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Home » IDEA Answers » Important Professional Concern---Supplements---My Blog---And a Concerned Blog Reader
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Question asked by Marlan Eller 203 days ago

Important Professional Concern---Supplements---My Blog---And a Concerned Blog Reader

Personal TrainingSupplementsFitness InstructorMarketing and SalesStrength TrainingInsurancePersonal Training: Ethics/Scope of PracticeAmerican Council on Exercise (ACE)Member retentionNutrition Coaching

I received a disturbing email just today from a concerned blog reader. She sent the following email through Fitness Connect. "The FACT you have on your page about supplements being unregulated is false. Go to the FDA webpage and read about the DSHEA Act of 1994 and the regulation of dietary supplements. You are misinforming your readers!"

It is very, very important to me that my readers are served in the best way I can serve them. Considering that this person did not offer any professional credentials to me, or offer any reason why she is qualified to make such a judgment, I have decided to leave this issue up to the very qualified, and verified fitness professionals on IDEA ANSWERS. Help me out here. The blog and fact she is referring to can be found here: http://blog.ideafit.com/blogs/marlan-eller/supplements-what-your-persona......

The information that this concerned individual has addressed with me can be found here: http://www.fda.gov/food/dietarysupplements/default.htm

In addition to the fda.gov link, please read the frequently requested information questions that are related to this issue. These can be found below the information on DSHEA. The two questions of concern to me are "What is FDA's role in regulating dietary supplements versus the manufacturer's responsibility for marketing them?" and "Who has the responsibility for ensuring that a dietary supplement is safe?" Clicking on these questions will lead you to an "Overview of Dietary Supplements." I suggest strongly that everyone read this (The FDA position) before offering an opinion.

I would like to discuss this matter in depth, and if possible, come to a group consensus about this matter once and for all (have I misinformed my readers? OR is further clarification needed when I address these matters?). I will share my view on this after there have been answers posted. I want to get a fair assessment from the professional community with the information at hand.

Thank you, in advance, for your thoughtful responses. Please don't hold back, but keep it professional. It's very important to me that my information accurate, and if I have erred here, I need to know how to correct it. I am trusting you all with helping me to correct any misinformation that might be being disseminated on my part.

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Answers (4)

Answered by Joanne Duncan-Carnesciali 202 days ago
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830 Questions Answered, 55 Questions Asked
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The following information is from the textbook "Practical Applications in Sports Nutrition." The authors are Heather Hedrick Fink, Lisa A. Burgoon and Alan E. Mikesky.

"A dietary supplement as defined by the DSHEA of 1994 is a product (than tobacco) intended to supplement the diet that contains one or more of the following dietary ingredients: vitamin, mineral, herb or other botanical, amino acid, dietary substance to supplement the diet by increasing the total dietary intake, concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract, or a combination of any of the above ingredients. Dietary supplements are not intended to be used as a food or as a sole item of a meal or diet, and these products must be labeled as a dietary supplement."

"Under DSHEA the supplement manufacturer is responsible for the safety of the product. However, the supplement manufacturer is not required to test its products for safety, nor does it have to prove that the supplement does what it claims to do."

In response to the question posed in the textbook, "What are the regulations governing dietary supplements?"

"Supplements are not drugs. Drugs are intended to cure, treat or prevent disease. Drugs must undergo extensive studies of safety and effectiveness, drug interactions, and dosing effects and must have formal FDA approval prior to marketing the product. On the other hand, dietary supplements do not have to undergo any studies on safety or efficacy prior to entering the market. Supplements are also not food additives, which require testing prior to entering the food marketplace. Dietary supplements containing any new ingredient do not require testing. The manufacturer gathers and interprets safety and efficacy information, and them must submit the product and safety information, and the must submit the product and safety information to the FDA 75 days prior to marketing the product. After the 75-day waiting period the supplement can be placed on the market. However, the FDA does not approve the new ingredient. New supplements that do not contain any new ingredients do not have to submit anything to the FDA prior to marketing the product."

Please excuse this lengthy post, however, I hope it is helpful to you.
2 Comments
This is exactly along the lines of what I was looking for, Joanne! This information will be helpful in editing some things in my blog so it reads more clearly. Thank you =)
Comment by Marlan Eller 202 days ago
Not a problem. Iron sharpens iron. Thanks for the homework.
Comment by Joanne Duncan-Carnesciali 202 days ago
 
