# Why Won't FDA Test Herbs and Stuff? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 8, 2017, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wont-fda-test-herbs-and-stuff/786110 "2017-05-08T02:17:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wont-fda-test-herbs-and-stuff/786110/62 "2022-08-27T00:55:04Z")
There are _lots_ of ads for mulberry leaves and extracts on (for example) eBay and Amazon. The stuff is recommended for weight loss on the basis of, shall we say, lightweight evidence - and reportedly got a boost from Dr. Oz. Problems with adulteration of mulberry supplements are mentioned [here](https://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Article/2013/10/23/Mulberry-leaf-extract-latest-botanical-to-get-a-boost-from-Dr-Oz#), in the context of one supplier warning against competitors’ products. ---
**Author:** ![md-2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9d8465/32.png) [@md-2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md-2000)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wont-fda-test-herbs-and-stuff/786110/63 "2022-08-27T12:29:28Z")
The occasional times I watch live TV I have to sit through the commercials. I enjoy picking them to pieces, particularly the junk medicines. My favourite is “this was clinically tested…” Oh, we ran the tests. We won’t tell you what the tests showed. Plus my understanding is, if they do a test nd it shows even marginal improvement, it’s a supplement they can market the heck out of. Currently on TV the big ones seem to be those that either (a) improve brain performance (“More brain performance? Yes please!”) or (b) those that “enhance male performance”. If something really contained significant quantities of human growth hormone, I fail to see how it could be marketed as an herbal supplement. (Of course, our local radio is no better… “Guys, this herbal supplement is viagra on steroids!”) ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wont-fda-test-herbs-and-stuff/786110/64 "2022-08-27T13:21:56Z")
> [@md-2000](#): > > (Of course, our local radio is no better… “Guys, this herbal supplement is viagra on steroids!”) It might actually _be_ Viagra or something else, at least in part. “For the study, researchers from the California Department of Public Health and other state agencies examined an [FDA database containing supplements](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/sda/sdNavigation.cfm?sd=tainted_supplements_cder) that the FDA has purchased, tested and found to be adulterated. The FDA identified 746 supplement products that were pharmaceutically adulterated from 2007 through 2016.” “Adulterants included unapproved antidepressants and designer steroids, the prescription erectile-dysfunction drug sildenafil (Viagra), and a prescription [appetite suppressant](https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm228746.htm)its manufacturer withdrew from the market after a study linked it to heightened risk of stroke and heart attack.” > **[No Wonder It Works So Well: There May Be Viagra In That Herbal Supplement](https://www.keranews.org/2018-10-12/no-wonder-it-works-so-well-there-may-be-viagra-in-that-herbal-supplement)** > > Hundreds of nutritional supplements contain unapproved pharmaceutical ingredients, according to an FDA database. So why isn't the agency doing more to get them recalled? A 2020 study found 37 of 50 supplements advertised as enhancing sexual performance contained the prescription medication sold as Viagra. The study is out of Turkey, but most of the products tested were obtained online. This could pose a serious problem, both if the users were already taking Viagra (overdose potential) or had medical conditions that were a contraindication to using Viagra. As for the FDA, it has been sluggish at best to go after supplement dealers that sell adulterated productts. From the above link: “Although the FDA has the power to recall tainted supplements, the federal agency failed to require any of the 146 companies that manufactured the adulterated products to remove them from the market.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-wont-fda-test-herbs-and-stuff/786110.md?page=3)