What You Should Know About The Supplement Industry

The Frauds of the Herbal Supplements industry and why you should know about it

The herbal supplements industry is a multi-billion dollar industry making a bunch of companies richer and fatter. There’s a huge demand for remedies and solutions to a variety of health problems. The most popular being sexual stimulants, weight loss, and skin related issues. These industries are extremely hot and make boat loads of money for the people who sell these supplements.

The Problem With The Supplement Industry

Unfortunately, there’s a common issue among this industry and that’s fraud. For some reason the FDA refuses to classify supplements as something within their jurisdiction. They have decided to not regulate the industry. No one regulates the supplements industry. And, this is ripe for abuse and neglect.

In fact many companies that sell supplements put filler substances in their supplements. Let’s say that I am selling a vitamin E pill. Because of the lack of regulation in the markets I am capable of not even putting vitamin E in the pill! Many ingredients that are advertised to have unique properties aren’t even placed properly into these supplements.

There is a widespread issue of contamination. It has been found that there were hidden ingredients within these supplements. Ingredients that were not put on the bottle. This can be considered highly illegal. There are a variety of lawsuits that are being opened against these supplement companies. In fact, shareholders of GNC are doing their own lawsuit against them for mislabeling their products.

And, these are especially bad for herbal supplements.

Lack Of Regulations & Quality Control

This is a widespread issue among those who sell supplements. The lack of regulations are allowing them to put whatever they want inside these products. In some cases these ingredients can be quite harmful to the consumer and cause serious side effects such as allergic reactions and headaches.

The problem has become so serious that major retailers such as Wal-Mart, GNC, Target, and Walgreens were all given orders by courts to stop selling their herbal supplements. They’ve been ordered to give information on these supplements. Detailed information that must be given is how they are made, where the ingredients are from, how quality control is ensured and so forth.

Scientists even conducted their own research on herbal supplements. They’ve found that 79% of herbal supplement products did not contain the ingredients as advertised, or it was contaminated by another ingredient in the supplement. This means only 21% actually provided what was listed on the products.

A special type of herbs called medicinal herbs were found to be more fraudulent then others. Ingredients were all filler and some even lied about what’s in their products. An example would be saying that the product is gluten free but it actually contained gluten.

Lawsuits Against Supplement Makers

Luckily, the FDA has required these supplement companies to accurately label their products. This means that these businesses are blatantly violating the law. There is actual merit to these lawsuits.

If you believe that you or a loved one has been negatively affected by these supplements then it’s highly suggested to consult a lawyer. It is highly possible that you can get a sizable reward for your pain and suffering. This is a perfect time to ride the bandwagon against these companies. You can get justice for these companies betrayed your trust.

Stick To What You Know

It’s also highly recommended that you just don’t buy any supplements. There’s just too much risk involved. You should stick to prescription based drugs as those are heavily regulated by the FDA and has your doctor’s stamp of approval. Obviously, your doctor knows more about health then you. This means that the doctor knows better for your well-being.

If you stick to prescription based drugs then you have a high chance that you will not experience the fraudulent nature of the supplements industry.

When a reputable brand such as GNC is being sued for mislabeling their products, it clearly shows that even brands can do fraud. You can’t trust these people because they can just lie to you, straight to your face. And, for the most part they will get away with it.

How can you trust what these people tell you? Are you going to risk your health for some pipe dream that these guys sell you? They’re getting rich at your expense. Let’s say you want to buy green tea. These companies don’t even put green tea in it. They’ll put a synthetic version or put something that doesn’t even resemble green tea. This is done to cut costs and save money for the bottom line. It’s all about the money for them.

A Canadian University conducted a study in the year of 2013. What they found was astonishing. Approximately, 33% of all herbal supplements contained filler ingredients and/or were not even included in the bottle. 60% of these supplements contained hidden ingredients that were not disclosed in the bottle. 32% had substitutes for the advertised ingredient.

This information is startling. They are lying to you. If you walk into a GNC store, and you buy 10 supplements. You’ll end up having three that are duds and no good. Are you willing to take that risk?

You take the risk of gambling. You have a 30% chance that the products will not work and potentially harm your health. If you want to take those risks then you might as well play some blackjack at the casino. At least over there you understand that you have the risk of losing your money. When buying a supplement you expect it to work and actually contain what is said to be in there. When I buy an apple I expect it to be an apple.

This is not the case here. Let’s repeat it here. The companies are lying to you and only recently are they getting punished for it. There’s no guarantee that they will stop their ways or even pay fines. These businesses often have the wallets for long lawsuits.

Your Take-away

If there’s anything that you need to learn from this is that you shouldn’t buy just ANY supplements. Do your research. Find out if the company is reputable. See if there are independent studies done on the supplement itself. Check around for legitimate reviews.

Check to see if Amazon carries it and if there are reviews from verified users. This may not tell you exactly what is inside of it, but you may be able to figure out if its worth actually purchasing.

Read the labels. Look up each ingredient that is in the supplement. You should be able to look online and see how much of that particular ingredient you may actually need to have an effect. If there isn't something you understand. Email the company and ask. If they dodge the question, that's a sign to keep on moving. You can try and ask them for a “Certificate of Analysis” or “Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)” to see exactly what is in the supplement.

Another take away from this is just to READ everything before purchasing. Not only the supplement label but the sales agreement as well. Are you buying a 14 day trial for $4.95 or are you signing up for a lifetime of headaches trying to get it canceled. See these three reviews: Skin Care Free Trials and Garcinia Cambogia Free Trials as well as How Auto-Ship Free Trials Work.

With this article we aren't saying that you should stop buying supplements all together. We are merely saying that you need to pay attention to what you are about to purchase and consume. To often people will see a flashy commercial or advertisement and already have their credit card pulled out. Put it away for 5 minutes and take a look around.

If you still want to purchase after doing some research, then by all means. You may have found a reputable company that is providing high quality ingredients in their supplement.