Beware of Tainted Weight Loss Drugs
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The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is urging consumers to stop taking the dietary supplement Venom HYPERDRIVE 3.0, marketed as an appetite suppressant/energy builder/mental focus enhancer, because it contains significant amounts of the chemical sibutramine.
Sibutramine, a controlled substance, poses safety risks as well as risks for abuse or addiction. Though Applied Lifescience Research Industries, Inc., who markets Venom HYPERDRIVE 3.0, claims on its website that the supplement contains only “trace amounts” of sibutramine, FDA tests revealed a potentially harmful amount of the chemical in each dosage unit.
"Sibutramine is the active ingredient in an FDA-approved prescription drug used as an appetite suppressant for weight loss," said Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "But when present in a dietary supplement, it may harm unsuspecting consumers because sibutramine can substantially increase blood pressure and heart rate (pulse), and may present a significant risk for people with a history of heart disease, heart failure, irregular heart beats or stroke."
The product was sold via distributors and in retail stores nationwide as well as in Canada, Poland, Sweden, Hungary, South Africa, the Netherlands, Australia, France and the United Kingdom. The product was packaged in red plastic bottles containing 90 capsules each with the UPC# 094922534743.-FDA
The FDA is advising consumers currently using Venom HYPERDRIVE to stop using it at once, and to contact a health care professional if they have experienced any unusual symptoms.
For a list of all known tainted weight loss products, see: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2008/NEW01933.html.