Council for Responsible Nutrition Calls for Transparency in Testing Supplements 

07/12/07 In response to a report issued today by Informed-Choice, which claims to have tested and found small amounts of steroids and banned stimulants in a number of sports nutrition products, the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), the leading trade association representing the dietary supplement industry, issued the following statement.

“Sports nutrition supplements are legitimate and beneficial products and are particularly important to athletes. If this report is accurate, these results should concern the supplement industry and its consumers because it is illegal for supplement products to contain performance-enhancing steroids. Likewise, it is illegal for supplements to have undeclared ingredients—what’s in the bottle, should be disclosed on the label. Under the law, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has the authority to take adulterated products that ignore the law off the shelf”, said Steven M. Mister, President and CEO of CRN.

“We strongly urge Informed-Choice to immediately release the names of the brands/products that allegedly failed the tests, as well as the brands/products which passed. If consumers’ safety, health and wellness are the primary concerns for this organization, then this is the right thing to do. Consumers, as well as the U.S. Agency that regulates dietary supplements—FDA—need to know if there are drug products masquerading as supplements on the market—whether by accident or through criminal activity. Consumers—and FDA— further deserve to know that there are reputable companies in the supplement industry that have consumers’ best interests at heart and go to great lengths to ensure their products are contamination-free”, he added.

“Additionally, we call on Informed-Choice to also release the full study, including the methods used for testing, whether those methods were validated for supplements and the alleged levels of contamination, to determine if the report is accurate. Issuing a report that makes consumers wary of all supplements, without providing them with the information they need to make educated decisions about the supplements they take, does a disservice to consumers. Informed-Choice should give consumers just that—informed choices,” Mister concluded.

CRN learned about the existence of this report through an article in USA Today (December 5, 2007) and notes that according to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)’s website, the lab used by Informed-Choice—HFL—lost its accreditation with WADA in September 2007, approximately eight months after the testing of these products was completed.