Bryce Edmonds

April 24, 2008

2 Min Read
Supplement & Personal Care News Briefs

Company gets sporty
NSF International certified a second company as safe for sport. The National Enzyme Co. has received Good Manufacturing Practices for Sport registration from NSF for its manufacturing facilities. According to Ann Arbor, Mich.-based NSF, the new program minimizes the risk that sports nutrition products contain banned substances. To be certified, a company must: submit to two annual GMP for Sport audits to confirm ongoing conformance with GMP requirements; provide manufacturer affidavits, which state that "manufacturers do not source, purchase or inventory any component contained on the banned substances list as identified by the World Anti-Doping Agency, the National Football League, the NFL Players Association, the National Hockey League Players' Association, Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association;" and comply with GMP standards for dietary supplements as outlined in NSF's guidelines.

D-mystifying cancer
Vitamin D could hold the key to higher cancer rates in black males, according to a new study published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention. Researchers at Harvard University looked at data from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, which was collected from 1986 to 2002. They found that black men were at higher risk for both cancer incidence and cancer mortality, especially digestive system cancers. When they then controlled for risk factors for low vitamin D intake, they found that black men with more risk factors were 57 percent more likely to get cancer and 127 percent more likely to die from it. "Our results suggest that the high frequency of hypovitaminosis D in blacks may be an important, and easily modifiable, contributor to their higher risk of cancer incidence and mortality," researchers wrote.

Just the supps facts
The supplement industry should crest $6 billion by 2011, according to a report by market research firm Packaged Facts. Nutritional Supplements in the U.S. also predicted a 1 percent increase to $4.7 billion for 2006 compared with 2005. "Long-term health benefits and prevention are the leading motivators, particularly for baby boomers, who are big on supplementation as a means to wellness," said Publisher Don Montuori in a release. "Age-related condition-specific products, including weight, diabetes, joint and eye health, as well as heavy emphasis on the Os—omega-3s and organics—will continue to proliferate in the years ahead." The multivitamin category was second only to general supplements in gains between 2001 and 2005. Liquid vitamins, the smallest category, increased $5.6 million over the same time period.

Natural Foods Merchandiser volume XXVIII/number 1/p. 48

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