Home > Anti-aging Research > Quality Assurance.

Absorption Studies/QA

• Why Science Can Be So Indecisive About Nutrition - The Atlantic, 6/27/20
• New York AG: Many Popular Store-Brand Supplements Are Phony - Fox, 2/3/15 - "New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is going after four major retailers - GNC, Walmart, Target and Walgreens - for selling store-brand supplements that are mislabeled and contaminated ... Wal-Mart fared the worst, with only 4% of its products containing the plant listed ... At Target, 41% of the supplements had the ingredient advertised, compared with 22% at GNC and 18% at Walgreens"
• Most clinical studies on vitamins flawed by poor methodology - Science Daily, 12/30/13 - "Needed are new methodologies that accurately measure baseline nutrient levels, provide supplements or dietary changes only to subjects who clearly are inadequate or deficient, and then study the resulting changes in their health. Tests must be done with blood plasma or other measurements to verify that the intervention improved the subjects' micronutrient status along with biomarkers of health. And other approaches are also needed that better reflect the different ways in which nutrients behave in cell cultures, lab animals and the human body ... most large, clinical studies of vitamins have been done with groups such as doctors and nurses who are educated, informed, able to afford healthy food and routinely have better dietary standards than the public as a whole ... More than 90 percent of U.S. adults don't get the required amounts of vitamins D and E for basic health ... More than 40 percent don't get enough vitamin C, and half aren't getting enough vitamin A, calcium and magnesium ... The cancer reduction would be in addition to providing good basic health by supporting normal function of the body, metabolism and growth ... If there's any drug out there that can do all this, it would be considered unethical to withhold it from the general public. But that's basically the same as recommending against multivitamin/mineral supplements"
• Some Fish Oil Supplements Fishy on Quality - WebMD, 12/7/11 - "None of the fish oil supplements contained contaminants, such as lead, mercury, or PCBs, that exceeded levels set by USP or the European Union ... the total PCB amounts in four brands (CVS Natural, GNC Triple Organic, Nature’s Bounty Odorless, and Sundown Naturals) were below the USP safe limit but within the range that would require a warning label under California’s Proposition 65, 90 parts per billion ... For the report, the consumer agency purchased three lots of 15 different top-selling brands of fish oil supplements online and in the New York metropolitan area ... Two of the three samples of Kirkland Signature Enteric 1200 fish oil supplements had an enteric coating (designed to prevent a fishy aftertaste) that did not disintegrate properly. The coating may break up in the stomach rather than in the small intestine, as desired for proper absorption by the body" - Note:  So those bargains at Costco may not be such a bargain if they aren't absorbed.
• Many multivitamins don't have claimed nutrients - MSNBC, 6/17/11 - "Among the supplements that had too little of a particular nutrient were Trader Joe’s Vitamin Crusade (just 59 percent of the vitamin A advertised on the label), Melaleuca Vitality Multivitamin & Mineral (just 42 percent of the touted vitamin A) and All One Active Seniors (less than 2 percent of the beta-carotene, 73 percent of the retinol and 49 percent of the vitamin A listed on the label) ... Particularly worrisome were high levels of certain nutrients in some of the children’s multivitamins. For example, Hero Nutritionals Yummi Bears, if given to children at the suggested dose, would exceed recommendations for Vitamin A in youngsters aged 1 to 3. Higher levels of the nutrient in kids have been linked to liver abnormalities, bone weakening, and problems with the nervous system ... ConsumerLab also tested several pet supplements, one of which, Pet-Tabs Complete Daily Vitamin Mineral Supplement for Dogs contained lead at unhealthy levels"
• Microencapsulated bioactive compounds may boost availability: Rat study - Science Daily, 2/28/11
• Magnesium Supplement Reviews - ConsumerLab.com, 5/19/09 - "25% did not meet quality standards according to our magnesium tests" - I get the paid version and never heard of the brands that failed.
