Dateline NBC’s Supplement Report—Was it News or Politics?

Folks, I know some of you have seen Dateline NBC’s segment about supplement safety. They reported on lawsuits filed against the manufacturer of a liquid supplement called Total Body Formula—which was causing people to lose their hair, toenails, and fingernails. The problem was the formula contained dangerously high levels of chromium and selenium caused by an ingredient “mix up.”

Dateline also did their own “investigative reporting” by giving labs purposely tainted nutritional supplements to see if labs would detect the hazardous ingredients. What they found is that the labs not only failed to pick up on the hazardous ingredient, but they also failed to notice that some nutrients listed on the label were completely absent from the formulas.

There’s no question that there are shoddy companies and unreliable labs out there, but they shouldn’t be allowed to taint the entire industry. Yet, this isn’t the only troubling news in this story.

What’s also buried way down in the newsfeeds is who’s behind Dateline’s report. In their segment, Dateline interviewed Joe James of Bunch and Jones law firm. He was part of the two-member law team that sued the makers of Total Body Formula.

James is also a key player in trying to enact federal oversight of the nutritional supplement industry. In fact, James was quoted as saying, “…we are on a mission to try and help better regulate the supplement industry…”

This is the type of dangerous thinking that can put all of our supplements at risk. You may remember my blog not too long ago that showed how government oversight could cause us to lose resveratrol, curcumin, GABA, ubiquinol, and many other products that millions of Americans depend on to improve their health.

Folks, more government regulation isn’t the answer! The real answer is that you need to be savvy about what supplements you buy—and not get fooled by big promises or ridiculously low prices. If a formula appears to be “too good to be true,” it probably is.

Every supplement formula I create is triple-tested. First, the raw materials are screened—if they’re not pure and safe they won’t go into my supplements, period. Next, 100% of my completed formulas are batch tested to ensure they meet my purity specifications as well as label claims. Finally, I use independent laboratories to verify all the previous testing—including potency and safety.

Any supplement formula you buy should be using those exact same quality standards. If they don’t, pass it up! It’s not worth risking your health. Here are my guidelines for choosing quality nutritional supplements.

Now it’s your turn: What do you think about Dateline’s report?