Stop buying your supplements from Amazon!
If I had a dollar for every time I recommended a well-known and trusted supplement brand to a patient, only to find out they purchased a cheap knock-off from Amazon, I’d be cringing my way into early retirement.
I have seen many patients—I’ll call them the “supplementarians”—who reveal to me at our first appointment that they take about 30-40 supplements daily. They are convinced they need all of these, yet they are concerned about the cost, so they seek the cheapest options. Often, they turn to the internet for affordability and convenience. Most of the time, they head right to Amazon.
I get it. Supplements can be costly. Inflation is on the rise. Everyone is stressed about money. But when it comes to health, the adage “you get what you pay for” holds especially true.
It’s no secret that Amazon has come under scrutiny for numerous unethical business practices since its inception, and continues to plow through labor and industry laws, seemingly beyond reproach from regulatory agencies.
The mega-giant retailer has violated labor laws, opposed unionization of its workers, created dangerous conditions for employees (with double the injury rates of the industry average), created literal tons of wasteful packaging and carbon emissions, and has penalized small business owners who use its platform, among other abuses.
With almost endless inventory of every product imaginable, quick shipping, and the most competitive prices on the market, it’s understandable why so many choose to shop Amazon.
However, those low prices come at a very high cost—for workers’ rights, the climate, and your health. Sure, you don’t have to go to the store, find the supplement, wait in line, and pay double what you would otherwise. But are you really getting what you paid for?
As if there aren’t enough good reasons to stop shopping with Amazon, consider this:
A recent joint research project by the University of Mississippi and Uniformed Services University found that of 30 immune-supporting supplements sold on Amazon, only 13 actually contained the ingredients listed on the label.
The researchers discovered that 17 of the products had inaccurate labels, 13 labels listed ingredients not found in the product, 9 contained other substances that were not listed on the label, and 15 had dubious claims about the product being “verified” and “researched” without any third-party verification or GMP (good manufacturing practices) certificate.
How is this possible? Aren’t monitoring systems in place to stop fraudulent practices?
Actually, there are several ways the supplement industry is currently regulated:
In 1994, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) was passed by the US government to prohibit the misbranding and adulteration of dietary supplements.
The FDA is responsible for inspecting manufacturing facilities for quality, tracking reports of adverse events, and removing dangerous products from the market.
The Federal Trade Commission can stop companies from making unsubstantiated marketing claims.
Despite these rules and regulations, which were mostly established in the 1990s when internet purchases were rare, fraudulent claims and products persist.
Amazon instituted a new rule in 2020, where sellers were required to provide documentation on quality control and testing results for supplements sold on the platform. Amazon itself does not have any facilities to test the quality of products, and is not requiring third-party testing.
Read: Amazon is trusting individual sellers to provide their own documentation of quality control!
In any other industry, this would be looked at as a serious conflict of interest and potential hotbed for fraudulent practices. It turns out that is exactly what’s happening.
Another study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine showed that of 12 supplements being marketed for brain health, over half had at least one ingredient listed on the label that was not detected via analysis, and over two thirds contained ingredients not listed on the label.
Other investigations have revealed Amazon sales of counterfeit, expired, and stolen items that were re-packaged and marketed at bargain prices.
If the price seems too good to be true, it is.
So, what do you do?
Determine whether you even need those supplements. Investigate the brands and retailers you are supporting with your purchase. Shop local reputable retailers. Try to get your nutrients from real food, or from a select few targeted supplements that have a GMP certificate and are third-party tested. Consider investing in a monthly subscription to Consumer Labs, an independent organization dedicated to testing and analyzing health supplements.
When in doubt, have a conversation with your healthcare provider. Don’t buy into one-size-fits-all supplement fads (I’m looking at you, weight-loss industry), and certainly don’t fall for the clever marketing on Amazon. Spend a little extra to be sure you’re getting what you need. You’re worth it!
Sources:
Crawford C, Avula B, Lindsey AT, et al. Analysis of select dietary supplement products marketed to support or boost the immune system. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5(8):e2226040. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.26040
Food and Drug Administration. Dietary supplements.
Federal Trade Commission. Dietary supplements.
Amazon Seller Central. Dietary supplements.
Crawford C, Boyd C, Avula B, Wang YH, Khan IA, Deuster PA. A public health issue: dietary supplements promoted for brain health and cognitive performance. J Altern Complement Med. 2020;26(4):265-272. doi:10.1089/acm.2019.0447