• Nanoparticles In Dietary Supplements Cause Health Concerns, Regulatory Challenges - Science Daily, 2/9/09
• Product Review: CoQ10 and Ubiquinol Supplements - consumerlab.com, 1/13/09
• Are clinical trials short-changing us? - Nutra USA, 12/11/08 - "The same questions jump to my mind all the time: Where’s the control group? Are the people in the placebo group actually taking supplements on the side? How long is the latency period for the disease in question? ... Let’s address these one by one: ..."
• Most ginkgo products fail quality testing - Nutra USA, 11/18/08 - "Some companies put less of it in their products than they claim or use ingredient that has been adulterated with inexpensive material that can fool non-specific tests ... companies continued to make products with little to no ginkgo in them, leading Consumerlab to suggest “ginkgo is among the most adulterated herbs.”" - That's why I stay with the top brand names.  They have more to loose with bad  press.  I also think that's why some studies show benefits with certain supplement while other studies don't.  I've been taking Nature's Way, Ginkgold.  I get the paid version of Consumerlab and I thought it was strange that they didn't test that brand. - Ben
• Turmeric (Curcumin) review - ConsumerLab.com, 2/6/08 - "ConsumerLab.com found a popular brand to contain 18.7 mcg of lead in a daily serving — the highest amount it has ever reported. Another brand was contaminated with 8.3 mcg of lead. These amounts are well above those to which people are normally exposed and should be avoided ... two other products provided only 11.5% and 49.5%, respectively, of expected curcumin compounds. A fifth product did not specify the part of the plant used — a FDA labeling requirement" - Note:  I get the paid version and it was NSI® Nutraceutical® Sciences Institute Superior™ Turmeric Curcuma Longa that contained the 18.7 mcg of lead and Solgar® Standardize Full Potency™ Turmeric Root Extract that contained the 8.3 mcg. There wasn't any that failed that I call "brand name".
• Black Currant, Borage, Evening Primrose, and Flaxseed Oils: Sources of ALA and GLA (Omega-3 and -6 Fatty Acids) review - ConsumerLab.com, 12/11/07
• Magnesium Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 10/31/07
• Lutein and Zeaxanthin review - ConsumerLab.com, 7/17/07
• Milk Thistle Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 6/13/07 - "our tests showed one supplement to have only 20% of the expected amount of silymarin compounds — the key active components of milk thistle. Four other products provided no more than two-thirds of their expected amounts. Another fell short by 16%. And one supplement failed to identify the part of milk thistle used — a FDA labeling requirement"
• Alpha-Lipoic Acid Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 5/16/07 - "two alpha lipoic acid supplements contained significantly less of this ingredient than promised on their labels"
• SAMe review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/26/07
• Joint Supplements (Glucosamine, Chondroitin, and MSM) review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/12/07 - "eight supplements for osteoarthritis failed ConsumerLab's testing. Four of had less than 8% of their listed amounts of key ingredients, including a "maximum strength" product that contained no chondroitin at all. Three others had only 52% to 75% of listed ingredients. One failed because it would not properly break apart to release its glucosamine and chondroitin"
• Arthritis supplements often come up short - MSNBC, 4/11/07 - "All the problems popped up among products that claimed to contain chondroitin, a key — and pricey — ingredient. Of 11 such brands, eight came up short on the substance, which is purported to inhibit enzymes that break down the cartilage in joints"
• St. John's Wort review - ConsumerLab.com, 2/15/07 - "most of the herbal supplements that we purchased failed to meet quality standards. Two contained less St. John's wort compounds than claimed. Two others were contaminated with cadmium and/or lead. And two more lacked proper label information"
