Supplements: Are Consumers The Experimental Animals?

A news report on Yahoo details the disgraceful lack of oversight by the FDA over dietary supplements in the US. After a hepatitis outbreak allegedly caused by an OTC supplement, it took some time for the product to be recalled. Unfortunately, consumers were the ones who innocently took the product.

Health officials then suspected that a new ingredient called aegeline that was added to the supplement caused the illnesses. Because the FDA regulates supplements only after they come to market, companies are not required to prove that their products are safe and effective before marketing them.

"This really points to the fact that there's no safety testing … before a new ingredient shows up in a supplement in the United States," Cohen said. "Guess who's the experimental animal — the consumer."

Read more here:   http://news.yahoo.com/diet-supplement-causes-nearly-100-hepatitis-cases-215935222.html