The FDA has announced a voluntary recall of the “sexual health” (ie, erectile dysfunction) dietary supplement ACTRA-Sx 500 due to “adulteration” with the active compound from Viagra, sildenafil citrate. This is yet another recall of a “dietary supplement” that happens to be adulterated with a pharmaceutical that has been proven to treat the condition the supplement claims to address. This might make the supplement “work”, but it poses a real hazard to customers who are not permitted to know what they are taking.
As the FDA notes in its safety alert:
Use of this product may pose a threat to consumers because it may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs (such as nitroglycerin) and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels…Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates. Because erectile dysfunction is a common problem in men with these conditions, consumers may seek these types of products to enhance sexual performance.
That is, people taking nitrates are likely customers for a “dietary supplement” to treat their erectile dysfunction in order to avoid the negative interactions between nitrates and sildenafil. Good thing this was an accident. Otherwise, that would be cold, like the back-end of a male emperor penguin in a documentary narrated by Morgan Freeman.
Federal health officials say many diet and immune system supplements are not properly labeled and make unproven health claims.
In a recent investigation, officials from the Office of Inspector General found that 20 percent of 127 supplements claiming to help weight loss and strengthen the immune system had illegal labeling by purporting to treat, prevent or cure diseases. The claims lacked proven scientific evidence.