Natural Supplements
The Food and Drug Administration hopes that these will also demonstrate to the public and to the supplement industry that we will act when necessary, and FDA remains committed also to educating consumers and industry on proper labeling and use of food additives. Food and Drug Administration regulates safety, manufacturing, and labeling of dietary supplements, and our partners at the Federal Trade Commission are principally responsible for regulating advertising for these products. It is important to note that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not have authority to review products that are sold on the market that are made with dietary supplements to ensure their safety and efficacy. Dietary supplements and the occasionally questionable claims of their health effects are regulated by the FDA in a different way from regular foods or medicines.
Dietary and herbal supplement companies are themselves responsible for evaluating the safety and labeling of their products prior to marketing, in order to make sure that they comply with all requirements of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act. In addition, manufacturers are not required to submit proof of the products safety to FDA prior to marketing the dietary supplement, except when the supplement contains a novel dietary ingredient (a dietary ingredient not sold in this country before October 15, 1994) that has not been preserved in the food supply as a food commodity in a form where food has not been chemically altered. Worse, supplement manufacturers are also not required to inform the FDA when they receive reports of adverse health reactions caused by their products. Now, this is complicated further by the fact that the FDA has a lot of actual bureaucrats that detest dietary supplements and would like to see dietary supplements given premarket approval, thereby driving down the costs of vitamins, minerals, even herbal products.
Given that structure, there is very little that can ensure that any vitamin, mineral, probiotic, sports supplement, herbal remedy, or other dietary supplement is safe, effective, or even contains the things on any vitamin label. Texas does not consider vitamins or dietary supplements food products, but rather considers them medical supplies, which are exempt from sales taxes. Texas does not typically impose sales taxes on vitamins and supplements. Compared with most drugs sold in pharmacies, dietary supplements are lightly regulated by state agencies.
In the European Union, dietary supplements are regulated like foods, with the legislative emphasis being on vitamins and minerals used as ingredients of food supplements. In 2005, Codex Alimentarius adopted guidelines on vitamins and minerals for food supplements. In Australia, most food additives are regulated in a complementary medicines category that includes vitamins, minerals, herbs, aromatherapy, and homeopathic products, though some products can be considered foods with specific uses and are regulated by the food authorities.
Some supplements contain base ingredients such as protein or multivitamins. It is worth considering that the amount of any given vitamin or mineral in the supplement might be significantly higher than what is stated on the bottle.
If you have low levels of vitamin C and are having difficulty getting enough from the foods you are eating, talk to your doctor about taking a supplement. Eating foods that are high in vitamin C is important for your overall health, particularly if you are at risk of high blood pressure. Population-based studies (which involve looking at a large group of people over time) have shown that those who eat foods high in antioxidants, including vitamin C, have a lower risk of high blood pressure compared to those with a poor diet. What evidence does suggest is that people who eat vitamin C-rich diets are less likely to get diagnosed with arthritis.
There is no evidence to suggest taking vitamin C supplements helps to treat or prevent osteoarthritis (OA). Taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs may reduce vitamin C levels If you regularly take these medications to manage your OA, you may need to take a vitamin C supplement.
For example, your healthcare provider might want to test your Vitamin D levels, because some people are low in this vitamin, particularly if they are not exposed to sunlight often. Health experts say that your health care provider is the best person to consult about whether vitamins or supplements are right for you, while pharmacists or registered dietitians can have valuable input, too. While there is no guarantee, there are steps consumers can take to increase the odds that their supplements do contain what they say, at the amount they claim, and may actually have a health benefit.
With over 90,000 different supplements on the market, it can be confusing to figure out which ones are safe and which ones are not. You will also discover brands and names that sell these supplements. These only apply to supplements containing vitamins and/or minerals, in which those products are regulated as foods, and address supplement ingredients, including their safety, purity, and bioavailability.
In certain cases, excess amounts of vitamins and minerals can be harmful or produce undesirable side effects; thus, maximum levels are needed to assure safe supplementation with foods. Studies have shown that almost two out of three members of the military consume some type of daily food supplement or herbal product. USP Documentation standards for dietary supplements are supported by chemical reference standards, which are highly characterized samples of food ingredients, impurities, and degrading products, as well as by compendium-level reagents and performance calibrators from the United States Pharmacopeia, and are specified for use in conducting official tests and analyses under the USP-NF. To further support public health objectives of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), FDA also issues guidance documents containing nonbinding recommendations to assist industry in understanding and implementing all regulations and laws.