On December 6, 2016, FDA announced that the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition ("CFSAN") will post on a quarterly basis data extracted from adverse event reports related to the use of conventional foods (including dietary supplements) and cosmetics, in order to "increase transparency and improve access to government data for consumers, health care providers, researchers and academics."
The FDA uses adverse event reports to help monitor the safety of foods and cosmetics. The CFSAN Adverse Event Reporting System, or CAERS, captures minor to major medical events, as well as complaints about off-taste or color of a product, defective packaging, and other non-medical issues. The information in the database has not been edited or (in many cases) evaluated by the FDA; the agency has not necessarily determined if the product or products in question were the actual cause of the events reported. In addition, only adverse events related to the use of dietary supplements are required to be reported to FDA. Adverse event reporting is voluntary for food and cosmetic companies. The FDA anticipates that "this increased transparency will help to spur the submission of more detailed and complete reports from consumers, health care providers and other members of the public."
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