Dietary supplements are any ingestible product containing vitamins, minerals, herbs and botanicals, amino acids or enzymes for nutritional support. Dietary supplements typically come in the form of tablets, capsules, gelcaps or powders.
Due to lack of regulation on supplement products, it can be challenging for patients and practitioners to determine which are high quality and safe. At AMA Ed HubTM we provide strategies for counseling patients on dietetic supplements.
Vitamins
Vitamins are organic substances produced in our bodies that our bodies need in small amounts for various metabolic processes. Vitamin sources include food sources as well as supplements which may provide additional vitamins and minerals.
Dietary supplements come in pill, capsule, powder, drink mix, energy bar and energy drink forms. While they do not undergo the same testing requirements as medicine does, vitamins can be harmful in large doses and too much of certain supplements can interact with prescription drugs and cause adverse side effects.
Fat-soluble vitamins like A, D and E can be more easily absorbed through food. Furthermore, they’re stored in liver and fatty tissues for long-term storage purposes. Water-soluble vitamins deficiency may take weeks or months before symptoms manifest themselves and thus it’s wiser to ensure an appropriate balanced diet is adhered to.
Minerals
Vitamins and minerals are vitally important for normal metabolism, growth, development, body structure, cell function regulation and regulation of metabolism. Furthermore, they’re found in many foods.
Minerals are naturally-occurring solid inorganic substances with specific chemical composition and ordered internal structure, like rock salt (halite). Halite (rock salt) is considered a mineral due to its ordered, regular crystal structure with equal ratios of sodium and chlorine atoms.
Some minerals, like potassium, play an integral part in maintaining fluid balance and nerve signals; others like sodium and zinc play less prominent roles. Most people receive most of their vitamins and minerals through eating healthily; supplements can be purchased in tablet, gelcaps capsules and powder form.
Herbs
Many people use herbs to add flavour or add color to food, but they also can have health benefits like lowering blood pressure or relieving symptoms of colds and flu.
Herbs are plant parts like leaves, flowers, seeds, roots, bark and fruit/berries that contain complex natural chemicals called phytochemicals that provide abundant amounts of essential nutrition for human bodies. Herbs may be eaten either raw or dried; phytochemicals can be found throughout each part of an herb.
Like vitamins, minerals and other dietary supplements, herbs may either benefit or harm the body. Memorial Sloan Kettering maintains an extensive database of herbal products to assist users in assessing potential effects on themselves and the interaction with medications they are currently taking. Always consult a qualified health provider prior to beginning any supplement regime that contains herbs.
Amino Acids
Amino acids, commonly referred to as the building blocks of protein, play essential roles in our bodies. Based on various criteria they may be classified as essential, conditionally essential or nonessential amino acids.
Amino acid supplements have seen an explosion of popularity recently, with social-media influencers touting them for building muscle, improving workouts, weight loss and mental clarity. But before making your purchase, consult with a medical practitioner first.
Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, dietary supplements are defined as any product containing “dietary ingredients” designed to add nutritional value to the diet, such as vitamins and minerals, herbs and botanicals, animal-based products (whey or casein); amino acids; enzymes; live microbials; or any combination thereof. FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition is responsible for overseeing these products as well as their labeling requirements.
Live Microbials
Dietary intakes of live microbe-containing foods steadily increased between the 2001-2002 and 2017-2018 NHANES surveys cycles, with consumption estimated to contain medium microbe content (Med) or high microbe content (Hi) associated with lower LE8 scores than Low (though this relationship wasn’t statistically significant; Supplementary Table 1).
Probiotics are live microorganisms that have the potential to provide health benefits when taken in adequate amounts, both through dietary supplements and food such as yogurts, fermented milks and cheeses. Probiotics are preserved dormancy by cold temperatures and high acidity conditions which limit metabolic activity of organisms within these products ensuring their continued survival through shelf life. The Office of Dietary Supplements is currently working alongside other federal agencies on an official definition for probiotic that will be included on all labels used for labeled products.
