FDA Control Over Dietary Supplements Inadequate: GAO

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has too little control over dietary supplements, according to a report released this week by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The GAO, which conducted the evaluation at the request of Congress, found that the FDA lacks the information, resources or recall ability it needs to adequately regulate dietary supplements, which are taken by 79 percent of American adults, USA Today reported.

As one example, the GAO noted that supplement companies aren't required to tell the FDA what products they sell or ingredients they use.

A number of groups have long demanded the FDA increase its regulation of supplements.

"It's like the Wild West, and the bad guys know they don't have to take the sheriff seriously," Bruce Silverglade, legal director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, told USA Today.