Supplements can be a scary word. In fact, it’s so messy that it often makes companies uneasy to promote supplements, it makes consumers uneasy to buy them, and it makes professional health experts call some of them a “scam”. Despite this, the supplement market is massive, and growing. There are a number of incredibly healthy, extremely important products that can genuinely help improve the livelihood of the users.
Unfortunately, many of the greatest products get lost in a sea of murkiness.
With an increasing public interest in health and wellness, the 19 billion dollar supplement market has skyrocketed over the last decade. However, this powerful growth has been coupled with a significant lack of regulation for dietary supplement manufacturers and distributors. In fact, manufacturers and distributors do not need FDA approval to market their products. They are responsible for self-regulating that their products are safe and that their claims are truthful. The result is that this grey space has forced consumers into dangerous situations, with unregulated supplements sending thousands to the emergency room each year.
Labdoor tests products in a laboratory setting.
Introducing Labdoor.
San Francisco company Labdoor is bringing transparency the supplement industry by providing consumers with unprecedented insight into the supplements they ingest. With a mission of improved safety for consumers, Labdoor tests products to provide verified information about the contents of widely used products.
Labdoor CEO, Neil Thanedar gives insight, "Labdoor's mission is to reinvent how consumers shop for products that affect their health, starting with vitamins and supplements. We exist to move consumers and manufacturers away from relying on marketing hype and user reviews to verifying product quality using the results of objective quality and safety testing and transparency in ingredient reporting."
Science to the rescue.
The team uncovers what popular products consist of and reveals if any harmful ingredients or contaminants are present. Unlike over-the-counter or prescription drugs that can take months or years to approve, a new supplement can quickly make its way into your digital shopping cart. In fact, early last year, Frontline exposed a major supplement company that failed to disclose the anabolic steroids in their B-50 vitamins. Their report revealed that this was not a singular case. As more independent supplement manufacturers arise, consumers are increasingly challenged to differentiate those that are abiding by the rules and those that skimp on safety.
Labdoor uses scientific analysis to provide transparency.
As such, it’s become ever more important to secure the facts. Using a standardized scale, Labdoor grades and ranks these products at their independent laboratory. They then make the information public so consumers can confidently buy the best supplements for their health. They have done analysis on various brands of protein powder, creatine, probiotics, fish oil, garcinia cambogia and more.
Investors are taking notice.
With funding from Rock Health, Mark Cuban, Y Combinator, and Floodgate, Labdoor is leading the way by providing top-level scientific-grade quality control to these popular products. Expert insights and the results from Labdoor’s chemistry labs provide unbiased insight into the products that consumers put into their body. For example, among the 80 protein supplements analyzed by Labdoor, the majority were found to contain more sodium than the product claimed. On average, these protein powders and drinks exceeded their sodium claims by 70%. Some theories suggest that the extra sodium may be included to falsely alter the look of quick muscle gains through water retention.
Labdoor co-founder Rafael Ferreira explains, “Your health is one of your greatest assets. Everyone should know exactly what they are putting into their body. We believe that by making public the contents of these products, we can elevate industry standards and do right by consumers. This allows people to make educated and informed decisions about their health.”