Dietary Supplements

Multivitamin-mineral supplement may cut heart disease risk, but only for women: ODS study

21-Jan-2015 By Stephen Daniells

A daily multivitamin and mineral supplement may reduce the risk of heart disease by over 35% for women, but no such benefits were seen for men, says a new study from the Office of Dietary Supplements at the US National Institutes of Health.

On the spike: The curious case of a contaminated sports supplement

21-Jan-2015 By Shane STARLING

‘Don’t take sports supplements, they can’t be trusted’ was the takeaway message from Welsh track stars Rhys Williams and Gareth Warburton after the recent UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) tribunal agreed steroids got into their blood streams via contaminated sports...

NutraIngredients-USA predicts top industry influences in 2015

05-Jan-2015 By Stephen Daniells

As the New Year begins, NutraIngredients-USA predicts the top challenges and opportunities for the US dietary supplements industry in the year ahead.

Outsourcing, bone & joint health, LATAM, functional foods: lessons from 2014's special editions part 2

23-Dec-2014 By Hank Schultz

From polyphenols and prebiotics to a focus on Latin America, healthy aging and functional foods, NutraIngredients-USA’s special editions have set traffic records because of their in-depth coverage and exclusive content.  Today we feature part two of our...

Green tea, mitochondria, omega-3 & curcumin: The top 10 science of 2014

17-Dec-2014

From breakthrough studies to controversial hypotheses, it has been a fascinating year for science for dietary supplements. In this special gallery we review the top science headlines from 2014.

Hearing on potential changes to Redbook to take place tomorrow

NOI urges FDA to end attempts to regulate dietary supplements as food additives

08-Dec-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

The Food and Drug Administration should finalize the revised draft guidance for New Dietary Ingredients (NDIs) and stop attempting to regulate the products and their ingredients as ‘food additives’, says Marc Ullman on behalf of Natural Organics, Inc.

Capsugel sees increase in Licaps demand as product manufacturers seek ‘best solutions for challenging ingredients’

02-Dec-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Challenging ingredients like krill oil and fish oil are driving demand for Capsugel’s Licaps liquid-filled hard capsule technology, says the company, as Healthy Directions becomes the latest manufacturer to use the capsules for its Krill Omega Defense...

FDA files injunction against sports supplement manufacturer over years-long record of GMP failures

14-Nov-2014 By Hank Schultz

Scilabs Nutraceuticals Inc., a California dietary supplement company, has been slapped with a permanent injunction after failing three rounds of FDA inspections and receiving a warning letter in 2013.

20 Years of DSHEA: Focusing on the Future

13-Nov-2014 By Daniel Fabricant, PhD, CEO and Executive Director, Natural Products Association

While we should certainly take a second to pause and reflect in honor of the 20th anniversary of the passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), it’s important to keep in mind that the industry as a beacon of growth must focus...

The NutraIngredients-USA Business Leaders’ Forum

NOW Foods, Herbalife, SmartyPants, and Twinlab execs to talk industry challenges and opportunities

12-Nov-2014 By Stephen Daniells

Senior executives from Twinlab, SmartyPants, Herbalife, and NOW Foods will join NutraIngredients-USA’s Stephen Daniells for an hour-long discussion of about the state of the dietary supplements industry – the main events of 2014 and a look ahead to 2015.

Post election committee shuffles emphasize need for industry engagement, observers say

11-Nov-2014 By Hank Schultz

The landslide victory of Republican House and Senate candidates in the recent midterm elections will have broad implications for the dietary supplements business. But even with the GOP now holding majorities in both houses, it’s still business as usual,...

Internet helps noncompliant retailers ply their trade but also helps FDA find them, expert says

05-Nov-2014 By Hank Schultz

The growth of online retailing has bee decried by some in the dietary supplements business for allowing the rapid appearance of fly-by-night marketers.  But the Internet has a flip side, acting as a powerful and low-cost enforcement tool that the Food...

Almost 70% of US adults take supplements and with high confidence, says CRN survey

04-Nov-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Data from the 2014 CRN Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplements indicates that 68% of US adults report taking dietary supplements, with over 50% of them being regular users.

Study finds tainted supplements still for sale months after FDA recalls

21-Oct-2014 By Hank Schultz

A small number of products marketed as dietary supplements previously recalled by FDA can still be found for sale with the same adulterants (or is some cases new adulterants), says a study published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The...

Special Edition: LATAM

The most important lessons for doing business in Latin America for dietary supplement companies

25-Sep-2014 By David Pineda Ereño, Regional Director, EAS Latin America

Being among the most dynamic regional markets in the world with double-digit growth, and with an increasing consumer demand, Latin America offers plenty of opportunities for dietary supplement companies.

Special edition: LATAM

Inflation likely to moderate strong growth of supplements market in Argentina

25-Sep-2014 By Hank Schultz

The dietary supplement market in Argentina is thriving despite import barriers and economic uncertainty caused by inflation, according to a recent report by Euromonitor.  The forecast for the immediate future is continued growth, albeit it at a slower...

