DMAA May Not Be What Manufacturers Claim It Is

The neat thing about manufacturing dietary supplements is that you don't have to prove that your product is safe nor do you have to prove it does what you claim, as long as you remember to include the Food & Drug Administration's (FDA) standard disclaimer.  But with that shield (similar in effect to Captain America's Vibarium shield), you can claim just about whatever you want w/o fear of retribution.

1,3-dimethylamylamine (DMAA) is an amphetamine derivative w/effects reported as greater than ephedrine but less than that of amphetamine.  In just 1 study available, the authors claimed in a now defunct journal that they were able to extract DMAA from geranium oil.  Due to arcane FDA rulings, dietary supplements can only be grandfathered into use if they are naturally occurring substances w/documented history of use & benefit.  I mention this because most, if not all, peer-reviewed trials have not been able to duplicate the findings of this one study, yet manufacturers continue to claim the "natural origins" of this stimulant.  And in fact, the American Herbal Products Association recently stated that DMAA should not be labeled as a derivative of geranium.

While correlation is not proof of causation, use of DMAA containing supplements has been associated w/panic attacks, seizures, stress-induced cardiomyopathy, and even 2 deaths.  Across the pond, DMAA use has been linked to hemorrhagic stroke.  So how you do go up against a medication that brought in $100M in 2010?  Might I suggest that you prepare yourself by reviewing the research letter published early online yesterday in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

And take heart in that Health Canada (our neighbor to the North's version of  the FDA) and the US military, both stateside & abroad, have both banned the sale of DMAA.  In fact, the FDA just recently declared DMAA a drug rather than a supplement, thus making it illegal for current manufacturers to continue doing so w/o evidence of safety, as required of medications, both prescription & over-the-counter.  It's a start!  And as expected, GNC and other manufacturers & retailers of DMAA are not too happy about this turn of events.  In the meantime, be careful what shortcuts you decide to take in your nutritional habits and watch out for the legal brouhaha about to take place.

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