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Recently added to our Articles section: Medicine makers get quacks in a row.
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Older News: 1 2
Thank you to all of you who visited us at our stand at the UPD Trade Show at Grand West Casino on the 17th August.
Congratulations to all of you who participated in the SA Open NMA/ ISKA Championships at Paul Roos in Stellenbosch, Cape Town on the 19th August.
BUSINESS DAY ARTICLE
Recently added to our Articles section: Medicine makers get quacks in a row.
ANTI-VIRAL & FLU FORMULA™ available now
Stock up for winter! The Anti-Viral & Flu Formula™ is safe for the whole family and can be used preventatively or to treat infections.
It is available through your Leading Pharmacy or email info@finepharmaceuticals.com to find your nearest stockist.
Older News: 1 2
Business Day Article
Medicine makers get quacks in a row
Tamar Kahn
Science and Health Editor
CAPE TOWN — The Health Products Association (HPA) has launched a self-monitoring programme in the hope of stamping out rogue elements in the complementary medicines industry that punt quack cures and weight-loss schemes.
The HPA is an industry body for complementary medicines and dietary supplements. Its 107 members include local manufacturers such as Vital Health Foods and Aspen Phar-macare, as well as multinational pharmaceutical companies such as GlaxoSmithKline and Boehringer Ingelheim.
“The health department is underresourced and cannot see everything that is going on,” said HPA chairman Alan Tomlinson, emphasing that the organisation aimed to complement the work of government.
The HPA believed it was in the industry’s interests to expose fraudulent and exaggerated claims, said one of its executive council members, Brent Murphy.
“In the current climate of poor regulation, there are a few charlatans out there who profit from the desperately hopeful. When their claims are exposed, it gives the impression that natural and complementary medicines are based on quackery and pseudoscience,” he said.
The HPA plans to advise busi- nesses on labelling their products appropriately, to set up an adverse effects database, and report shady operators to authorities, including the Advertising Standards Authority and the South African Police Service.
Complementary medicines are popular among South Africans, who spent R2,1bn on these products in 2003, according to an HPA survey. Of that figure, R889m was spent on vitamins and supplements.
“People want to take control of their own health,” said Tomlinson, noting that the health products market had grown by 18% a year since 2000.
The complementary medicines market is currently unregulated, as government has yet to finalise laws governing the manufacture and sale of these products.
Draft regulations to the Medicines and Related Substances Act released by the health department in July 2004 were roundly condemned by the industry, and are being revised.
New regulations are expected to be released for public comment by the end of the year, said Tomlinson.
“We are against price regulation, but we are in favour of controls for safety, efficacy and quality,” he said.
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