Hi-Tech Supplements Contain Illegal Stimulant, Class Action Says

A class action lawsuit says that supplements made by Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals Inc. contain an illegal and harmful stimulant.

Allison Ottesen, Sean Allen, and Lauren Accardi claim that the Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals supplements including Ultimate Orange, HydroxyElite, Lipodrene Elite, Lipodrene, Lipodrene Hardcore, Lipodrene Xtreme, Synadrene, Jack’d Up, Stimerex-ES, Stimerex Hardcore, Fastin, Fastin-XR, and Black Widow contain DMHA.

The plaintiffs explain that previously, the company made supplements with the stimulant DMAA. Allegedly, DMAA was banned by the FDA and a federal court in Georgia after it was linked to a string of deaths of Military service members. 

The Hi-Tech supplements class action lawsuit says that the company continued to include DMAA in its supplements even though it was illegal. Allegedly, the company was then barred from selling products containing DMAA “or its chemical equivalent.”

The customers claim that the company attempted to get around this rule by replacing DMAA with DMHA. Allegedly, DMHA is the chemical equivalent to DMAA, and therefore violates the law.

According to the Hi-Tech class action lawsuit, the substance is “amphetamine-like” and causes potentially life-threatening side effects including high blood pressure, hemorrhage, and stroke.

The customers note that the company stated that though “DMAA is not the chemical equivalent of DMHA, it does have a very similar structure and thus, the two ingredients could be expected to produce similar effects in humans.” Allegedly, the FDA disapproved of this claim, and warned Hi-Tech to stop using DMHA.

The Hi-Tech supplement class action lawsuit says that the FDA barred the company from using the substance because “there is inadequate information to provide reasonable assurance that such ingredient does not present a signifiant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury.”

The Hi-Tech class action lawsuit goes on to note that academic literature confirms that DMHA has physiological and psychoactive effects that “raise serious health implications with possible impact on athletes and doping practices.”

According to the plaintiffs, they would not have purchased the supplements had the company disclosed that an ingredient in them was illegal and dangerous.

Allegedly, the customers made their purchases based on the assumption that the supplements were sold lawfully and were safe to use. They say that they did not discover until after they purchased the supplements that they contained an allegedly illegal substance.

The plaintiffs claim that Hi-Tech committed fraud, breached warranty, and violated consumer protection laws in New York and California. They seek damages on behalf of themselves and all other similarly affected customers who purchased the supplements.

Have you taken Hi-Tech brand supplements, believing them to be safe and legal? Let us know in the comments below.

Ottesen, Allen, and Accardi are represented by L. Timothy Fisher and Scott A. Bursor of Bursor & Fisher PA.

The Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals DMHA Class Action Lawsuit is Allison Ottensen, et al. v. Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals Inc., Case No. 4:19-cv-07271, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

Read More Lawsuit & Settlement News:

$6.3M J&J Infants’ Tylenol Class Action Settlement Nears Approval

$1.1M Deal to Settle Marshalls Wage and Hour Claims

Owlet Class Action Says Smart Sock Doesn’t Work, Burns Infants’ Feet

What Are the Long Term Side Effects of Uloric?