$4.2 Million Settlement in Defective Dietary Supplement Case

A healthy 24 year old Virginia man suddenly developed acute liver and kidney failure in 2009, requiring emergency liver and kidney transplant surgery.  Tests on the man’s liver showed signs of toxicity.  The cause was unknown, but dietary supplements were suspected.  The man later learned that one of the supplements he had taken, Epio-Plex, had been recalled after the FDA suspected it contained unlabeled synthetic steroids, which are known to cause liver damage. A law firm hired by the man did some testing on Epio-Plex and determined that, in fact, the supplement contained at least two “designer steroids,” both of which are now banned by the federal government.  According to the lawyers for the case, “anabolic steroids are a well known cause of acute liver failure and other serious side effects but they are widely available on the Internet and in some diet supplement stores.” Herndon Virginia athletes lawyer Doug Landau always cautions his friends, family, clients, and anyone else who will listen, against using any type of supplement.  “These kinds of supplements are not regulated and can be laced with who-knows-what kinds of additives that are dangerous.  We’ve seen numerous cases of people sickened — or worse — as a result of taking a supposedly healthy sports supplement or ergogonic aid.”  (Click here for another example.) This case is interesting because, as noted in an article in the Sacramento Bee, many supplement companies are fly-by-night operations with little in the way of assets.  Luckily for the man in this case, justice prevailed when the plaintiff was awarded what is thought to be the largest ever settlement in a tainted supplement case — $4.2 million! If you or someone you know has been sickened or injured after taking a tainted supplement and there are questions as to what laws apply, email or call Abrams Landau, Ltd. at once (703-796-9555).