Weight Loss Supplements Sold On Amazon, Etsy, and Other Websites Have Been Recalled for Toxic Substances

Weight loss aids may be all the rage right now, but that doesn’t make them all equally safe. Unlike prescribed weight loss medications, which have had their various risks and benefits vetted in clinical settings, over-the-counter weight loss supplements are largely under-regulated, leaving open wide opportunity for the inclusion of harmful ingredients.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently called attention to a particularly startling pattern in some weight loss supplements: Across brands, including several that were sold on Amazon, Etsy, and via other online sellers, the FDA has reportedly found evidence of yellow oleander, a toxic plant native to Mexico and Central America that can cause “neurologic, gastrointestinal, and cardiovascular adverse health effects that can be severe or fatal.”

According to the safety alert originally published in January 2024 and updated on September 27, the FDA suspects that the companies producing these weight loss supplements have replaced approved ingredients with unsafe substances.

“FDA analysis has determined that certain dietary supplements labeled as tejocote (Crataegus mexicana) root or Brazil seed are adulterated because they were tested and found to be substituted with yellow oleander (Thevetia peruviana),” the health authority wrote in its report. “In other words, the tested products that were labeled as tejocote or Brazil seed are actually toxic yellow oleander.”

Previously, the FDA had issued a warning about multiple products that were found to contain yellow oleander upon inspection. This week, the FDA announced that they had discovered three additional weight loss aids to add to the list of supplements included in their safety alert. These include:

• Creative Interiors, LLC/Privit Wellness, LLC Primor Health Optimus Weight
• Innovacion Natural LLC SdB Elite Salud de Belleza
• Innovation Natural LLC Brazil Seed Semilla de Brazil

All three of the products were sold on Amazon, and it’s reported that in all three cases the FDA has either been unable to contact the company, or unable to reach a recall agreement. You can view a complete chart of all 16 weight loss products recently found to contain yellow oleander, along with images of their packaging, on the FDA’s safety alert linked above.

The safety notice also states that “based on sampling and testing results thus far, the FDA is also concerned that other products marketed as tejocote root (including with other names such as Crataegus mexicana, Raiz de Tejocote, and Mexican Hawthorn) may contain yellow oleander.”

In March and April 2024, the FDA announced noted they had received several adverse effects reports, including one report of a serious adverse effect resulting from exposure to Green ELV Nutrition brand Elv Control Herbal Supplement (capsules), a brand that was included on the initial safety alert.

If you believe you may be suffering serious adverse effects as a result of the tainted products, the FDA says you should call 911 or obtain emergency medical assistance right away. Discontinue use of the product immediately and discard them.

This recall follows another weight loss supplement safety update in September, and the summer recall of a weight loss injectable drug that experts found to be unsafe. If you have any questions or concerns about products you may have purchased, the FDA has established a line for consumers at 1-888-SAFEFOOD (1-800-723-3663).

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