Duro Extend Recalled by FDA

As I've mentioned before, dietary supplements and herbals are not beholden to any 3rd party oversight unless voluntarily requested by the manufacturer.  The rules & regulations are such that our FDA, which does monitor prescription & over-the-counter medications (a subtle but very important distinction), is hamstrung when it comes to these dietary supplements and herbals.  Unless someone gets hurt or there's enough evidence to support wrong doing, it's a bit of a crap shoot when it comes to supplements and herbals.  Not that there aren't good brands backed by excellent companies that value their reputation, but unfortunately, the rotten apple does tend to spoil the barrel.

Case in point is the recall of yet another "natural" alternative to the prescription erectile dysfunction drugs.  This time, the FDA is recalling Duro Extend as it found an analog of sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, inside this purported natural compound.  So what, you ask?  Remember the scene between Jack Nicholson's lecherous lothario and Keanu Reeve's emergency room physician in "Something's Gotta Give"?  The combination of Viagra (or its competitors) and nitroglycerin can dangerously lower one's blood pressure, leading to death in the extreme case.  It turns out that family physicians have been warned against prescribing Viagra and its ilk to anyone who takes nitrates, eg nitroglycerin, and/or some other drugs.  So the patient then turns to his vitamin store clerk with minimal education and asks for a "natural, organic" substitute.  If he takes Duro Extend contaminated with this sildenafil analog, another one bites the dust.  Caveat emptor!