Nicole Saphier, Trump’s surgeon general nominee, has sold supplement products online “since at least 2024,” according to The Guardian – but after the outlet contacted the online storefront this week, it quietly pulled her products from its listings, which some critics have labeled as “snake oil.”
A radiologist, podcast host and frequent Fox News guest, Saphier was tapped by Trump last month for the position of surgeon general. She has also sold health products online under the brand name Drop RX, including products called “Calm” and “Focus.” In its report published on Friday, The Guardian purchased both products for $24.99 each.
The Calm product’s first listed ingredient is kava kava root — an herbal substance the U.S. Department of Defense banned for military service members in 2024 due to the “possibility of impairment and subsequent threat to military readiness,” according to a department spokesperson. The FDA first issued a consumer advisory about kava’s potential link to liver damage in 2002, and the substance has been banned or restricted in countries including the UK, France and Switzerland over the same concern.
“Focus” is a vial of liquid with a dropper in a 2oz bottle, formulated using a number of different herbs such as rosemary leaf and ginseng root. The product’s label instructs users to ingest 1-2 drops daily “under tongue or diluted in a beverage.”
That the nation’s top doctor and leading voice on public health would promote such products, argued Richard Carpiano, a public health scientist and professor at the University of California, Riverside, was concerning.
“The US surgeon general should be a highly trusted position as America’s health communicator, bringing to bear the best science, the scientific know-how,” Carpiano told The Guardian. “If she’s willing to push these kinds of wellness products, what else might she push along the way?”
Saphier’s products were listed for sale on the popular online storefront Amazon, and on Wednesday, The Guardian contacted Amazon about Drop RX’s listings.
“By Thursday, several of the listings had been removed, and those that remained were listed as ‘currently unavailable’ and were not purchasable,” The Guardian’s report reads. “Amazon said in an email: ‘We are investigating the compliance of the products in question and will take appropriate remediation actions.’”
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