• Multivitamin/Multimineral Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 1/24/07 - "Eleven multis for people and one for pets failed ConsumerLab.com tests. A number of products were short important vitamins or minerals. A children's vitamin Contained too much vitamin A — exceeding tolerable levels. A women's vitamin was contaminated with lead. And three products failed to break apart properly, suggesting that they might go through the body not fully used"
• A vitamin a day may do more harm than good - MSNBC, 1/19/07 - "Of 21 brands of multivitamins on the market in the United States and Canada selected by ConsumerLab.com and tested by independent laboratories, just 10 met the stated claims on their labels or satisfied other quality standards ... one product, The Vitamin Shoppe Multivitamins Especially for Women, was contaminated with lead ... You're safer choosing a well-known brand sold by some company or store that you have confidence in"
• Probiotic Supplements (Including Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium, and Others) review - ConsumerLab.com, 12/13/06
• Coenzyme Q10 review - ConsumerLab.com, 10/16/06
• DHEA Supplements - ConsumerLab.com, 9/13/06
• Valerian review - ConsumerLab.com, 8/14/06
• Cholesterol-Lowering Supplements (Sterols, Policosanol, Guggulsterones) review - ConsumerLab.com, 7/17/06
• Product Review of Garlic Supplements - ConsumerLab.com, 6/27/06
• Herb-Drug Interactions Uncommon - WebMD, 5/25/06 - "Investigators reviewed the drugs taken by 7,652, mostly older Canadians, and found very few instances of such interactions"
• Product Review of Ginseng Supplements - ConsumerLab.com, 5/12/06
• Product Review of Supplements for Cancer Prevention (Green Tea, Lycopene, and Selenium) - ConsumerLab.com, 4/20/06
• Multiple Vitamin & Mineral Formulas - How to Select the Best - Dr. Murray (.pdf)
• Phytosomes - Advance Delivery System for Herbal Extracts - Dr. Murray (.pdf)
• Phytosomes - Increase the absorption of herbal extracts! - Dr. Murray
• Vitamin Supplements - thenutritionreporter.com
• Melatonin Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/5/06
• Bone Supplements (Calcium and Vitamin D) review - ConsumerLab.com, 3/3/06
• Prostate Supplements (Saw Palmetto and Beta-Sitosterol) - ConsumerLab.com, 2/2/06
• Sexual Enhancement Supplements (L-Arginine, Yohimbe, Horny Goat Weed) - ConsumerLab.com, 1/13/06
• Ginkgo Biloba and Huperzine A -- Memory Enhancers - ConsumerLab.com, 12/5/05 - "CL found significant amounts of lead in supplements made with a form of ginkgo, while those made with another form did not"
• Weight Loss Supplements (Including Bitter Orange, Green Tea, 7-Keto-DHEA, Pyruvate) review - ConsumerLab.com, 11/18/05
• Hoodia (Hoodia gordonii) review - ConsumerLab.com, 10/21/05
• Potassium review - ConsumerLab.com, 8/16/05
• Supplements for Menopausal Symptoms (Soy and Red Clover Isoflavones, Black Cohosh, and Progesterone Cream) review - ConsumerLab.com, 8/2/05
• Magnesium review - ConsumerLab.com, 6/16/05
• No action to be taken against ConsumerLab - Functional Foods & Nutraceuticals, 5/05
• Nutrition Powders, Shakes and Drinks (Including Protein, Diet, General Nutrition, and Meal-Replacement Products) review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/28/05
• B Vitamins (including Thiamin, Niacin, B-6, B-12, Riboflavin and Folate) review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/5/05
• Ionizing Air Cleaners May Pose Health Hazard - WebMD, 4/4/05 - "five of the best-selling models tested emitted relatively high levels of ozone ... Ozone exposure can aggravate allergies and decrease lung function" [MSNBC]
• Alpha-Lipoic Acid Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com (paid subscription), 12/20/04
• Pill Company Thrives Despite Complaints - Intelihealth, 11/22/04
• Milk Thistle Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 10/28/04
• Feds Sue Marketers Over Ads For Diet Pill - Intelihealth, 10/7/04
