Investigation of the Performance of the Disintegration Test for Dietary Supplements

The aim of this study was to investigate how beaker size, basket assembly, use of disk, and immersion medium impact the disintegration time of dietary supplements. The disintegration times were determined for five tablet and two capsule products. A two-station disintegration tester was used with Apparatus A or Apparatus B as described in the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) chapters, < 701 > and < 2040 >. Two beakers complying with the harmonized specifications were used, one with a volume of 1,000 mL and one with a 1,500-mL volume. The disintegration data were analyzed using ANOVA for the following factors: beaker size, equipment (App A and B) and condition (with/without disk). Two tablet products were not sensitive to any changes in the test conditions or equipment configurations. One product was only partially sensitive to the test conditions. The other products showed impact on the disintegration time for all test conditions. The results revealed that these tablet products might pass or fail current USP disintegration requirements depending on the equipment configuration. Similar results were obtained for the two investigated capsule formulations. One product might fail current USP disintegration requirements if the large beaker was used, but might pass the disintegration requirements when the small beaker was used. Hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose capsules were mostly influenced if sodium instead of a potassium buffer was used as the immersion medium. The results demonstrate that the current harmonized ICH specifications for the disintegration test are insufficient to make the disintegration test into reliable test for dietary supplements.

Teas, dietary supplements and fruit juices: a comparative study regarding antioxidant activity and bioactive compounds

Nowadays, new emerging products claiming antioxidant properties are becoming more frequent. However, information about this topic in their labels is usually scarce. In this paper, we analyzed total phenolics, total flavonoids and ascorbic acid contents, as well as DPPH scavenging activity of several commercial samples, namely green tea and other herbal infusions, dietary supplements, and fruit juices, available in the Portuguese market. In general, beverages containing green tea and hibiscus showed higher phenolics contents (including flavonoids) and antioxidant activity than those without these ingredients. A borututu infusion presented the lowest concentrations of bioactive compounds and scavenging activity, due to the low recommended amount of plant to prepare the beverage. Some juices without antioxidant claims in the label presented similar values to those with it.

Dietary supplements utilization: an explanatory survey among Swiss consumers

Dietary supplement (DS) use increased rapidly over the last years. However evidence of benefits of many DS for healthy users are scarce and may not equate known risks of overdose, drug interaction and recently discovered negative long-term effects. Therefore this study aimed to investigate perceptions and motivations of DS users in Lausanne, Switzerland. Method A convenience sample was recruited at the entrance of local sales points. Data were collected in on-site semi-structured interviews to assess dietary supplementation habits. Results The 119 participants provided information on 147 users. Among 273 declared products, the majority were mixed products, containing minerals and vitamins (78), mineral products (69), and herbal products (28). 55% of DS users took more than one product simultaneously. Seventy five percent of participants indicated that DS use presents no risk or nearly no risk and about half (49%) of participants did not inform their physician about their consumption. Male participants reported to share this information with their physicians significantly less frequently than female participants (p = 0.008). About half of participants looked for information on potential risks of DS, men significantly more often than women (p=0.001). Discussion According to other studies in the US, our study shows that, in Lausanne (Switzerland), DS are commonly used as mixed products. Risk perception seems generally low among DS users. Implications Physicians should be trained to evaluate patientsʼ health behaviour and needs in order to provide good evidence based information or propose alternatives to DS use.

Research of stimulants and anabolic steroids in dietary supplements.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the composition of 103 dietary supplements bought on the internet. The supplements were dispatched in four different categories according to their announced contents [creatine, prohormones, "mental enhancers" and branched chain amino acids (BCAA)]. All the supplements were screened for the presence of stimulants and main anabolic steroids parent compounds. At the same time, the research was focused on the precursors and metabolites of testosterone and nandrolone. The study pointed out three products containing an anabolic steroid, metandienone, in a very high amount. The ingestion of such products induced a high quantity of metandienone metabolites in urines that would be considered as a positive antidoping test. The results have also shown that one creatine product and three "mental enhancers" contained traces of hormones or prohormones not claimed on the labels and 14 prohormone products contained substances other than those indicated by the manufacturer. The oral intake of the creatine product revealed the presence of the two main nandrolone metabolites (19-norandrosterone and 19-noretiocholanolone) in urine.

