The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) needs more oversight authority to police dietary supplements and foods that contain supplements, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
The March 5 report called for additional FDA regulatory authority over dietary supplement manufacturing facilities and expanded reporting of adverse health effects of these products. The report also recommended that the FDA issue guidance to industry to clarify which supplement ingredients require safety documentation before they can be marketed and also that the agency take steps to improve consumer understanding about these products (http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_111/20090302/gaoreport.pdf).
The Council for Responsible Nutrition, a supplement trade association, agreed with some of the recommendations in the GAO report but disagreed with the suggestion that all adverse events be reported. The council said only serious adverse events should be reported because the FDA is already overburdened and understaffed.
The Center for Science in the . . . [Full Text of this Article]
