Speaking at the state of the industry educational session at SupplySide West last week, NNFA executive director and CEO David Seckman said that it is likely that one of the several clean-up sports bills in the works at the moment will go through.
In themselves, clean-up sports bills are somewhat interesting to the dietary supplements industry, but they tend to be mainly concerned with professional sports. They are of most concern, however, insofar as they may potentially be used as vehicles for legislation that would make the steroid precursor DHEA a restricted substance.
"We want to ensure that classification of DHEA is not included as amendment to any bill," said Seckman.
The 109th Congressional clean-up sports bills are HR 1862, HR 2516, HR 2565 and HR 3084.
In May, an act was also introduced with the expressed purpose of controlling DHEA (S1137, the DHEA: Controlled Substances Act). At the time, NNFA called on consumers to register their opposition.
Derived from a plant in the wild yam family, DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone) is a $15 million product in the United States and has been on the market for 20 years.
Occurring naturally in the blood of young people, levels of DHEA have been shown to peak between the ages of 20 and 30 years, but decrease progressively thereafter. It is known to break down into various sex hormones, including testosterone, which helps build muscle.
Its uses, particularly amongst older Americans, include including maintaining muscle strength and strong bones, boosting immunity, and improving mood and sleep patterns.
It is quite a common misconception that DHEA is an anabolic steroid - whereas it is in fact an adrenal steroid.
According to a backgrounder from the Council for Responsible Nutrition, anabolic steroids like testosterone can be used to increase muscle size and strength and reduce post-exercise recovery time - but also have a number of dangerous side effects, such as breast enlargement, increased facial and body hair, high blood pressure, liver malfunction, reduced fertility, and altered behavior.
DHEA, on the other hand, is not associated with these side effects. It is produced by the adrenal glands and, as an indirect precursor of testosterone it has only weak esterogen- and testosterone-producing activity.
As well as the industry effort to keep DHEA on the market, a website has also been launched to reach out to consumers on dietary supplements regulatory issues, www.saveoursupplements.com.
The concern over DHEA notwithstanding, Seckman said that there are other current bills that would increase access to supplements. These include HR1545, which would amend the tax code to recognize health benefits for supplements that meet qualified or approved health claims and permit them to qualify under Health Saving Accounts and Flex Spending Accounts.
Similarly S 1546, the Food Stamp and Mineral Improvement Act of 2005, would amend the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to allow food stamps to be used to purchase vitamins and minerals.
At present, food stamps can be used to buy junk food but not supplements.
"We think that this one will fly through congress, but we'll see," said Seckman.
As for the long-awaited good manufacturing practice guidelines (GMPs), Seckman also told NutraIngredients-USA.com that he is expecting to meet with the OMB this month to discuss the final rule, which may be issued in 90 days. The GMPs form part of the Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act, which was passed in 1994.
He said that there are particular concerns about the impact of the GMPs on small businesses. Economic impact analysis has indicated that as many as 250 companies may go out of business due to the costs of compliance, but Seckman believes that the effect could be even greater.
One of the main bones of contention at the moment is the protocol on testing ingredients. The draft states not only that individual ingredients should be tested when they arrive on site, but combinations of ingredients too.
"If you have 13 ingredients already tested you do not need to do the test again. Duplication drives up the cost, which will be passed on to the consumer," said Seckman.