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Nearly Two-Thirds of Products Fail ConsumerLab.com Testing
Due to Pesticide Contamination and Missing or Substandard
Ingredients
WHITE PLAINS, NY, June 20, 2005 -- Among 14 brands of ginseng
dietary supplements recently purchased in Japan and tested by
ConsumerLab.com, only 5 products passed independent testing by
ConsumerLab.com. Six products did not contain the ginseng they
claimed on their labels and 3 others exceeded acceptable
pesticide levels. One product that failed testing carried the
JHFA seal (Japan Health Food & Nutrition Food), indicating that
its quality had been checked and approved by an agency
sanctioned by the Ministry of Health. This is the second major
dietary supplement Product Review reported by ConsumerLab.com
for the Japanese market. ConsumerLab.com, which independently
tests popular dietary supplements, has conducted similar testing
in the U.S. since 1999. ConsumerLab.com published a report on
Japanese CoQ10 supplements in May.
ConsumerLab.com's Ginseng Product Review focused on two
related types of ginseng - American (sometimes labeled as
'Western' or Panax quinquefolius) and Asian (often labeled as 'Korean','Chinese',
or Panax ginseng). Ginseng dietary supplements are taken
primarily to improve energy, although this effect has not been
clinically demonstrated. Ginseng products are sold in many
forms including drinks, tonics, pills, capsules, tablets, and
pastes and cost as much as 12,000 yen.
Products were purchased through stores, on-line retailers,
catalogues, or multi-level marketing companies. The products
were then tested for their levels of ginsenosides (key markers
for the quality of ginseng) and for potential contamination with
the heavy metals (lead, cadmium and arsenic) and pesticides
including hexachlorobenzene (HCB), quintozene, DDT, and benzene
hexachlorides (BHCs).
No ginsenosides could be detected in two products -- a
popular energy drink and a tonic - although both were sold as
pharmaceutical products and subject to strict regulation by the
Ministry of Health. A product sold widely in convenience stores
that carried the JHFA seal contained only 60% of its claimed
amount of ginsenosides. Three other products contained only 23%
to 41% of the expected minimum amount of ginsenosides based on
their claimed levels of ginseng.
The three products contaminated with pesticides included one
sold online, another sold through drug stores, and a third sold
through a major multi-level marketing company. These products
exceeded acceptable levels of BHCs by 80 to 500%. BHCs are
potentially carcinogenic and toxic to various organs and include
the compound lindane
(gamma-BHC). Two of the products also exceeded the acceptable
level for hexachlorobenzene (HCB) by 36% and 49%, respectively.
HCB is a probable human carcinogen banned from most food crop
uses throughout the world and is a breakdown product from
another pesticide, quintozene. One of the products that high in
HCB also exceeded the acceptable level of for the pesticide
quintozene by a small amount.
The ginseng products that passed testing included three
products in tablet form, a liquid (sold as a pharmaceutical),
and a paste that carried the JHFA seal.
Tod Cooperman, M.D., President of ConsumerLab.com notes,"We
found similar problems in the U.S. in 2000, which, on testing
again in 2003 had significantly diminished. We hope that our
findings will steer consumers toward better quality products and
cause the market to fix these problems."
The Ginseng Product Review is found at
http://www.consumerlab.com/ja-JP/results/gingseng.asp. The
report identifies and lists the five products that passed the
testing and provides general descriptions of those that did
not. Subscription is required for the report, which also
includes expert information on how to buy and use ginseng.
Tests of many other types of supplements are in progress,
with Reviews of Alpha Lipoic Acid, Ginkgo Biloba, and
Multivitamins due in coming months. The
www.consumerlab.jp
website also allows consumers to view results for hundreds of
U.S. and Canadian products listed on ConsumerLab.coms
English-language site.
ConsumerLab.com is a leading provider of consumer information
and independent evaluations of products that affect health and
nutrition. The company is privately held and based in New York,
U.S.A. It has no ownership from, or interest in, companies that
manufacture, distribute, or sell consumer products. Subscription
to ConsumerLab.com is available online. For group subscriptions
or voluntary product testing contact Elena Yoo, Japan Manager at
Elena.Yoo@ConsumerLab.com.
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