Last year I wrote an article highlighting the dangerous ingredients found in protein drink mixes. Studies found high amounts of heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, and arsenic in certain protein drinks. It seems that once again the supplement industry has come under fire, and I believe it is a lack of government regulation that has lead to these dangerous outcomes.
Unlike food and other drug products, supplements do not have to be FDA-approved before hitting the market. I believe this was a monumental mistake made by lawmakers in 1994 that made an FDA law exempting herbal supplements from needing to be approved.
This month, Eric Schneiderman, the New York State Attorney General, announced that four major retailers are selling herbal supplements that may be mislabeled, packed with fillers, and potentially harmful to the health of the consumers.
Schneiderman sent cease-and-desist letters to Walmart, Walgreens, Target, and GNC, ordering them to remove the aforementioned supplements that include: gingko biloba, ginseng, garlic, St. John’s wort, and saw palmetto.
These accusations originated from DNA testing that found plants listed on the labels were either in short supply, substituted with cheap fillers, such as powdered rice or wheat, or not even present at all.
Almost 80% of supplements tested at the retailers didn’t contain any of the herbs they claimed. At Walmart, only 4% of its tested products adhere to label claims.
Furthermore, Walmart’ gingko biloba was found to contain little more than radish, houseplants, and wheat – despite a claim made on the label that this product was wheat and gluten-free.
This is concerning for millions of Americans that have celiac disease and other allergies which could make these products very dangerous for them.
Schneiderman pointed out that, “mislabeling, contamination, and false contamination are illegal. They also pose unacceptable risks to New York families-especially those with allergies to hidden ingredients.â€
The attorney general’s investigation was motivated by a 2013 New York Times article that highlighted research from the University of Guelph in Canada. This research also found troubling conclusions as a third of herbal supplements tested did not contain the plants listed on their labels.
How have these companies been able to get away with such blatant lies for so many years? The answer most likely lies behind the big supplement businesses, lobbyists, and unethical politicians.
The aforementioned 1994 federal law that exempts supplements from strict government regulations was sponsored and designed by Republican Senator, Orrin G. Hatch. As one may expect,
Hatch has accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the industry and has repeatedly intervened in Washington to eliminate proposed laws that would toughen the rules on supplement companies.
In 2012, Hatch successfully fought a proposed amendment that would have required supplement makers to register their products with the FDA.
According to Hatch, this amendment was based on “a misguided presumption that the current regulatory framework for dietary supplements is flawed.â€
Misguided? I believe Senator Hatch is the only one misguided in this situation. With several studies and investigations showing the mislabeling and fraud of these supplement companies, I can’t tell if he is blinded by the kickbacks he receives or is just plain ignorant.
Perhaps he would also prefer to ignore the major health problems this mislabeling has caused. For example, in 2013, an outbreak of hepatitis that affected 72 people in 16 states was traced back to a tainted supplement. In this outbreak, three people required liver transplants and one woman died.
This past December, a Connecticut hospital gave an infant a popular probiotic supplement. However, this infant later died as a result of the supplement being contaminated by Yeast.
At that time, the FDA warned the public of its lack of control in the supplement industry.
“These products are not subject to FDA’s premarket review or approval requirements for safety and effectiveness,†the FDA proclaimed, “nor to the agency’s rigorous manufacturing and testing standard for drugs.â€
I believe it is time to take the fight directly to these companies. As consumers, we need to hold them accountable for what ingredients are actually in their products.
Politicians need to put their greed aside and see that these companies are profiting from their own lies and at the possible expense of the health of all Americans using their products.
As an individual who takes a daily multivitamin and vitamin C supplement, this investigation, and other previous studies, both frightens and angers me. I use my hard earned money to buy these supplements with the trust that they contain everything they claim to include.
There is a reason the supplements are directly next to pharmaceutical drugs in retail stores, because they both impact or influence the body in some way. It is for this reason that the FDA should also have the power to critically examine and investigate supplement products before their approval; in the same way that they probe the drugs that sit on the shelf next to these supplements.
How many more Americans need to become sick or die from these products before there will be change? How much more money will these companies make on their lies before we take a stand to hold them accountable? How much longer until these supplements are regulated and deemed safe before they are put into the bodies of consumers?
I believe that moment is now; it is time for a law that requires supplements to pass the strict regulations of the FDA. We need to put more pressure on the government and these companies or this fraud will continue to persist.
If over 80% of the 78 supplements tested were shown to contain mislabeling; ask yourself how many other supplements on the market are guilty of the same crime?
Zach Heppner
Viewpoints Editor