Glossary

Active Ingredient

Component that causes the desired action.

AHRQ

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is the lead Federal agency charged with improving the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. As one of 12 agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services, AHRQ supports health services research by developing evidence reports and technology assessments based on rigorous, comprehensive syntheses and analyses of the scientific literature on topics relevant to clinical, social science/behavioral, economic, and other health care organization and delivery issues. Direct links have been provided to AHRQ evidence reports on specific dietary supplements in this database.

Adverse Effects

An adverse health-related reaction to the intake of a dietary supplement ingredient.

Amino Acid

One of the 20 building blocks of protein: alanine, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, cysteine, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, proline, serine, threonine, tryptophan, tyrosine, and valine.

Amount per Unit

Quantity of a specific active ingredient contained in one pill, capsule, soft gel, teaspoon, etc.

Brand

Trade name given to a product to distinguish it from other products.

CDC

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As a component of the Public Health Service, CDC's mission is to prevent, track and control infectious and chronic diseases, injuries, workplace hazards, disabilities, and environmental health threats.

Clinical Trials

Pre-planned studies of the safety, efficacy, or optimum dosage schedule (if appropriate) of one or more diagnostic, therapeutic, or prophylactic drugs, devices, or techniques selected according to predetermined criteria of eligibility and observed for predefined evidence of favorable and unfavorable effects.

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ConsumerLab.com

ConsumerLab.com is an independent test laboratory that tests dietary supplement products to determine:

the amount of ingredient claimed on the container label
the existence of contaminants such as lead in the product
the ability of the product to disintegrate properly in order to dissolve and be absorbed in the body.

ConsumerLab.com does not test the efficacy of products.

Daily Value (DV)

Reference values used on labels for dietary supplements and are based on a 2000 Calorie intake for adults and children 4 or more years of age. DV is based on Daily Reference Values (that apply to fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, carbohydrate, protein, fiber, sodium, and potassium) and Reference Daily Intakes (of essential vitamins and minerals).

DeLima Associates

A private company located in McLean, Virginia that has provided the data used in the Dietary Supplements Database under a non-exclusive license to the National Library of Medicine for non-commercial use.

Dietary Supplement

The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act defines a dietary supplement to be a product (other than tobacco) that is intended to supplement the diet that bears or contains one or more of the following dietary ingredients: a vitamin, a mineral, an herb or other botanical, an amino acid, a dietary substance for use by man to supplement the diet by increasing the total daily intake, or a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract, or combinations of these ingredients.

Dose

Total amount of a dietary supplement administered to, taken or absorbed by a person.

Drug Facts

Names and quantities of active and other ingredients present in an over-the-counter (OTC) drug product. (Supplement Facts are provided only for dietary supplement products).

DSHEA

The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA) signed by President Clinton on October 25, 1994 addresses, amongst other things, the definition, composition, labeling and manufacturers' claims for dietary supplement products.

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Efficacy

Capacity or power of a dietary supplement ingredient or combination of ingredients to produce a desired effect or to affect a claimed health condition.

Enzyme

A protein that speeds up chemical reactions in the body. Enzymes bind temporarily to one or more of the reactants of the reaction they catalyze. In doing so, they lower the amount of activation energy needed and thus speed up the reaction.

FDA

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by assuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, the nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.

Gluten-free

Claim from manufacturer that specific supplement does not contain plant proteins from cereal grains such as wheat (including different varieties such as spelt and kamut), rye, barley, and cross-bred hybrids of these cereal grains (e.g., triticale).

IBIDS

International Bibliographic Information on Dietary Supplements. The IBIDS database provides access to bibliographic citations and abstracts from published, international, and scientific literature on dietary supplements. This database is maintained by the Office of Dietary Supplements of NIH.

IU

International unit. This is a unit of measurement of vitamin activity determined by biological methods rather than by direct chemical analysis.

Kosher

Claim from manufacturer that specific supplement was prepared in accordance with religious dietary laws.

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Lactose-free

Claim from manufacturer that specific supplement does not contain the disaccharide, lactose.

Manufacturer

Name of a company that produces or distributes a particular dietary supplement product. The name is found on the container's label.

Market Share

Proportion of industry sales of a dietary supplement category that is controlled by a single manufacturer of dietary supplements.

mcg

Microgram. It is equal to one millionth of a gram.

MedlinePlus®

MedlinePlus brings together authoritative information from NLM, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations. Preformulated MEDLINE® searches are included in MedlinePlus and give easy access to medical journal articles. MedlinePlus also has extensive information about drugs, an illustrated medical encyclopedia, interactive patient tutorials, and latest health news.

MedWatch

On-line web site of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that provides consumers with timely safety information on drugs and other medical products regulated by the FDA (for example, safety alerts, recalls, withdrawals and important labeling changes on FDA-regulated products) and provides a gateway for consumers to report adverse events associated with the use of FDA-regulated products, including dietary supplements.

