“A police offer who had been encouraged by his doctor decided to try a weight-loss supplement to help him shed his extra pounds. But instead of losing weight, he lost his job. His diet pills, which were imported from Brazil and sold in the United States, contained vitamin E, centella, senna, and cascara, among other “natural” ingredients. Not included on the label was the amphetamine detected in his urine drug screen. The now-unemployed sergeant is not alone. Such contaminated supplements represent an emerging risk to public health.”

The bottom line is you really have to be careful with what you trust as “safe.” In August 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found more than 140 supplements that contained undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients. DRUGS! These represent only a fraction of the contaminated supplements on the market.

The culprit is lack of regulation in a market where “empty promises” and “quick fixes” sell. Today, dietary supplements are presumed to be safe and can be marketed with very little oversight. Supplements manufacturers are required to report serious supplement-related adverse events to the FDA, but by and large they don’t. The FDA estimates 50,000 adverse events each year go unreported.

As a nutrition expert, I make it my a priority to look at the medications and supplements my new client is taking and ask them what they take each for. It is shocking to see what they are taking and how little they can explain about what the supplement is supposed to do. While I can’t go into detail and review every supplement in this post, here is what I would recommend.

1. Think before you buy. What is in it? Do you need it? Are all the ingredients safe? Do any of the ingredients compromise a pre-existing health condition or interact with medications? What is the cost? Is it effective?
2. Research the company. Has the company been around for a long time? Does it appear reputable? What is its Better Business Bureau rating?
3. Consider the messenger. I’ve heard it all from my clients, anything from “my co-worker sells them to me and they cured her brother’s skin cancer” to “my chiropractor said this cleanse would help me lose five pounds” to “the person at the supplement store said this was the best.”

There is no assurance that hazardous dietary supplements will be identified or removed from the market in a timely fashion. You have to be the cop.

Via New England Journal of Medicine

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Do You Know What’s in Your Dietary Supplements?

To date, there have been 30 reported cases of liver damage by those who take Alli, the only non-prescription weight loss drug the FDA has approved, and Xenical, its prescription counterpart. Of the 30 reports, 27 individuals have been hospitalized and six of them have experienced liver failure.

Both drugs are marketed by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC, but Xenical is manufactured by pharmaceutical giant Roche.

Proponents of the medications including a spokesperson for GlaxoSmithKline state that the liver damage may have nothing at all to do with Alli or Xenical use, but rather since liver disorders are common in those who are overweight or obese, these specific liver damage cases are likely due to excess body weight thereby predisposing them to such liver-related conditions.

While the FDA is carefully looking into these cases and determining how direct or indirect the link is between these two drugs and liver damage, the regulatory agency is encouraging all Alli and Xenical users to continue to use their medication according to their doctor’s guidance and to take careful notice of any early signs of liver damage which include nausea, unexplained fatigue, fever and vomiting. If any such signs are experienced, the individual should contact their medical provider as soon as possible.

DietsInReview.com will continue to provide you with the most up-to-date information on this breakthrough health information.

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FDA Looks Into Alli and Xenical Liver Damage Concerns

Its method for working its power impacts the brain’s craving and reward system. It is here that it unleashes its ability to block the craving drive that leads to overeating and binge-eating.

While the drug is still waiting FDA approval for consumer use, obesity experts believe that this cocktail approach to weight loss pills is the face of the future. Such treatments target numerous biological pathways from appetite suppression and cravings to blocking fat and blocking starches.

In regards to side effects, nausea, headaches and constipation were the most commonly cited. In addition, results of the clinical trial showed that Contrave helped more than half of the subjects lose more than 5 percent of their body weight in a year.

But many medical professionals have been quick to point out that while these results may be better than doing nothing at all, the weight loss effects are still not incredibly substantial. And what is still not known is that once a person reaches their weight loss goal, will they have to be on weight loss medication for the rest of their lives in order to maintain their lost weight? Medications like Contrave are being bred to be just that: Chronic diet pills that support long-term weight loss.

