to take up the mantle. "As the US administration dramatically steps back from global health leadership, Australia has a critical opportunity to convene and partner with Asia Pacific countries to advance the health priorities of the region," the Burnet Institute chief executive said. Australia must come to the party with more money to combat climate-related health issues, antimicrobial resistance and future pandemics. That's the bottom line of research that indicates the well-off nation is not pulling enough weight on the world stage to understand, anticipate and respond to emerging international health threats. The Australian government spent just under $630 billion on health between 2017 and 2023, according to a report commissioned by the Australian Global Health Alliance. About $35 billion was directed to health and medical research but just $2 billion was specifically set aside for global research. The country must increase and realign its funding to address and anticipate global health challenges more effectively, the report said. "Despite commendable efforts, Australia's investment in global health research lags behind its international peers," it said. "Key areas such as the impact of climate change on health, antimicrobial resistance, and pandemic preparedness are notably underfunded." Alliance executive director Selina Namchee Lo said the global scientific community was successful in rapidly delivering vaccines and treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. But where it fell short was equity, with some of the hardest-hit countries missing out. "What we're saying is equity is not optional for global health," Dr Lo told AAP. Another report, also commissioned by the alliance with Pacific Friends of Global Health, detailed the impact of two Australian-backed global public private partnerships in the Indo-Pacific. Australia has collectively poured more than $2.5 billion into The Global Fund and Gavi since 2000, helping to immunise more than 100 million children and save lives in the region. But the country's level of foreign aid has been been in "significant decline" since 2012, stagnating at $US3 billion annually over the past seven years. The multilateral aid landscape is "under pressure" after the US and UK reduced their commitments, the report said. It comes after US President Donald Trump's administration dismantled the US Agency for International Development, cutting funding to its aid programs worldwide. Dr Lo, who has nearly three decades experience in global and international health, said the abrupt exit of USAID left communities "in the lurch". "It's never good to have one group, whether it's a philanthropist or a country, be a monopoly," she said. "Because when they pull out, this is what happens." The Indo-Pacific still accounts for 25 per cent of global infections, with 6.7 million people in the region living with HIV and malaria rampant in Papua New Guinea. Pacific Friends of Global Health chair Brendan Crabb wants Australia to take up the mantle. "As the US administration dramatically steps back from global health leadership, Australia has a critical opportunity to convene and partner with Asia Pacific countries to advance the health priorities of the region," the Burnet Institute chief executive said.
