Carlon Colker

Carlon M. Colker (born June 21, 1965) is an American physician and dietary supplement industry consultant. He is the founder of Peak Wellness, Inc., a private practice and consulting company in Greenwich, Connecticut, and was the chief medical officer and executive vice president for the dietary supplement company Atlas Therapeutics (doing business as MYOS Corp.). He has also been a researcher, product developer, and spokesman for other supplement companies including LifeVantage, ITV Ventures, Cytodyne Technologies, Muscletech Research and Development, Metabolife International, and Vital Basics.

Carlon M. Colker
Born (1965-06-21) June 21, 1965
NationalityAmerican
OccupationPhysician
Years active1996 - present

In the early 2000s, Colker was criticized for his research and commentary in relation to dietary supplements including ephedra-based products, amongst others.[1][2][3][4][5] He was a defendant named in lawsuits filed in multiple U.S. states alleging that research he conducted on behalf of the ephedra supplement manufacturers Cytodyne Technologies and Metabolife was fraudulent; that he had altered test results, and that he had attempted to hide dangerous adverse reactions suffered by research subjects.[1][2][6][7] In 2004, Colker appeared in radio commercials for V-Factor, a dietary supplement that claimed to enhance male sexual performance, which were the focus of a false advertising complaint against Vital Basics, Inc. by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.[8][9][10]

In 2008, Colker made news headlines after advising actor Jeremy Piven to prematurely withdraw from David Mamet's Broadway play Speed-the-Plow due to concerns of alleged mercury poisoning from consuming excessive amounts of sushi and Chinese herbal supplement products.[11][12]

Early life

Colker was born to parents of Russian Jewish and Lithuanian descent. His father, Edward Colker, was a graduate of New York University, a noted lithographer, a maker of rare hand-bound books, and a Guggenheim Fellowship recipient.[13] His mother, Elaine Galen, was a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and an abstract painter.

Colker received a baccalaureate degree in June 1988 from Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York. He received his medical degree in May 1993 from Sackler School of Medicine. From 1993 to 1996, he received residency training in internal medicine at Beth Israel Medical Center in Manhattan, New York.[14]

Career

In 1996, Colker was employed first at Park Avenue Medical Nutrition and then later that year, by Affiliated Physicians, both located in New York City. In January 1996 he established Peak Wellness, a company with locations in Greenwich, Connecticut and Beverly Hills, California that provides integrative medical services. Colker is an affiliate of Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut.[15] and is an attending physician in the Department of Medicine at Mount Sinai Beth Israel Hospital in New York City.[16] Colker also serves as a voluntary faculty member (clinical assistant professor of medicine in neurology) at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.[17]

In 2008, Colker advised actor Jeremy Piven to prematurely withdraw from David Mamet’s Broadway play Speed-the-Plow due to concerns of alleged mercury poisoning from consuming excessive amounts of sushi and Chinese herbal supplement products.[11][12][18] The producers of the show pursued grievance and arbitration hearings through the Actors Equity union, which ruled in Piven’s favor.[19][20]

In February 2011, Colker served as chief medical officer and executive vice president of Atlas Therapeutics Corp.[21] (OTCBB: ATTH; formerly Marvin's Place, Inc.; dba MYOS Corp. as of May 2012; OTCBB:MYOS[22]). In June 2012, Colker resigned his position and became a member of the company's scientific advisory board.[23] In 2008, it was announced that Colker would be serving on the advisory board[24] of the multi-level marketing company LifeVantage. In 2005, Colker was named as head of the scientific advisory board of the dietary supplement company Health Sciences Group (OTCBB:HESG),[25] and in 2006 the company announced that Colker would be assisting in the formulation of the supplement product Sequestrol.[26] Colker was also a product developer and spokesperson for the dietary supplement Lipistat, marketed by ITV Ventures.[27]

Colker became the personal trainer of NBA player Kristaps Porzingis in 2017.[28] Some critics have expressed skepticism regarding Colker's involvement due to his past supplement controversies.[29]

