From Medscape Medical News:
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has launched a new database and personal tracker for computer and smartphone use with "science-based, reliable information" on 17,000 dietary supplements, including vitamins, herbal products, and probiotics.
The My Dietary Supplements (MyDS) app can be found on the NIH Web site. The app offers product information and allows users to track supplement use. The database can also be searched on the NIH ODS Web site. It includes information from product labels and allows searches on specific products, manufacturers, and ingredients.
In addition to ingredients, the NIH database includes other information from the labels; namely, directions, health claims, and cautions. The label data will also be coupled with material from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the ongoing health data collection project.
About half of all Americans take some form of supplement, according to the ODS. Popular supplements include vitamins D and E, minerals such as calcium and iron, herbs including echinacea and garlic, and specialty products such as glucosamine, probiotics, and fish oils.
In a statement announcing the effort, Steven Phillips, MD, from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), which was a partner in the project, said the database will be updated to include new products and "incorporate most of the more than 55,000 dietary supplement products in the U.S. marketplace."
The agency notes that supplements can come in "tablets, capsules, and powders, as well as liquids and energy bars."
The NIH announcement notes that by law, dietary supplements must carry a supplement facts label with a list of ingredients. The US Food and Drug Administration requires and monitors the ingredient labels, but supplement manufacturers do not have to provide the agency with the evidence of safety or efficacy. The benefits of some supplements are well established. Other supplements "need more study to determine their value," according to the ODS.