• ConsumerLab.com - Omega-3 Fatty Acids (EPA and DHA) from Fish/Marine Oils review - ConsumerLab.com, 10/6/04 - "None of the products were found to contain detectable levels of mercury ... none of the products contained unsafe levels of PCBs ... none of these supplements contained unsafe levels of dioxins"
• Erection Supplements Under Fire - WebMD, 9/23/04
• Vitamin E review - ConsumerLab.com, 8/25/04 - "There are studies underway to determine whether gamma-tocopherol (which is more abundant in the diet than alpha-tocopherol) may be important for some of the beneficial effects associated with natural vitamin E in the diet ... 32 products were purchased ... Five vitamin E products failed"
• Iron review - ConsumerLab.com, 7/26/04
• Ayurvedic Medicines Linked to Lead Poisoning - WebMD, 7/8/04
• Multivitamin review - ConsumerLab.com, 5/13/04 - "Too many products failed our tests — 13 in all or almost 33%. The problems ranged from being short on some ingredients to having too high a dosage, from failing to dissolve properly to lead contamination"
• Zinc Supplements (Lozenges, Pills, and Liquids) - ConsumerLab.com, 4/7/04
• 'Dirty Dozen' of Dietary Supplements Named - WebMD, 4/1/04
• Selecting a Daily Multiple - natmedonline.com
• Echinacea review - ConsumerLab.com, 3/18/04
• Lutein and Zeaxanthin review - ConsumerLab.com, 1/30/04
• Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 (IGF-1) Supplements - ConsumerLab.com, 12/14/03 - "The amino acids arginine, glutamine, histidine, methionine, phenylalanine, and lysine all appear to cause a rise in growth hormone that lasts for an hour or so ... the effects are very short-lived ... HGH spiked for a half hour or so after use of supplement, but then fell back to its original level"
• Muscular Enhancement Supplements: Creatine, HMB, and Glutamine review - ConsumerLab.com, 9/25/03
• Calcium review - ConsumerLab.com, 6/10/03
• Are Vitamins Dangerous? - Dr. Weil, 6/6/03
• How High Can We Go With Doses Of Vitamin And Mineral Supplements? - Functional Foods & Nutraceuticals, 5/03
• Ginkgo Biloba Analysis: Few Pills Pass Quality Test - WebMD, 4/21/03 - "Brands that flunked random quality tests include ginkgo biloba products sold under the labels of Rite Aid and Longs drug stores. Only two of nine randomly tested products passed -- Maxi Ginkgo Biloba and Nature's Way Ginkgold.  Nutrilite Ginkgo Biloba, whose manufacturer paid for quality assurance, also passed the tests ... Many people taking ginkgo are not getting the effect they expected. This may be why ... ConsumerLab also tested four off-the-shelf brands of huperzine A ... One of these products -- Solaray Dietary Supplement -- contained unacceptably high levels of lead"
• Agency Seal Sheds Light On Health Supplements - Intelihealth, 1/30/03
• Quality of Probiotic Supplements Questioned: Are You Getting What You Pay For? - New Hope Natural Media, 1/16/02 - "laboratory testing of 12 refrigerated and 8 non-refrigerated, randomly selected probiotic supplements obtained from different health food stores revealed that only one product contained the same bacteria as those listed on the label. Many of the refrigerated products had some beneficial bacteria, but contained fewer species of organisms than the label claimed. More than 30% of all supplements were contaminated with other microorganisms and 50% of the non-refrigerated products were completely dead. Dead probiotics have no impact on improving intestinal function or restoring the balance of normal intestinal flora"
• Compounding Pharmacies Get an F in FDA Tests - Clinical Psychiatry News, 11/02 - "Ten of 29 prescriptions that were obtained in a Food and Drug Administration survey of compounding pharmacies failed assays ... Of the 10 failed samples, 9 were significantly subpotent and 1 contained unacceptable levels of endotoxin"
• Pharmacy Compounding Prone to Error, FDA Finds - Doctor's Guide, 9/24/02 - "More than half had less than 70 percent of the potency stated on labelling" - That's why I worry about compounded testosterone. - Ben
• Black Current, Borage, Evening Primrose, and Flaxseed Oils: Sources of ALA and GLA (Omega-3 and 6 Fatty Acids) review - Consumerlab.com, 8/7/02
