Hydroxycut is a brand of dietary supplements that is marketed as a weight loss aid. Hydroxycut was originally developed and manufactured by MuscleTech Research and Development; MuscleTech was sold to Iovate Health Sciences in 2003–2004 and declared bankruptcy in 2005; Iovate continues to use MuscleTech as a brand to market Hydroxycut. Since 2013, the primary ingredients in the product line include caffeine, lady's mantle extract (Alchemilla vulgaris), wild olive extract (Olea europaea), cumin extract (Cuminum cyminum), wild mint extract (Mentha longifolia), and, in some products, green coffee bean extract (Coffea canephora). Before the 2004 reformulation, formulations contained ephedra, a supplement banned by the FDA in 2004. Before the 2009 reformulation, formulations contained several substances with potential to harm the liver. After a series of reports in the medical literature of serious liver problems, including one death, the FDA warned consumers to stop using Hydroxycut, and Iovate agreed to voluntarily recall the products. The harm caused by Hydroxycut products has led to calls for stricter regulation of the dietary supplement industry and to calls within the industry for more rigorous safety testing.
Marketing and sales Hydroxycut is sold at conventional retailers, online retailers, and through direct television marketing. Like many dietary supplements, published studies demonstrating scientific evidence of its effectiveness and safety is lacking. In March 2013, Sean Lowe became the brand ambassador for Hydroxycut Hardcore. In the same month, IndyCar racer Tony Kanaan announced he will pilot the No. 11 Hydroxycut IndyCar at the Indianapolis 500 along with 8 other events at the 2013 IndyCar Championship. Hydroxycut has been promoted as being created and endorsed by doctors. Television advertisements for Hydroxycut featured a medical resident, although reporters were unable to locate him after Hydroxycut was removed from the market in 2009.
Corporate background MuscleTech Research and Development Inc was a Canadian company based in Toronto that operated with a group of closely related companies, and developed the Hydroxycut product line. Thousands of lawsuits were filed over ephedra in the early 2000s; the first lawsuits against MuscleTech began in 2000 and by 2004 there were about 80 pending. In 2003 and 2004, most of the assets of the MuscleTech group of companies were sold off to other companies, including Iovate Health Sciences; the same person controlled MuscleTech and Iovate. MuscleTech filed for bankruptcy in June 2005 and the claims of litigants against MuscleTech were resolved by 2007. Since then, MuscleTech has become a brand of Iovate, under which Hydroxycut products are sold. Iovate is now owned by Xiwang Foodstuffs Company Ltd. and has been since 2016.
Pre-2004 formulations Prior to 2004, some formulations of Hydroxycut contained ephedra. There were reports of seizures in people who had ingested Hydroxycut, which were attributed to the ephedra and caffeine in the product. As a result, there were around 80 pending ephedra lawsuits against MuscleTech. In 2003, Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon filed a lawsuit in St. Louis against Hydroxycut's manufacturer, MuscleTech, stating that its marketing claims that Hydroxycut was "clinically proven" to be a "fat-burner" were false. Nixon also alleged that "MuscleTech's own consultants had serious concerns about the safety of Hydroxycut, but the company continued to market the product." MuscleTech paid $100,000 to settle the case and agreed to cease marketing ephedra-containing products in Missouri and to refund customers' money. The New York Times reported in 2003 that internal documents from MuscleTech indicated that the company had buried studies showing that Hydroxycut was ineffective, covered up evidence of cardiac side effects, and even tampered with the documents it submitted as evidence in a lawsuit in Oklahoma. In 2004, the FDA banned ephedra after 155 deaths from heart attack and stroke were attributed to ephedra, including the death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler. It was the first banning of a dietary supplement by the FDA.
Pre-2009 formulations By 2009, about 15% of Americans had tried taking dietary supplements for weight loss, and Hydroxycut was the biggest seller, with about a million units sold each year. However, Hydroxycut formulations contained several substances with potential to harm the liver such as hydroxycitric acid. Scientific evidence of serious side effects from Hydroxycut products accumulated, including liver failure (requiring liver transplantation in some cases), rhabdomyolysis, and at least one death, of a 19-year-old man who used the product. On May 1, 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to consumers to stop using Hydroxycut products, due to 23 reports of serious health problems associated with the use of Hydroxycut, and at least one death, and to destroy any product that they may possess. The warning stated "Although the liver damage appears to be relatively rare, FDA believes consumers should not be exposed to unnecessary risk. Consumers who have these products are urged to stop using them." Following the FDA warning, the manufacturer then agreed to voluntarily recall the products.
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