Two marketing professors in the West Virginia University College of Business and Economics will present their research on dietary supplements to the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Thursday, Nov. 17, in College Park, Md.

Drs. Paula Bone and Karen France have been asked to speak before the FDA in a forum to explore how dietary supplements are labeled and how the public understands current labeling and health claims.

The professors wrotePolicy Maker’s Paradigms and Evidence from Consumer Interpretations of Dietary Supplement Labels,’‘published this year in the Journal of Consumer Affairs. Their research is among five studies that show consumers arent using FDA statements on dietary supplements the way government had hoped and laws were enacted to ensure, Dr. Bone said.

The FDA hoped consumers would see through labeling that sometimes there is a lot of scientific evidence to support health claims of supplement manufacturersas in the case of calcium supplements and their benefits in fighting osteoporosis. But sometimes there is little, such as the case of tomatoes and tomato sauce fighting cancer. Our research shows that often people dont use this information,she said.

The FDA regulates dietary supplements under a different set of regulations than those covering”conventional”foods and drug products. Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, dietary supplement manufacturers are responsible for ensuring that a dietary supplement is safe before it is marketed. The FDA is responsible for taking action against any unsafe dietary supplement product after it reaches the market.

Generally, manufacturers do not need to register their products with FDA nor get FDA approval before producing or selling dietary supplements. Manufacturers must make sure that product label information is truthful and not misleading.