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Answered by Andrew Halligan 203 days ago
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118 Questions Answered, 15 Questions Asked
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Followed the link and read
"FDA is responsible for taking action against any unsafe dietary supplement product after it reaches the market."
Perhaps you should reword the blog statement more specifically to say the supplements are "not regulated by the FDA before they reach the market." Hope this helps the discussion.
2 Comments
That's what I'm thinking of doing. It is true that supplements are regulated by the FDA when issues ensue related to supplements. However, I do not think that we could call it regulation beforehand based on the fact that the manufacturers are responsible for regulating themselves in accordance with guidelines (not REALLY regulations in a legal sense) from the FDA. The issue here, to me, is more a matter of the interpreted meaning of the word "regulated." Having a background in Law, I know enough to be able to look at this particular piece of legislation (DSHEA 1994) and know that this is one of those laws that has insufficient infrastructure to enforce the regulations set forth in it. That means that it's basically useless, to me, other than offering peace of mind to the public and offering the government (FDA, FTC) a way of covering them from lawsuits (the lawsuits fall on the companies because of the provisions in DSHEA).
Comment by Marlan Eller 203 days ago
*covering themselves, not *them*.. referring to government regulatory agencies (FDA, FTC in particular).
Comment by Marlan Eller 203 days ago
 
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Answered by Shawn Fears 199 days ago
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"By law (DSHEA), the manufacturer is responsible for ensuring that its dietary supplement products are safe before they are marketed. Unlike drug products that must be proven safe and effective for their intended use before marketing, there are no provisions in the law for FDA to "approve" dietary supplements for safety or effectiveness before they reach the consumer."


Straight off of the most frequently asked questions from your link. They seem to spell it out with "...,there are no provisions in the law for FDA to "approve" dietary supplements for safety of effectiveness before they reach the consumer"

Seems pretty clear cut to me..they DON"T regulate supplements. I would quote and cite this type of information in this and other blogs in the future. It is never enough to state something that challenges somebodies core values without in your fact proof. Your blog posted a list of fact but no works cited...that does not convey accurate information it makes it an opinion and a strong one at that. Anything that has "fact" in it needs to have a source. If you had done this you wouldn't have had a problem.
1 Comment
I also thought that this information was pretty clear. I suspect that the individual who emailed me either 1.) wanted to feel important or 2.) was honestly confused by the blog post. I'm glad that she contacted me because her issue had not occurred to me, which was a big oversight on my part. The word "regulated" definitely deserved further explanation and clarification, as well as many other various thoughts and comments.

You're right Shawn, I wouldn't have had this issue had I included the correct sources for all of that information. I've gone back and edited the blog post to make it read more clearly. I have also added sources of information for the facts that I included. This information should prove much more accurate now.

Thanks for your input here, Shawn. It was much appreciated and very helpful.
Comment by Marlan Eller 199 days ago
 
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Answered by Karin Singleton 192 days ago
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Hi Marlan,

I reviewed all the links that you posted and can only agree with the other people who have already answered.

Another thing to consider is that the FDA will only act if there is something being brought against a supplement. Else it can be sold for years, and you can only that it does no harm. There are no requirements that manufacturers prove anything. I could put M&Ms in a bottle and sell them as the latest supplement against male pattern baldness.

I was also wondering what interest the person had who decided to take you to task about your blog. Do you know?
3 Comments
Hey Karin,

I had a great comment typed up and ready to go, and I submitted it, and then I guess the internet gods decided to strike it down or something because it didn't show up!

In short, I'm not sure what the interest was on her part. I don't know her at all. She did not say anything else in the email other than what was included in the description of the question. I emailed her and told her that I was happy for her concern and that I would look into the issue. I also emailed her and told her that she could follow my progress by coming to this webpage, and I included a link.

My suspicion is that she either does not have a working knowledge of law and did not fully understand the law that she referred me to, or she knows exactly what she's doing and she doesn't understand why I would say that supplements are not regulated. My mistake was that I didn't clarify that statement. I was well aware of the legislation that she mentioned, but I view it like this.... A client is asking me about a supplement. I know this client can go get this supplement at a retail store. I know that there are no guarantees that this supplement manufacturer has regluated itself. Therefore, I'm telling my client that supplements aren't regulated... even though they are regulated in the fact that the FDA can pull a supplement after it's been shown to be harmful.

That was not clear in the blog. I suspect that's what caused the confusion. She is correct in that the information was misleading and since it was stated as a "fact" it did deserve some supporting evidence, and in this case further clarification. I think she could have used more professionalism in her email, but I am happy for her concern, nontheless. This has allowed me to remember to take the stance of an uninformed blog reader. I'm sure she wasn't the only one with that particular concern. =)
Comment by Marlan Eller 192 days ago
Supplements were and remain to be a very hot topic. Given the lack of oversight and the huge profit margins, no wonder that manufacturers do not want any regulation. They have convinced their loyal consumers that 'government is going to take their rights away'.
Comment by Karin Singleton 192 days ago
I agree with that assessment! One thing that people don't often understand about rights---- your rights stop where another person's rights begin. The govenrment has a right to protect itself, even from its people (lawsuits, etc). So even if "my rights are taken away" I understand. It's a lose/lose situation. If the government doesn't regulate my stuff, I might get hurt, then I might decide that my government was negligent.. If the government regulates my stuff, then I'm ticked off that I don't have a choice!... What can you do!? haha
Comment by Marlan Eller 192 days ago
 
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