Washington, D.C.—At the invitation of Cara Welch, Ph.D., Director, Office of Dietary Supplement Programs (ODS), the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) provided written feedback on how dietary supplements are presented on FDA's website and its recently released Supplement Your Knowledge content for consumers, health care professionals, and teachers. CRN President and CEO Steve Mister shared the association's concerns regarding presentation, language, and tone in the FDA's content. Some of the concerns Mister highlighted, according to CRN:
  • An overemphasis on the potential risks of taking nutrition supplements while downplaying the benefits of supplements. Mister said this one-sided presentation contrasts with the way FDA speaks about other categories it regulates, such as cosmetics, medical devices, and traditional food.
  • Missed opportunities to address public health issues with responsible use of nutritional supplements.
  • Failure to communicate the robust regulatory framework that is already in place to give FDA authority over supplements...an omission that Mister said leaves a misimpression that regulation is inadequate.
  • The opportunity to enhance the content of future messaging in collaboration with the natural products industry.

Read the CRN's letter for Mister's full comments on the above points.

In the letter, CRN offers examples from the overall FDA website’s dietary supplements page, as well as from each section of the Supplement Your Knowledge materials for consumers, healthcare professionals, and teachers, plus social media and other resources.

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