MeSH®

MeSH is the National Library of Medicine's on-line thesaurus used for indexing articles from 4,800 of the world's leading biomedical journals for the MEDLINE/PubMED; database.

mg

Milligram. It is equal to one thousandth of a gram.

Mineral

Naturally occurring, inorganic substance with a definite chemical composition and a crystalline structure. Minerals are generally classified into the following chemical classes: silicates, carbonates, sulfates, halides, oxides, sulfides, phosphates and metals.

Multivitamins

Dietary supplement that contains many vitamins including thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and vitamins A and D.

Multivitamins/multiminerals

Dietary supplement that contains many vitamins including thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and vitamins A, B-12, B-6, C and D and many minerals including calcium and iron.

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National Center for Environmental Health

The National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) is a component of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that plans, directs, and coordinates a national program to maintain and improve the health of the American people by promoting a healthy environment and by preventing premature death and avoidable illness and disability caused by non-infectious, non-occupational environmental and related factors. The Dietary Supplement Database was initiated by NCEH.

NCCAM

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) of the National Institutes of Health was established to exploring complementary and alternative healing practices in the context of rigorous science, training complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) researchers, and disseminating authoritative information to the public and professionals.

NCI

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is a component of the National Institutes of Health. NCI coordinates the National Cancer Program, which conducts and supports research, training, health information dissemination, and other programs with respect to the cause, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of cancer, rehabilitation from cancer, and the continuing care of cancer patients and the families of cancer patients.

NIH

National Institutes of Health. NIH is one of the world's foremost medical research centers, and the Federal focal point for medical research in the United States. The NIH, comprising 27 separate Institutes and Centers, is one of eight health agencies of the Public Health Service which, in turn, is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The National Library of Medicine is one component of the NIH.

NLM®

The National Library of Medicine® (NLM), of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, is the world's largest medical library. The Library collects materials and provides information and research services in all areas of biomedicine and health care. The Dietary Supplements Database is one of the on-line databases supported by NLM.

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NSF International Certified

NSF International develops standards for testing dietary supplements. NSF tests supplements to verify the identity and quantity of dietary ingredients declared on product label and to ensure that the product does not contain undeclared ingredients or unacceptable levels of contaminants. In addition, NSF inspects manufacturing facilities for conformance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). Supplements that have received the NSF mark may be found at http://www.nsf.org/Certified/Dietary/

ODS

Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) of the National Institutes of Health was established as a result of DSHEA to strengthen knowledge and understanding of dietary supplements by evaluating scientific information, stimulating and supporting research, disseminating research results, and educating the public to foster an enhanced quality of life and health for the U.S. population.

Other Names

Other commonly used names for a specific active ingredient.

Percent DV

The % DV is the percent of the Daily Value of a dietary ingredient that is in a serving of the brand.

Pharmacokinetic Actions

Study of the action of a dietary supplement ingredient in terms of time required for absorption, the duration of action and distribution in the body and the method of removal from the body.

Pharmacologic Actions

Effect of intake of a dietary supplement ingredient on living tissues and organisms in the body.

Poisoning

A condition or physical state produced by the ingestion, injection or inhalation of, or exposure to a deleterious agent.

Product

A dietary supplement available commercially in the United States.

PubMed®/ MEDLINE®

PubMed is a free resource of the National Library of Medicine that lets you search more than 16 million bibliographic citations and abstracts in the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system, and preclinical sciences. It provides access to MEDLINE.

Recalls

Action taken by a firm to either remove a product from the market or to conduct a field correction. Recalls may be conducted on a firm's own initiative or by a request by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

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Serving Size

Quantity of the brand used in one serving of a dietary supplement, which is the maximum amount recommended by the manufacturer of the supplement per intake.

Specialty Ingredients

Dietary supplement ingredients that cannot be classified as a vitamin, mineral, herb, amino acid or enzyme.

Supplement Facts

Names and quantities of dietary ingredients present in the dietary supplement container.

Third-Party Test Results

An analytical test result that is completed by a laboratory that is independent of any parties associated with the product being tested.

Use (in humans)

Studies indicating the effectiveness of a specific dietary supplement ingredient.

Uses Claimed by Manufacturer

Manufacturer's claims for the intended use of a specific brand.

USP Verified

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) is the official public standards-setting authority for all prescription and over-the-counter medicines, dietary supplements, and other healthcare products manufactured and sold in the United States. USP tests the purity, potency, and quality of dietary supplement finished products that are voluntarily entered by their manufacturer in the program. Dietary supplements are not required to be tested or to conform to USP standards in order to be marketed in the US. Only those that meet USP's criteria are allowed use of the USP Verified Dietary Supplement Mark to display on their product labels and can be found at http://www.usp.org/USPVerified/dietarySupplements/supplements.html

Vitamin

Any organic substance essential in small amounts to sustain growth and activity of the body and obtained from plant or animal sources.