Earlier this week, celebrity physician Dr. Mehmet Oz was summoned before the Senate’s consumer protection panel.
Chairman Claire McCaskill chided the host of “The Dr. Oz Show” for claims he’s made about weight-loss supplements. On one show he touted green coffee extract as a “magic weight loss cure”; on another, he called raspberry ketone “the No. 1 miracle in a bottle to burn your fat.”
Oz admitted to the panel that he sometimes uses “flowery” language to describe the claims of supplements.
Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, the Food and Drug Administration regulates supplements as “food” rather than pharmaceutical drugs.
According to MarketResearch.com, which provides global market reports, Americans’ quest to lose weight spurs a $60 billion industry, which includes diet pills and supplements.
In light of Dr. Oz’s appearance before the Senate, do you think the government needs more authority over the dietary supplements industry? Email connie.post@coxinc.com
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