Excerpted from ABC News, Friday, 17 October 1997.

FTC vs. XTC

Feds Target Herbal Ecstasy Ads

Washington, (AP) -- The Federal Trade Commission approved an agreement Friday designed to end what the government said was false advertising by the maker of the diet supplement Herbal Ecstasy. The agreement also requires health warnings on the product's labels.

The action came a day after seven states filed lawsuits to end the sale of Herbal Ecstasy, a product its maker says is not an illegal drug like the well-known Ecstasy.

The federal Food and Drug Administration has proposed cracking down on the marketing of Herbal Ecstasy and other products containing ephedrine, citing about 800 injuries and at least 17 deaths linked to the herbal stimulant.

Ephedrine is a compound extracted from plants and used for centuries by Chinese practitioners as a medicine. It also is sold under the names Ma huang, Chinese ephedra and epitonin.

Ancient Chinese Secret

Known by the herbal name ephedra, it is a central ingredient in the illegal drug methamphetamine, or speed. The FDA does allow controlled, pure doses in certain medicines that treat asthma.

The FTC had alleged that ads extolling the diet supplement's "natural high" and portraying it as "100 percent natural and absolutely safe" were false.

The agency also alleged that a fictitious doctor was used in product ads to endorse the supplement and comment about its supposed lack of side effects.

The settlement requires that manufacturer Global World Media Corp. of Venice Beach, Calif., and owner Sean Shayan support any safety claims in all future advertisements with scientific evidence.

Warning Labels Required

Warnings about possible side effects also must appear in the ads, as well as on product labels, the FTC said.

Shayan contends no injuries or deaths have been linked to the pills he described as diet helpers.

He also said the state suits were part of a government conspiracy to shut down alternative medicines. He said he does not have the resources to fight the suits.

Excerpted from ABC News, Friday, 17 October 1997.