Massachusetts

Thank you Massachusetts Representative Khan and Senator Rush for being champions of bills to protect young people from dangerous weight loss and muscle-building supplements.

Introduced by Massachusetts Representative Kay Khan and Senator Michael Rush in the 2021-2022 Massachusetts legislative session, An Act protecting children from harmful diet pills and muscle-building supplements (S.1525/H.4271), would protect kids from dangerously underregulated over-the-counter diet pills and muscle-building supplements by restricting the sale to adults 18 years or older.

Helpful materials on MA S.1525/H.4271:

• • Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing Committee Alert for May 31, 2022 Vote 
  • Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 At a Glance
  • Protecting Massachusetts’ Future by Improving Health and Safety for Children
  • Partner Organization Sign-on Letter H.4271/S.1525
  • Letter in support of S.1525/H.4271 from professional figure skating coaches and officials from The Skating Club of Boston in Norwood, Massachusetts
  • Letter in support of Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 from Vito Frank Leonardo, Certified Personal Trainer and WNBF Professional Bodybuilder
  • Letter in support of Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 from Dr. Pieter Cohen, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and Internist, Cambridge Health Alliance
  • Letter in support of Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 from Dr. Jason Nagata, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco and Co-Chair of the International Association for Adolescent Health Young Professionals Network
  • Letter in support of Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 from The Micheli Center for Sports Injury Prevention, at Boston Children’s Hospital
  • Letter in support of Massachusetts S.1525/H.4271 from former supplements sales representatives and store manager
  • Massachusetts Out of Kids’ Hands Fact Sheet
  • Massachusetts Out of Kids’ Hands Talking Points
  • Massachusetts Out of Kids’ Hands Youth-Led Survey Results
  • Policy Action videos 

MA bill and campaign to ban the sale of over-the-counter diet pills & muscle-building supplements to minors in the news:

• • Team USA Figure Skater Ryan Dunk shares his personal experience and the importance of the bill in Massachusetts in a new Commonwealth Magazine op-ed. 
  • Boston Globe article on the importance of this bill: “Dietary supplements, largely unregulated, deserve the state’s skepticism”
  • WGBH Greater Boston segment on Rep. Khan’s 2017 iteration of this bill
  • Check out the coverage from our November 2019 Eating Disorders & Body Confidence Advocacy Day. Advocates joined STRIPED, Jameela Jamil, activist and founder of I Weigh, Rep. Kay Khan, MEDA, NEDA, My Power People, and Be Real USA for a sensational day as we educated Massachusetts lawmakers from across the state about eating disorders and advocated in support of Massachusetts House bill to ban the sale of over-the-counter diet pills & muscle-building supplements to minors.
  • In Spring 2020, Massachusetts youth surveyed nearly 500 of their peers across the state about weight-loss and muscle-building supplements. The youth uncovered alarming information on use of weight-loss and muscle-building supplements by minors. See the full results of the Massachusetts Youth Survey on Weight Loss and Muscle-building Supplements here.
    • • Check out the press release about this youth-led survey here.

Want to get involved with the Out of Kids’ Hands Campaign in Massachusetts? Contact us at STRIPED@hsph.harvard.edu