01.10.24
The California State Assembly Health Committee has advanced a new bill, AB 82, which seeks to restrict minors’ access to dietary supplements and other products marketed for weight loss.
The bill is quite similar in language and scope to a former bill that was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom, who said at the time that the state’s Department of Public Health (DPH) didn’t have the capacity to put together a requisite list of dietary supplements which would be subject to a ban.
The present bill still requires that the state’s DPH determine which dietary supplements and over-the-counter pills would be subject to the ban.
“Preventing the exposure of children to these harmful products is a critical step toward preventing mental health and physical health risks often associated with these products,” said Assemblymember Dr. Akilah Weber, who introduced the bill.
Unlike the previous bill, AB 82 only targets products which are marketed for weight loss, while similar bills appearing in other states also target products marketed for “muscle building,” such as creatine.
The bill is part of a larger saga involving many other state legislatures, where representatives are introducing bills which contain language modeled after recommendations by the Strategic Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders (STRIPED), a program at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
New York recently became the first state to pass a bill of this kind in October of last year.
NPA: Bill ‘Ignores Realities of Science’
The Natural Products Association (NPA) is among the dietary supplement industry trade groups arguing that there is no scientific basis to the theory that dietary supplement usage has any kind of association with eating disorder diagnoses or symptoms. With the news of California’s renewed effort to pass an age restriction on dietary supplements, they reintroduced an online petition in opposition to the bill.
“The NPA has worked in good faith with the California Department of Public Health to educate them on the dietary supplement safety, efficacy, and regulations,” said Daniel Fabricant, PhD, president and CEO of NPA. “As we have seen across the country, there are legislators who ignore the realities of science to promote their agenda. As we have demonstrated repeatedly in public testimony and official correspondence to the Governor and to California public health officials, there is not a single data point connecting eating disorders and the use of dietary supplements. If there were, the FDA would be required to remove that product from the market.”
CRN: Waiting on DPH’s Recommendations
Much hangs in the balance as observers await the California DPH’s recommendations on which types of products should be subject to the ban. The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) is hopeful that safe, legal dietary supplements won’t be included.
“We presented testimony before the California Assembly Committee on Health and stated that we intend to work with the Assembly to ensure that safe and legal dietary supplements are protected, and await the release of the DPH’s Working Group’s findings, which was initially expected at the end of 2023,” said Steve Mister, president and CEO of CRN.
The bill is quite similar in language and scope to a former bill that was vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom, who said at the time that the state’s Department of Public Health (DPH) didn’t have the capacity to put together a requisite list of dietary supplements which would be subject to a ban.
The present bill still requires that the state’s DPH determine which dietary supplements and over-the-counter pills would be subject to the ban.
“Preventing the exposure of children to these harmful products is a critical step toward preventing mental health and physical health risks often associated with these products,” said Assemblymember Dr. Akilah Weber, who introduced the bill.
Unlike the previous bill, AB 82 only targets products which are marketed for weight loss, while similar bills appearing in other states also target products marketed for “muscle building,” such as creatine.
The bill is part of a larger saga involving many other state legislatures, where representatives are introducing bills which contain language modeled after recommendations by the Strategic Initiative for the Prevention of Eating Disorders (STRIPED), a program at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
New York recently became the first state to pass a bill of this kind in October of last year.
NPA: Bill ‘Ignores Realities of Science’
The Natural Products Association (NPA) is among the dietary supplement industry trade groups arguing that there is no scientific basis to the theory that dietary supplement usage has any kind of association with eating disorder diagnoses or symptoms. With the news of California’s renewed effort to pass an age restriction on dietary supplements, they reintroduced an online petition in opposition to the bill.
“The NPA has worked in good faith with the California Department of Public Health to educate them on the dietary supplement safety, efficacy, and regulations,” said Daniel Fabricant, PhD, president and CEO of NPA. “As we have seen across the country, there are legislators who ignore the realities of science to promote their agenda. As we have demonstrated repeatedly in public testimony and official correspondence to the Governor and to California public health officials, there is not a single data point connecting eating disorders and the use of dietary supplements. If there were, the FDA would be required to remove that product from the market.”
CRN: Waiting on DPH’s Recommendations
Much hangs in the balance as observers await the California DPH’s recommendations on which types of products should be subject to the ban. The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) is hopeful that safe, legal dietary supplements won’t be included.
“We presented testimony before the California Assembly Committee on Health and stated that we intend to work with the Assembly to ensure that safe and legal dietary supplements are protected, and await the release of the DPH’s Working Group’s findings, which was initially expected at the end of 2023,” said Steve Mister, president and CEO of CRN.
