Why vitamin supplements that look like sweets may do more harm than good

NEWS

Vitamin supplements that look like sweets are often known as ‘vitamin gummies’. They are frequently packed with sugar and contain lower levels of nutrients than high quality vitamin supplements.

COMMENT

In recent years, the great progress in the field of micronutrient research has aroused widespread interest. As a result, a growing number of manufacturers and suppliers want a share of this “boom” and are offering multivitamin products and other nutritional supplements in all shapes, colors, and sizes. In general, all these products have one thing in common: they have never been scientifically tested for their effectiveness and, instead, are advertised using health claims taken from random publications by third parties.

What’s more, due to the growing competitive pressure in the food supplements market, manufacturers feel obliged to further reduce the costs of their ingredients. This is only possible if synthetic – i.e. artificially created – substances are used instead of micronutrients from natural sources. But while human body cells are able to identify and utilize vitamins of natural origin, their interaction with synthetic substances is largely unclear. As a result, millions of users are currently taking nutritional supplements that have a doubtful or even harmful effect.

To read about studies conducted at the Dr. Rath Research Institute that compare high-quality micronutrient combinations developed and tested on the basis of scientific research with untested, low-quality supplements, see the special ‘Vitamins: Harm or Benefit?’ feature on our Foundation website.