Use caution when taking dietary, performance supplements Published Jan. 28, 2016 By Staff Sergeant Wes Wright JBER Public Affairs JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- The term "snake oil" may conjure up Old West images of a smooth-talking salesman touting what is essentially a bottle of booze from the back of a covered wagon, proclaiming it to cure everything from gout to arthritis. While modern consumers have become more wary of supplements and medications they buy, knowing the real benefits and risks of products marketed as health supplements still has a learning curve. Enter Operation Supplement Safety, a Department of Defense educational campaign to inform leaders, providers, warfighters, and their families about potential health risks and what steps to take before deciding to use dietary supplements. Locally, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson's OPSS working group is composed of representatives from the 673d Medical Group, Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Defense Commissary Agency, base fitness centers and public affairs. "The safety and well-being of our Airmen, Soldiers and community are my top priority," said Air Force Col. Brian Bruckbauer, 673d Air Base Wing and JBER commander. "[The OPSS working group's mission is] to support informed, safe and responsible choices and communicate consistent, coordinated and widespread messages on dietary supplement safety." The term "dietary supplement" has a specific legal definition, but in translation it refers to any vitamin, mineral, botanical, amino acid, or other substance you can take by mouth, alone or in combination, that adds to a person's overall diet. Dietary supplements come in forms such as tablets, capsules, liquids, or powders, and must be identified on the front of the product label as dietary supplements. "Being as informed as possible on the risks and benefits of dietary supplements is critically important for anyone considering taking them," said Lisa Schuette, 673d Medical Group health-promotion coordinator and registered dietician. "Consequences can run the gamut of wasting your money to even death. We are not here to vilify the supplement industry, as many products can be beneficial, but to help people make the most informed choices." Schuette said one of the major concerns with supplements is that they are not regulated by the FDA. According to the DoD's Human Performance Resource Center, by law, dietary supplement manufacturers are responsible for ensuring their products are safe before they are marketed. Unlike drug products, there are no provisions in the law for FDA to "approve" dietary supplements for safety or effectiveness before they reach the consumer. Once a product is marketed, FDA must show that a dietary supplement is "unsafe" before it can take action to restrict a product's use or remove it from the marketplace. "Essentially, companies can put things in a supplement and not have it on the label, or put it on the label and not have it in the supplement," Schuette said. "This is why it is so important people be informed. To that end, the most powerful resource we have is the HPRC website, hprc-online.org. It's a one-stop shop for information on just about every dietary supplement you can imagine." John Limon, Buckner Physical Fitness Center director, said supplement concerns include unknowingly ingesting harmful substances, overdosing and over-reliance on supplements to attain workout goals. "People should examine their own lifestyle choices," Limon said. "Much of the time, simple and consistent alterations of lifestyle will do more to get them to their goal than a supplement could. People should set attainable goals. Not all of us are going to be discovered by the NFL during our workout. Make sure nutrition, consistent physical activity and rest are solidified before considering a supplement. When doing research on a supplement it is just as important to look up the manufacturer as it is the supplement title." One resource is the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database, where people can make informed decisions and get ratings on dietary supplements and natural products, as well as information about product ingredients. "If you have a .mil email address, it's free," Schuette said. "Last year, it was $50 to $200. You can put in the name of your supplement, and it will tell you what the research shows on individual ingredients. It is the best reference I have seen for dietary supplements." Schuette offered another tip for people looking to mitigate the risks associated with ingredients companies purport are in their products. "It's not a be-all-end-all, but there are third party certifiers some companies use that test their products to ensure what's on the label is what's in the product. It's not saying it works or listing the pros and cons. It's simply verifying that what is on the label is what's in the supplement." According to HPRC officials, third party certification organizations provide independent testing to evaluate supplements and their ingredients. Although this does not ensure the effectiveness of a product, certification programs do verify that a product is of high quality, consists of the ingredients listed on the label, and does not include any undeclared ingredients. They also conduct safety reviews to evaluate whether the combinations of ingredients in these products might pose harm. A seal is provided to appear on the label of the approved product upon completion of the certification process. A list of third-party companies and what their seals look like is on the HPRC website. One commonly asked question the working group receives is whether there is an all-encompassing list of dietary supplements that are banned or illegal for use by military personnel. The HPRC website addresses this question by stating, "The Department of Defense does not maintain a list of dietary supplements or supplement ingredients that are either allowed or banned. If the Food and Drug Administration or the Drug Enforcement Administration has not banned or declared an ingredient or dietary supplement product illegal, then DoD does not consider it banned or illegal." While dietary supplements have known benefits, Schuette pointed out that, ideally, people should attempt to get proper nutrition through real food. "If you're trying to have an overall healthy lifestyle, you are able, with a little planning to get all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients you need through food alone," Schuette said. "Also, dietary supplements will not fix a bad diet. You have to eat healthy. You can't exercise or supplement your way out of a bad diet." For more information, visit http://hprc-online.org/dietary-supplements.