Purity First Vitamins Contain Steroids, Class Action Lawsuit Alleges

Top Class Actions’s website and social media posts use affiliate links. If you make a purchase using such links, we may receive a commission, but it will not result in any additional charges to you. Please review our Affiliate Link Disclosure for more information.

A Florida woman says that a diet supplement was improperly marketed because it contained two different steroids that are considered Schedule III substances by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to a recently filed Purity First supplement class action lawsuit.

According to the diet supplement class action lawsuit, Purity First Health Products Inc. and Mira Health Products Ltd. “worked together to manufacture, label and market and sell the Subject Products to consumers, and achieved this success through broad-based advertising and marketing campaigns that purported the Subject Products to be safe and effective supplements providing health benefits.”

Plaintiff Andrea Morales alleges she purchased Healthy Life Chemistry B-50 capsules, Multi-Mineral capsules and Vitamin C capsules based on the companies’ representation about the safety and effectiveness of the products. However, the dietary supplement class action lawsuit notes that the FDA completed an inspection of Mira Health’s facility in 2013 and found evidence of adulteration, including the existence of methasterone and dimethazine as well as dimethyltestosterone, all anabolic steroids that are illegal when placed in over-the-counter diet supplements regardless of whether nor not they are disclosed to consumers.

Not only is it illegal, according to the Purity First supplement class action lawsuit, but more importantly there are adverse health risks for consumers. For example, side effects of increased testosterone levels include “abnormal liver and thyroid function, kidney failure, increased risk of stroke and heart attack, unusual hair growth and missed menstruation in females, impotence and low testosterone levels in males, and short stature in children.”

Morales alleges in the Purity First class action lawsuit that, had she known about the health risks posed by the dietary supplements, she never would have purchased them. “As a result of misrepresentations and omissions to their customers about the safety and efficacy of the Subject Products, Defendants have taken in millions of dollars from … consumers,” the class action lawsuit alleges.

The putative Class would not be seeking damages based on violations of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, but rather Florida state consumer protection statutes. This is an important distinction because of different federal court decisions regarding whether or not the agency can pre-empt consumer class action lawsuits regarding labeling differences.

Instead, the dietary supplement class action lawsuit seeks damages based on the presence of potentially dangerous substances that can cause serious side effects that, had they been disclosed, may have led to buyers choosing alternative supplements. Or more specifically, the plaintiff “is suing for conduct that violates the FDA and FDCA, but … plaintiff’s claims are based on [state] statutes … [and] are not preempted by federal regulation.”

Morales seeks to represent a Class of all consumers in Florida who purchased Healthy Life Chemistry B-50 capsules, Multi-Mineral capsules and Vitamin C capsules from July 2012 through July 26, 2013. The counts in the diet supplement class action lawsuit include violations of the Florida Consumer Protection Statutes, Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act False Advertising Statute and breaches of various warranties.

Morales is represented by Tim Howard of Howard & Associates PA.

The Purity First Diet Supplement Class Action Lawsuit is Andrea Morales v. Purity First Health Products Inc., et al., Case No. 4:14-cv-00587, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.