Special Edition: LATAM

Hispanics are key opportunity for supplement marketers, Packaged Facts report says

22-Sep-2014 By Hank Schultz

Hispanic consumers are an area of untapped growth potential for dietary supplement marketers, according to a report from market research firms Packaged Facts.

Updated: CRN says study's findings do not warrant any blanket warnings

NPA’s Fabricant on liver injury data: ‘FDA has not been shy about acting on issues on hepatotoxicity’

05-Sep-2014 By Stephen Daniells

A new scientific paper published in Hepatology reports that liver injury caused by herbals and dietary supplements increased from 7% to 20% in a US study group over a ten-year period, but there are holes in the analysis and clear evidence that the FDA...

Special edition: LATAM

Obesity prevention key to Mexican vitamin & supplement market growth

05-Sep-2014 By Maggie Hennessy

Sales of vitamins and dietary supplements grew 9% in 2013 to reach Mx$15.7 billion ($1.2 billion) as increased visibility over the country’s main diseases have consumers thinking more about prevention, according to a report from Euromonitor International. 

Special edition: LATAM

Young, urban Brazilians driving country's vitamin and supplement sales: Euromonitor

02-Sep-2014 By Maggie Hennessy

Last year, sales of vitamins and dietary supplements in Brazil increased by 9%, reaching R$3.2 billion ($1.4 billion), as a growing cohort of younger consumers seek a healthy lifestyle and take a more preventive approach to wellness, according to a report...

Russia removes dietary supplements from import ban list

21-Aug-2014 By Kacey Culliney

Russia has amended its ‘total embargo’ on western food imports to exclude dietary supplements, vitamin and mineral mixes, protein concentrates and dietary fibers.

FitLife Brands maintains impressive growth with strong second quarter

13-Aug-2014 By Hank Schultz

FitLife Brands, maker of nutritional supplements sold under several brand names, has bucked the headwinds that have afflicted the dietary supplement sector in recent quarters, notching an 18% rise in revenue in its second quarter 2014 results. The company...

Military women use more supplements than men, says new meta-analysis

08-Jul-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Dietary supplement use is prevalent by members of the US Military, with women and elite men the highest users of supplements, says a new systematic review and meta-analysis.

China

New draft law is a step in the right direction for supps exporters

08-Jul-2014 By RJ Whitehead

A recent draft reform of China’s Food Safety Law, which is now available for public comment, is a great improvement for supplements exporters who have been increasingly frustrated at the time and expense required to gain certification in the country. 

News in brief

Federal judge approves consent decree with Mira Health Products

03-Jul-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

A federal judge in New York has signed a consent decree for permanent injunction between the United States and Mira Health Products Ltd., a dietary supplement manufacturer located in Farmingdale, New York, and Michael S. Ragno and Michael S. Ragno, Jr.

Regulations overhaul proceeding rapidly in Japan, ASEAN

20-Jun-2014 By Hank Schultz

Efforts to reform the way dietary supplements are regulated in Japan and the ASEAN are proceeding with startling speed, attendees of an event in Salt Lake City were told yesterday.

Booming demand for sports certification points to need for overall quality assurance, NSF exec says

17-Jun-2014 By Hank Schultz

The growth of the sports nutrition sector has boosted the demand for NSF’s Certified for Sport certification, says Lisa Thomas, the program’s director.  But the reach of the program extends well beyond products meant just for athletes.

Dietary supplements and consumer trust: GOED outlines ways to deliver the ‘omega-3 product promise’

05-Jun-2014 By Stephen Daniells

Consumer trust of dietary supplements could be as low as 10%, lower than both financial services (11%) and pharmaceutical (18%), according to data from the Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s, but there are simple ways to help build trust with...

Special edition: Outsourcing

Is a lack of GLPs for supplements a hindrance for the testing industry?

14-May-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

A lack of good laboratory practices specific to dietary supplements may be a hindrance in terms of assuring quality across the labs, but could the supplement industry come together to write its own?

Is DSHEA a public relations problem for the sports nutrition sphere?

22-Apr-2014 By Hank Schultz

The Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act has fostered an innovative and thriving industry. That’s the standard line, one that few would argue with. But has the bright light of DSHEA also cast shadows within which bad players have free rein?

Long strange trip: The evolution of botanicals since the inception of DSHEA

21-Apr-2014 By Hank Schultz

The Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act has given rise to a thriving dietary supplements industry. Botanical ingredients have always been a part of that picture, but the concept of where they fit within that category has shifted over the years...

Torch passed in Senate during NPA lobbying day

10-Apr-2014 By Hank Schultz in Washington, DC

The Natural Products Association lobbying day began with an address from a new advocate for the industry and ended with remarks from one of the industry’s oldest champions.

