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| Sunday, 25 April 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Lanka dumping ground for dietary supplements by Shanika Sriyananda While the final report of the recommendations made by the Special Committee appointed by the Ministry of Health to formulate regulations to control dietary supplements are gathering dust, supermarkets are being flooded with hundreds of dietary supplements imported as 'brain power enhancers', 'weight loss wonders', 'muscle-expanding elixir' and 'sports performance boosters', which are banned in several European countries. Local enforcement authorities - the Drug Regulatory Authority and Food Administration Unit of the Ministry of Health - are powerless to check these dietary supplements for safety concerns due to the absence of proper regulations. Health experts worldwide warn of risks which may arise from these self-medications (dietary supplements) which need to be scientifically tested for safety. According to P. Madarasinghe, Food and Drug Inspector of the Drug Regulatory Authority, Sri Lanka has become a dumping ground for banned dietary supplements manufactured in the West. "There is no proper data to say how many varieties of dietary supplements are in the market. We suspect a number over 300, most of which are bad for human usage. Dietary supplements banned in USA due to proven health risks are now sold in Sri Lanka", he said. "But we cannot take action against the sellers or importers due to lack of regulations", he claimed. The committee, appointed in 2002 by the Director General of Health Services (DGHS), has come up with recommendations, suggestions and definitions to the dietary supplements. The committee also recommended a procedure to differentiate dietary supplements from drugs and to implement a registration procedure. All attempts to get a comment from the DGHS were unsuccessful. |
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