Festering criticism continues to plague the dietary supplement industry over the increasing presence of adulterated products. Recent months have witnessed an influx of questionable dietary supplements that have been spiked with unauthorized and undisclosed drugs. The most recent transgressions by dietary supplement manufactures were acknowledged by a national audience on public television. Data revealed on the Dr. Oz show this week acknowledged the presence of adulterated products and serves a testament that the dietary supplement industry is under-regulated.
In front of a national audience at prime time, Dr. Oz conducted several tests on dietary supplements sold across the country. According to the results, several products revealed the presence of unauthorized active pharmaceutical ingredients, including some banned and potentially dangerous drugs. Perhaps the most shocking discovery, was a particularly dangerous supplement that contained approximately six times the level of a drug that had previously been banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its link to fatal complications. Similar tests were conducted on several dietary supplements, many of which revealed the presence of multiple banned active pharmaceutical ingredients.
According to Dr. Alex Schauss, chief executive of contract research organization AMBER Life Sciences, the findings on the show were “shocking and very disturbing and if continued will undermine consumer confidence unless effectively addressed.” The discovery of such undisclosed ingredients suggests a growing problem in the dietary supplement industry. Schauss continued to express his discontent for dietary supplement manufactures by acknowledging that “the levels of some of the APIs in these products was off the chart. But I think it also showed that this problem is not just limited to renegade supplement makers selling products on the internet, but to products sold all over the U.S. in every kind of channel.”
The presence of undisclosed and dangerous ingredients within dietary supplements continues to cause concern. According to Neal Kababick, “I must say that I am seeing a rise in this problem not an abatement. Is that because more people are forwarding samples for us to test or is it because unethical midnight manufacturers are catching on to the opportunity… Regardless, we must remain vigilant, applying proper sampling plans and state of the art technology combined with strong phytoforensic techniques to assure that spiked raw materials do not make it into consumer products.”
Experts believe the problem is centered around rogue elements in the trade that are continually becoming more sophisticated at such a rapid rate. Elements exhibiting complex compounds are subsequently able to fool analytical tests. New drugs are proving too difficult to assess for a large portion of the medical pharmaceutical industry. According to Schauss, “there needs to be more help for people to know what methodologies they should be using to test for these substances and any analogs.”
Do I Have a Dietary Supplement Lawsuit?
The trial lawyers at The Senators (Ret.) Firm, LLP have decades of experience navigating through complex legislative and regulatory issues and litigating high stakes cases all over the nation. Our law firm focuses on the representation of plaintiffs in dietary supplement lawsuits. We are currently accepting new cases in all 50 states.
If you or a loved one has been injured by a dietary supplement with undisclosed ingredients, you may be entitled to financial compensation. For a free case review, please click the link below or call toll free 24 hrs/day 1-(949) 557-5800.