UPDATE: December 23, 2019 Health Canada is warning Canadians about another product seized from Dutta Health Centre-Ayurvedic Clinic. Testing found the product, named Vacha capsules, contains high levels of alpha-asarone and beta-asarone, which may pose serious health risks. Testing also found high levels of alpha-asarone and beta-asarone in two of the products that Health Canada warned Canadians about on November 26, 2019 (Brain Tab tablets and Yograj Guggul capsules) because of high levels of lead and mercury. The sections below have been updated with this new information. Health Canada continues to advise that all products sold by Dutta Health Centre-Ayurvedic Clinic may pose health risks, and to advise that consumers should stop using them. ORIGINAL ADVISORY: November 26, 2019 OTTAWA - Health Canada is warning Canadians that Ayurvedic products sold by Dutta Health Centre-Ayurvedic Clinic in Surrey, British Columbia (Unit 109 - 12888 80th Avenue), may pose health risks. Health Canada testing of some of the Ayurvedic products from the clinic found that they contained high levels of lead and mercury. Lead and mercury may pose serious health risks when consumed in excessive amounts. Children, pregnant women and breastfeeding women are most susceptible to their toxic effects. The testing was prompted by a report from the Fraser Health Authority in British Columbia of a case of lead poisoning of a patient who had been using Ayurvedic products from the clinic. Ayurvedic medicinal products are used in traditional Indian healing practice and are often imported from India. Improper manufacturing processes may result in dangerously high levels of heavy metals in the final product, which, when consumed, may accumulate in vital organs and cause serious health effects. Health Canada's inspection of the clinic also identified unauthorized natural health products that were being imported and sold, and incomplete clinic records that would impede the recall of any of its products. At Health Canada's request, the clinic has stopped selling the affected Ayurvedic products and all unlicensed natural health products. Selling unauthorized health products is illegal in Canada. Health products that have not been authorized by Health Canada have not been assessed for safety, effectiveness and quality, and may pose serious health risks. For example, unauthorized health products may be contaminated, contain dangerous ingredients not listed on the label, or not contain the ingredient shown on the label. The clinic was also found to be operating without the necessary Health Canada site licence for importing natural health products. Operating without the required licence is a serious contravention of the Natural Health Products Regulations . A site licence indicates that a company has processes and procedures in place that meet Health Canada's requirements, including those related to tracking and recalling health products when risks to health are identified.
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