We have all heard about Tamiflu being a good product to take within a couple of days of getting symptoms of a flu including the H1N1 flu but as you ca nimagine there are many products out there claiming to be cures for the flu that have never been tested.
There is a real hysteria out there and a lack of vaccination shots available it seems so I am sure that I am not the only guy looking for an alternative to a flu shot that will protect me and this will always lead to a bunch of shysters trying to seperate you from your money using fear as their tactic.
Since May 2009, FDA has warned more than 75 Web sites to stop the sale of more than 135 products with fraudulent H1N1 influenza virus claims. FDA urges consumers to be cautious of promotions or Internet sites offering products for sale that claim to diagnose, prevent, treat, cure, or lessen the effects of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is informing consumers ofand protecting them againstpotential harm associated with unapproved products claiming to diagnose, prevent, or otherwise act against the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus.
Within the past two weeks, FDA has
- Urged caution regarding promotions and Internet sites offering products for sale that claim to diagnose, prevent, mitigate, treat or cure the H1N1 flu virus
- Enhanced efforts to warn about potentially deceptive H1N1 products, and encourage reporting of suspected criminal activity, with the release of an H1N1 flu fraud widget. This portable application is embedded in an agency Web page (www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm186340.htm) and can be copied onto any other Web site or blog.
- With the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), issued a warning letter to a Web site marketing fraudulent supplements that claim to help prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus. The letter advises the site’s owners to discontinue marketing the products or face legal action
So be careful with new claims from existing products as well as new products that do not seem to make sense in the fight against the flu.
Here are a list of product claims that hte FDA has investigated with the Federal Trade Commission
In actions it announced in June 2009, FDA issued warning letters and advised operators of offending sites to immediately ensure that they weren’t marketing products intended to act against the H1N1 flu virus that have not been cleared, approved, or authorized by the agency.
Among the unapproved, uncleared, or unauthorized H1N1 flu products it targeted at that time were
- a shampoo said to protect against the H1N1 flu virus
- a dietary supplement said to protect infants and young children from contracting the virus
- a ‘new’ supplement said to cure H1N1 flu infection within four to eight hours
- a spray that claims to leave a layer of ionic silver on one’s hands that kills the flu virus
- several diagnostic tests that have not been approved to detect the H1N1 flu virus
- an electronic instrument whose sellers claim uses ‘photobiotic energy’ and ‘deeply penetrating mega-frequency life-force energy waves’ to strengthen the immune system and prevent symptoms associated with H1N1 viral infection