What is in this article?:
- DMAA linked to death of 2 U.S. soldiers, massive recall ensues
- Is Jack3d safe?
After toxicology tests on two U.S. soldiers who died of cardiac arrest turned up traces of DMAA, the military ordered a recall of Jack3d and other DMAA-containing products in all military exchanges worldwide. Could a geranium oil ban be far behind?
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The U.S. Army is investigating the deaths of two U.S. soldiers possibly linked to the popular pre-workout supplement Jack3d from USPlabs. Toxicology tests performed on the bodies revealed the presence of DMAA (1,3 dimethylamylamine) in their blood, according to an article in Stars and Stripes. DMAA—aka methylhexaneamine (MHA); aka geranium oil/stem/extract—is the infamous, supposedly natural, active ingredient in Jack3d, and has been linked to possible risk of liver damage and heart failure.
The two soldiers were stationed on a base in the southwestern United States. Both died of cardiac arrest—one during a PT run this summer, and the other this fall after collapsing and being hospitalized for a month.
The Army initiated a safety review after compiling records of several other DMAA users reporting health problems such as “kidney and liver failure, seizures, loss of consciousness, heat injury and muscle breakdown during exertion and rapid heartbeat,” Army spokesperson Maria Tolleson told Stars and Stripes.
DMAA recall first of its kind
The string of related incidents prompted the military to pull all DMAA-containing products from the shelves of GNC shops inside all Army and Airforce Exchange Service and Navy Exchange stores worldwide. The recall is the first of its kind in the United States, as the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) still considers DMAA to be a dietary supplement ingredient and a natural component of geranium stems. Economics suggest otherwise, however—industry knowledge has it that the amount of DMAA purportedly produced from geraniums worldwide would increase retail prices as much as twentyfold.
Canada chooses to identify the substance as a drug. In June 2011, Health Canada issued a recall of 1MR, a pre-workout blend from BPI, for containing “DMAA, which is considered a drug substance under FDR [Canadian Food and Drugs Act and Regulations],” according to its recall listings.
The Health Canada decision remains relatively obscure, but this massive recall by the U.S. Military is apt to finally push the geranium debacle into the consumer spotlight. Not only are DMAA products popular among bodybuilders and on military bases, but high school athletes are keen on pre-workout products as well.