14 DAY TRIAL // This October 8, scientists released a report saying that a stimulant drug that is yet to be tested on people is among the ingredients of at least 12 weight loss and sports supplements currently marketed to folks worldwide.
Seeing how the compound has never been tested in clinical trials involving human volunteers, specialists cannot simply point the finger at it and say that it most definitely constitutes a threat to public health.
Still, they warn that, all things considered, it might be that the regular use of supplements containing this stimulant drug can cause people to develop serious health trouble such as heart and nervous system issues.
What's more, they argue that, unless proven otherwise, people need be made aware of the fact that consuming supplements that have this compound among their ingredients could, in extreme cases, prove deadly.
The controversial stimulant drug
Writing in the journal Drug Testing and Analysis, the specialists behind this research project detail that the name of the compound in question is 1,3-dimethylbutylamine (DMBA). Its presence was documented in well over a dozen of the total of 14 supplements tested as part of this investigation.
According to Live Science, the untested ingredient was found in these 12 available weight loss and sports supplements in amounts ranging from 13 to 120 milligrams per serving.
It is understood that the supplements found to contain this controversial stimulant drug all promised to help people lose weight, boost their athletic performances and even make their brain function more efficiently, the same source details.
The trouble is that, in terms of makeup, this synthetic compound is strikingly similar to one other stimulant that the US Food and Drug Administration banned back in 2012, after studies linked it to severe side effects.
This second compound is known to the scientific community as 1,3-dimethylamylamine (DMAA, for short), and evidence at hand indicates that people who consume it regularly are likely to develop heart and nervous system trouble, and even die.
Since DMAA and DMBA are not very different to one another, it could be that the latter is also a threat to public health. The compound should, therefore, be outlawed, be it only until scientists make sure that it does not affect people in a negative way.
“We want the FDA and we want the stores to immediately remove these products from store shelves,” researcher Pieter Cohen with the Harvard Medical School said in a statement, as cited by USA Today. Apparently, the US Food and Drug Administration has promised to look into this issue as soon as possible.
How folks can keep safe
Specialist Pieter Cohen and fellow researchers argue that, in light of these new findings, folks would do well to keep away not just from the 12 marketed products found to contain DMBA, but also from all other weight loss and sports supplements.
“What consumers can do would be to avoid using any supplement that's being sold as if it's going to improve your athletic performance, help you lose weight or sharpen your thinking,” the Harvard Medical School scientist said.
A complete list of the supplements found to contain the untested stimulant drug is available below. Of these products, Driven Sports' Craze was pulled off shelves after researchers showed that it contained methamphetamine-like compounds and the Food and Drug Administration sent a warning letter to its manufacturer.
However, Frenzy, which Driven Sports describes as a new and improved version of Craze, it still available for purchase. The supplement promises to make people more energetic and help them stay focused on a task at hand.
- Craze and Frenzy, made by Driven Sports - Contraband, made by Iron Forged Nutrition - Redline White Heat and MD2 Meltdown, made by Vital Pharmaceuticals Inc and distributed under the brand name VPX - Evol and Decimate Amplified, made by Genomyx LLC - Oxyfit Xtreme and Synetherm, sold at planetarynutrition.com - AMPitropin and AMPilean, made by Lecheek Nutrition - OxyTHERMPro, made by deNOVOLABS - OxyphenXR AMP’D, made by Beta Labs, LTD