Dietary Supplements for Dementia, Alzheimers ‘Like the Wild West’: Senator

Dietary supplements sold by many online retailers that claim to treat or prevent Alzheimers, dementia and memory loss may be preying on vulnerabilities of older Americans, according to a prominent U.S. Senator.

In a press release issued this week, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill announced a new campaign against dietary supplements that exploit senior citizens suffering from memory loss or other related ailments.

McCaskill is the ranking member of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, which often investigates health scams targeting older Americans. The statement specifically mentions the dietary supplement “Brain Armor”, which is allegedly targeted to seniors suffering from Alzheimers, dementia and memory loss, but similar supplements are marketed under various different brand names as well, such as “Brain Awake” and “Dementia Drops”.

Letters were sent by the Senator to at least 15 major retailers, including Amazon, QVC, Walgreens, Home Shopping Network, Walmart, Target, CVS, Vitamin Shoppe, Safeway, eBay, Kroger, Vitamin World, GNC, Google, and Yahoo, asking about policies regarding the sale and marketing of dietary supplements. The letters also asked companies to explain how they evaluate whether or not dietary supplement manufacturers are making false claims.

“Brain Armor” was sold on Amazon until McCaskill alerted the FDA to the manufacturer’s claims that the supplement protects against Alzheimer’s, dementia and stroke. It was then pulled from the website. However, similar products continue to be sold on Amazon and several other national retailer’s websites.

“People looking online for cures or treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia are at their most desperate—and it’s clear from what we’ve found that many of these products prey on that desperation,” McCaskill said in her press release. “Right now it’s like the wild west when it comes to the production, marketing, distribution, and sale of these products. I want to figure out why that is and what we can do to better protect America’s seniors.”

In a letter sent to the FDA, McCaskill called on the agency to fulfill its obligation to prevent fraud and to review new supplements and ingredients. McCaskill focused on the enforcement actions of the FDA and those specifically taken against dietary supplement manufacturers and distributors that fail to comply with regulations.

The letter called for a detailed description of the FDA’s process for evaluation of medical and nutritional claims made by supplements already on the market and what the agency has done to prevent fraudulently marketed products from being sold in stores and websites.

“It’s important that these companies respect their customers in turn by doing what they can to not sell products that are unsafe or misleading,” she said.

McCaskill said the FDA lacks a “systematic approach” to preventing potentially harmful products from entering the market.

This is the latest investigation into the dietary supplement industry, which is a $30 billion industry and includes thousands of products which have often been under scrutiny concerning questionable advertising, marketing and manufacturing practices.

Dietary supplements are not subject to FDA regulation as long as they make no claim to cure or treat a condition. The only time the FDA intervenes is when the ingredients actually include an FDA-controlled substance, they make a claim to treat a medical condition, or there has been a health problem linked to the use of the supplement. .

More than 5 million people suffer from Alzheimer’s in the U.S. It is the most common form of dementia, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is no known cure for the conditions and prescription drugs only ease the symptoms.