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Contrave is a New Weight Loss Drug Promising to End Cravings

Is the Food & Drug Administration protecting consumers from dangerous and fraudulent claims by supplement makers, or are they simply reacting after the fact when it’s too late? That’s what the advocacy group called the Reality Coalition thinks. And there’s some merit to that claim. The group argues that the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), does little to protect consumers from unsafe supplements like Hydroxycut until it’s too late.

Earlier this month, the FDA ordered a recall on the popular weight loss supplement Hydroxycut, after it received 23 reports of serious liver problems, ranging from jaundice and elevated liver enzymes. In 2007, a 19-year-old died of liver damage related to the use of Hydroxycut. Amazingly, that wasn’t reported to the FDA until this past March.

To make matters worse, there have been other problems associated with Hydroxycut, including seizures, heart problems, and rhabdomyolysis, a muscle ailment that can lead to other issues.

The controversy over the dangers of certain supplements really came to the forefront when major league baseball pitcher Steven Belcher died while using ephedra. Since then, there seems to have been more sensitivity to the dangers that some supplements may pose.

As a result, the FDA has gotten more aggressive in monitoring dietary supplements. In March, the agency sent letters to 72 companies regarding unlisted ingredients, and many of the companies subsequently recalled their products.

The problem that seems to be the most pressing, and obvious, is that under the current incarnation of the DSHEA, supplement companies don’t need FDA approval before they are put on the market. How insane is that? That’s akin to testing cars for safety after they are made.

How many more people need to become sick or die before a common sense revision to the law is brought about?

“Now is the ideal time for Congress… to raise the regulatory bar for weight loss supplement manufacturers to be accountable for the safety and efficacy of their products,” says Louis J. Aronne, M.D., co-chair of Reality Coalition. “We firmly believe that there needs to be an FDA review process for all over-the-counter weight loss products.”

(via: News Inferno)

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It’s Time for Better Supplement Regulation

From the FDA press release — The FDA has received 23 reports of serious health problems ranging from jaundice and elevated liver enzymes, an indicator of potential liver injury, to liver damage requiring liver transplant. One death due to liver failure has been reported to the FDA. Other health problems reported include seizures; cardiovascular disorders; and rhabdomyolysis, a type of muscle damage that can lead to other serious health problems such as kidney failure.

The teen’s death happened in 2007, and was only reported to the FDA in March 2009. Dr. Linda Katz of the FDA’s food and nutrition division said it has taken so long to bring this to the public’s attention because the cases were rare and the FDA has no authority over supplements (a government report in March 2009 called for higher supervision of supplements by the FDA). “Part of the problem is that the FDA looks at dietary supplements from a post-market perspective, and an isolated incident is often difficult to follow,” she said.

The FDA does not regulate supplements with the same authority it does pharmaceuticals. Producers do not have to have an FDA approval nor inspection of the products for safety or efficacy before being sold to consumers. “You really have to be careful about dietary supplements, especially weight-loss pills,” said Ano Lobb, who has studied Hydroxycut for Consumer Reports. “People believe that the FDA has verified that these products are at least safe and effective, and that’s really not the case. When you see fantastic claims — that’s generally what they are.”

The FDA does monitor aftermarket reports for health problems related to these supplements. A similar warning in 2004 regarding ephedra forced the government to enact a ban on the supplement ingredient following reports of heart attack and stroke.

This list of Hydroxycut products being recalled include:

Hydroxycut Regular Rapid Release Caplets
Hydroxycut Caffeine-Free Rapid Release Caplets
Hydroxycut Hardcore Liquid Caplets
Hydroxycut Max Liquid Caplets
Hydroxycut Regular Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Caffeine-Free Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Hardcore Drink Packets (Ignition Stix)
Hydroxycut Max Drink Packets
Hydroxycut Liquid Shots
Hydroxycut Hardcore RTDs (Ready-to-Drink)
Hydroxycut Max Aqua Shed
Hydroxycut 24
Hydroxycut Carb Control
Hydroxycut Natural

Hydroxycut Cleanse and Hoodia products are not affected by the recall.

