On the command of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), US marshals seized 12,682 applicator tubes of Age Intervention Eyelash due to evidence that the product is an unapproved drug and that its safety has not yet been confirmed.
Age Intervention Eyelash, a product of Jan Marini Skin Research, is claimed to grow eyelashes. According to the FDA, that claim is not proven. More importantly, it is considered by the FDA as a new drug and its safety has not yet been approved. In a press announcement, the FDA said that it takes the responsibility of protecting Americans from unapproved drugs seriously.
The product under question contains bimatoprost, an active ingredient found in an FDA-approved drug used to treat patients with high levels of pressure built up inside their eye(s). According to the FDA, consumers using bimatoprost and Age Intervention Eyelash run the risk of optic nerve damage if too high a dose of the bimatoprost is applied, which in turn could lead to poorer vision and possibly blindness.
Bimatoprost reportedly can cause other side effects as well, including swelling of the retina (macular edema) and inflammation of the eye (uveitis), which can also negatively impact vision.
The complaint and request for seizure was filed by the US Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California and was coordinated with the FDA. The California Department of Public Health's Food and Drug Branch had previously embargoed and seized the products at the San Jose facility.
The manufacturer had reportedly informed the FDA that it ceased manufacturing and shipping of the Age Intervention Eyelash product containing bimatoprost in 2006.
