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Public Citizen
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 17, 2003
2:13 PM
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CONTACT:
Public
Citizen
1-202-588-7742
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Public Citizen Cites Military Study of Heat-Related
Injuries at California Military Base to Underscore Dangers of
Ephedra;
In Separate Science Magazine Article, Public
Citizen Calls on FDA to Fulfill its Legal Mandate
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| WASHINGTON
- April 17 - Although just a small percentage of Marines at Camp
Pendleton, Calif., reported using the herbal supplement ephedra
daily during 2000, half the heat-related injuries reported that
year were among the Marines who had used ephedra, according to
an unpublished study.
This strongly
confirms that serious health risks are associated with ephedra
use, Public Citizen said today.
A summary of
the study, posted on a military Web site, was based on a survey
and medical data from the First Marine Division at Camp Pendleton,
Calif. It found that although 7 percent of Marines reported daily
use of ephedrine dietary supplements during the year 2000, "half
of all [Marines with] heat related injuries in 2000 in 1MARDIV
(First Marine Division) had used ephedra."
The information
also documented specific cases of ephedra-related injuries in
military personnel, including a death from Cybertrim (a supplement
containing ephedra) at Marine Corps Logistic Base in Barstow,
Calif., and a cerebral hemorrhage in an active duty person at
Point Loma Naval Submarine Base in San Diego. That person was
using Ultimate Orange, another ephedra supplement.
Military personnel
could not be reached to obtain further information about the study.
Previous reports indicate that there have been about 30 deaths
of active duty military personnel who were using ephedrine dietary
supplement products.
Public Citizen
is publicizing the Camp Pendleton information the same week as
the publication of an article by Sidney M. Wolfe, M.D., director
of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group, about ephedra in the
April 18 edition of Science magazine. In the article, "Ephedra:
Scientific Evidence Versus Money/Politics," Wolfe traces the history
of injuries and deaths linked to ephedra and the influence of
money and politics on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s
(FDA) refusal to ban it. He noted that although some manufacturers
are no longer selling supplements containing ephedra, the government
should not rely on the marketplace to protect the public’s health.
"Regulation
is now coming from the marketplace, operating in the vacuum created
by FDA inaction," Wolfe wrote. "This is not an acceptable way
to safeguard public health, and product labeling is not enough.
We call on the FDA . . . to stop the occurrence of further preventable
deaths and injuries by banning ephedra products."
Data show that
products containing ephedra increase the risk of hypertension,
stroke, heart attacks, arrhythmia and seizures. More than 100
deaths in the United States have been linked to ephedra. Most
recently, the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler
focused public attention on the dangerous supplement ingredient
yet again.
Because of
these serious problems, Public Citizen in 2001 petitioned the
FDA to ban ephedra. While a number of manufacturers have announced
they will stop selling supplements containing ephedra, the government
has yet to act.
"It would appear
that the FDA is part of the ‘Ephedra Industry Survival Service,’
not part of the public health service, Wolfe said. "The government
is talking about putting warning labels on ephedra products, but
that is not enough. These products can kill, and they shouldn’t
be on the shelves."
Both the Army
and the Air Force have stopped selling ephedra products in their
commissaries. The National Football League, the National Collegiate
Athletic Association and the International Olympic Committee have
prohibited the use of ephedra among athletes.
To obtain an
advance copy of the Science magazine article, contact Public Citizen.
To read a chronology
of ephedra – including a new citation to a Web site promoting
ephedra use to military personnel – click
here.
###
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