Iron supplements label-truth tested

Seventeen out of nineteen iron products passed on all parameters, ConsumerLab.com, an independent evaluator of dietary supplements and nutrition products, claimed this week. Iron supplements are used to prevent and treat the deficiency and re-build iron stores in the body but there is no established standard in the US on how much iron supplements should contain, and the amount of iron in supplements varies widely among brands. Neither the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) nor any other federal or state agency routinely tests iron supplements for quality prior to sale, although as recently as 1997 the FDA reported the recall of several iron-containing supplements by one manufacturer due to excessive lead levels. ConsumerLab.com purchased 19 products and tested them for the accuracy of their iron label claims, ability to disintegrate (for better absorption by the body), and levels of lead. Seventeen of the nineteen products passed on all parameters. One product - a store-brand supplement from a major pharmacy chain - contained only 73 per cent of its claimed 27 mg of iron per tablet. Another product, which was specifically marketed for use by women and listed additional vitamin and herbal ingredients, contained lead at a level in excess of 0.5 micrograms per daily serving - the maximum allowed without a warning label under the State of California's Proposition 65 law. The complete list of iron supplements that passed the review as well as ConsumerTips™ on buying and using iron supplements are available to ConsumerLab.com's online subscribers at General findings and examples of approved products are also available free from the Web site.