![\"supplement](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2017\/01\/vitamins-26622_1280-150x150.png?resize=150%2C150\")
<\/h3>\n<\/h3>\nIt\u2019s important to remember that supplements are not always necessary and they are not regulated as rigorously as drugs, so it is largely up to consumers to determine a product\u2019s appropriateness, safety and potency.<\/p>\n
Below we offer some concrete tips.<\/p>\n
The Linus Pauling Institute promotes healthy eating as the primary source of vitamins and minerals\u00a0to keep you healthy, but we recognize that\u00a0supplements are sometimes necessary to meet a person\u2019s nutrition needs. The institute has a long-standing recommendation that most people should take a daily multivitamin, because data show that the majority of the U.S. population do not get adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals from diet alone. Other supplements we feel are worth consideration for certain people (based on the available science) include the following: vitamins C<\/a>, B12<\/a>, and D<\/a>, as well as calcium<\/a>, magnesium<\/a>, fish oil<\/a>,\u00a0lipoic acid<\/a> and L-carnitine<\/a>. Because the science is continually advancing in this field, we developed a comprehensive database called the Micronutrient Information Center<\/a>\u00a0which provides updated, objective information about vitamins, minerals, and other dietary factors, with the articles written by Ph.D. nutrition scientists and externally reviewed by experts in the field. On this site, you can look up details on all the supplements mentioned above, as well as many more. This tool, as well as others such as Examine.com<\/a> and the advice of your doctor, can help you determine what supplements may or may not be a good match for you. You may also wish to consult our Rx for Health<\/a>\u00a0and our Micronutrients for Health<\/a> handouts, which outline the Linus Pauling Institute’s general\u00a0recommendations\u00a0on healthy diet, lifestyle, and supplement use.<\/p>\n When purchasing supplements, we recommend going with a brand that bears the USP or NSF mark on the label. Both the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) and NSF International (NSF) are not-for-profit agencies dedicated to verifying the quality, purity, and potency of dietary supplements. Their programs include audits of manufacturing facilities and product testing to verify that what is actually in the bottle matches what is stated on the label (and that products are free from contaminants like lead or bacteria).<\/p>\n A list of products that have the \u201cUSP Verified\u201d seal can be found on their\u00a0website<\/a>. To find products with the NSF mark, you can search their\u00a0online database of supplements<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, both the NSF and USP programs are voluntary\u2014manufacturers can choose to participate in the program or not\u2014and a detailed analysis of the products tested may not be made available.<\/p>\n Websites like\u00a0ConsumerLab.com<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0LabDoor.com<\/a>\u00a0provide an analysis of supplements to determine if the product meets the claims on the label (some content requires a paid subscription to access).<\/p>\n Word to the wise: other supplement rating sites exist but be aware of the potential for bias (paid reviews and advertising can be spun as objective analysis).<\/p>\n In contrast to prescription and over-the-counter drugs, dietary supplements do not generally require approval by the FDA before coming onto the market. But the FDA does police a fraction of supplements that are already on the market, and they publish these results. You can find this info on their list of known contaminated and tainted products<\/a> and\/or sign up for their updates.<\/p>\n This article first appeared in the Oregon Stater<\/a> as part of a regular Q&A feature column. Have a question for LPI?\u00a0 Email LPI@oregonstate.edu<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Answer:\u00a0We don’t make endorsements, but we can offer advice for choosing supplements wisely. It\u2019s important to remember that supplements are not always necessary and they are not regulated as rigorously as drugs, so it is largely up to consumers to determine a product\u2019s appropriateness, safety and potency. Below we offer some concrete tips.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7496,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[582795,582794],"tags":[450219,123729],"class_list":["post-1898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-supplement-faqs","category-vitaminmineral-faqs","tag-lipoic-acid","tag-supplements"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":494,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2013\/05\/28\/health-supplement-regimen\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":0},"title":"Balz Frei, Ph.D., on his Personal Health and Supplement Regimen","author":"Jana Z","date":"May 28, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"\"Eating a healthful diet, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy body weight, and avoiding tobacco are of utmost importance to maintain good health. I also think that some dietary supplements are critical for optimum health.\" - Balz Frei, Ph.D. ____ Which nutritional supplements does the former director of the Linus Pauling\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ask the Expert"","block_context":{"text":"Ask the Expert","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/ask-the-expert\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Balz Frei-running","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2013\/05\/FreiB-runningSmallWeb-300x199.