Money Talks Yet Once Again. With 2003 estimated sales in excess of $1.2 Billion US Dollars, a dietary supplement purported to be responsible for numerous deaths, is now back on
market. The FDA, following concerns raised by
medical community, over
deaths of several athletic individuals using
supplement, not just “couch potatoes” gallantly attempting to return to a more active and fit lifestyle, passed motion to ban
“diet miracle” fat burner. The 2003 death of 23-year-old Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler, resulted in a slew of negative publicity that lead to declining sales of diet and sports supplements containing
compound. Based on data collected from several poison control centers, a group of California based researchers had claimed
compound to be
most dangerous herbal product on
market. Because it is an herb, it was not subject to regulations governing pharmaceutical drugs and could be sold over-the-counter. This is still
case today. The government's decision to ban
supplement actually came late in 2003. According to
Public Citizen's Health Research Group in Washington, D.C., More than 150 deaths have been linked to
use of
compound in recent years. Tommy Thompson, Health and Human Services Secretary at
time, said
government had enough evidence to confirm
supplement was so powerful it quite readily caused heart attacks. Thompson announced a "Consumer Alert" warning against
use of all products containing
herb in any form, further stating
agency had notified manufacturers of its intent to publish a final rule banning
sale of supplements containing
compound. The ban followed
government review of more than 16,000 reports of adverse events, Thompson said. The actual ban was issued in February 2004.