Last updated May 5, 2009

WHO'S TO BLAME?

  • Iovate failed to adequately test Hydroxycut products
  • Iovate failed to warn the public about the life-threatening risks of using Hydroxycut
  • Iovate placed their profits over consumer safety
  • The Law Firm of Howard L. Nations represents people who have been injured by recalled Hydroxycut products

Millions of people have used Hydroxycut dietary supplements making it one of the most popular weight loss products available. This is due primarily to multi-million dollar marketing campaigns targeting diverse groups, including dieters, sports competitors, and body-builders.

Contrary to popular belief, dietary supplements do not need FDA approval to be sold to the public. They do not have to pass any type of FDA inspection to ensure the safety or even the effectiveness of the product. The manufacturer is responsible to ensure that their product is safe and the labeling is truthful and not misleading.

Dietary supplements, especially weight-loss products, are often promoted as miracle cures that sound too good to be true, which unfortunately, is often the case. Hydroxycut was marketed as a fat burner and energy booster. Their fitness products have names like Hardcore and Max! and touted slogans such as, “When the goal is to get completely diced, everybody can use a little help.”

Dietary supplements, such as Hydroxycut, are also frequently promoted as being “all natural”. This is misleading to the public because people mistakenly think that if something is “natural”, it must be safe. But natural ingredients can definitely hurt you. Ephedra is a perfect example. In 2004, the herbal remedy ephedra was banned from all dietary supplements after it was shown to cause heart attacks and strokes. Hydroxycut contained ephedra at the time and Iovate was forced to remove it from their products.

Once dietary supplements are on the market, the FDA does monitor postmarket reports for health problems related to the products and can take formal action against any dietary supplement shown to be unsafe, as they have done with Hydroxycut. Regardless, the FDA does not regulate supplements with the same authority as it does pharmaceutical drugs and medical devices.

Illnesses resulting from Hydroxycut use have been reported over the past 7 years but the risks were not made public until May 1, 2009, when Iovate recalled Hydroxycut and the FDA issued public health warnings. The first death occurred in a 19-year old who died from liver failure in 2007. But it wasn’t reported to the FDA until March 2009. Before May of 2009, Hydroxycut consumers were routinely exposed to life-threatening risks without any warnings at all.

Facing tough competition, manufacturers of dietary supplements are so eager to get supplements out on the market, they are often willing to overlook and sometimes even cover up, problems with the product. New supplements are introduced prematurely without adequate testing and warnings, resulting in tragic losses that could have been avoided if the company had taken more time to test and develop the product, and provided adequate warnings about its use.

Hydroxycut supplements are no exception. Iovate failed to adequately test their products before and after they were marketed and they failed to warn the public about the risks involved. Now that the risks have been made public, it is likely that many more illnesses will be linked to Hydroxycut.