Manufacturers and distributors no doubt do not intend to sell their tea as a drug. There is some mention in the literature of one day extracting the polyphenols from tea for use in a drug, but that day has not come yet. Whenever tea is a considered to be a drug, it is because someone has gone too far in their marketing of the product and has made a disease claim. This usually results in the FDA issuing a warning letter informing the manufacturer to change, not its product, but its labeling and promotion.
As with food, the manufacturer runs the risk of its product being considered misbranded because it is false or misleading. It also has not gone through the FDA¡¯s new drug approval process. If tea, or one of its components is used as a drug in the future, there will have to be extensive testing into its effectiveness and safety before the FDA would approve its use. |
