Doctors analyzed 443 popular Web sites involving the eight most widely used herbal products. Of those, 273 sites made health claims. And of those, 149, or 55%, “claimed to treat, prevent, diagnose or cure specific diseases.”
Dietary supplements can go on the market without proof of safety and effectiveness. They are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration after they are on the market, when they must be able to substantiate any claims being made. Regulations prevent manufacturers from making claims that dietary supplements treat specific diseases and medical conditions.
“Important clinical information was often omitted,” says the study by Charles Morris and Jerry Avorn at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston in today’s Journal of the American Medical Association.
For instance, 39% of the 62 kava retail sites didn’t mention an FDA advisory linking the herb to liver toxicity, according to the article.