Skip to main content
ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BHNRC) » Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center » Nutrient Data Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #343657
Title: Characteristics and challenges of dietary supplement databases derived from label information

Author
item SALDANHA, LEILA - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item DWYER, JOHANNA - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item BAILEN, RICHARD - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item ANDREWS, KAREN - University Of Maryland
item BETZ, JOSEPH - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item CHANG, HUA - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item COSTELLO, REBECCA - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item ERSHOW, ABBY - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item GOSHORN, JEANNE - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)
item HARDY, CONSTANCE - Food And Drug Administration(FDA)
item COATES, PAUL - National Institutes Of Health (NIH)

Submitted to: Journal of Nutrition
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/24/2018
Publication Date: 8/3/2018
Citation: Saldanha, L.G., Dwyer, J.T., Bailen, R.A., Andrews, K.W., Betz, J.W., Chang, H.F., Costello, R.B., Ershow, A.G., Goshorn, J., Hardy, C.J., Coates, P.M. 2018. Characteristics and challenges of dietary supplement databases derived from label information. Journal of Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nyx103.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nyx103

Interpretive Summary: The objective of this paper is to describe how to customize searches in the Dietary Supplement Label Database (DSLD) to identify products and ingredients of interest to users, and the limitations in working with information derived from product labels. Among the challenges of searching label information are determining the chemical forms, types of extract, and amounts of dietary ingredients especially when these are components of proprietary blends. Search selections that researchers may find useful in customizing searches are those that are consistent with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidance and regulations for dietary supplements. For this reason, some age groups (such as teens and seniors) and marketing recommendations for use (e.g., weight loss, performance, and other disease or condition specific claims) are not included. The FDA announced new dietary supplement labeling regulations in May 2016. The 2017 DSLD has been updated to reflect them. Launched in 2008, the DSLD permits the search of any term that appears anywhere on product labels. Since then, the database's search and download features have been periodically updated to improve them for use by researchers and consumers. The user interface features will continue to be revised periodically to reflect regulatory and technological developments. A comprehensive database derived from analytically verified data on composition would be preferable to label data, but is not feasible for technical, logistical, and financial reasons. Therefore, a database derived from information printed on product labels is the only practical option at present for researchers, clinicians, and consumers interested in the composition of these products.

Technical Abstract: The objective of this paper is to describe how to customize searches in the DSLD to identify products and ingredients of interest to users, and the limitations in working with information derived from product labels. Launched in 2008, the DSLD permits the search of any term that appears anywhere on product labels. Since then, the database's search and download features have been periodically improved to enhance use for researchers and consumers. This paper describes how data derived from information printed on product labels is entered and organized in the DSLD. It can be challenging to search label information to determine chemical forms, types of extracts, and amounts of dietary ingredients, especially when these are components of proprietary blends. Search selections that researchers may find useful in customizing searches are those that are consistent with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidance and regulations for dietary supplements. For this reason, some age groups (such as teens and seniors) and marketing recommendations for use (e.g., weight loss, performance and other disease or condition specific claims) are not included. The FDA announced new dietary supplement labeling regulations in May 2016. The 2017 DSLD has been updated to reflect them. The examples cited in this article refer to this redesigned version of the DSLD. The user interface features will be revised periodically to reflect regulatory and technological developments to enhance user needs. In conclusion, a comprehensive database derived from analytically verified data on composition would be preferable to label data, but is not feasible for technical, logistical, and financial reasons. Therefore, a database derived from information printed on product labels is the only practical option at present for researchers, clinicians, and consumers interested in the composition of these products.