FTC Files Three Actions Involving Ephedra
The Federal
Trade Commission announced three new enforcement actions against
direct marketers of weight-loss products containing ephedra.
The actions
-- two tentative settlements and one lawsuit -- were filed U.S. District
Court in Washington and involve allegedly deceptive efficacy, safety and
"no side effects" claims for weight loss supplements containing ephedra,
also known as Ma Huang.
The FTC said
it's challenging claims the ephedra supplements cause rapid, substantial
and permanent weight-loss without diet or exercise, and that "clinical
studies" or "medical research" prove those claims. The FTC also challenges
claims the ephedra weight-loss products are "100 percent safe," "perfectly
safe" or have "no side effects."
The two settlements
require Health Laboratories of North America Inc. and USA Pharmacal Sales
Inc. to stop making false and deceptive advertising claims, to include
warnings about the health risks of ephedra and certain other products,
and to pay $370,000 in fines.
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