The Trend of Dietary Supplements

Are These Medical Pills a Miracle Drug, or Health Threat?

Jun 25, 2009 James Jackson

The past decade has seen an explosion in the widespread availability of dietary medical supplements. Are they a wise investment, or a threat to your health?

The urge to be a "healthy" weight has taken North America by storm. Billions of dollars are spent every year on diets, exercise programs, and gym memberships. Lately, the newest fad in weight management has been the increase in dietary supplements and weight loss pills.

Nevertheless, there has been a mixed reception by the medical community about their effectiveness, and safety. There are four main categories of supplements (fats, minerals, proteins, and vitamins).

Health Concerns of Dietary Supplements

The US government warned dieters and body builders to stop using the Canadian-made product Hydroxycut after it received reports that linked the product to serious liver damage, and at least one death. But this wasn't the first time that such health concerns have been raised about these pills.

There has been a movement towards the establishment of an independent committee in Canada to generate oversight and accountability within the dietary supplement business, but many groups support the use of these supplements, citing the decline in North American diet over the past 30 years.

Some doctors stress that a daily multivitamin is fine for most people, but use doctors' warnings to stress against taking a high dose of single supplements, as well as the benefits of a basic daily multi-vitamin.

Popular Retailers of Dietary Supplements

• Iovate Health Sciences, Inc. is the Canadian company responsible for the development of Hydroxycut, a muscle builder and fat burner.
• General Nutrition Companies Inc. (GNC) is the largest specialty retailer of vitamin, mineral and herbal supplements, and sports nutrition, with over 5,000 outlets globally.

Dietary Supplement Lobbyist Groups:

• Health Food Manufacturers Association: their mission is to be the authoritative and responsible voice for the natural health products industry, promoting and protecting the interests of the industry.
• Rx&D: lobby and advocate for policies that will bring the best innovative medicines and vaccines to Canadians in a timely and appropriate manner; improve Canada's global competitiveness; and make Canada a leader in attracting pharmaceutical technology.
• The Centre for Science in the Public Interest: an advocate for nutrition and health, food safety, and sound science since 1971, lobbies for Canadian dietary supplements.

Professional Code of Ethics and Standards for Diet Supplements

The American Dietetic Association and its Commission on Dietetic Registration have adopted a voluntary, enforceable code of ethics, entitled the Code of Ethics for the Profession of Dietetics, and challenge all members to uphold ethical principles. The Code of Ethics establishes a fair system to deal with complaints.

The Association of Analytical Communities (AOAC) is a globally recognized, independent, not-for-profit association founded in 1884. It facilitates the development, use, and harmonization of analytical methods valid in the laboratory for scientific communities working in fields such as food safety, allergens, and dietary supplements

Role of Canadian Government in Regulating Diet Supplements

Natural health products, including dietary supplements, are regulated by the Natural Health Product Regulations, introduced in 2004, under the Ministry of Health. Natural health products are different from drugs, and evidence requirements for drugs are not appropriate for natural health products. Some regulations (briefly) include

Labelling and Packaging for Diet Supplements

• a brand name,
• its product number,
• its dosage form,
• if it is sterile, the words "sterile" and "stérile", and
• the net amount in the immediate container in terms of weight, measure or number

Statistics of Dietary Supplement Use in Canada

(Source: Statistics Canada):

1. In 2005, 389 firms were active in the field of functional foods and nutraceuticals (FFN).
2. Total FFN revenue was $2.9 billion in 2004, of which$1.6 billion came from companies producing nutraceuticals.
3. Exports of FFN products amounted to $545 million in 2004, with the majority originating from nutraceutical firms ($356 million).
4. FFN firms employed 51,685 individuals in 2004, including permanent, seasonal, contract, and casual employees.
5. There were 9,175 FFN products on the market in 2004; nutraceutical firms accounted for the bulk of these with 6,327 products.
6. In 2003, the estimated size of the Canadian nutrition sector was US$4.83 billion. Of this, supplements accounted for US$1.31 billion.
7. In 2006, the value of the nutrition sector reached approximately US$6.15 billion, of which US$1.82 was natural health products.

The Hamilton Spectator. Oakville-made dietary supplement Hydroxycut recalled. May 1, 2009. The Associated Press.

Alive Magazine # 286, August 2006. Navigating the Supplement Maze. Jon Barron.

Health Action Magazine. Are Vitamins Safe? Spring, 2006. Dr. Carolyn Dean.

Canadian Health Magazine. Supplement Saavy. May / June 2007. Meagan Ellis.

Dwyer, J. D Allison, P. Coates (2005). Dietary Supplements in Weight Reduction

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Volume 105, Issue 5, pp 80-86

Pipe, Andrew, Christiane Ayotte (2002). Nutritional Supplements and Doping, Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, Volume 12, Issue 4, pp 245-249

Gardiner, Paula MD et al. (2006) Factors Associated With Dietary Supplement Use Among Prescription Medication Users, Arch Intern Med. Vol. 166, pp 1968-1974.

The copyright of the article The Trend of Dietary Supplements in Weight Loss is owned by James Jackson. Permission to republish The Trend of Dietary Supplements in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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