Is Your Multivitamin Shortchanging You On Vitamin A?

Vitamin A is one of the most important supplements consumers can take. Vitamin A provides retinol, which is crucial for maintaining healthy retinas and good vision. In fact, countries whose citizens suffer from vitamin A deficiencies have significant instances of night blindness and other vision issues. Vitamin A is also a good source for antioxidants, which help remove free radicals in the body, thereby protecting against oxidative damage to cells.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult for many consumers to get adequate amounts of vitamin A strictly from dietary sources; fortunately, there are many multivitamins available that offer supplemental vitamin A to fill the gap. Even though vitamin marketers need not submit their products for FDA approval, consumers nonetheless count on accurate labeling and advertising to ensure that they are taking enough Vitamin A (and other supplements).

However, a recent report from Consumer Lab casts significant doubt on whether multivitamin labeling is adequate. Consumer Lab tested a number of popular multivitamins to determine if they contained the amount of vitamin A represented on multivitamin labels. While most of the products contained the represented amounts, there were a number that had substantially less vitamin A than advertised.

For example, testing revealed that Trader Joe’s Vitamin Crusade contained less than 60% of the vitamin A claimed on the label and in advertising. Other products that contained less than the advertised amount of vitamin A included:

• Schiff Single Day
• Country Life Maxi-Sorb Max for Men
• Melaleuca Vitality Multivitamin & Mineral Men
• All One Active Seniors

Consumer Lab also tested multivitamins for pets, and found that PetGuard Multi-Vitamin and Multi-Mineral contained less vitamin A than advertised.

If you or someone you know purchased Trader Joe’s Vitamin Crusade or any of the other products mentioned above, please contact us to discuss your legal options.