California AG Files Prop 65 Andro Suit

OAKLAND, Calif.--California Attorney General Bill Lockyer filed suit Aug. 15 against almost three dozen manufacturers and distributors of "andro" supplements for violation of Proposition 65, the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986. The manufacturers include many of the biggest names in the sports supplement industry, including Bodyonics/Pinnacle, General Nutrition Corp., M.D. Labs, Met-Rx, Optimum Nutrition, Twin Laboratories and Weider Nutrition.

"Andro is a concern because athletes take the substance in doses of 200 mg to 300 mg, which are high enough to produce serious reproductive health problems for which Proposition 65 requires warnings," Lockyer said in a release. According to the suit, the defendants failed to warn consumers of exposure to anabolic steroids, which were added to the Prop 65 list in 1990. Among the organizations that have banned androstenedione as an anabolic steroid or "anabolic agent" are the Olympics, the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the National Football League.

Thirty-five companies were named in the suit, with an open-ended defendant for up to 500 other businesses manufacturing, distributing or selling andro supplements. Further details, including the complete list of companies, are available at the Attorney General's Web site (http://caag.state.ca.us/newsalerts/2001/01-081.htm).