• Science Or Bunk, Negative Ion Fad Has Japanese Buying Up Feel-Good Gadgets - Intelihealth, 6/11/02
• New Standards From NIST May Provide 'All-Natural' Benefits - Intelihealth, 5/14/02
• Muscle-Stimulating Gadgets Won't Provide Six-Pack Abs - WebMD, 3/7/02
• Ab-erration or ab-solute workout? - USA Today, 3/5/02
• Traditional Medicines Recalled For Having High Level Of Arsenic - Intelihealth, 1/30/02
• Supplements Get Their Own Seals - Intelihealth, 12/18/01 - "How big a problem is supplement quality? Consider this latest example: The University of California, Los Angeles, studied 12 brands of bodybuilding supplements and found only one contained the amount of androstenedione or related ingredients the bottle promised. One brand contained nearly double the amount listed, a potential danger, while another was pure fraud - it contained none"
• Natural Herbal Supplement Has Disastrous Impact On Young Boys - Doctor's Guide, 7/10/01
• Not All Ginseng Supplements Are Alike - WebMD, 6/26/01 - "a new analysis of 25 commercial ginseng products suggests that the actual concentration of ginseng is lower than the label says about half the time and in six products the concentration was only 1%"
• Some SAMe Supplements Found Lacking, About Half Had Less of the Active Ingredient Than Labels Implied - WebMD. 5/29/01 - "ConsumerLab.com found that about half the 13 products it tested were accurately labeled as to their SAMe content. Some brands alleged to contain 200 mg actually had about half that, because manufacturers factored in not just the weight of "free" SAMe -- the "therapeutic" portion -- but also an inactive SAMe ingredient"
• Study: Supplements Need New Rules - Intelihealth, 4/17/01
• FDA: Chinese Herb Causes Kidney Failure, Cancer - WebMD, 4/16/01 - "products that contain aristolochic acid, found primarily in a Chinese herb called Aristolochia fangchi. Consumption of products containing the botanical ingredient has been associated with permanent kidney damage; the product has also been linked to certain types of cancer, most often occurring in the urinary tract"
• Herb Recalled For Harmful Chemical - Intelihealth, 1/20/01
• Study: Overdoses From A "Cousin" Of The Date-Rape Drug Are On The Rise - Intelihealth, 1/11/01
• Feel-Good Club Drug Bad for the Heart, Ecstasy Use May Increase Risk of Heart Attack - WebMD, 12/18/00
• Got Magnesium? Those With Heart Disease Should - WebMD, 11/9/00 - "Similar magnesium supplements are available over-the-counter in the U.S., but they might not provide similar benefits. "The product we used is from Germany, where supplements of this kind are regulated and quality is monitored," Merz says. "Because that is not the case in the U.S., it is impossible to know what you are getting in a supplement, or even whether it contains any magnesium at all.""
• Magazine's Supplement Tests Point Up Lack of Regulation - WebMD, 9/22/00
• Calcium Supplements Have Lead - Intelihealth, 9/20/00
• Lead still in calcium supplements - CNN, 9/20/00
• Study Turns Up Lead in Some Calcium Supplements - WebMD, 9/19/00
• Vitamin C Not Perfect - Nutrition Science News, 7/00
• In Vitamin Supplements, What You 'C' May Not Be What You Get - WebMD, 7/10/00
• Training Guru Blames Supplement for Baseball Team's Woes - WebMD, 6/8/00
• Weight-Loss Herb Damaged Kidneys - Intelihealth, 6/8/00
• Popular Diet Herbs Linked to Cancer - WebMD, 6/2/00
• Herbs With Diabetes Drug Recalled - Intelihealth, 3/23/00
• Herb Guides Get AHPA Blessing - Nutrition Science News, 3/00
• Most Supplemental Copper 'Worthless' - WebMD, 1/28/00 - "The type of copper found most often in vitamins and supplements, called cupric oxide, is not a type the body can absorb easily ... Studies on animals have shown conclusively that cupric oxide is totally worthless"
• Buyer beware: Shopping for herbs - CNN, 12/7/99
• Nutritionist calls for tighter regulation of supplements - CNN, 9/17/99
• UK Study Warns Of Danger From Herbal Skin Creams - Intelihealth, 2/26/99
• Journal gives stern warning on unproven dietary supplements - CNN, 9/17/98
• Company says ginseng batch contaminated - CNN, 5/21/98