Dangerous Drugs Disguised as Health Supplements Can Kill or Injure | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

When people walk into their local pharmacy or nutrition store in Virginia (VA) or North Carolina (NC), they usually feel safe buying and taking any supplements that are for sale.This is America, after all, and all those products have been tested, right? Wrong. Many reputable stores carry tainted products.

Many people unknowingly spend a lot of money on unsafe products, particularly those marketed for weight loss, bodybuilding and sexual enhancement. How dangerous can these products be?  Some of them, according to the federal Food and Drug Administration, “Contain amphetamines, synthetic steroids, laxatives and compounds like the active drug in Viagra.”

As a Virginia personal injury attorney, I know that dangerous drugs are a serious problem that many people do not recognize until they have lost a loved one or been injured by taking an unsafe medication or supplement. I had one case in which a young military man had taken the dangerous diet supplement Hydroxycut and had visibly yellow skin and eyes due to liver damage.

How can you be aware of these dangerous medical and health products? That’s a problem the federal government is dealing with right now. Industry representatives say a vast majority of supplements are safe, and they fault regulators for failing to stop the influx of illegal products from places like China.

These are some of the drugs or “supplements” you should avoid:

 

Attorneys with our firm have written extensively about some extremely dangerous drugs and devices. Some are supplements like the ones already mentioned, but others are actually prescribed by doctors. A particularly lif-threatening prescription drug is fentanyl, which is the active ingredient in Duragesic pain patches. Fentanyl patches are often prescribed to patients who could instead find relief with a safer pain medication. Many people and some doctors are unaware of the epidemic of accidental fentanyl overdose deaths

If you have been harmed by taking a dangerous drug, hiring an experienced Virginia personal injury lawyer is a must. Manufacturers and sellers of these types of drugs will argue their case by claiming there is nothing wrong with the product and that the victim is sick from something else. Research must be done to gather the legal evidence that will validate your claim and force the insurance company and seller/manufacturer to pay a settlement.

CT