An alleged attempt by US-based dietary supplement manufacturer Metabolife to prevent scientific experts giving evidence against its weight loss products has been dismissed by a US judge, according to lawyers acting for the plaintiffs.
The Archie Lamb law firm said in a statement that US District Court judge William M. Acker Jr. had dismissed a motion by lawyers for the company to exclude expert testimony offered by lawyers for four plaintiffs who have suffered strokes and heart attacks after taking the diet supplement Metabolife 356.
"The motion was an effort by the manufacturer and marketer of the dietary supplement Metabolife 356 to exclude the trial testimony of a neurologist and pharmacologist," the law firm said. The trial is now scheduled to begin on 5 August 2002.
"This is a great victory for the many people injured by this dangerous and unmonitored supplement," said Archie Lamb. "This order is an important step in our efforts to force the manufacturer and marketer of this substance to be accountable for their actions. We look forward to the trial."
There are a number of lawsuits currently filed against Metabolife in jurisdictions throughout the United States, the law firm said, but the ruling by Judge Acker means that this case is likely to be the first to come to trial.
Metabolife and similar supplements contain ephedrine, ephedra or ma huang that can have extremely serious side effects on some users, the law firm claimed, especially when combined with caffeine. Problems experienced by some people using such products include heart attacks, seizures and strokes, some of which have been fatal.
That said, there is still no clear evidence to prove conclusively that ephedra is dangerous, and while there is a large body of evidence to show that the herb is a very efficient weight loss product - and even more efficient when combined with caffeine - it will be hard for anti-ephedra protestors to persuade people to stop using the supplements.
Investigations into the safety of the product, which has already been banned in a number of European countries and Canada, are continuing in the US, but a ban is not planned at the moment. The results of these investigations, and the various trials against Metabolife and other ephedra manufacturers, will make interesting reading.