Companies with which he has worked refer to him as a celebrity doctor as has the media.[30][28][31][32]

Dietary supplement controversies

Ephedra

Colker has generated controversy regarding his public comments and research on the safety of ephedra-based dietary supplements. Colker was the lead researcher responsible for studies and product development on behalf of supplement manufacturers such as Cytodyne Technologies,[1][33][34][35] Muscletech Research and Development,[36] and Metabolife International, manufacturers of the ephedra-based weight loss pills Xenadrine RFA-1, Hydroxycut, and Metabolife 365, respectively.[2][21]

Following the February 2003 heatstroke-related death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler, in which ephedra was implicated as the cause,[37] Colker and two other physicians, all speaking on behalf of the industry-affiliated Ephedra Education Council, disputed the role that ephedra played in Bechler’s death.[3][4] Colker also downplayed the dangers of ephedra, claiming that it "is not a health risk for most people".[5]

In May 2003, a California Superior Court judge handed down a $12.5 million judgment in a class action suit against Cytodyne Technologies for falsely advertising Xenadrine RFA-1, the product implicated in the death of Bechler. Colker had been enlisted by Cytodyne to conduct a clinical study on the effectiveness of Xenadrine RFA-1, and upon the study’s completion, the company paid Colker approximately $5,000 to field calls from customers and make conference appearances.[1] Referring to Colker's research, the judge noted that Colker lacked credibility[1] and concluded that Cytodyne had "not just exaggerated the findings of the clinical trials it commissioned, but had also cajoled some researchers into fudging results", and that those involved in the research on Xenadrine RFA-1 had set out "to create a study that justified the money being spent by Cytodyne and that would ensure that they received further work from the company". Journalists for The New York Times commenting on Cytodyne's research noted that the legal case raised "serious questions about the way makers of ephedra and other dietary supplements use -- and often misuse -- the promise of scientific proof to market their products".[2]

During 2003, Colker was named as a defendant in lawsuits filed in Missouri, West Virginia, and Illinois in connection with his involvement in the research and marketing of Hydroxycut and Xenadrine RFA-1. The lawsuits alleged that Colker and his Greenwich clinic, Peak Wellness Inc., ran fraudulent tests, altered test results, and hid dangerous adverse reactions suffered by test subjects.[6][2][7][38] In July 2003, Colker was called to testify before a United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce investigating deaths and adverse events stemming from ephedra supplements for which Colker had been involved in researching and marketing.[33][34] In August 2004 his lawyers said he had been dropped from the Missouri lawsuit and talks were underway to release him from the others; the report did not describe the agreement under which he was dropped.[39]

V-Factor

Colker previously served as a researcher and television spokesperson for “V-Factor” (a combination of yohimbine, L-arginine, and Gingko biloba), a dietary supplement marketed by Vital Basics, Inc. of Portland, Maine as a men’s sexual performance enhancer. In 2004, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission registered a complaint against Vital Basics and its owners[8][9] alleging, in part, that the company’s advertising of V-Factor violated Federal law; specifically, that the company made unsubstantiated claims about V-Factor’s safety; falsely represented that a clinical study of V-Factor conducted by Colker proved that the product was safe and effective; and misrepresented paid commercial advertising featuring Colker (Vital Basics Health Show radio infomercials) as independent radio programs. The defendants settled the FTC’s complaint by paying $1 million for consumer redress and agreeing not to make unsubstantiated claims in the future.[10][40]

MYO-X/MYO-T12

In January 2015, Justin Bieber said he used MYO-X in preparation for a Calvin Klein underwear photo shoot and thanked Colker over social media; Bieber was criticized for “…hyping Colker’s latest “miracle” supplement MYO-X, to his 59 million Twitter fans.”[31]