The use of dietary supplements and medication among Finnish elite athletes

Background: Dietary supplements are widely used among elite athletes but the prevalence of dietary supplement use among Finnish elite athletes is largely not known. The use of asthma medication is common among athletes. In 2009, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) removed the need to document asthma by lung function tests before the use of inhaled β2-agonists. Data about medication use by Paralympic athletes (PA) is limited to a study conducted at the Athens Paralympics. Aims: To investigate the prevalence of the use of self-reported dietary supplements, the use of physician-prescribed medication and the prevalence of physician-diagnosed asthma and allergies among Finnish Olympic athletes (OA). In addition, the differences in the selfreported physician-prescribed medication use were compared between the Finnish Olympic and the Paralympic athletes. Subjects and methods: Two cross-sectional studies were conducted in Finnish Olympic athletes receiving financial support from the Finnish Olympic Committee in 2002 (n=446) and in 2009 (n=372) and in Finnish top-level Paralympic athletes (n= 92) receiving financial support from Finnish Paralympic committee in 2006. The results of the Paralympic study were compared with the results of the Olympic study conducted in 2009. Both Olympic and Paralympic athletes filled in a similar semi-structured questionnaires. Results: Dietary supplements were used by 81% of the athletes in 2002 and by 73% of the athletes in 2009. After adjusting for age-, sex- and type of sport, the odds ratio OR (95% confidence interval, CI) for use of any dietary supplement was significantly less in 2009 as compared with the 2002 situation (OR 0.62; 95% CI 0.43-0.90). Vitamin D was used by 0.7% of the athletes in year 2002 but by 2% in 2009 (ns, p = 0.07). The use of asthma medication increased from 10.4 % in 2002 to 13.7% in 2009 (adjusted OR 1.71; 95% CI 1.08-2.69). For example, fixed combinations of inhaled long-acting β2-agonists (LABA) and inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) were used three times more commonly in 2009 than in 2002 (OR 3.38; 95% CI 1.26-9.12). The use of any physician-prescribed medicines (48.9% vs. 33.3%, adjusted OR 1.99; 95% CI 1.13-3.51), painkilling medicines (adjusted OR 2.61; 95% CI 1.18-5.78), oral antibiotics (adjusted OR 4.10; 95% CI 1.30-12.87) and anti-epileptic medicines (adjusted OR 37.09; 95% CI 5.92-232.31) was more common among the PA than in the OA during the previous seven days. Conclusions: The use of dietary supplements is on the decline among Finnish Olympic athletes. The intake of some essential micronutrients, such as vitamin D, is suprisingly low and this may even cause harm in those well-trained athletes. The use of asthma medication, especially fixed combinations of LABAs and ICS, is clearly increasing among Finnish Olympic athletes. The use of any physician-prescribed medicine, especially those to treat chronic diseases, seems to be more common among the Paralympians than in the Olympic athletes.

Dietary supplements of whole linseed and vitamin E to increase levels of alpha-linolenic acid and vitamin E in bovine milk

The potential to increase the concentrations of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in milk fat was investigated by studying the effects of feeding a xylose-treated, whole cracked linseed supplement ( rich in alpha-linolenic acid) to dairy cows. Also the effect of increasing the dietary intake of vitamin E on the vitamin E status of milk was investigated. The effect of pasteurisation on milk fatty acid composition was also examined. Using a 3 x 2 factorial design, a total of 60 Holstein dairy cows were fed a total mixed ration based on grass silage supplemented with one of three levels of whole cracked linseed (78, 142 or 209 g . kg(-1) diet dry matter (DM); designated LL, ML or HL, respectively) in combination with one of two levels of additional dietary vitamin E intake ( 6 or 12 g vitamin E . animal(-1) . day(-1); designated LE or HE, respectively). Increasing lipid supplementation reduced (P < 0.01) diet DM intake and milk yield, and increased (P < 0.001) the overall content of oleic, vaccenic, alpha-linolenic and conjugated linoleic acids, and total PUFAs and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). Myristic and palmitic acids in milk fat were reduced ( P < 0.001) through increased lipid supplementation. While α-linolenic acid concentrations were substantially increased this acid only accounted for 0.02 of total fatty acids in milk at the highest level of supplementation (630 g α-linolenic acid &BULL; animal(-1) &BULL; day(-1) for HL). Conjugated linoleic acid concentrations in milk fat were almost doubled by increasing the level of lipid supplementation (8.9, 10.4 and 16.1 g &BULL; kg(-1) fatty acids for LL, ML and HL, respectively). Although milk vitamin E contents were generally increased there was no benefit (P > 0.05) of increasing vitamin E intake from 6 to 12 g . animal(-1) . day(-1). The fatty acid composition of milk was generally not affected by pasteurisation.

