FDA tries to teach consumers of Internet dangers

When it was discovered this year that Adderall that consumers bought online was counterfeit, it was clear that the problem with illegal Internet pharmacies had reached a new level. The fakes of the Teva Pharmaceutical ($TEVA) drug for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) did not contain genuine active ingredients but did contain painkillers, including the potentially habit-forming tramadol. Unable to police all of the sites out there selling drugs directly to consumers, the FDA is trying something new, a campaign it hopes will discourage the practice, or at least, teach consumers how to determine what sites are potentially legit. The agency last week launched BeSafeRx, to warn against the dangers. While the downside may seem obvious, the FDA found in a survey this year that 25% of Internet shoppers have already bought drugs online while 30% admitted that they didn't know how to buy drugs safely online. The new campaign tries to inform consumers about what to look for and what to avoid. That doesnt' mean the agency isn't trying to stop Interent pharmacies it believes are violating FDA regulations. The agency this week posted a warning letter sent to a lawyer in Manitoba claiming that hundreds of Websites it identified, including Canadadrugs.com, were offering for sales drugs made at unapproved facilities including domperidone, which is no longer approved for sale in the U.S.  Story | More and More