Unboxed: 5 new supplements that redefine wellness

Regulations exist for communicating the health benefits of dietary supplements, per the landmark 1994 Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act (DSHEA). The legislation makes it verboten to make any drug-disease claims—so a vitamin C supplement, for example, cannot claim to “cure the common cold.” Instead, it leaves room for structure/function claims—a nutritional bioactive can influence the health of a body organ structure or the function of a part of the body thereof. So, a vitamin C product can claim to “help support a healthy immune system.”

Marketers have long danced around the spirit and letter of the law in order to give a hint to consumers about what they might be able to expect of a supplement.

But there’s a new type of supplement that is a whole ’nother animal. Check out the names of the products. Are your customers in?