Nutrition Science and Everyday Application - beta v 0.1

DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS 459
doses. Supplements not only come in pill form, but also powder and liquid form. Vitamin
water, protein powder, and other products like Emergen-C are often fortified with large
amounts of vitamins and minerals.
4. Be skeptical of product claims. Remember that supplement manufacturers promote
their products with structure/function claims, and they don’t have to provide any evidence
that the product actually does what it claims to do. If something sounds too good to be true,
it probably is.
5. Look for third-party testing when purchasing a supplement. ConsumerLab.com,
NSF International, U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP), and UL are all companies that do third-party
testing on dietary supplements. 8 If you see these companies’ stamps (see Figure 8.5) on a
supplement bottle, it means that the product is periodically tested to check that it:
◦ Contains the ingredients listed on the label, in the declared potency and
amounts.
◦ Does not contain harmful levels of specified contaminants (e.g., heavy
metals and pesticides).
◦ Will break down and release into the body within a specified amount of
time. (If a supplement does not break down properly to allow its
ingredients to be available for absorption in the body, the consumer will
not get the full benefit of its contents.)
Figure 8.5. The U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP) verification mark. USP is a nonprofit organization
that does third-party testing on dietary supplements. This mark helps assure consumers that the
product has been tested for quality, purity, potency, performance, and consistency. 9