“The agency has not yet determined which ingredients, dosages, or other health-related factors may be associated with risks related to these Hydroxycut products. The products contain a variety of ingredients and herbal extracts,” per the FDA press release.

via FDA and Associated Press

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Hydroxycut Recall after FDA Warning to Stop Using the Diet Pill

These prescription drugs are being abused to substitute diet pills.

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Wordless Wednesday: Accidental Diet Pills

In 2008, the FDA received 948 reports of health problems associated with dietary supplements, including 9 deaths and 234 hospitalizations. And the FDA asserts that these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg. The regulatory body estimates that each year, over 50,000 health problems are connected to the use of diet supplements.

The F.D.A. currently regulates dietary supplements as consumable nonfood substances, but regulate diet supplements with the same supervision and inspection as it does with drugs and medications. In addition, the FDA cannot force supplement manufacturers to take their tainted products away from drugstore shelves or online distributors. In December of 2008, the FDA issued a list of over 60 diet supplements that contained tainted ingredients and that were associated with health conditions, but there was little else it could do other than put out this warning and hope it was heard and heeded by diet pill consumers.

Therefore the take-home message with this recent report is that until the FDA has more authority to thoroughly inspect and regulate diet supplements, it is important to get medical approval before taking any weight loss product.

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Government Report Calls for More Supervision of Diet Supplements

When Xenical works, it blocks the absorption of fat in the intestines. Users are advised to reduce their dietary fat intake, consuming no more than 30 percent of their calories from fat each day.

This is what The Diet Blog has to say:

A new study suggests the popular diet drug Orlistat… doesn’t inspire people to improve their diets, instead individuals popping Xenical are more likely to eat worse. How’s that for irony.

Forty-four obese adults were studied. The average daily calories from fat among Xenical users was 33 percent (not the suggested 30 percent), and for the placebo group it was 28 percent. Participants were tracked over three years.

Now, I’m not one to favor weight loss supplements, so I’m not a big pharma apologist. But I don’t see from what’s shown here how it can be deduced that Xenical makes people eat worse than they would otherwise. If it’s the meager percentage difference in the study, 44 people is hardly convincing. Plus, it doesn’t prove that the users would have more or less fat intake without the drug. Only that they aren’t following instructions. Am I missing something?

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Does Taking Xenical Make You Eat Worse?

50 Cent wants to launch a diet supplement. The rapper – real name Curtis Jackson – is considering creating his own range of vitamin-enriched pills but refused to be drawn on the details.

50 Cent / Curtis Jackson

He is quoted by the New York Daily News newspaper as saying: “Right now, I’m interested in dietary supplements. I’ll be coming up with something very soon.”

“I can’t tell you what it would be called. I’d be blowing the big launch party!”

The “Candyshop” hitmaker also claimed he is drawing inspiration from music mogul Diddy when it comes to fashion.

Read the rest at exposay

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50 Cent With A Diet Pill?

Unlike her half-sister Ashley Judd, Wynonna wasn’t blessed with a Hollywood leading lady figure. Which, in this case, gives her more appeal, since regular folks can relate to her.

“People can see themselves in me and say ‘You know what? If she can do it, I can do it,’” says Judd.

She isn’t just a talking head for the Alli company, she already used the product before this deal was struck.

“This is about me picking something that I know works for me,” say Judd. “I can still plan [my work] and not feel like Alli is dictating my life as I have in the past on other programs. It fits into my schedule.”

Judd is set to release her new album, entitled Sing, on Feb. 3 and embark upon a 2009 tour.

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Singer Wynonna Judd New Alli Spokesperson