Dr. Nicole Saphier, Donald Trump's nominee to serve as surgeon general, has been selling dietary supplements through her company Drop RX that contain kava kava root, an ingredient the U.S. Department of Defense prohibited for military personnel in April 2024 over concerns about impairment and threat to military readiness.
The revelation raises questions about the qualifications and scientific credibility of a candidate for a position tasked with serving as America's top health communicator. The surgeon general is expected to bring the nation's best scientific expertise to public health decisions, a role that previously led to landmark warnings on tobacco and critical guidance during public health crises.
Saphier, a radiologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New Jersey and former Fox News contributor, has been offering at least nine formulations of Drop RX products since at least 2024, with names like Calm, Focus, Boost, Sleep, and Relief. The bottles marketed themselves as "physician formulated" and suggested various health benefits to consumers.
Two products, Calm and Focus, were available for purchase on Amazon at $24.99 each in 2oz dropper bottles with instructions to use "1-2 dropper fulls daily under tongue or diluted in a beverage." The Calm formulation lists kava kava root as its first ingredient. The FDA first issued consumer warnings about kava in 2002, citing concerns about liver damage, and published a comprehensive 29-page safety review in 2020 highlighting those same toxicity concerns. Kava has been banned or restricted in countries including the UK, France, and Switzerland for similar reasons.
Hours after the Guardian inquired about Drop RX's compliance with Amazon's policies, the company removed several listings. By Thursday, remaining products showed as "currently unavailable" and were not purchasable. Amazon confirmed it had opened an investigation into the products' compliance with company policies.
Saphier did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The White House defended her candidacy in a statement, saying she "is an accomplished physician" who has been "an outspoken voice on breast cancer prevention" and will "be a powerful asset for President Trump."
Consumer advocates flagged additional concerns about the supplements' labeling and transparency. Tod Cooperman, president of ConsumerLab.com, which independently tests dietary supplements, reviewed Drop RX products and found they exhibited the "number one red flag" his organization warns about: labels that fail to disclose how much of each ingredient consumers actually receive. While the products listed ingredients like ginkgo biloba extract, Bacopa monnieri, and lavender, they provided no breakdown of quantities per dose or per bottle, departing from standard industry practice.
Cooperman noted that while the labels claimed products were made in the U.S. using good manufacturing practices, they did not specify manufacturing location or indicate third-party verification of those claims.
Dr. Peter Lurie of the Center for Science in the Public Interest characterized the supplement business as inherently at odds with scientific rigor. "Nobody who prides themselves as rigorous about science is in the supplement business," he said, describing the wellness industry as populated by "grifters" selling poorly regulated products with unsupported claims.
Unlike pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements do not require proof of safety or effectiveness before being marketed to consumers. While they cannot make direct disease claims, they can make "structure or function" claims suggesting they support various bodily processes. That regulatory gap means many supplements lack demonstrated efficacy, contain undisclosed ingredients, or present health risks, Lurie explained.
Richard Carpiano, a public health scientist and professor of public policy at UC Riverside who has worked on surgeon general reports, expressed concern about Saphier's supplement sales given the position's dependence on public trust. "The US surgeon general should be a highly trusted position as America's health communicator, bringing to bear the best science," Carpiano said. "If she's willing to push these kinds of wellness products, what else might she push along the way?"
Saphier's employer, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, maintains a conflict-of-interest policy prohibiting "endorsement of products or commercial ventures." The hospital did not respond to requests about whether Saphier complies with that policy. On Instagram, Saphier had promoted Drop RX products, including in a June 2025 video linking rosemary and sage to Alzheimer's disease prevention while promoting her Focus formulation. In an August post, she featured the Intimacy product as a "natural aphrodisiac" and hormone support supplement.
Saphier is Trump's third pick for surgeon general after his first two nominees failed to advance through the Senate confirmation process.
Author James Rodriguez: "If the nation's top health official has been profiting from supplements the Pentagon won't even let soldiers take, the confirmation hearing just became must-watch television."
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