Many Multivitamins Don’t Have Nutrients Claimed
A new review of popular multivitamins found that one in three did not contain the amount of nutrients claimed in their labels or improperly listed their ingredients. Researchers at ConsumerLab.com discovered that eight contained too little of specific nutrients, two contained more nutrients than claimed and three improperly listed their ingredients.
“We found a wide range in the quality of multivitamins,” said Dr. Tod Cooperman, president of the company. “Interestingly, the more expensive products didn’t fare any better than those that are just a few cents a day.”
Although low levels of certain nutrients can be a problem, doses that exceed recommendations are especially worrisome. Several products evaluated by ConsumerLab, including some designed for children, had this issue.
Among the supplements that had too little of a particular nutrient were Trader Joe’s Vitamin Crusade (just 59 percent of the vitamin A advertised on the label), Melaleuca Vitality Multivitamin & Mineral (just 42 percent of the touted vitamin A) and All One Active Seniors (less than 2 percent of the beta-carotene, 73 percent of the retinol and 49 percent of the vitamin A listed on the label).
Centrum Chewables had the opposite problem, with 173 percent of the vitamin A listed on the label. This is of particular concern because too much vitamin A can spell trouble. “If you get too much vitamin A it can be toxic to your liver,” explained Dr. Michael Cirigliano, an associate professor of medicine at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. “People don’t realize that everything they put in their mouths is bioactive. Whether it’s baby aspirin or food, it has an effect on the body. People think that if you can get it without a prescription it’s safe — that’s baloney.”
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