Herbal Supplements Legal News Articles & Interviews

New York, NY: It's not just herbal supplement companies that face the wrath of consumers who allege they’ve been misled into buying herbal supplements. Celebrities that are seen as endorsing the supplements are also on the receiving end of lawsuits. Dr. Oz has faced congressional hearings and now faces a lawsuit over fat-burning supplements, with plaintiffs alleging they were misled into buying worthless supplements.

New York, NY: A Frontline documentary exploring the Herbal Supplement industry suggests herbal supplements may not contain the ingredients consumers think they’re buying. The documentary, which aired on PBS on January 19, is the latest in a string of investigations into how herbal supplements are made and marketed, including lawsuits filed by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and the Justice Department against various herbal supplement makers.

Pittsburgh, PA: Any users of herbal supplements grousing about fraudulent content and misleading labeling now have advocates at the shareholder level, following the filing of a shareholder lawsuit against GNC Holdings Inc. (GNC). In sum, the herbal supplements lawsuit accuses the principals of GNC of standing pat while stock prices inflated, before prices tumbled once it was revealed that contents of GNC herbal supplements did not jive with the product labels.

Washington, DC: People turn to herbal and dietary supplements for many reasons, including to treat or prevent a specific condition, to lose weight and to improve overall health. Some take the supplements as sexual enhancement products, but even supplements taken for sexual enhancement may not be all they’re cracked up to be. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a warning about dietary supplements used for sexual enhancement having ingredients not listed on the label or being otherwise tainted.

Pittsburgh, PA: The herbal supplement industry can prove to be a double-edged sword for consumers attempting to take control of their own health by ingesting products which, in their view, contain more natural ingredients and fewer chemicals. Manufacturers also know that anything containing the word “herbal” can be a license to print money. And yet, there continue to be disconnects in the industry.

New York, NY The herbal supplement industry faces an additional crackdown, after New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced he was targeting the makers of an arthritis supplement. This is the latest move in a crackdown on herbal supplement makers for allegedly misleading customers by not using proper ingredients in their products.

Fort Wayne, IN Instead of an expectation of “feeling fit” in 30 days, a woman from Allen County Indiana alleges that she was left instead with acute liver failure brought on by toxic levels of green tea extracts in the herbal supplements she had been using. The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette (5/23/15) reports that plaintiff Vicki L. Swanson has launched an herbal supplements lawsuit against Arbonne International, a company that sells herbal supplements, together with other products, through direct marketing.

Washington, DC The herbal supplement industry continues to be a headache for health advocates and consumers campaigning for stricter controls and labeling for a product sector that doesn’t fall within the normal parameters and guidelines mandated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). That’s partly because herbal supplements are considered neither a food nor a drug and have thus far escaped more intense regulation.

New York, NY Sometimes it takes a lawsuit to force a change, and in that regard the herbal supplement industry may not be all that different from the pharmaceutical industry. After herbal supplement lawsuits were filed by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, more concerns have been raised about herbal supplement fraud. Although Schneiderman’s actions don’t necessarily affect other states, other attorneys general are reportedly calling for an inquiry into the industry.

New York, NY Following news of herbal supplements lawsuits and allegations of fraudulent labeling in the herbal supplement industry comes news that at least one retailer has agreed to make changes to its herbal supplements products. GNC has reportedly agreed to make changes to its testing procedures in an attempt to regain some of the trust lost in the herbal supplement industry.