FDA Issues Letters to Companies Promoting Illegal Diabetes Treatments

Fifteen companies were warned about selling products with false advertising….

These companies are market products such as dietary supplements and alternative medicines, and have placed false claims on packaging including, "Lowers A1c levels significantly," and "It can replace medicine in the treatment of diabetes." These false claims are detrimental to the diabetic consumers who are buying the product and discontinuing their effective maintenance medications. Patients who delay or discontinue proper treatment for their diabetes are at greater risk of developing serious health complications. The FDA is warning consumers not to use such products because they may contain harmful ingredients or may be marketed as OTC when they are really prescription strength medications.

Products marketed as "all natural" diabetes treatments were tested by the FDA and they found that some had one or more active ingredients found in prescription drugs for type 2 diabetes. Many of these illegal products have undeclared ingredients that may interact with a patient’s other medications and cause serious harm.

The FDA also examined the sales of prescription drugs from online pharmacies. If an online pharmacy does not require a legitimate prescription, provide a physical address within the U.S., and does not have a license from the state pharmacy board or a state-licensed pharmacist, then chances are the pharmacy is fraudulent. These drugs could be counterfeit, expired, or unsafe because the FDA cannot confirm that the manufacturer is following U.S. regulations.

• Consumers should not be fooled by the alluring claims that these fraudulent companies are marketing. Since these products cannot be regulated by the FDA, they may be harmful to the patient’s health.
• Healthcare professionals need to make sure that patients know why they are taking their prescription medications and why that easy fix OTC pill is not right for them.

"Beware of Illegally Sold Diabetes Treatments." U.S. Food and Drug Administration. N.p., 23 July 2013. Web. .