Why Vitamins and Other 'Dietary Supplements' Can Contain Anything

[Nelson Vergel]

Products now sold in the rapidly expanding industry of “dietary supplements” include not just vitamin and mineral formulas, but those derived from herbs, glands, amino acids, and enzymes of all sorts, in any combination and amount, sold as tablets, capsules, gel caps, powders, or liquids. The global market for these products was $82 billion as of 2013, with the U.S. accounting for more than a quarter of that. Sales increased by $6 billion between 2007 and 2012. According to a document by McKinsey titled “Cashing in on the Booming Market for Dietary Supplements,” growth “is expected to remain strong through 2017, between five and six percent a year.”

Much of this growth is attributed to the fact that these products can go to market without any safety, purity, or quality testing by the FDA.

While it costs millions of dollars to develop and substantiate a pharmaceutical product, selling supplements requires no such investment. And new products are easily sold as supplements: The only common feature among them, as defined by the FDA, is that these are edible things “not intended to treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure diseases.”

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/06/supplements-make-tobacco-look-easy/488798/

 

[PAUL-E]

Not to get off topic but I wonder how this is legal ????? well got to love bribery OOPPPPPSS I meant LOBBYIST although looking at the definition Lobbying (also lobby) is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in a government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. yep bribery

 

[Nelson Vergel]

It is a double edge sword. We do not want fake supplements but also are afraid of more regulations. And obviously the supplement industry is not policing itself well.

 

[PAUL-E]

yes you have a point if we had to wait for FRA approval for everything nothing would get done and many helpful products most likely would not be available to us.