December 30, 2003
"Consumers Warned To Not Take Ephdera-Containing Products After Federal Officials Make Plans To Ban the Dietary Supplement"
Federal officials on Tuesday announced plans to ban dietary supplements containing ephedra after determining that these products "present an unreasonable risk of illness or injury," said Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Mark McClellan. Because of continued health concerns about the product, customers are warned not to take products containing the stimulant.

Tuesday's announcement marks the first time U.S. officials have blocked the sale of an over-the-counter nutritional supplement. Unlike drugs, dietary supplements do not have to be proven safe before going on the market, but federal authorities can act to take them off the shelves if they are shown to be unsafe, as is the case in the Ephedra ban.

To learn more about the ban of Ephedrine,
CLICK HERE!

October 13, 2003
"Davis Signs Bill Banning Sale of Ephedra-Based Pills"
Governor Grey Davis signed legislation late Sunday night, making California the third state to ban sales of ephedra-based diet pills. Many medical professionals blame diet pills containing ephedra for increased risk of stroke, seizure, and heart attack. Last year, California was one of several states to require consumer warnings on dietary supplements containing ephedra, and now joins New York and Illinois in instituting a ban. Read Entire Article...

September 9 , 2003
"Consumers Still Not Aware of Ephedra Dangers"
According to a Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine study published in August’s Mayo Clinic Proceedings, consumers are still failing to receive accurate information regarding the dangers of ephedra. Internet sales of ephedra-containing products contained incorrect or misleading statement in 34% of the 32 Web sites researcher identified as sites marketing ephedra products for weight lose chosen in a random search to best simulate consumer search patterns. In 41% of the ephedra sites adverse effects were not included, and 53% of the ephedra sites did not include dosing information.

For more information on ephedra side effects, including Metabolife side effects, please contact us to confer with a Metabolife lawyer.

August 12, 2003 - Web sites may be violating FTC standards when selling ephedra products
A study published in an August 2003 Mayo Clinic Proceedings suggests Web sites might be violating truth-in-advertising standards when selling ephedra-containing products. There were 32 Web sites evaluated in the recent study and most of them failed to adhere to Federal Trade Commission standards. Read Entire Article....

Death of Major League Baseball Player Casts Shadow on Ephedra

Considered more dangerous than anabolic steroids by many, the death of Steve Bechler on February 17, 2003 brought attention to already controversial issue of the dangers of stimulants like ephedra. Ephedra can be extremely dangerous because of the acute adverse effects that it can cause. The ephedra has been and is used by athletes because it will allow the athlete to not feel as fatigued as they normally would, which can cause them to overextend themselves and ignore signs that would indicate adverse effects.

If you have taken, or are still taking Metabolife or any other ephedra-based product contact us to speak with a Metabolife lawyer.

Metabolife Videos: Fri, 16 Aug 2002 -- The company that makes Metabolife fired back at the federal government, saying, in effect, regulate us and the rest of the diet industry. NBC's Pete Williams reports ------------------>Play Video The Department of Justice is launching an investigation into Metabolife, a diet drug containing the controversial herbal stimulant ephedra, reports CBS's Sharyl Attkisson. ------------------>Play Video

FDA Makes a Statement Regarding Metabolife, August 15, 2002
The FDA’s Deputy Commissioner Crawford issued a statement on August 15, 2002, after asking the Department of Justice to pursue a criminal investigation of Metabolife three weeks prior. As far back as 1997, the FDA has unsuccessfully tried to get adverse effect reports from Metabolife, but Metabolife has refused and failed to cooperate with the FDA’s requests. The criminal investigation was launched to determine if Metabolife made false statements to the FDA regarding Metabolife dangers. On August 17, 2002, the FDA warned Metabolife International they were reaching “the end of our tethers” in reference with the agency’s efforts to obtain key reports from the company. If you are currently taking Metabolife or another ephedra product, it is suggested to contact your physician and to contact a Metabolife lawyer.

Metabolife Linked to High Number of Adverse Effects
Researchers studied 140 cases of Metabolife side effects and found a direct link between Metabolife and about one third of the cases, including fatal heart attacks and strokes, with a probable link in another one third. Metabolife, in addition to other dietary supplement manufacturers, have resisted lawmakers’ efforts for increased regulation ever since deregulation occurred, and the FDA’s attempts to collect data has been criticized by the General Accounting Office and the herbal industry as incomplete and with an insufficient basis. According to the Public Citizen Health Research Group, who has also petitioned the FDA to pull ephedra products such as Metabolife off the market, “ephedra causes more deaths and injuries by itself than all the other herbals put together, and it is time to get it off the market.”

Public Citizen writes the HHS for the criminal investigation of Metabolife
-August 15, 2002

Metabolife Banned Organizations that already banned Metabolife and other ephedra-based products include: National Football League (NFL) International Olympic Committee (IOC) National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) The list of organizations to ban Metabolife and other ephedra-based products due to the number of deaths and adverse effects is expected to continue growing.

Public Citizen issued a letter to the Department of Health and Human Service’s Secretary Thompson to urge him to direct the FDA to open a criminal investigation of Metabolife. The letter noted Metabolife President and co-founder, Michael Ellis’ 1990 conviction on a drug-related charge that involved the illegal manufacture and sale of methamphetamine, an illegal drug that can be produced by ephedra. Ellis pleaded guilty to a felony charge. In addition, Public Citizen noted the Washington Post article from December 25, 2000, finding Metabolife had donated $638,000 to federal campaigns, ranking seventh among all pharmaceutical companies nationwide by October 1, 2000.

Metabolife spent more than $4 million between 1998-2000 to lobby against state regulations in Texas that were trying to regulate dietary supplements more tightly. Metabolife ranked fourth in California state “soft money” contributions with $493,000 in 2000 and a $100,000 donation to Governor Gray Davis’ campaign who recently vetoed state legislation imposing restrictions on ephedra use. Public Citizen aggressively wrote that “any failure by your department to: a) agree to aggressively pursue a criminal investigation against Metabolife President Michael Ellis for apparently lying to the government; b) to pursue the acquisition of now-sealed court documents concerning serious adverse effects of Metabolife, many likely not to have been reported to the FDA because there is no requirement to do so; and c) to order a ban on the production and distribution of ephedra products will ultimately bring disgrace to you and your department.”

Mayo Clinic Review of Metabolife Reports
The Mayo Clinic published a review in January 2002 of a review of reports made between 1995-1997 about adverse reactions to Metabolife and other ephedra products. Metabolife and other ephedra product makers claim when taken properly it is safe, but the Mayo Clinic found even at recommended doses there were 11 sudden deaths, 16 strokes, and 10 heart attacks.