Legislation Brought Before Senate Would Crack Down on the Safety of Dietary Supplements

WASHINGTON - New legislation introduced to the U.S. Senate on March 26 seeks to protect consumers from dangerous dietary supplements by going a step beyond the FDA's plan of requiring warning labels on ephedra products.

The Dietary Supplement Act of 2003 (bill S. 722), sponsored by Senator Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), would amend the Food, Drug & Cosmetic act to require that supplement makers submit serious adverse event reports to the FDA within 15 days of receipt.

photo-1 Durbin, who has repeatedly called for a ban on supplements containing ephedra, stated that the proposed legislation would 'save lives and …