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1157,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2015\/02\/24\/whats-supplement-bottle\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":1},"title":"What’s in that Supplement Bottle?","author":"Alexander Michels, PhD","date":"February 24, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Need a supplement? Any trip to a grocery or health food store can tell you\u00a0that there are lot\u00a0of different supplements out there. Finding\u00a0one that suits your needs\u00a0is not always an easy task.\u00a0Brands, formulations, doses, and health claims on the label\u00a0can leave people\u00a0baffled. What makes matters worse is the possibility that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "LPI Take"","block_context":{"text":"LPI Take","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/lpi-take\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"What's in that supplement bottle anyway?","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2015\/02\/Supplement-Questions-clean-300x300.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1809,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2016\/07\/27\/questions-vitamin-d\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":2},"title":"Vitamin D Webinar with Dr. Adrian Gombart","author":"Alexander Michels, PhD","date":"July 27, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Adrian Gombart, Ph.D. is the resident expert on vitamin D at the Linus Pauling Institute.","rel":"","context":"In "Ask the Expert"","block_context":{"text":"Ask the Expert","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/ask-the-expert\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adrian Gombart, PhD - Expert on Vitamin D","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2016\/07\/gombart1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":955,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2014\/03\/04\/taking-multivitamins-still-good-idea\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":3},"title":"Taking multivitamins – still a good idea.","author":"Alexander Michels, PhD","date":"March 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"A recent\u00a0report from the US Preventive Services Task Force in the Annals of Internal Medicine focused on the use of vitamin, mineral, or multivitamin supplements.\u00a0Their conclusions are that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the benefits and harms of these\u00a0supplements with respect to prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ask the Expert"","block_context":{"text":"Ask the Expert","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/ask-the-expert\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Multivitamins","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2014\/03\/Multivitamins2.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1053,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2014\/07\/03\/following-evidence-multivitamins-revisited\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":4},"title":"Following the Evidence: Multivitamins Revisited","author":"Alexander Michels, PhD","date":"July 3, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Are\u00a0multivitamin supplements useless? Does\u00a0the science all point to these pills\u00a0being\u00a0a complete waste of money and time? This is simply not true, and you should know why. In a letter in Annals of Internal Medicine, nutrition experts from the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, the Children\u2019s Hospital Oakland Research\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "LPI Take"","block_context":{"text":"LPI Take","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/lpi-take\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"multivitamin supplements","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2014\/06\/Multivitamin.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":905,"url":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/2013\/12\/18\/multivitamins-miracles-important\/","url_meta":{"origin":1898,"position":5},"title":"Multivitamins are not miracles… but they are important.","author":"Alexander Michels, PhD","date":"December 18, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Should you stop taking multivitamin supplements as they have no apparent health benefit and may potentially be harmful? The Linus Pauling Institutes that reading headlines may bring you to the wrong conclusions as they\u00a0ignore the totality of the evidence from decades of nutrition research. Vitamins and minerals are needed by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "LPI Take"","block_context":{"text":"LPI Take","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/category\/lpi-take\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Multivitamins","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/files\/2013\/12\/Multivitamins.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7496"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1898"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1898\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1924,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1898\/revisions\/1924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1898"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1898"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/linuspaulinginstitute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}> Look for a “USP Verified” or \u201cNSF\u201d mark on the label.<\/h3>\n
> Seek out information from reputable companies offering independent testing.<\/h3>\n
> Check the FDA\u2019s tainted products list and sign up for their updates.<\/h3>\n