Many of you use dietary supplements regularly. We will review these at your annual wellness evaluation. One problem with dietary supplements is that without FDA regulation, the quantity of the active ingredient can vary widely. Also, many contain contaminants of manufacturing such as lead, Mercury, pesticides, and other potentially toxic substances. 

The US Pharmacopeia (USP) is a nonprofit organization that independently tests dietary supplements upon request from the manufacturer, and audits their facilities, records, and quality control measures. This is by no means a guarantee the quality of what you buy, but purchasing a USP verified product is a way to lessen your chance of buying an impure product.

See this list of www.usp.org/USPVerified/dietarySupplements/companies.html USP verified manufactures and where their products can be found.  Any product you purchase should have some mechanism two independently evaluate its safety. 

USP verification is a very expensive process, so many smaller companies cannot pay the large fee. A reasonable alternative is to purchase a product that adheres to cGMP standards. These are guidelines established by the FDA for internal quality control that a company must follow to qualify as “Pharmaceutical Grade”.

What you don’t know absolutely can hurt you!