Online retailers can help stop doping and questionable supplements: Consultant

06-Mar-2014 By Luca Bucchini, PhD

If the nutritional supplements sector is to ever cast off its reputation for ‘dangerous’ and unlabelled contaminants then big online retails must embrace and enforce stricter anti-doping policies, argues Luca Bucchini, PhD.

CRN recommends making FSVP rules apply to all importers of dietary supplements

29-Jan-2014 By Hank Schultz

Overlapping federal rules can sometimes create nooks and crannies that the originators didn’t intend.  The Council for Responsible Nutrition has identified one such possible loophole in the interplay between the dietary supplement GMP rules (Part 111)...

Observers disagree about whether report of tainted thyroid supplements points to wider problems in market

24-Jan-2014 By Hank Schultz

A recent blog in The New York Times raised questions about some thyroid supplements, but passed over the legitimate role dietary supplements scan have in the support of health thyroid function, observers say.

Infographic: The who, what, where, when, and why of supplement consumers

16-Jan-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Dietary supplement users have different habits and reasons for supplementing their diets, but what does the who, what, where, when, and why of supplement consumers look like?

Editors’ picks: Our favorite articles of 2013

18-Dec-2013 By The NutraIngredients-USA team

We enjoy writing some articles more than others, whether it’s because of the subject, the impact for industry, the insights from commentators, or other reasons. But which articles did we enjoy writing the most and why?

Conclusion that herbal supplements causing more liver injuries disputed by expert

06-Nov-2013 By Hank Schultz

The incidence of liver damage caused on by herbal dietary supplements is on the rise, according to information presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.  But those conclusions have been questioned by...

FDA seeks injunction against Oregon supplements firm over disease claims, GMP violations

23-Oct-2013 By Hank Schultz

The Food and Drug Administration is seeking a permanent injunction against James G. Cole Inc., an Oregon-based dietary supplement manufacturer.  As is usually the case with such injunctions, the action is the culmination of a long interaction between...

Science, certifications drive export potential of US-made sports nutrition products, experts say

11-Oct-2013 By Hank Schultz

The sports nutrition market continues to expand, and with global demand rising, experts say opportunities are growing, too, for US made products in export markets.

Hospital's decision to discourage supplement use called 'misguided' & 'short sighted'

11-Oct-2013 By Hank Schultz

In another high profile blow to the credibility of dietary supplements, the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia has removed all but a few dietary supplements from its formulary, meaning parents of children in the hospital will have to sign a waiver in...

Reaction to CFSAN's priorities for 2013-14

UNPA: Does CFSAN’s plan for GMO labeling guidance signal a change of thinking at FDA?

08-Oct-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

The Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition's (CFSAN) priority to publish guidance to help manufacturers with voluntarily GMO labeling could signal a change in thinking at the agency, says the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA).

NDIs, GRAS & GMOs: CFSAN outlines priorities for 2013-14

07-Oct-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) has outlined its priorities for 2013-14, with a 'surprising' number relevant to supplements, including NDIs, GRAS, and GMOs.

CRN Survey: 85% of US adults confident in the safety, quality and effectiveness of dietary supplements

23-Sep-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

Two-thirds of US adults continue to take dietary supplements, with consumer confidence in the products remaining high, says the 2013 Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) Consume Survey on Dietary Supplements.

CRN Annual Conference

CRN's Mister challenges companies to 'decide where they stand…who they stand with…and then take a stand'

19-Sep-2013 By Stephen Daniells in Park City, Utah

The decisions the US dietary supplements industry makes over the next three years will determine the long-term direction of the industry, said CRN's Steve Mister, and then challenged companies to  'decide where they stand'.

Durbin reaches for premarket approval with reintroduction of labeling bill, trade groups say

06-Aug-2013 By Hank Schultz

A bill reintroduced by Senators Dick Durbin, D-Il and Richard Blumenthal, D-CT to require registration of all dietary supplements with FDA is a solution in search of a problem, according to trade organizations.

Infographic: Supplements vs food (eg. how much spinach is equivalent to a magnesium tablet?)

01-Aug-2013

Ever wondered how much food you need to consume to obtain a solid daily dose of a nutrient?

Betaine boosted sports drinks backed to enhance athletic performance: Study

10-Jul-2013 By Nathan Gray

One week of supplementation with the nutrient betaine as part of a sports drink can help to boost athletic power and performance by around six percent, according to new research in sprint cyclists.

More consumers talking to their physicians about supplement use, but discussions still scarce

03-Jul-2013

The number of consumers who talk to their primary care phsycians about supplement use is slowly increasing, but discussions remain ‘sparse’, says a new study from UCLA.

Supplement users make healthier lifestyle choices: CRN Survey

13-Jun-2013 By Stephen DANIELLS

Users of dietary supplements seem to make healthier lifestyle choices compared to non-users, including exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight, and trying to eat a balanced diet, says a new survey from the  Council for Responsible Nutrition...