The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced The Consumer Health Information for Better Nutrition initiative, designed to encourage makers of conventional foods and dietary supplements to make accurate, science-based claims about the health benefits of their products, and to help eliminate bogus labeling claims by taking on those dietary supplement marketers who make false or misleading claims.
"By putting credible, science-based information in the hands of consumers, we hope to foster competition based on the real nutritional value of foods rather than on portion size or spurious and unreliable claims," said Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. "Such labeling can help empower consumers to make smart, health choices about the foods that they buy and consume.
The initiative says that health claims for conventional foods and dietary supplements must be pre-approved by FDA and meet the "weight of the scientific evidence" standard, including support by a credible body of scientific evidence; strengthens enforcement of dietary supplement rules; and establishes an FDA Task Force on Consumer Health Information for Better Nutrition to develop an information framework for consumers.
"By putting credible, science-based information in the hands of consumers, we hope to foster competition based on the real nutritional value of foods rather than on portion size or spurious and unreliable claims," said Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. "Such labeling can help empower consumers to make smart, health choices about the foods that they buy and consume.
The initiative says that health claims for conventional foods and dietary supplements must be pre-approved by FDA and meet the "weight of the scientific evidence" standard, including support by a credible body of scientific evidence; strengthens enforcement of dietary supplement rules; and establishes an FDA Task Force on Consumer Health Information for Better Nutrition to develop an information framework for consumers.
- KC's View:
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We think that any move that provides better and more reliable information for consumers, and forces manufacturers to be more accurate, is a good thing.
But this is no easy thing. We go into a supermarket’s dietary supplement section, or a GNC, and we instantly need something for our headache. Problem is, it’s hard to figure out in these places what that “something” might be.
