CBS Takes on 'Dangerous' SupplementsCBS Takes on 'Dangerous' Supplements

NEW YORK--The lead story on the "CBS Evening News" Tuesday night reported on the "dangers of health supplements." Included in the piece were descriptions of a death purportedly linked to consumption of yew tree tea, a discussion of the "1994 law pushed through by industry" and talk of continued concern about safety of supplements.

In the piece, Sharyl Attkisson talked to a consultant from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Raymond Woosle, who said it's nearly impossible to take supplements off the market. His reasoning was supplements must be proven dangerous for FDA to act: "It's much easier to prove a product is unsafe than it is to prove that a rare reaction, beyond a shadow of a doubt, is harmful," he said.

Attkisson did not call the industry "unregulated," though she said the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) did "exempt [supplements] from nearly any and all federal scrutiny."

To view the story online, visit www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/10/29/eveningnews/main527399.shtml.