Enhancement of oleic acid and vitamin E concentrations of bovine milk using dietary supplements of whole rapeseed and vitamin E

With the aim of reducing the degree of saturation and increasing the C18:1 cis fatty acid content of milk fat, the effects of feeding high levels of whole cracked rapeseed to dairy cows was investigated together with the effect of increasing dietary intake of vitamin E on the vitamin E content of milk. Using a 3 x 3 factorial design, 90 Holstein dairy cows were fed one of three levels of whole cracked rapeseed (0 (ZR), 134 (MR) and 270 g . kg(-1) diet dry matter (DM) (HR)) in combination with one of three intakes of supplementary vitamin E (0 (ZE), 2 (ME) and 4 g . cow(-1) . d(-1) (HE)). Supplementing with up to almost 2 kg . d(-1) of rapeseed oil (diet HR) significantly (P < 0.001) increased C18: 1cis in milk fat, from 181 (ZR) to over 400 g &BULL; kg(-1) (HR) of total milk fatty acids. Concentrations of C18: 0, C18: 2 and C18: 3 fatty acids were also increased ( P < 0.001) but by a much lesser degree, and the saturated fatty acids C4: 0 to C16: 0 decreased substantially. Vitamin E supplementation increased ( P < 0.01) milk vitamin E concentrations from 1.29 (ZE) to 1.68 mg &BULL; kg(-1) whole milk (HE). Thus substantial changes in milk fat composition with potentially beneficial effects on human health were achieved and without any adverse effects on milk taste. However, these improvements must be offset against the substantial reductions ( P < 0.001) observed in voluntary feed DM consumption (ZR, 20.6; HR, 15.2 kg DM . d(-1)), milk yield (ZR, 22.9; HR, 13.2 kg . d(-1)) and milk fat concentration (ZR, 42.1; HR, 33.4 g . kg(-1)) which would not be commercially sustainable unless a considerable premium was paid for this modified milk. It seems likely that the optimum dose of dietary rapeseed is lower than used in this study.

Are herbal remedies and dietary supplements safe and effective for breast cancer patients?

There remains limited scientific evidence on the efficacy and safety of 'natural' therapies such as herbal remedies and dietary supplements. Nevertheless, breast cancer patients are particularly prone to purchasing such products because of the perception that 'natural' products are less toxic than conventional prescribed medicines. However, the potential for interactions of supplements with current medications, the potential for adverse effects from consumption at high levels, and the lack of disclosure of such treatments by the patient to their doctor are serious public health issues. Robust clinical trials are required to prove the efficacy and lack of adverse effects of such preparations, and communication between patients and doctors must be improved and doctors made more aware that their patients may be seeking advice and treatment from sources outside conventional medicine.

Impact of different silkworm dietary supplements on its silk performance

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Review of liver injury associated with dietary supplements

Dietary supplements (DS) are easily available and increasingly used, and adverse hepatic reactions have been reported following their intake. To critically review the literature on liver injury because of DSs, delineating patterns and mechanisms of injury and to increase the awareness towards this cause of acute and chronic liver damage. Studies and case reports on liver injury specifically because of DSs published between 1990 and 2010 were searched in the PubMed and EMBASE data bases using the terms 'dietary/nutritional supplements', 'adverse hepatic reactions', 'liver injury'; 'hepatitis', 'liver failure', 'vitamin A' and 'retinoids', and reviewed for yet unidentified publications. Significant liver injury was reported after intake of Herbalife and Hydroxycut products, tea extracts from Camellia sinensis, products containing usnic acid and high contents of vitamin A, anabolic steroids and others. No uniform pattern of hepatotoxicity has been identified and severity may range from asymptomatic elevations of serum liver enzymes to hepatic failure and death. Exact estimates on how frequent adverse hepatic reactions occur as a result of DSs cannot be provided. Liver injury from DSs mimicking other liver diseases is increasingly recognized. Measures to reduce risk include tighter regulation of their production and distribution and increased awareness of users and professionals of the potential risks.