CRN alerted members in advance of the release of three articles in JAMA Internal Medicine and responded with a public statement urging doctors and patients to openly discuss dietary supplement use. The three articles: “Changes in Prescription and Over-the-Counter Medication and Dietary Supplement Use Among Older Adults in the United States, 2005 vs 2011,” “Polypharmacy—Time to Get Beyond Numbers” and “Nondisclosure of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use to Primary Care Physicians,” all published on March 21. In the statement, CRN’s Andrea Wong noted, among other things, that the association’s annual consumer survey has repeatedly found the vast majority of supplement users agree that they let their physicians know about the supplements they are taking (see CRN in the News).

The press release distribution firm PRWeb has revised its Editorial Guidelines after consultation with CRN. Upon learning last October that PRWeb had instituted a policy that it would not accept any press releases pertaining to dietary supplements, CRN reached out to the firm to correct misconceptions about dietary supplements and to urge reconsideration of the policy. CRN tenaciously worked through its relationships at PRWeb to help establish more realistic guidelines for accepting press released about dietary supplements that would be fair to dietary supplement stakeholders and also in keeping with the firm’s commitment to its clients and end users of its service to avoid publicizing unsafe products or those that generated spam. CRN’s efforts resulted in guidelines that satisfy PRWeb’s concerns but do not penalize companies who appropriately market legitimate dietary supplements. In addition, CRN will serve as a resource to PRWeb if questions arise about dietary supplements. Further details are available on CRN’s Members Only website.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) last week called on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release its records on dietary supplement enforcement.  This comes on the heels of the March release of a DOJ video with Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch discussing this topic. A news release from the Senate Special Committee on Aging noted Sen. McCaskill’s recent attention, including her urging FDA to take action on picamilon, and her letters to retailers asking them to voluntarily remove products containing picamilon from their shelves. Also noted was Sen. McCaskill’s letters to 15 retailers inquiring about their policies concerning dietary supplements and what they do to prevent the sale of harmful or fraudulently marketed products in their stores and on their websites. CRN’s Mike Greene spoke to NutraIngredients.com about the news, and explained, “We have met with her and her staff repeatedly to provide resources and educate them about the industry and to help them accomplish their goals, but also to help them know when to move on to more useful [initiatives to protect] senior citizens...” For more information, contact Mike Greene (202-204-7690).

Vermont Act 120, which requires labeling food produced with genetic engineering (GE), and also prohibits labeling or advertising GE foods as natural, goes into effect on July 1. However, the state is allowing a six-month “safe harbor” period, acknowledging that some food products have longer shelf lives, according to a recent memo from Vermont’s attorney general. “Unless there is evidence that a manufacturer distributed a mislabeled product after July 1, 2016, the state will not bring an enforcement action or seek fines for those products,” the memo stated, noting that beginning Jan. 1, 2017, all food products must be properly labeled regardless of when they were distributed. Dietary supplements have been exempted by regulation from the law’s labeling mandate. For more information, contact Ingrid Lebert (202-204-7699).

The health benefits of dietary supplements are well documented by scientific research, so it just makes sense that tax policy should give consumers the same incentive to protect their wellbeing with preventative health-conscious choices as it does for curing and treating conditions after they occur, an updated CRN Position Statement explains. The Health Savings Act of 2016, legislation that would allow consumers to purchase dietary supplements with Health Savings Account (HSA) and Flexible Spending Account (FSA) funds—with their pre-tax earnings—is gaining support and CRN members are encouraged to call upon their representatives in Congress to support the bill. CRN has formed an HSA/FSA task force and will be promoting the legislation during its Day on the Hill on June 8. For more information, contact Mike Greene (202-204-7690).

California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) will likely prevail in the lawsuit by Mateel that sought to drastically reduce permissible lead levels under Prop 65. The judge in the Mateel case has issued a tentative ruling in favor of OEHHA. However, OEHHA on March 25 issued a Notice of Modification to Text of Proposed Regulation regarding Clear and Reasonable Warnings. A summary is available on CRN’s Members Only website. OEHHA will accept written comments on the proposed amendments until April 11. See CRN’s Members Only website for more information, or contact Rend Al-Mondhiry (202-204-7672).

“I heard lots of interest and momentum for new self-regulatory efforts by the industry to help demonstrate accountability. I heard a number of companies expressing the sentiment that they are tired of being lumped together with less than exemplary members of industry and want to have opportunities to distinguish themselves. These new initiatives offer the opportunity for quality manufacturers to take back the industry.”

— CRN’s Steve Mister in New Hope's “Zeroing in on the Expo zeitgeist”

What else did CRN have to say?

The Alliance for Aging Research (AAR), in partnership with the Mars Center for Cocoa Health Science (an affiliate of CRN member company Mars Symbioscience), has launched a series of “pocket films” explaining the role of nutrition in healthy aging and highlighting some of the latest findings in nutrition research. They offer an easy-to-understand, concise introduction to nutrition that both consumers and health educators can take with them anywhere—including information on when and how to choose dietary supplements. Find out more on the AAR website.

