Quality is as quality does

Left to its own devices, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will come up with onerous supplement regulations that would (1) favor the pharmaceutical industry, (2) hurt our health-food stores and natural products industry, and (3) reduce consumer access to all-natural supplements.

Fortunately for us, there are a number of programs our industry has developed which are bringing the dietary supplement community together in order to:

implement internal quality control;

fund university research and clinical studies using dietary supplements; and

develop scientifically validated testing methods for herbal products.

Quality control. Since 1990, our industry's main trade association, the National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA), has been running what is called its "TruLabel Registration and Random Testing Program." Under this program, supplement makers' products are randomly selected for analysis, to see if the label matches the content.

Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs). Hopefully, by the summer of this year (if not sooner), consumers will be able to look for the NNFAs Good Manufacturing Practices seal of approval. An independent certifying body will inspect supplement makers' manufacturing facilities to see if NNFA-specified (FDA approved) GMP standards are being met.

The main standards are: purity (the product is pure, not watered down or bulked up), safety (not contaminated or toxic), and efficacy (it performs as advertised).

What's in it for me? We all benefit, since a random testing program and GMPs: (a) keep companies honest, (b) help keep products high quality, and (c) provide us two levels of quality-control.

Fund research.1998 saw the birth of the Corporate Alliance for Integrative Medicine, which was formed to "promote the finest research and educational initiatives possible," according to Alliance president, Jennifer Cooper.

Founded by 10 of the industry's most respected supplement companies, the formation of research programs at major universities will provide an ambitious independent platform for science to systematically evaluate supplements.

What's in it for me? The more peer-reviewed research that can be produced on dietary supplements, the stronger our manufacturers and industry will be, and the greater our continued access will be to dietary supplements via health-food stores.

Develop validated testing methods. Last year also witnessed the launch of the Institute for Nutraceutical Advancement (INA) (sponsored by 30 companies) and the INA Methods Validation Program (MVP). This international effort will enable supplement makers to ensure consistency in the quality of herbal ingredients using agreed-upon testing methods.

What's in it for me? This will establish agreed-upon methods to determine the main marker compound for all herbal products, a target concentration at which it should be set, and what should the target ratio be of whole plant to extract. This will establish a level playing field in research, and will make it easier to compare "apples to apples."

Upshot? If we're great at "policing" our industry, then we'll be able to support, protect (and preserve) the products we love, the retailers we trust, and the manufacturers we rely on.

[Author Affiliation]

James Gormley has served as a managing editor for two of the most respected medical journals in the U.S., and as a social sciences/medical editor in book publishing. His award-winning articles cover important issues, keeping readers informed of the latest breakthroughs in nutritional approaches to optimal health and ongoing research into vitamins, botanicals, minerals, and other supplements.