SEC documents filed by the manufacturer (MYOS Corp.; dba Atlas Therapeutics until May 2012), indicate that the product consists of a powder isolated from the yolk of fertilized chicken eggs. It was developed by Colker in 2005 as a supplement formulation that was marketed initially under the trade name Folstaxan by Celldyne Biopharma LLC and, subsequently, under the trade name MYO-T12 by Atlas/MYOS.[23][41][42][43]

In February 2011, Colker sold the marketing rights and trademarks for MYO-T12 to MYOS for $1.15 million and entered into a three-year employment agreement to serve as the company’s Chief Medical Officer and Executive vice-president, resigning in 2012 to serve as a scientific advisor for the company in exchange for 300,000 shares of common stock.[41][42][44] Under the terms of licensing agreements with MYOS, MYO-T12 is distributed by Maximum Human Performance (MHP) under the brand name MYO-X, and by Cenegenics (NASDAQ:CELG) under the brand name Cenegenics Muscle Formula (Fortetropin).[41][45][46]

Books
  • Extreme Muscle Enhancement: Bodybuilding’s Most Powerful Techniques (1st edition). Prosource Publications, Inc.; Manasquan, N.J.,; January 9, 2005.
  • The Greenwich Diet, Advanced Research Press, Ronkonkoma, New York; Publication: May 1, 2000.
  • Sex Pills: From Androstenedione to Zinc, What Works and What Doesn’t, Advanced Research Press, Ronkonkoma, New York; Publication: March 1, 1999.

Filmography
Year Title Role Notes
2007 Shaq's Big Challenge Himself Reality TV show
2008 Bigger, Stronger, Faster* Himself Documentary
2010 Lunch Himself Documentary
2018 Porzingis' Comeback Himself TV documentary

