How to choose a quality nutritional supplement.

The supplement industry is not highly regulated in this country as are pharmaceuticals. The justification for this is that supplements are, on the whole, relatively safe. This keeps the cost of supplements affordable. Because of this, though, there are no guarantees that the supplements you purchase are free of contaminants like heavy metals and solvents, or that the supplements are in a form easily utilized by the body. High quality nutritional supplement products are often available from nutritionists or other health care providers. These products usually have rigorous quality controls guaranteeing purity and potency. Because of the thorough testing of these products they tend to be more expensive, but worth the cost.

Health food stores carry a wide quality range in their product line. Prepared with these basic tips on how to read a supplement label, you can rest assured that the products you purchase will be superior ones.

• Choose a product that carries the seal of approval from an independent testing laboratory like NSF, NNFA, Consumer Labs or UPS.
• Look at the bottom of the “Supplement Facts” label. Beneath this panel, “other ingredients” are listed. The presence of synthetic colors, flavors, or preservatives may indicate a lower quality product.  High quality supplement labels will identify allergens which may be present such as soy or gluten.
• Look for an expiration date and lot number. Most supplements will diminish in potency and quality over time. High quality supplement labels will provide a “Use By” or “Expiration Date”. They will also have a lot number for tracking any product-related problems.
• Does the label include direction and dosage? While not required on labels, directions tell you how and when to take supplements to insure optimal absorption, and higher quality products will include this information.
• When purchasing fish oil as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, purity and freshness are especially important. Look for a product that is “molecularly distilled” and free of heavy metals. Store supplement oils in the refrigerator or freezer to maintain freshness.
• Consumer Labs provides independent test results and information to help consumers and healthcare professionals evaluate nutrition products. The published results are available on their website allowing the consumer to see which products passed tests including purity and potency.

Written by:
Jessica Adlin MS, CN
Debra Boutin, MS, RD, CD

This first appeared as a sidebar to “Do we really need nutritional supplements” in the May 2006 issue Northwest Prime Time newspaper in the greater Seattle area and is reprinted with permission from Northwest Prime Time, Bastyr University and the co-author, Debra Boutin, MS, RD, CD.