The Confusing World of Supplements

Quality, Cost, and Accuracy

Many people I meet feel confused and overwhelmed when buying supplements. The benefits of taking a multi-vitamin daily are now widely known. Not only do regular people know about this benefit but now so do hundreds of companies and recent start-ups. The supplement industry is a $10 billion per year market. It seems like every drugstore, bulk-foods store, and many grocery stores carry their own brand of supplements.

More and more multi-level supplement compies flood the internet promoting their products. Often times well-meaning individuals working within these companies give their family, friends, and others advice about what supplements to take. Rarely do the companies train their employees in nutrition and nutrient healing, and herbal medicine. Instead, most receive training about the products themselves. This is not good medicine.

You may ask, well what's the harm in taking a supplement? Why not just try it and see if it works? Some supplements may be fairly innoccuous. However, some supplements contribute to health problems or may be counterproductive to one's healing process. Supplement quality varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. The industry is not well regulated for accuracy of product ingredients, quality of raw ingredients, absence of allergenic or harmful substances, nor bioavailability of the ingredients. Soon GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) regulations will be required of supplement companies. These regulations will only govern the preparation, packing, and holding of dietary supplements under conditions that ensure their safety. At this point the supplement companies themselves are responsible for ensuring accuracy, quality, purity, and bioavailability.

Accuracy of Ingredients

Recent independent testing revealed that certain supplements only contained a very small amount of the main ingredient. The rest of the product is comprised of fillers and binders. Oftentimes people won't feel any difference when taking cheaply made products and then believe that supplements don't work. In reality, the failure results from a shoddy product rather than from the utility of supplements in general. In order for any remedy to be effective it must be prescribed in the appropriate dose using a quality product. For example, Vitamin E products. Laboratory analysis showed that many do not have the full stated concentration; in fact some have no vitamin E at all. The alpha form of vitamin E costs less and so many brands use only this form or a synthetic form. The natural mixed tocopherals provide the most benefit and also cost more.

Quality and Purity

Another concern about poor quality supplements arises from the fillers, binders, and lubricants used. These additives do not add to the quality or effectiveness of the supplement. Fillers like lactose, sodium benzoate, BHA, BHT, hydrogenated oils take up space in a pill. These products may cause allergic reactions and in the case of hydrogenated oils, negative effects on health. Again, fillers do not need to be in the product. They take up space and make the product appear to contain more than it actually does.

Binders and artificial colors add to the cosmetic appearance of the product not it's effectiveness. All tablets use binders and glues to keep their shape. The raw ingredients from which supplements are made usually have a powder consistency. Many tablets and capsules have artificial coloring to make them look better. Many drug companies dye their products as well. In my mind it makes no sense to put dye in supplements at all. Artificial coloring is just that, artificial, from chemicals. Common dyes include titanium oxide for whitening, red dye, blue dye, and yellow dye. In some children, exposure to dyes contributes to behavioral problems. We don't need any more exposure to chemicals. Taking small quantities of chemicals daily from supplements adds up over time, increases the burden on the liver, and negatively impacts one's health.

Finally, lubricants. Lubricants such as stearic acid, magnesium stearate, and ascorbyl palmitate facilitate the manufacturing process. They keep ingredients from sticking to the machinery. Magnesium stearate appears the most often in supplements I've seen. These lubricants are saturated fats. They can interfere with the absorption of the ingredients in the supplement, rendering it less bioavailable.

The quality of raw ingredients makes or breaks a supplement.Much of the raw material industry exists outside the United States, and includes products from  China, India, and Mexico. Herbal companies within the U.S. often use herbs grown within the states when possible. Companies must test the chemical make up of their raw materials to ensure the accuracy of the product. Visual assessment is not enough. Reports of supplements containing completely different ingredients than listed on the label reinforce the improtance of this step.

Herbal supplements require a further step in raw material selection. The different parts (stem, root, leaf, flower) of plants often provide specific healing actions. In order to provide a quality and effective herbal product, the manufacturer must ensure that the appropriate part of the herb was harvested at the appropriate time during the year. For example, harvesting flowers at their peak and leaves in the spring.

Potency

Finally, the product must be tested to ensure that the amounts listed on the lable will be available and potent through the expiration date. This applies especially to fish oils and probiotic products (acidophilus). In addition the product must be tested for rancidity and purity. Due to past evidence, it is now clear that supplements must be tested for microbial contamination including bacteria, yeast and mold, for chemical solvent residue, pesticides and herbicides, and for heavy metals and dioxins. Rarely do companies that sell inexpensive products invest in this rigorous examination of their products.

The products that I choose to carry in my medicinary meet all of the above criteria. I have already done the research into the companies and products so you don't have to. I carry the cleanest products that I can find to reduce any additional chemical intake to my patients. These products always cost more than generic brands but now you know why. Rest assured that you are getting what you pay for!

A few general rules about choosing supplements out in the world:

• Avoid supplements with "unnatural" color- blue, purple, red dyes.
• Avoid synthetic forms of vitamins- especially vitamin C and E.
• Avoid supplements with sugar, wheat, soy, dairy, corn, salt, iron, artificial sweeteners, preservatives, and flavorings.

I hope that this article cleared up confusion and provided some insight into the complex world of supplement manufacturing. The industry continues to change and will likely become more regulated in the future.