07.01.05
On May 31st, Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), John McCain (R-AZ) and George Allen (R-VA) introduced a new bill—S. 1137—in the Senate that would classify dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) as an anabolic steroid, thereby making it illegal to sell. The industry fought to exempt DHEA from the list of banned ingredients described in the Controlled Substances Act, which was passed last year. “This comes as a surprise and is a very disturbing event,” said Loren Israelsen, executive director, Utah Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), Salt Lake City, UT. “When the Controlled Substances Act was being negotiated last year, it was agreed by the principal negotiators that DHEA would be exempted, and that if in the future DHEA became the subject of abuse or misuse, the industry and Congress would revisit what to do with DHEA.” He said he is unaware of any new facts or information to suggest that DHEA is now a subject of abuse or misuse. Even more disturbing, Mr. Israelsen pointed out, is that these three Senators were never actively involved in the controlled substances legislation, which may indicate that they may more actively support “anti-DSHEA” legislation in the future.