Immunity supplements sold on Amazon largely mislabeled defying FDA standards, investigation reveals

15 Aug 2022 --- The majority of the dietary supplement products for immune health that are promoted and offered for sale on Amazon have not been subjected to adequate quality control standards, according to the US-based Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.

“The public has a right to know that they are buying what is stated on the label,” the researchers note.

In the investigation, 30 dietary supplement products with immune health claims were bought from Amazon.com and examined. Findings showed that 17 out of 30 products had incorrect labels, 13 had been misbranded and nine had extra components found but not stated on the label.

Additionally, some of the claims stated on most of these immune support products do not seem to fall under any of the classifications of claims defined by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations.

“Claims made on the labels of most dietary supplement products seem to stretch what would be considered as allowable claims, which can by statute and/or FDA regulations be made for dietary supplements. Some other claims sounded scientific but did not have any peer-reviewed publication cited. Therefore, it is unknown how or whether these claims were substantiated.”

Analysis of select supplements
In examining a selection of dietary supplements marketed as immune system boosters or supporters, the analysis verified whether or not the products were appropriately labeled following the Supplement Facts label of listed substances. The research also assessed if the supplement label qualitatively described the characteristics of the product labels in terms of claims made.

The analysis details that quality control procedures appear insufficient for most select dietary supplement products.The 30 immune health dietary supplement products were analyzed during the evaluation using mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography. The list of substances discovered through analysis for each product was compared to the ingredients on the label to determine whether the Supplement Facts label was correct.

A set of questions from the Operation Supplement Safety Scorecard were used to analyze the characteristics of product label claims. When using the Scorecard, ten of the thirteen products with accurate labeling scored four or above, indicating that the product was “likely okay or less risky.”

Most of the evaluated products had misleading labeling and contained inconsistent claims according to the standards the FDA established for dietary supplements. For the majority of the chosen products, quality control methods were insufficient. Additionally, there were no third-party certification seals on any product’s packaging.

The researcher note that consumers need to be aware that certain products might not contain exactly what is claimed on the label. Consumers will be helped in making knowledgeable decisions about dietary supplements by ongoing research and evidence-based educational resources.

To verify that specific dietary supplement products are marketed as bolstering or supporting the immune system.A prevalent issue?
Inaccurate labeling and misleading advertising appear to be rife across the industry, with concerns from the Council for Responsible Nutrition that the FDA cannot regulate the supplement industry.

Recently, findings of the UK-based Advertising Standards Authority show that three vitamin supplement companies made false or deceptive representations in their Google search advertising.

The FDA upgraded the “healthy” nutrient content claim for food labeling to spur the food sector to create healthier foods. As it starts the public process, the FDA adds that the updated nutrient content claim would be in line with current nutrition science and federal dietary recommendations.

A study previously suggested that the FDA approach to removing harmful supplements off the market is ineffective. The data show that regulatory agency warning letters frequently go unheeded. In the CBD market, researchers from the John Hopkins Medical Center found that almost three-quarters of over-the-counter topical cannabidiol products in the US have inaccurate labels.

By Nicole Kerr

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