Swallow This

PR Watch has reported previously on the dietary supplement industry's successful campaign to evade federal safety regulations. Now O'Dywer's PR Daily reports that the Ephedra Education Council (EEC), a PR front created by the PR firm of Aker Partners, is "handling crisis PR to counter a media firestorm following the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler." A coroner's report suggested that Bechler's death could be linked to ephedra, and the Food and Drug Administration has reports of at least 100 deaths and thousands of adverse reactions linked to the supplement. The EEC has been trying to suppress or attack scientific studies critical of ephedra, including a study last year that found it was "by far the most dangerous herbal product on the market."