This doesn’t really affect me as I live in the UK, however it appears that the FDA are going to be cracking down on health supplements. The problem until now is that supplements are viewed as being food which is something that some manufacturers have been abusing.

I remember seeing a TV show a few years ago about the appetite suppressing qualities of Hoodia. The presenter went to Africa to try it for himself, and sure enough he didn’t want to eat anything for 24 hours.

Unfortunately the world is full of people who would sell their Granny for a quick buck, which means many pills have appeared on the market claiming to be Hoodia when in fact it’s just caffeine.

The new rules set out by the FDA means that as of 24 August, this “will help ensure that dietary supplements are manufactured with controls that result in a consistent product free of contamination, with accurate labeling,” said Dr. Robert E. Brackett, director of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.

This surely has to be good news? The problem with many alternative therapies is that it can take some months for symptoms to improve, so you never really know if what you’re buying is the real deal.  The same thing goes with stuff like how to cleanse your liver.