Dietary supplements have been a massive subject of debate and with many not needing approval by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), but we might be seeing a lot of changes very soon.
The FDA announced that it will be more heavily involved in the massive $40+ billion industry to ensure safety and effectiveness of the thousands of products brought to market in large numbers each year. Now, the rules for participating in the supplement game can pretty much be summed up as, “if you don’t comply, there will be big consequences”.
Each and every company must abide by the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) which aims to hold the supplement manufacturers accountable for product safety and proper labeling according to FDA regulations.
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., recently issued a statement about the new plan to step up the regulation and oversight of the industry.
Now, according to the FDA,
“Three out of every four American consumers take a dietary supplement on a regular basis. For older Americans, the rate rises to four in five. And one in three children take supplements, either given to them by their parents or, commonly in teens, taking them on their own”.
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And Gottlieb even admits to benefiting from supplements himself, so he truly understands the importance of these great nutritional aids…
“I’ve personally benefited from the use of dietary supplements and, as a physician, recognize the benefits of certain supplements as a part of a comprehensive care plan,” said Gottlieb. It’s clear to me that dietary supplements play an important role in our lives as we strive to stay healthy”.
He also explains that it’s the FDA’s responsibility to ensure these supplements meet safety standards with high-quality ingredients. A lot of companies market and sell products which promise a lot but deliver little regarding effectiveness and quality. So, the FDA wants to employ more stringent oversight to ensure satisfaction in this area of customer satisfaction.
Many companies don’t follow the rules and make substandard products in exchange for more profit because they’re marketed to promise the World when in reality these products can be downright dangerous to the consumer. And we’ve even seen supplements laced with drugs and other harmful substances, hence the many lawsuits filed against companies.
Gottlieb called these companies which lie and deceive the public, “bad actors,” but this has got to stop and hopefully, the FDA will implement effective regulation strategies to prevent this kind of unethical business practice. The FDA wants to make sure Americans get healthy supplements, and hold the bad supplement companies accountable for unfair play.
The FDA plans to achieve these positive changes to the industry by making consumer aware of any supplement issues immediately and as soon as there are any discrepancies.
Gottlieb stated in the letter that they’ve issued many warnings and advisories as of recently in an effort to crack down on the number of misleading products and labels which claim to remedy certain ailments, solve an issue, or provide results that are unrealistic.
The problem is that these claims are unproven which further warrant cause for immediate intervention. Any products must be approved by the FDA in order to include these types of claims on any label.
But now with the new plan to change the supplement industry standards, hopefully; we’ll see fewer incidents due to the consumption of dietary supplementation because all products are not created equally or even safe for daily consumption.
But are they worth it? Absolutely… the good ones are at least. Vitamins and food supplements are important for people who suffer from nutritional deficiencies, and the benefits for active people have been proven by a countless number of studies.
So, hopefully, we’ll just have a lot more, better products to choose from now and this new regulation will cut out all of the supplements which do not comply with the rules.
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