February 2007

Harvard Med School reports on choosing vitamins

Reports on the poor quality of over-the-counter vitamins has apparently stimulated the Harvard Medical School to issue a 48-page report, entitled “Vitamins and Minerals: What You Need to Know,” on how to choose vitamins and minerals. The report offers a number of “tips” to consumers including:

• Look for a seal of approval. Choose products with the U.S. Pharmacopeia Dietary Supplement Verification Program (USP-DSVP) mark, which indicates that the manufacturer has complied with certain standards;

• Consider safe levels. The report says that all dietary supplements have a “Supplement Facts” label that lists the percentage of the daily value (DV) of each nutrient per serving, as well as the actual amount of each. Multivitamin and multimineral supplements shouldn’t exceed 150 percent of the DV for any nutrient.

• Ignore marketing gimmicks. The report says, “It doesn’t matter whether vitamin C is derived from organic rose hips or synthesized in large batches in a laboratory; your body will use the resulting product similarly.”

• Don’t pay more for unproven extras. According to Harvard Medical School, there is virtually no evidence that herbs and other nonvitamin ingredients added to supplements — such as echinacea, bioflavonoids, and ubiquinone (coenzyme Q10) — are essential for your health.

• Beware of potentially dangerous interactions. Pay attention to warnings on the label, and tell your doctor and pharmacist what supplements you take.

Source: Harvard Health Publications, www.hms.harvard.edu