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Health assessment of food supplements

Food supplements are foods that

  • are intended to supplement a general diet;

  • consist of a concentrate of nutrients or other substances with nutritional or physiological action (e.g. vitamins, minerals including trace elements, amino acids, fibre, plants or herb extracts) on their own or as a combination;

  • are placed on the market in doses, particularly as capsules, powder sachets and other non-typical forms of administration of foods for consumption in small, measured amounts.

For health reasons supplements must carry information about recommended daily intake.

Food supplements are not medicinal products

In contrast to medicinal products, food supplements may not have any side-effects and must be safe like all other foods. Unlike medicinal products they do not have to be registered with the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL). The Länder are responsible for monitoring the food supplements on sale in the shops, and the manufacturing plants.

The provisions of the Food and Feed Code (LFGB) and the Ordinance on Food Supplements apply to food supplements. There are currently no binding maximum levels for the ingredients (nutrients or other substances with nutritional or physiological action) of supplements on either the national or the European level. An EU-wide regulation on valid maximum levels for vitamins and minerals is in the process of being elaborated.

Are food supplements necessary?

In principle, food supplements are superfluous for healthy individuals on a normal diet. In a balanced diet the body has all the nutrients it needs. Normally, the additional intake of individual nutrients is not, therefore, necessary. A one-sided, imbalanced diet cannot be corrected by taking food supplements.

In some situations targeted supplementation with individual nutrients may make sense.

BfR task in conjunction with food supplements

Within the framework of its remit to ensure consumer health protection, BfR assesses food supplements that deviate from the statutory provisions in the Food and Feed Code. It advises the federal government and the Länder on questions pertaining to the safety of food supplements.

Further information on food supplements can be accessed in the BfR FAQs about food supplements.

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Opinion

 (15)
Date Title Size
31.07.2020
BfR Opinion no. 035/2020
Vitamin D: consumption of high-dose food supplements is unnecessary 300.8 KB
PDF-File
02.03.2009
BfR Opinion No. 016/2009
Use of iron in food supplements and for the fortification of food 27.3 KB
PDF-File
15.06.2007
BfR Opinion No. 032/2007
Use of glucosamine and its derivatives in food supplements 37.3 KB
PDF-File
06.02.2012
BfR Opinion Nr. 018/2012
The intake of nicotinic acid in excessive dosage can have damaging health effects 51.8 KB
PDF-File
03.04.2007
BfR Opinion No. 024/2007
Risk assessment of maca-containing food supplements 27.5 KB
PDF-File
07.12.2018
Updated BfR Opinion No. 040/2018
Risk assessment of chondroitin sulfate in food supplements 257.2 KB
PDF-File
02.12.2009
BfR Opinion No. 001/2010
Health risks of excessive energy shot intake 128.6 KB
PDF-File
02.11.2017
BfR Opinion No. 032/2017
Food supplements with whole-leaf Aloe preparations containing anthranoids are associated with health risks 39.3 KB
PDF-File
14.08.2009
BfR Opinion No. 004/2010
Food supplements that contain glucosamine can constitute a health risk for patients who take coumarin anticoagulants as blood coagulation inhibitor 114.1 KB
PDF-File
20.12.2019
BfR Opinion No. 052/2019
Food supplements - High intake of isolated branched-chain amino acids can lead to health impairments 574.9 KB
PDF-File
14.12.2021
BfR Opinion No 040/2021
Curcumin in food supplements: Acceptable daily intake may be exceeded 120.2 KB
PDF-File
12.12.2017
BfR Opinion No. 034/2017
BfR assesses recommended maximum daily level for intake of magnesium via food supplements 40.4 KB
PDF-File
02.07.2012
BfR Opinion Nr. 025/2012
BfR Advises Against Intake of the Product "Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS)" 30.7 KB
PDF-File
08.10.2010
BfR Opinion Nr. 032/2011
Assessment of a dioxin finding in mineral clay 28.3 KB
PDF-File
15.01.2020
BfR opinion No 003/2020
A questionable way to lower cholesterol: food supplements containing red yeast rice to be taken only on medical advice 345.4 KB
PDF-File

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Communication

 (5)
Date Title Size
14.05.2021
BfR Communication No. 015/2021
Vitamin D, the immune system and COVID-19 244.9 KB
PDF-File
09.08.2017
BfR Communication No 018/2017
Outcomes of the expert discussion "Potential Effects of Caffeine on the Cardiovascular System of Children and Adolescents" 45.9 KB
PDF-File
06.01.2015
Communication of DTU, ANSES and BfR No. 001/2015
More knowledge needed to ensure safe use of botanicals in food 52.0 KB
PDF-File
21.07.2015
BfR communication No. 021/2015
Dietary supplements containing dinitrophenol (DNP) can lead to severe intoxication and even to death 64.3 KB
PDF-File
14.11.2019
Communication No. 044/2019 from the BfR
Biotin in food supplements can influence laboratory test results 134.9 KB
PDF-File

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Publikationen - BfR-Wissenschaft

 (1)
Date Title Size
20.09.2006
BfR-Wissenschaft 06/2006
Folic acid intake of the German population 1.1 MB
PDF-File

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