What You Need to Know About Vitamin and Supplement Ingredients

Here’s how to be a savvy supplement shopper.

BY VICKI MARTINEZ

Look at Labels

The nutrition label for a dietary supplement is called the Supplement Facts Panel. This is where you find the list of dietary ingredients, the Percent Daily Value (%DV) and serving size, plus a list of “other dietary ingredients” that do not have an established Recommended Daily Intake.

Supplement Products and the FDA

It’s true that dietary supplements aren't approved by the FDA before going to market. The FDA classifies dietary supplements as food products, not pharmaceutical drugs, which must be FDA-approved. What this doesn't mean is that the products aren't regulated by the FDA. Vitamins and supplements must meet the same FDA guidelines and regulations that “conventional” foods must abide by.

So, approved … no. Monitored and regulated, yes.

Once products classified as dietary supplements hit the market, the FDA actively monitors the products and will take immediate action against any found to be unsafe or misbranded.

High-Quality Vitamin Ingredients

If you compare the supplement facts panels of the exact same product from two different brands, most likely the same vitamin ingredients are listed.

So how do you decide which one is the higher-quality product?

Consider these four factors: raw material quality, the use of licensed vitamin and supplement ingredients, packaging and price.   

These products from Solgar and American Health are manufactured in an FDA audited and GMP compliant facility.

1. Raw materials: The raw materials used to develop vitamins and supplements are typically sourced from around the world. Once secured, the manufacturing process begins. But some companies, like Solgar and American Health, add an extra step. They perform in-house quality assurance tests before using any raw materials in their products.

2. Licensed vitamin and supplement ingredients: As referenced above this process includes ensuring that the products are all made in an FDA registered facility that strictly follows all established GMPs. GMPs are Good Manufacturing Practices.

3. Packaging: There are two reasons packaging matters. First, a company's stance on sustainability says a lot about them. Second, overexposure may cause certain light-sensitive active ingredients to lose potency. Solgar’s unique  protective container made from recyclable amber glass makes it stand out from all the others on the market.

4. Price: When comparing the same vitamin or supplement from two different companies, is the bottle that’s $10–$15 more a high-quality product? Absolutely not. There’s often a perception that high quality costs more when it comes to vitamins and supplements, says Liza Boone, sales education manager for Nature’s Bounty Group, which includes both the Solgar and American Health brands. “Because we’re such a large company, we buy our materials in larger amounts, which helps us manufacture our products at a much lower price,” she says. “We’re a high-quality brand that’s accessible to everyone.”