WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK – JANUARY 19, 2007 Among twenty-one multivitamin products for adults and children that ConsumerLab.com independently selected and tested, Consumerlab.com  found that only ten met claims and other quality standards.  Some of the problems observed were:

·         A women’s multivitamin contained 15.3 micrograms of lead per daily serving, an amount that is more than ten times the amount of lead permitted without a warning label in California.

·         A children’s vitamin contained 216% of its labeled amount of vitamin A, potentially delivering amounts in excess of those tolerable in children up to eight years old.  The product contained 5,400 IU of vitamin A in the retinol form in a daily serving of three gummy characters. 

·         Three multis did not fully break apart in simulated gastric fluid, including a women’s, a men’s, and a one for seniors.  Such products may pass through the body without being fully utilized.

·         One multivitamin contained none of its claimed vitamin A.  Four others lacked their full expected amounts of vitamin A or folic acid, coming up short by 15% to 46%.

Two pet multivitamins were also tested.  Both contained their claimed ingredients, but one contained lead – 1.4 micrograms in a daily serving.

The new report is available at www.consumerlab.com/results/multivit.asp.  The report provides results for thirty-two supplements of which ConsumerLab.com selected twenty-three. Nine were tested at the request of their manufacturers/distributors through CL's Voluntary Certification Program and are included for having passed testing. Also listed are seven products similar to ones that passed but sold under different brand names.

Brands included the new report are AARP, Centrum, Dr. Fuhrman Pixie-Vites, Flintstones, Floradix (Salus-Haus), Healthy Moments Vitamin Strips, Kirkland (Costco), Member’s Mark (Sam’s), Nature’s Bounty, Nature’s Plus, NOW, Nutrilite, One A Day (Bayer), One Source (Perrigo), Pet-Tabs, Pharmanex, Pregnancy Plus – Dr. Grunebaum, Puritan’s Pride, Swanson, The Greatest Vitamin in the World, The Vitamin Shoppe, 21st Century Pet Nutrition, TwinLab (IdeaSphere), Vitamin World, WEIL, WinFuel, and Yummi Bears (Hero Nutritionals).  Products include tablets, caplets, capsules, chewables, liquids, strips, gummies, and powders.

Reviews of many other popular supplements are available from ConsumerLab.com online.  New Reviews soon to be released include, alpha lipoic acid, eye health supplements (lutein and zeaxanthin, joint care supplements (glucosamine, chondroitin, MSM), milk thistle, SAMe and St. John's wort. 

ConsumerLab.com is a provider of consumer information and independent evaluations of products that affect health and nutrition. The company is privately held and based in Westchester, New York. It has no ownership from, or interest in, companies that manufacture, distribute, or sell consumer products. ConsumerLab.com is affiliated with PharmacyChecker.com, an evaluator of online pharmacies, and MedicareDrugPlans.com, which reviews and rates Medicare Part D plans. Subscription to ConsumerLab.com is available online. For group subscriptions or product testing contact Lisa Sabin, Vice President for Business Development, at lisa.sabin@consumerlab.com.

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