Dietary supplements can be defined as a product that is intended to supplement the diet in the form of a vitamin, mineral, herb, amino acid, isolate, concentrate, or extract (or a combination of any of these things). Dietary supplements are delivered in pill, tablet, capsule, powder or liquid form, cannot be represented as conventional foods, and is labeled as a dietary supplement or natural health product.
Generally, structure/function claims are allowed on the labels and must be truthful. A typical structure/function claim can be “antioxidant” or “maintain cardiovascular health.” But dietary supplements are not allowed to have a claim that treats a specific disease or condition, (eg. treat depression). The FDA does not require that supplements be approved before going onto market. Canada, on the other hand, requires that all products be reviewed and approved before it goes onto store shelves.
If you’re one of the millions of people that consume dietary supplements, there should be three things you look for in a dietary supplement or natural health product:
1) Efficacy: Does the product work? What is the latest research? Is it based on clinical trial evidence (strong) or solely test tube studies (weak)?
2) Safety: Is the product safe? Does it have any side effects, either short-term or long-term? Will it interact with any prescription or over-the-counter medications you may be taking?
3) Quality: Does the product contain what it says it contains? Is there really 500 mg of vitamin C in that tablet? How do you know there aren’t any contaminants or heavy metals in the product? Was it manufactured in a clean facility?
Most people just go for what’s cheapest. Others go for how fancy a label is. But really, what’s the best choice?
If you can buy a product that was manufactured by a Canadian company, do it. Why? They have all the regulations in place that examine product quality, safety and efficacy. If not, then look for a product that was manufactured under “GMP” conditions- which stands for “good manufacturing practices”. This means the company tests their products, facilities are clean, and that they meet regulatory manufacturing standards. Ignore fancy labels, product health claims and price point.
Bottom Line: Raise the bar above “worked for me so far” or "hasn't killed me yet" and look for a product that says "GMP certified" (or equivalent statement) and/or has the Canadian government issued NPN # on the label.
A stroll down the supplements section of your local drugstore or grocery market quickly reveals an abundance of supplements targeting weight loss and weight management. Bottles of Hydroxycut, Xenadrine, PGX, green tea capsules and the like are wrapped in labels dawning bronze men with six pack abs and women in bikinis. There is no doubt that the market is competitive, but only so because such products are in such high demand.
Such weight loss products generally (rationalized to) work in three ways: 1. Fat burning – by increasing your rate of metabolism 2. Fulfilling satiety – lowering your desire for food or reduces hunger and 3. Inhibit digestion of fats and/or carbohydrates.
For the most part, the above types of products work by reducing your intake of unhelpful nutrients (eg. excess sugar, fats, carbs). But there’s a new trend on the rise: now such products are trying to add active ingredients in order to promote weight loss (eg. adding green tea or caffeine to a high carb or sugar product). Now will this work? I’m inclined to say no. But will it sell? Unfortunately, yes it will. Consumers, especially of this target market, are generally lazy people. Lazy not only means sitting in front of the tv, but it also includes procrastination and giving up things we like. That said, this strategy of adding weight loss promoting ingredients is perfect. You can have your cake and lose weight by eating it.
So this even explains why you see sugary children’s cereal now being marketed with claims of helping attention span, or how cola drinks can be beneficial as an antioxidant. Crazy isn’t it? Theoretically, if you throw in some green tea and caffeine and stuff it into a Twinkie, you’ve got yourself a weight loss product, pal. And because consumers are lazy, will they question such products? Not likely. In fact, they’ll scoop it up.
Bottom line: Stay away from this new trend. Want to lose weight? It’s called diet and exercise. Want to not be hungry? Try eating 5-7 small meals a day – it’s about a healthy balance of not being hungry, yet never being full. By the way, when I say meals, think of it like breakfast-snack-lunch-snack-dinner-snack, not breakfast-breakfast-lunch-lunch-dinner-dinner.
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Email: brian@mightygrasshopper.com
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