Dateline: 09/11/01

The $27 billion dollar-a-year dietary supplement industry came under Congressional attack yesterday as the Senate Special Committee on Aging heard testimony accusing the industry of blatantly fraudulent advertising aimed mainly at older Americans.

According to Committee Chairman Sen. John Breaux (D-LA), anyone who is ill can be placed at risk by turning to herbal and other alternative medicines instead of traditional, often more expensive prescription drugs. Breaux noted that the elderly are often tempted to choose non-prescription dietary supplements in order to save money. 

Under current law, herbal medications and dietary supplements can be sold without first being tested and approved for safety and effectiveness by the FDA, as is the case with prescription drugs. Instead, it is up to the FDA to prove herbal products to be unsafe in order to have them removed from the marketplace.

In his written opening remarks, Sen. Breaux stated, "I would like to say up front that this hearing will focus on companies that mislead consumers with regard to dietary and specialty supplements. As with any industry, the vast majority of manufacturers and marketers of supplements are reputable and law abiding. It is the bad actors that we are concerned with today."

The worst of the "bad actors" identified in the committee's hearings was Glenn Braswell, President and owner of GB Data Systems and its subsidiaries, Gero Vita International and Heathquest Publications, publishers of the Journal of Longevity.

Convicted in 1983 of mail fraud in relation to false claims for a baldness cure sold by his company, Braswell was pardoned by former President Clinton last January.

Former chief financial officer of GB Data Systems Mike O'Neil testified that the company reported annual profits in excess of $200, with most profits coming from sales to people between 45 and 60 years of age. O'Neil stated that most of the company's expenditures were devoted to producing extensive and deceptive advertising.

O'Neil told Senators that Braswell's products, "could not possibly deliver what is promised in the advertising," ranging from curing cancer to slowing aging and extending life by up to 26 percent. 

Braswell, along with Ron Tepper, editor of the Journal of Longevity, an advertising vehicle for Braswell's products were subpoenaed and sworn in to testify. Both men, however, chose to invoke their Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination. Braswell and Tepper are currently being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service on charges of money laundering and tax evasion.

Of the Journal of Longevity, Sen. Breaux commented, "They sell slick-looking advertisements that look like medical journals but take advantage of the elderly by putting both their health and their finances at risk. It is clearly fraudulent and it simply will not stand."

While the committee was highly critical of their deceptive advertising practices, Senators held out little prospect for legislation to further regulate the herbal and supplemental drug industry.

Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, ranking Republican on the committee stated, "Clearly we must enforce the law, remove the threat of dangerous products from the market, and bring to justice criminals who prey on the frightened and hopeless," but added, "At the same time, we should remain wary of calls for expansive regulations that may restrict an individual's freedom to make his or her own health decisions."

Also released yesterday, is a General Accounting Agency report titled Physical Harm from the Use of Ant-Aging Alternative Medicine Products. (.pdf file - requires the free Adobe Acrobat reader.)