Fda Warns Public Of Company Selling B 50 Vitamins Containing Steroids

The Food and Drug Administration issued a press release last Friday, warning consumers in North Carolina and other states of the potential harm posed by a B-50 vitamin sold as a dietary supplement. Two potentially harmful steroids were found inside the vitamin, methasterone and dimethazine. The agency received 29 reports of adverse incidents including fatigue, muscle pain, and abnormal laboratory findings for cholesterol and liver and thyroid function.

The manufacturing company has refused to recall the product or issue warnings that inform consumers of the danger. This is in the face of evidence that anabolic steroid-containing products can cause acute liver injury or other long-term effects on blood-lipid levels, increased risk of heart attack and stroke, breast enlargement, infertility in men, and short stature in children.

Companies may be held accountable when they sell products that are either defective or should be labeled with a warning of potential dangers. In North Carolina a consumer may hold others accountable if 1) a duty was owed, 2) that duty was breached, 3) an injury resulted from that breach of duty, and 4) damages, or costs, occurred because of the injury. In order to be made whole, a consumer may file a personal injury civil suit against a manufacturer if a product caused injury.

North Carolina shields manufacturers and sellers from liability if the consumer’s action was contrary to warnings and instructions that came with the product, if the user knew or found a defect or dangerous condition and kept using it anyway, and if the consumer failed to use reasonable care under the circumstances.

North Carolina’s statute, GS 99B-5 mandates that an action brought by a consumer shows that the manufacturer or seller of a product failed to provide a warning or instruction for a danger, that the injured must show that the manufacturer knew or should have known that the danger existed, and that the company failed to take the necessary steps to warn or correct the danger. Prescription drug companies are specifically excluded from the requirement to provide a warning if an adequate warning or instruction was already provided by a physician or other person allowed to prescribe drugs.

Manufacturers of dietary supplements are not required to sustain the same amount of testing and regulation as prescription drugs. However, dietary supplements are often advertised to be beneficial and used by consumers as health products. Any product placed on the market that causes harm, whether through inadequate warnings or shoddy design, is one product too many.

The North Carolina personal injury attorneys, Herbert and Arlene Auger, are seasoned litigators who will fight for the compensation you deserve. The attorneys at Auger & Auger know how medical expenses can add up while the injured client is unable to work, and they work tirelessly to pursue every avenue of legal relief. If you have been injured and would like to speak to one of our experienced attorneys, contact our office today at 888-487-0835.

More Blog Posts:

North Carolina Summer Vacation Activities May Lead to Whiplash Injuries, North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer Blog, June 26, 2013

North Carolina Court of Appeals Backs Injured Worker’s Award of Temporary Total Disability, North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer Blog, June 20, 2013