A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products

Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature, attributed to the consumption of Herbalife(r) products, and to determine whether a causal relationship exists between the reported cases of liver injury and the use of these products. A literature sear...

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Main Authors: Flávio Ailton Duque Zambrone, Cristiana Leslie Corrêa, Ligia Mesquita Sampaio do Amaral
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidade de São Paulo 2015-12-01
Series:Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1984-82502015000400785&lng=en&tlng=en
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spelling doaj-4e09c1b5634643489dcc452d3e682e152020-11-24T21:11:12ZengUniversidade de São PauloBrazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences2175-97902015-12-0151478579610.1590/S1984-82502015000400004S1984-82502015000400785A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) productsFlávio Ailton Duque ZambroneCristiana Leslie CorrêaLigia Mesquita Sampaio do AmaralAbstract The aim of this study was to assess the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature, attributed to the consumption of Herbalife(r) products, and to determine whether a causal relationship exists between the reported cases of liver injury and the use of these products. A literature search was performed on the PubMed, LILACS and PAHO databases. Seven publications reporting a total of 53 cases of hepatotoxicity linked to the use of Herbalife(r) products were retrieved. All of the studies lacked sufficient information to some degree, whether related to patients' history, concomitant use of medication and/or other compounds (including alcohol), observations on interrupted use (dechallenge), results found with markers, viral serology and autoantibodies or observations concerning re-exposure to the products. In addition to these items, the lack of clear information on the type of products evaluated and their respective composition is an important factor to be considered. Furthermore, data quality was also questionable due to the presence of confounding factors, absence of proper exclusion of alternative explanations, and the use of questionable methods for attributing causality. Hence, an association between hepatotoxicity and consumption of these products cannot be proven based on the data collected and rigorous scientific analysis.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1984-82502015000400785&lng=en&tlng=enHepatotoxicidadeHerbalife(r)Produtos Herbalife(r)/consumo/hepatotoxidadeSuplementos alimentaresAvaliação de causalidade.
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Flávio Ailton Duque Zambrone
Cristiana Leslie Corrêa
Ligia Mesquita Sampaio do Amaral
spellingShingle Flávio Ailton Duque Zambrone
Cristiana Leslie Corrêa
Ligia Mesquita Sampaio do Amaral
A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Hepatotoxicidade
Herbalife(r)
Produtos Herbalife(r)/consumo/hepatotoxidade
Suplementos alimentares
Avaliação de causalidade.
author_facet Flávio Ailton Duque Zambrone
Cristiana Leslie Corrêa
Ligia Mesquita Sampaio do Amaral
author_sort Flávio Ailton Duque Zambrone
title A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
title_short A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
title_full A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
title_fullStr A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
title_full_unstemmed A critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to Herbalife (r) products
title_sort critical analysis of the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature related to herbalife (r) products
publisher Universidade de São Paulo
series Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
issn 2175-9790
publishDate 2015-12-01
description Abstract The aim of this study was to assess the hepatotoxicity cases described in the literature, attributed to the consumption of Herbalife(r) products, and to determine whether a causal relationship exists between the reported cases of liver injury and the use of these products. A literature search was performed on the PubMed, LILACS and PAHO databases. Seven publications reporting a total of 53 cases of hepatotoxicity linked to the use of Herbalife(r) products were retrieved. All of the studies lacked sufficient information to some degree, whether related to patients' history, concomitant use of medication and/or other compounds (including alcohol), observations on interrupted use (dechallenge), results found with markers, viral serology and autoantibodies or observations concerning re-exposure to the products. In addition to these items, the lack of clear information on the type of products evaluated and their respective composition is an important factor to be considered. Furthermore, data quality was also questionable due to the presence of confounding factors, absence of proper exclusion of alternative explanations, and the use of questionable methods for attributing causality. Hence, an association between hepatotoxicity and consumption of these products cannot be proven based on the data collected and rigorous scientific analysis.
topic Hepatotoxicidade
Herbalife(r)
Produtos Herbalife(r)/consumo/hepatotoxidade
Suplementos alimentares
Avaliação de causalidade.
url http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1984-82502015000400785&lng=en&tlng=en
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