Sale is now prohibited weight loss and muscle-building supplements for minors in New York under a first-in-the-nation law that took effect this week.
Experts say weak federal regulation of dietary supplements has led to these products sometimes containing unapproved ingredients such as steroids and heavy metals, putting children at risk. The US Food and Drug Administration monitors the market but does not test products before they are sold.
“The law we drafted reflects the lack of regulation by the FDA and the lack of regulation in the industry,” said Jensen Jose, a regulatory board member at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which worked on the law.
Massachusetts lawmakers are considering a similar measure. The California House of Representatives previously passed a ban on the sale of weight-loss supplements to minors, which the governor vetoed, but local lawmakers are considering a new version. Colorado law that ended sale of diet pills to minors will take effect in July.
New York law allows the state to fine businesses that sell children diet pills or supplements that advertise themselves as building muscle or burning fat. Protein supplements and shakes are exempt as long as they do not contain other weight-loss or muscle-building ingredients.
While specific products are not prohibited, the law states that judges enforcing the measure may consider including ingredients such as creatine, green tea extract and raspberry ketone.
The bill’s sponsors point to studies that found some supplements secretly contained anabolic steroids and illegal stimulants. According to Teresa Gentile, a registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, these foods are especially harmful for children who are still growing.
Nick Kubler, an employee at vitamin and supplement store Natural Body Astoria in Queens, said the company had already implemented self-monitoring before the law took effect this week.
“We’ve never marketed anything like this to kids anyway, but we’re definitely more aware now,” Kubler said.
Dhriti Rathod, a 17-year-old model and student at the New York Institute of Technology, said she supported the restrictions.
“People my age don’t study these things, they do it based on what they see on the Internet,” Rathod said. “They see people using it, so they jump on it and start using it, but they don’t know the dangers.”
But the new regulation has been met with resistance from the industry at large, with some retailers saying the definition of what can and cannot be sold to children is unclear.
“The actual definition of what is prohibited from selling to minors is incredibly vague,” said Lee Wright, CEO of the nationwide chain The Vitamin Shoppe.
He says the company has spent an “inordinate amount of time” figuring out how to implement the new rules. Its computer systems now display a pop-up window when regulated products are sold.
The law has also been challenged by at least two lawsuits from industry groups that argued it is too vague and that regulation is the FDA’s responsibility.
In one of those lawsuits, a federal judge in Manhattan last Friday rejected the Council for Responsible Nutrition’s request to stop the law from taking effect, finding it “uncompromisingly clear” and saying the organization’s concerns about possible fines and loss of revenue were “pale.” compared” with the state’s goal of protecting youth from “unfettered access to dietary supplements.”
FDA officials did not respond to emails seeking comment.
State Sen. Shelley Mayer, a Democrat who sponsored the legislation, said implementing it shouldn’t be that difficult for businesses since some already categorize their supplements into weight-loss or muscle-building categories.
It’s unclear how major online retailers like Amazon will ensure they don’t ship supplements to minors in the Empire State. The company did not respond to a request for comment. For some products, The Vitamin Shoppe online store states that customers in New York will be required to show identification upon delivery.
Maxim Abramchuk, an 18-year-old who has taken muscle-building supplements in the past, said that while he understands the restrictions, he doesn’t fully agree with them.
“They should be able to buy some of these products,” he said while browsing a vitamin and supplement store in Albany. “If it has few side effects, why shouldn’t children take it?”