Introduction to Dietary Supplements

What are dietary supplements? Are dietary supplements safe? What about mixing supplements and psychiatric drugs? Detailed information on dietary supplements here.

1. What are dietary supplements?
2. Why do people take supplements?

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3. Is using supplements considered conventional medicine or complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)?
4. How can I get science-based information on a supplement?
5. If I am interested in using a supplement as CAM, how can I do so most safely?
6. I see the word "natural" on a lot of supplement labels. Does "natural" always mean "safe"?
7. Does the Federal Government regulate supplements?
8. Is NCCAM supporting research on supplements?

Dietary supplements are a topic of great public interest. Whether you are in a store, using the Internet, or talking to people you know, you may hear about supplements and claims of benefits for health. How do you find out whether "what's in the bottle" is safe to take, and whether science has proven that the product does what it claims??

About Dietary Supplements

A dietary supplement must meet all of the following conditions:

• It is a product (other than tobacco) that is intended to supplement the diet and that contains one or more of the following: vitamins, minerals, *herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, or any combination of the above ingredients.
• It is intended to be taken in tablet, capsule, powder, softgel, gelcap, or liquid form.
• It is not represented for use as a conventional food or as a sole item of a meal or the diet.
• It is labeled as being a dietary supplement.

* Linked terms are defined at the end of this fact sheet.

1. What are dietary supplements?

Dietary supplements (also called nutritional supplements, or supplements for short) were defined in a law passed by Congress in 1994 (see the box below).1, 2

Dietary supplements are sold in grocery, health food, drug, and discount stores, as well as through mail-order catalogs, TV programs, the Internet, and direct sales.

2. Why do people take supplements?

People take supplements for many reasons. A scientific study on this topic was published in 2002.³ In it, over 2,500 Americans reported on supplements they used (given the categories of vitamins/minerals and herbal products/natural supplements) and for what reasons. Their responses are summarized in the table below.