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Senate hearing: supplements or steroids?

<p>On September 29, 2009, the Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs held a hearing, "Body Building Products and Hidden Steroids: Enforcement Barrier." The hearing elicited a surplus of comments from various industry groups. Here are a few excerpts. <a href="http://www.functionalingredientsmag.com/article/NorthSouth-America/smart-choice-label-debacle.aspx" target="_blank">Click here</a> for a list of all stories on this subject.</p> <p><span class="subheadline"><strong>Steve Mister, president & CEO, Council for Responsible Nutrition</strong></span><br><br> "<em>Rogue products that contain anabolic steroids are not dietary supplements, regardless of how the bad actors who manufacture and market these products might position them &#8212; they are illegal, unapproved new drugs. Responsible supplements companies do not condone these practices, and urge the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Drug Enforcement Administration to use the ample authority already granted to these agencies to crack down on anabolic steroids that put athletes and young people at risk...</em></p> <p><em>The FDA has the regulatory authority under existing law to take action against companies manufacturing and marketing unapproved drugs masquerading as dietary supplements. The FDA can remove these products from the marketplace if they pose an imminent threat to public health or if there is a significant or unreasonable risk of injury or illness associated with use of the products&#8230;."</em></p> <p><span class="subheadline"><strong>Daniel Fabricant, PhD, interim executive director & CEO, Natural Products Association</strong></span><br><br> <em>"First, let me say that we welcome this hearing because we share your concerns about illegal steroids. Selling products containing illegal substances is a crime. Whenever a product containing illegal substances is identified &#8212; be they steroids or something else &#8212; we are the first to call for throwing the book at the offending party. Anyone caught selling steroids should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and the natural-products industry has worked for years to pass those laws.</em></p> <p><em>Unfortunately, our industry is being victimized by a guerilla-style criminal drug-peddling operation. And we believe that tougher enforcement and prosecution to the full extent of the law are the best ways to stop the criminals. The barriers to enforcement are simple: money, manpower and will. We fully support a strong regulatory and legislative regime to ensure that what's on the label is what's in the bottle &#8212; the criminals who sell steroids illegally don't&#8230;."</em></p>

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