Possible change or corruption of quality of supplements and medication

[Breo]

There has been a discussion in the last reading workshop if the quality of supplements and medication is reducing or being corrupted. It was suggested to open a thread to share and compare observations.

What are your observations on the quality of the supplements and medication that you take?
Have any of you observed a loss of quality or a possible corruption of certain products?
Are there specific products that you think are worthy to pay attention to, which maybe even became unsafe?

E.g it was observed that „Now“ NAC capsules had visible brown specks on them and the question came up, if they are possibly molded?

E.g. a private conversation with an MD was reported, who mentioned that dentists in his network observed that the content of the anesthetic solution for dental injections has been corrupted. They noticed the liquid had magnetic properties as a magnet would stick to the samples.

Also the contents of the basic infusion solution for intravenous (IV) therapy, (0.9% NaCl, Normal Saline Solution, NSS) was analyzed with dark field microscopy – and particles were found „that should not be there“. No further specifics were given. The results of both examples have not been confirmed by other sources and have not been published.

So it was suggested that these questions might be relevant to share to gather more information, professional evaluation, articles and scientific research.
Are there further examples and experiences of loss or corruption of quality with supplements and medication, that forum members have observed and read about?

 

[Breo]

E.g it was observed that „Now“ NAC capsules had visible brown specks on them and the question came up, if they are possibly molded?

Thanks again guys for the great discussion we had yesterday

I was a bit worried regarding the brown specks on my NOW NAC capsules, which could be mold as we discussed. So I went ahead and emailed NOW Foods this morn if there could be mold in my capsules (which contain selenium and molybdenum as well), and they already came back with their reply:

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"This is a normal oxidative reaction among the ingredients, but the product is safe to consume.

NOW Foods NAC capsules contain selenium and molybdenum compounds, which are more prone to speckle under certain conditions.

The minerals in the NAC formula are co-factors to help convert NAC into glutathione. These mineral compounds tend to darken in the mixture over time, but our testing indicates that it is not mold and the product is still testing to meet our label claims. This happens more readily when moisture gets into the bottle and accentuates that the added minerals themselves already have dark speckles, as noted on our specifications. It’s just more noticeable when the mixture absorbs a little moisture, which enhances and deepens colors.

We advise to keep the bottle tightly sealed between uses and not store in humid areas of the house (typically kitchen and bathroom).

To slow down this process, please either refrigerate or freeze the bottle."

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So, good to know that they are apparently testing (perhaps after having received multiple complaints?), and that they take their customer base seriously. (BTW, I only started to keep the bottle in the fridge some 2 months ago when that was suggested somewhere, before I kept it in a kitchen drawer next to where I do my cooking, not a good idea apparently!)

Thank you, Laurs for the fast clarification.

 

[Breo]

On shelf life and expiration dates, that were also discussed, there is a post by Gaby:

Here's an article for some perspective:

Many Medications Remain Safe and Effective Well Past Their Expiration Dates - LewRockwell

Recently by Joseph Mercola: Antibiotic Alert: The Drug the Doctor Ordered Could Cause Deadly SideEffects Story at-a-glance Prescription drugs typically have an expiration date of one to five years, but many “expired” drugs are just as potent as when they were originally made, even several...

www.lewrockwell.com

In short, the ivermectin will probably outlive us.

Researchers analyzed eight prescription drugs that expired between 28 and 40 years ago and found that most were just as potent as when they were made.

 

[hlat]

Iodoral iodine now has silicon dioxide, magnesium sulfate heptahydrate, and polysorbate 80 on the label, when they weren't on the label before.

 

[Arwenn]

Pharmaceutical companies seem to be increasingly buying into/taking over supplement brands. As more people turn to alternative health care, pharma companies have seen an opportunity to maximise their profits and capture market share in this sector too. I will cross post Ant22's post from the Health Protocol for mandatory coronavirus vaccination thread, as it speaks to this issue:

Over the years I've seen quite a few articles, mentions and allusions to big pharma owning, or having shares or stakes in the supplement industry. Those reports often mention that these brands purposefully make supplements that don't really work well just to create an illusion of pharmaceutical solutions being much better than supplementation, thus discouraging people from using them to solve problems - while also making money in the process because supplements do sell well, even if they aren't perceived as an alternative to pharmaceuticals. And does it really hurt big pharma if people develop health issues as a result of taking supplements with harmful fillers? Or course not - sick people is how they make money, so all it does is create more customers.

Another way is using worse quality or unabsorbable forms of substances in supplements. B12 is one example. Poorly absorbed cyanocobalamin is used in well over 90% of B12 supplements found in health shops and supermarkets, I can only find other forms, such as methylcobalamin, or adenosylcobalamin online.

It may sound far fetched, but I don't think it's entirely unlikely that there is something to it.

I copied a few reports about that below, but given how murky and convoluted the relationships between different corporations and brands are, with ownership being difficult to track - or often being trackable to one giant that operates behind the scenes, I'd say there's likely not only is a grain of truth to those reports, it may even be just the tip of the iceberg.

I used to think that Solgar was a great brand, and I was willing to pay more for their products thinking I was investing in my health. Turns out Nestle has a steak in this brand - and they add all the usual suspects to their products too (silicon dioxide, magnesium stearate, titanium dioxide, etc.)

Big Pharma Buying Up Supplement Companies | Alliance for Natural Health USA - Protecting Natural Health

Major shifts are, and have been, occurring in the supplement industry. Here’s how they could affect your access. Correction (11/28/2022): The infographic below detailing supplement companies owned by larger companies originally indicated Planet Paleo was owned by HGGC, which is incorrect. The...

anh-usa.org

Here's an article about Pfizer's tentacles spreading to the supplement industry. Given how big pharma manages to control medical research to make sure its conclusions are beneficial to them, is it really too much to think that they may be interfering in this supplement brand's operations in other ways than just research, development, and manufacturing capability support?

https://casadesante.com/en-eu/blogs/wellness/is-nature-made-made-by-pfizer#:~:text=Although Nature Made is not,and Pfizer through Pharmavite's ownership

The link between Big Pharma and the supplement industry | Elsevier

One can imagine that some pharmaceutical drug makers might fume over this situation.

www.elsevier.com

I also found this summary of big pharma's ownership of supplement brands:

The 14 Mega Corporations That Own Your Supplement Brand – Dr. Neal Smoller, Holistic Pharmacist

drnealsmoller.com

View attachment 96666


And another one here (popular Swanson and Nature's Way are on the list):

View attachment 96667

I'm not advocating throwing the baby out with the bathwater and ditching those brands completely, it may be hard to do, but I do think it's crucial to read the labels. And whenever possible, I personally choose to support smaller brands that make clean supplements, even if it costs me a little more. Not only are those supplements better for our health, buying for smaller but cleaner brands also supports small businesses that have it quite difficult out there when competing against the giants.

Edit: Added the images at the bottom of Ant22's post which did not embed: