Vitafusion Class Action Says Supplement Contains Excessive Folate

Church & Dwight Co. Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit that alleges its Vitafusion multivitamin contains unsafe levels of folate—and three times more folate than is indicated on the label.

Plaintiff Daniel Chavez filed the Vitafusion class action lawsuit Monday in Illinois federal court, calling the Vitafusion supplement “effectively worthless” because of the excessive levels of folate that are potentially dangerous.

Folate plays an important role in physical and mental health, and many foods are fortified with folic acid to increase consumers’ consumption of the nutrient.

In addition, many health-conscious consumers are taking dietary supplements, including folate, to ensure they are consuming the proper amount of vitamins.

The Office of Dietary Supplements for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recognized 400 mcg as the recommended daily allowance level for folate, according to the Vitafusion class action lawsuit.

Chavez alleges that supplement manufacturers earned about $32 billion for nutritional supplements in 2012, and its revenue is expected to nearly double by 2021, according to data from the Nutritional Business Journal.

According to the folate supplement class action lawsuit, Vitafusion occupies a significant share of the nutritional supplement market.

Chavez states that the label on Vitafusion supplements indicates they contain 400 mcg of folate, the recommended daily allowance accepted by the NIH.

“However, just as there is a recommended daily allowance for folate, NIH also recognizes an Upper Tolerable Intake Limit (‘UL’) for the synthetic form of folate that is used in supplements and fortified foods,” the Vitafusion class action lawsuit states. The UL for synthetic folate for an adult is reportedly 1,000 mcg.

Consuming synthetic folate at levels exceeding the UL can have serious health effects, such as nerve toxicity, blurry vision, nausea, vomiting, high blood sugar, numbness, liver toxicity, liver damage or skin lesions, the Vitafusion class action lawsuit asserts.

Despite the fact that Vitafusion dietary supplements purport to contain 400 mcg of folate, Church & Dwight does not ensure that the product actually contains this amount.

“Instead, unbeknownst to Plaintiff and members of the Classes, Vitafusion actually contains 1232 mcg of synthetic folate (folic acid), an amount that exposes consumers of Vitafusion to the risks associated with excess intake of synthetic folate,” the Vitafusion class action lawsuit alleges.

As a result, consumers who believe they are taking care of their health by consuming Vitafusion supplements may actually be inadvertently exposing themselves to unsafe levels of folate.

Chavez has filed the Vitafusion class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and Class of consumers who purchased Vitafusion B Complex Energy, Adult Vitamins, Gummies and natural strawberry flavor.

The Vitafusion class action lawsuit asserts claims for consumer fraud, unjust enrichment and common law fraud. Chavez is seeking damages, injunctive relief, declaratory relief, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees.

Chavez is represented by Gary M. Klinger and Ryan F. Sullivan of Kozonis Law Ltd. and Daniel R. Johnson, Adam Waskowski and Seth Yohalem of Waskowski Johnson Yohalem LLP.

The Vitafusion Folate Supplement Class Action Lawsuit is Chavez v. Church & Dwight Co. Inc., Case No. 1:17-cv-01948, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

UPDATE: On May 16, 2018, a federal judge trimmed claims in a proposed class action lawsuit which alleged that Church & Dwight’s Vitafusion B Complex Energy supplement contains dangerous levels of folate.

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