The National Institutes of Health’s Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) has partnered with the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to develop a database designed to provide comprehensive label information for consumers and researchers.

Abt Associates, Cambridge, MA, a government and business research and consulting firm, received a contract for a pilot study, which will determine the feasibility of developing an online database that would catalogue the labels of dietary supplements sold in the U.S.

As sales and use of dietary supplements continue to climb, currently there is no complete, comprehensive, publicly available and readily accessible Internet source of dietary supplement label information.

In this pilot study, ODS is partnering with NLM to modify its existing publicly-available database into a single application called the Dietary Supplement Label Database (DSLD), which will be designed to provide comprehensive label information in a format that is user-friendly for both consumers and researchers.

The information included in the database will be determined by federal and stakeholder user groups. If findings from the pilot study demonstrate that such a project is feasible, then ODS and NLM will consider the development of a full-scale application that includes label information on virtually all dietary supplements sold in the U.S.

“I believe that the creation of a dietary supplement label database will provide researchers, the public and policy makers with easy access to a unique and important information resource on the ingredients in dietary supplements,” said Dr. Paul Coates, ODS director. “We are delighted to be partnering with the NLM, which is a pioneer in making specialized health-related databases available to the public. It will permit not only researchers but all Americans to use the label database if they need it.”

Dr. Donald Lindberg, NLM director, said, “NLM is pleased to be able to offer our technical expertise in the development of a dietary supplement label database that will meet the needs of the ODS. This collaborative effort, building on NLM’s existing product, will avoid duplicative work and result in a better resource for both researchers and consumers.”

Dr. Coates also pointed to the need for collaboration by the dietary supplement industry. “Industry cooperation in providing information on products is essential if we are to obtain complete coverage of dietary supplements sold in the United States,” he noted.

“In research studies, we often need to estimate total intakes of nutrients and other bioactives people consume, and this requires quantitative data on the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients of both foods and supplements,” Dr. Coates added. “Without such information on dietary supplements, research studies and surveys of Americans’ nutrient intake are hampered, and the DSLD should help to fill that gap. The DSLD may also provide useful information for the public health community on dietary supplement ingredients for developing effective consumer educational materials and programs.”