U.S., Canada, Mexico Target Fake Diabetes Cures on Web

Warning letters take aim at deceptive Internet vendors in the three countries

MONDAY, Oct. 23 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has joined forces with the Federal Trade Commission and government agencies from Canada and Mexico to halt Web sales of phony diabetes treatments and cures. The FDA also launched a new campaign in English, Spanish and French aimed at educating the public about fraudulent diabetes cures.

"We will not tolerate practices that raise false hopes and bilk consumers of precious health care dollars," Margaret O'K. Glavin, the FDA's Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs, said in a statement. "Diabetes requires effective treatments and aggressive management, not bogus and unproven products."

The campaign started with an Internet sweep by organizations representing attorneys general from several U.S. states, law enforcement and regulatory authorities from the three countries, according to an FDA statement.

FTC warning letters were sent to 84 U.S. and seven Canadian Web sites; 21 more sites were brought to the attention of foreign authorities. Twenty-five percent of the operations have pulled their Web advertisements or altered their marketing.

Overall, 180 warnings have targeted phony Web operations in the three countries. Failure to respond could mean product seizures and other enforcement action, the FDA warns.

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