CRN last week announced that Richard Cleland assistant director at the Division of Advertising Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will speak at the association’s Regulatory Summit on May 5 in Bethesda, Maryland, in addition to four regulators from FDA and industry experts. Find out more and register today.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force last week posted a draft research plan on vitamin D, calcium, or combined supplementation for the primary prevention of fractures in adults. The draft research plan is available for review and public comment through April 27. CRN will discuss the draft with its Senior Scientific Advisory Council to determine whether the association will submit comments. Find out more on the USPSTF website.

The Fourth Annual Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance Forum on Dietary Supplements, presented by CRN with the American Conference Institute (ACI) will take place June 27–28, at The Andaz Hotel in New York City, with optional workshops on June 28 and 29. CRN President & CEO Steve Mister and Scott Bass, partner, Sidley & Austin LLP, will co-chair the conference for the second consecutive year.  The forum will include an open dialogue between state enforcers and industry about efforts to protect public health as well as sessions on current political, policy, regulatory and litigation developments. See www.crnusa.org/ACI for details and registration.

USP GMP Audit Program offers CRN Members discount ends this month

The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), a CRN Associate Member, is offering CRN members a 25 percent discount for participation in its new good manufacturing practice (GMP) audit certification program through the end of April. Contact Marcia Moll for more information (mzm@usp.org / 240-472-2907).

A study published in the journal Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism demonstrates that taurine supplementation may attenuate oxidative stress from exercise. The double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled trial, involved 29 young, healthy men who received either placebo or taurine three times a day for 14 days prior to an exercise test, on the day of exercise and the following 3 days. The exercise test consisted of 2 sets of 20 maximal-effort eccentric repetitions with the non-dominant arm only. On the morning of exercise and for 4 days after, oxidative stress and arterial stiffness were measured respectively and elevations were significantly diminished in the taurine group compared with the placebo group. See study abstract for more information.

See CRN's Research Watch for additional studies.

CRN’s Jim Griffiths and Andrea Wong at Experimental Biology, Ingrid Lebert presents at the State Law Resources Spring Meeting, and more...

APRIL 2–6
Experimental Biology / American Society of Nutrition Annual Meeting
San Diego, CA
—Griffiths; Wong

APRIL 9
State Law Resources Spring Meeting
Chicago, IL
—Lebert (presenting)

APRIL 12
CRN Communications and Media Outreach Committee In-person Meeting
Washington, DC
—Blatman; Mister

APRIL 11–14
16th Annual Oxford International Conference on the Science of Botanicals
5th Interim American Society of Pharmacognosy Meeting
Oxford, MS
—Nguyen

APRIL 13–15
State Government Affairs Council National Summit
Portland, OR
—Greene

APRIL 14
Dietary Supplement Caucus Educational Lunch Briefing
Washington, DC
—Mister; Lebert; Wroblewski

APRIL 16–19
NACDS Executive Conference
Palm Beach, FL
—Mister

APRIL 25–29
International Alliance of Dietary Supplement Associations (IADSA) Annual Meeting
Prague, CZ
—Griffiths (presenting)

APRIL 26–27
NTP Workshop: Addressing Challenges in the Assessment of Botanical Dietary Supplement Safety
Bethesda, MD
—MacKay; Wong

APRIL 27
Government Relations Committee Teleconference
—Greene; Lebert; Wroblewski

MAY 4
Advertising for Associations Seminar
Washington, DC
—Al-Mondhiry

APRIL 27–29
Ingredient Marketplace
Orlando, FL
—Mister; Hyland

MAY 5
CRN Regulatory Summit
Bethesda, MD
—Mister; MacKay; Griffiths; Wong; Nguyen

MAY 10–12
Vitafoods Europe
Geneva, Switzerland
—Hyland

MAY 11–23
Democratic Attorneys General Association
Boston, MA
—Al-Mondhiry

MAY 23–25
National Association of Attorneys General Spring Consumer Protection Meeting
Washington, DC
—Al-Mondhiry

MAY 24–25
CRN Communications and Media Outreach Committee
In-Person Meeting
New York City
—Mister;Blatman; Powers; Weindruch; Eischen; Lewis

MAY 31–JUNE 2
Probiota Americas
Chicago, IL
—Wong

JUNE 1
USP Dietary Supplements Stakeholder Panel
Rockville, MD
—Griffiths

JUNE 7
CRN Executive Committee Meeting
Washington, DC
—CRN Staff

JUNE 8
ODS Dietary Supplement Research Practicum
Bethesda, MD
—Mister (presenting)

JUNE 8
CRN’s Day on the Hill
Washington, DC
—CRN Staff

JUNE 9
CRN Board of Directors Meeting
Washington, DC
—CRN Staff

JUNE 13–11
NBJ Summit
Dana Point, CA
—Mister; Hyland

JUNE 27–29
CRN/ACI Legal & Regulatory Conference
New York City
—CRN Staff

SEE FULL CALENDAR FOR 2016, WITH DATES BEING ADDED THROUGHOUT THE YEAR