Senator John McCain recently introduced the Dietary Supplement Safety Act of 2010, which, if passed, will deeply impact the supplement industry. If the act is signed into law, it will change the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994 by requiring supplement manufacturers to give full disclosure of all the ingredients in their products.

Additionally, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) will get to review all the dietary ingredients in said products under the scrutiny of a new list of accepted ingredients—and the act doesn’t stop there.

If passed, supplement manufacturers will also be required to report every kind of adverse effect, regardless of how minor, their products may cause.

The act is receiving support from various groups, especially the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

"Americans think they are improving their health when in truth they are poisoning their bodies with dangerous substances that may lead to grave health consequences, such as liver injury, stroke, kidney failure, and pulmonary embolism,” said Travis T. Tygart, CEO of the USADA on the Supplement Safety Now (SSN) Web site.

SSN, which is supported by many sports industries like the NFL, NBA, and NHL, is a public protection initiative that is working to get Congress to establish a regulatory framework for supplements.

While it is too soon to tell if Congress will pass the act, the Nutrition Business Journal is already estimating the sports supplement category could drop 30 percent or more in sales if the act results in the immediate removal of a popular ingredient, like how ephedra was removed in 2004.