FDA Seeks Ban on 100 Ingredients in Over-the-Counter Diet Products

The Food and Drug Administration on Monday moved to ban more than 100 ingredients in over-the-counter diet pills, saying there is no proof that they work and that one may even cause choking.

However, the proposed ban on weight-control ingredients did not include two widely used appetite suppressants that have been sharply criticized by consumer groups--phenylpropanolamine, or PPA, and benzocaine. The agency said it is still reviewing the safety and effectiveness of those ingredients based on information submitted by manufacturers.

The FDA said it decided to ban 111 other ingredients in non-prescription diet drugs because manufacturers failed to submit data to show the ingredients worked.

Ingredients the FDA wants to ban include: alcohol, corn syrup, dextrose, guar gum, kelp, pineapple enzymes, rice polishings, saccharin, salt, sodium bicarbonate, vitamin C and wheat germ. Many products once containing such ingredients have been reformulated or are no longer marketed.

Guar gum, a substance that expands when exposed to water, supposedly creates a full feeling in the stomach. This summer, the FDA asked makers of diet products containing guar gum to pull them from the market after receiving 17 reports of throat blockage among people using such products.

The FDA’s proposed rule changes will be published today in the Federal Register and followed by a 60-day comment period. The warning notice would take effect when the final rule is published, while the ban on diet product ingredients would not take effect until six months after the regulation is made final.

The FDA has asked manufacturers to comply voluntarily as soon as possible.