Thanks for the shout-out. It’s about time the CMAJ got involved in discussing NHP regulation. They have been disappointingly quiet during StopC51’s propaganda campaign against C-51. Let’s hope this marks a spark of interest from the group as we await the bill being re-introduced in this Parliament under a different number.

I applaud the intent of the CMAJ editorial. However, they got part of their criticism wrong. When they say, “governments must pass legislation to subject weight-loss products to regulatory approval before they can be marketed, as has recently been proposed for other therapeutic products not presently covered by current drug-approval regulations”, they seem to not know that this has been the case in Canada since the NHP Regulations came into force in 2004. Probably what they mean is that they want weight-loss products to be only licensed under Non-traditional Use Claims (i.e., scientifically-based claims). Currently, NHPs can license under a Traditional Use Claim cop-out provision, which does not require scientific evidence.

Everything else the editorial said is bang on. NHP manufacturers should provide evidence for the health claims they make. However, as we have seen with Cold-FX, whose manufacturer seems to be trying to play by the rules, its long and expensive to play properly, and you might not like that your product is not a hands-down proven success.

I agree that the practices of the weight-loss industry should be regulated, in addition to the products. First, however, the government should get C-51 through (or whatever its number will be) in order to strengthen the enforcement measures for contravening the regulations. The current maximum fine of $5K is far from being a deterrent to substantial NHP manufacturers, but C-51’s $5M maximum fine would get their attention.

And I certainly hope they regulate the weight loss industry. There are so many things out there that make no sense what so ever!