FDA warns public on Best Life Herbal Syrup

So which is which?

While its brochure carries a disclaimer saying it was not a medicinal drug and should not be used to treat the symptoms of any disease, Best Life Herbal Syrup also indicated on the same brochure that by taking the product,  “blockage from vein will disappear slowly.”

The product’s brochure also enticed the public to “[s]ay no to angioplasty, say yes to healthier life. Try Best Life Herbal Syrup.”

Such contradictory and “violative therapeutic claims” prompted the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to warn the public against the food supplement that, according to the FDA website, was not registered with the agency.

“Taking food and/or food supplements that have not undergone evaluation and testing in terms of safety and quality may present harmful effects to one’s health,” the FDA officer in charge, Maria Lourdes Santiago, said in her advisory.

Santiago said food products, including food supplements, should not bear any misleading, deceptive and false claims in their labels or promotional materials that would provide an erroneous impression on the products’ character or identity.

The public should be aware of the many  “health scams” popularized by food supplements that claim to fight different diseases, she added.

The FDA official also urged local government units and law enforcement agencies to ensure that Best Life Herbal Syrup was not being sold in their localities or areas of jurisdiction.

The agency recently ordered the pullout from the local market of an unregistered guyabano juice, which bills itself a “natural cancer cell killer, 10,000 times stronger than drug(s) used in chemotherapy” in its label.

The public, the FDA said, should report the continuous sale or distribution of unregistered health products through [email protected], or by calling 857-1991 to 93.