09.01.14
Government staffers in Washington, D.C., were presented with an educational briefing recently regarding dietary supplement labels and industry regulations from the Congressional Dietary Supplement Caucus (DSC)—a collaboration between leading trade associations representing the dietary supplement industry: the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA), the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), the Natural Products Association (NPA) and the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA).
Jamie McManus, MD, FAAFP, shared her expertise during the briefing titled, “Understanding Dietary Supplement Labels: Basics & Background.” Dr. McManus, author of “Your Personal Guide to Wellness,” was a practicing family physician for 15 years, and is currently chair, Medical Affairs, Health Sciences and Education at Shaklee Corporation.
Staffers in attendance at the DSC briefing learned about what information must appear on a dietary supplement label and what each item means, including: the statement of identity; net quantity of contents; supplement facts with nutrition information for each ingredient; manufacturer or distributor information; complete listing of ingredients; safety information; FDA disclaimer; claims/benefits; and cautions/warnings/notices. They also learned the meanings of key terms such as: Estimated Average Requirements (EAR); Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA); Adequate Intake (AI); Daily Value (DV); and Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL)—making this DSC lunch briefing an opportunity for staffers to learn valuable information for their personal use and to help them better understand issues related to policymaking.
During the DSC briefing, Dr. McManus explained that the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), which amended the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), created the current framework and regulations for the dietary supplement industry and gave FDA ample authority to regulate these products.
The regulatory language of DSHEA acknowledges that dietary supplements are safe within a broad range of intakes, and that safety problems with supplements are relatively rare, Dr. McManus noted. She added that DSHEA was meant to protect consumer access to safe dietary supplements to promote wellness, while establishing a rational federal framework to supersede ad hoc, patchwork regulatory policy that was in place at the time.
Jamie McManus, MD, FAAFP, shared her expertise during the briefing titled, “Understanding Dietary Supplement Labels: Basics & Background.” Dr. McManus, author of “Your Personal Guide to Wellness,” was a practicing family physician for 15 years, and is currently chair, Medical Affairs, Health Sciences and Education at Shaklee Corporation.
Staffers in attendance at the DSC briefing learned about what information must appear on a dietary supplement label and what each item means, including: the statement of identity; net quantity of contents; supplement facts with nutrition information for each ingredient; manufacturer or distributor information; complete listing of ingredients; safety information; FDA disclaimer; claims/benefits; and cautions/warnings/notices. They also learned the meanings of key terms such as: Estimated Average Requirements (EAR); Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA); Adequate Intake (AI); Daily Value (DV); and Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL)—making this DSC lunch briefing an opportunity for staffers to learn valuable information for their personal use and to help them better understand issues related to policymaking.
During the DSC briefing, Dr. McManus explained that the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), which amended the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), created the current framework and regulations for the dietary supplement industry and gave FDA ample authority to regulate these products.
The regulatory language of DSHEA acknowledges that dietary supplements are safe within a broad range of intakes, and that safety problems with supplements are relatively rare, Dr. McManus noted. She added that DSHEA was meant to protect consumer access to safe dietary supplements to promote wellness, while establishing a rational federal framework to supersede ad hoc, patchwork regulatory policy that was in place at the time.