The supplements industry has to make a collective choice about how its now establishes it credibility.
If you're like me, you can’t resist the promise of a handy health hack. I have an endless supply of supplements at my desk – from vitamin D and iron to a collagen tablet for that extra glow. But I am not alone. In fact up to two-thirds of UK adults take vitamins or supplements daily or occasionally, with the global dietary supplement industry set to be worth £205.68 bn ( ($278.02 bn, €233.95 bn) by 2024 (sources: Mintel; Grand Review Research). But is this cocktail of supplements actually doing us any good? With consumer scepticism around the effectiveness and safety of these products growing, the industry has to make a collective choice about how to establish credibility.
‘In any given month, countless new studies are released about vitamins, and at first glance, the information often seems conflicting,’ Katerina Schneider, founder of online supplements brand Ritual tells LS:N Global. ‘It’s tough to filter through to what is really being said, and there currently isn’t one clear resource that people can go to for reliable expert information.’
Unlike prescription drugs, whose claims and safety have to be proven before they can be sold, supplements are barely subjected to government scrutiny. In Europe, they are classified and regulated as food products, while in the US, they are classified as dietary supplement and can go to market without extensive testing. The issue of credibility is now being further compounded by the mass of celebrities, health bloggers and beauty businesses launching their own Instagram-friendly brands or providing endorsement to third parties. I think we need to start urgently questioning whether this is the right approach to take at a time when the industry is struggling to establish its integrity.
The examples are numerous. Take Tati Westbrook (aka @glamlifeguru), who has 1.2 million Instagram followers and 3.9 million YouTube subscribers and recently launched Halo Beauty, which claims to do everything from prevent premature hair greying to firming skin and reducing fine lines. Then there's the Kardashian-Jenner clan, who since 2015 have promoted brands such as Hairfinity and Sugarbear Hair gummies, that latter having now hit almost 2 million followers thanks to their endorsement. Even beauty giant Bobbi Brown has dipped its toe in the water with the recent launch Evolution_18, a range of edibles designed to promote beauty both internally and externally.