References
  1. Nathan, Vardi (April 19, 2004). "Poison Pills". Forbes.
  2. Fessenden, Ford (June 23, 2003). "Studies of Dietary Supplements Come Under Growing Scrutiny". The New York Times.
  3. Kemper, Vicki (February 21, 2003). "Ephedra Industry Insists Herb Is Safe". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
  4. Morgan, Jon (February 21, 2003). "Ephedra link to death disputed by industry". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
  5. "How Safe Is Weight-Loss Supplement Xenadrine?". Good Morning America. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
  6. "Connecticut: Greenwich: Diet Doctor Sued". The New York Times. June 9, 2003. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  7. Crabtree, Penni (May 31, 2003). "Judge tells N.J. diet pill firm to pay restitution". San Diego Union-Tribune May 31, 2003.
  8. "Vital Basics, Inc., et al.; Analysis To Aid Public Comment". Federal Trade Commission. March 23, 2004. Retrieved 2004-03-23.
  9. "Decisions, Findings, Opinions, and Orders, January 1, 2004 To June 30, 2004. Vital Basics, Inc., et al. (Docket C-4107)" (PDF). Federal Trade Commission. p. 254. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  10. "Marketers of the Supplements "Focus Factor" and "V-Factor" Agree to Settle FTC Charges and Pay $1 Million". Federal Trade Commission. March 17, 2004. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  11. Itzkoff, David (December 18, 2008). "Piven Leaves Show Amid Concerns for His Health". The New York Times. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
  12. Michael Fleming; Gordon Cox (December 18, 2008). "Macy, Butz replace Piven in 'Plow'". Variety. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
  13. International Print Collectors' Society Newsletter Archived July 27, 2011, at the Wayback Machine January 2005, Vol II, Issue III
  14. "Residency Appointments" (PDF). sacklermedicine.us. Sackler School of Medicine. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 6, 2016. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  15. "Find A Doctor: Carlon Colker, M.D." Greenwich Hospital. Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
  16. "Physician Directory Listing: Carlon Colker, MD". Mt.Sinai Beth Israel. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  17. "Find Faculty: Carlon Colker, M.D." Weill Cornell Medical College. Retrieved August 19, 2015.
  18. Marikar, Sheila (December 19, 2008). "Piven's Doc: If You See Him Eating Seafood, Call My Office". ABC News. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
  19. Healy, Patrick (October 8, 2009). "An Inside Look at an Offstage Drama". The New York Times. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  20. Healy, Patrick (October 9, 2009). "The Ruling for Jeremy Piven 12:11 PM". The New York Times. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  21. "Carlon M. Colker Bio". Bloomberg. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  22. "Press Release: Atlas Therapeutics Changes Its Name and Ticker Symbol to MYOS Corporation and "MYOS"; Launches New Corporate Website". MYOS Corporation. May 21, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  23. "MYOS Corp. Registration Statement". October 15, 2014. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  24. "Colker joins LifeVantage scientific advisory board". The Daily Transcript, San Diego Source. October 8, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
  25. "Press Release: Carlon Colker, M.D., Appointed to Head Scientific Advisory Board; Reports Second Quarter Results and Recaps Recent Developments". Business Wire. August 23, 2005. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  26. "Press Release: Health Sciences Group Announces Strategic Initiatives for 2006". Business Wire. January 6, 2006. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  27. "Lipistat: Quick Reference Sheet" (PDF). ITV Ventures. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  28. Silverman, Robert (January 25, 2018). "Meet Carlon Colker, the Personal Health Guru Behind Kristaps Porzingis". Vice Sports. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  29. Nathan, Giri (December 20, 2017). "Here is Kristaps Porzingis's Spherical, Slightly Worrisome Personal Trainer". Deadspin. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  30. "FORM 8-K, Exhibit 99.1 - LifeVantage Presentation". LifeVantage via SEC Edgar. 4 March 2009. Slide: Aggressive Public Relations Campaign. Bullet: Retained celebrity doctor Carlon Colker, M.D. See index page at SEC Edgar for this 8-K
  31. "The Jeremy Piven sushi saga continues". Los Angeles Times Blogs - Culture Monster. 20 December 2008.
  32. Girard, Keith (7 January 2015). "Justin Bieber Hypes Sketchy Diet Doctor's 'Miracle' Body Building Drug". The Improper.
  33. "Issues Relating to Ephedra-containing Dietary Supplements". House Committee on Energy and Commerce. July 23, 2003. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
  34. "Ephedra Dietary Supplement (Day 1 Part 2)". CSPAN. July 23, 2003. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  35. Kalman DS, Colker CM, Shib Q, Swain MA (April 2000). "Effects of a weight-loss aid in healthy overweight adults: double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial". Current Therapeutic Research. 61 (4): 199–205. doi:10.1016/S0011-393X(00)89034-7. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  36. Colker, Carlon; Georgeann C. Torina; Melissa A. Swain; Douglas S. Kalman. "Double-blind, placebo controlled evaluation of the safety and efficacy of ephedra, caffeine, and salicin for Short term weight reduction in overweight subjects" (PDF). American Society of Exercise Physiologists, 2nd Annual Meeting, 1999 – Abstract # 26. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-25.
  37. Chass, Murray (March 14, 2003). "Baseball: Pitcher's Autopsy Lists Ephedra as One Factor". The New York Times. Retrieved November 28, 2011.
  38. Crabtree, Penni (March 6, 2003). "Suit involving ephedra pill alleges fraud". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  39. "Stamford doctor dropped from suit". Associated Press via the New Haven Register. August 22, 2004.
  40. "Federal Register Vol. 69(56): Notices" (PDF). Federal Trade Commission. March 23, 2004. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
  41. "MYOS Corp. SEC Form 10-K". December 31, 2014. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  42. "MYOS Corp. Prospectus". November 9, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  43. "MYOS Corp SEC Form 10-K" (PDF). March 31, 2011. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  44. "MYOS Corp. Intellectual Property Purchase Agreement". February 25, 2011. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  45. "Cenegenics Elite Muscle Formula". Archived from the original on October 12, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
  46. "United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Docket No.: 15-448 MYOS Corp. v. Maximum Human Performance, LLC". Feb 19, 2015. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
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