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Pharmaceutical Grade – Are They Really Worth The Extra Cost?
If you’re reading this then you are probably one of the 75% of people in the world who choose to supplement their diet with at some point in their lives. More than likely, you have stood in front of shelves staring in confusion at the huge array of nutritional supplements available everywhere from your local supermarket to specialised health shops. Well, to simplify things down to their essence, you really only have two choices.
Your Purchasing Options
You can buy over the counter from the supermarket, or pharmaceutical gradevitamins which are generally about three to four times more expensive. On first glance, it’s seems quite obvious. Most people want value for money and so opt for the cheaper choice. But…are you really getting value for money? And worse, is the money you spend getting flushed down the toilet – so to speak? First let’s back up and get an idea of what the differences between supermarket type and pharmaceutical grade are.
OK. So What Are The Differences?
Pharmaceutical grade are made from pharmaceutical grade raw materials to pharmaceutical grade manufacturing standards in FDA-registered facilities following the US Pharmocepia guidelines (USP) for dissolution of the capsule or tablet. You’ll know you’re buying a pharmaceutical grade supplement because there’ll be a USP designation on the label.
In contrast, the drugstore variety are made from food grade raw materials to food grade manufacturing standards. To give you an idea of what these two statements mean: imagine a chocolate chip cookie factory. When you get the final product, there may be two chocolate chips in one cookie and five in another. Ok for chocolate chip cookies, but do you really want to buy manufactured to the same standards as chocolate chip cookies? The upshot is, you really won’t be able to guarantee the purity, strength, quality or identity of the ingredients within an over the counter vitamin supplement whereas pharmaceutical grade need to contain exactly what they say they contain in the measurements stated. If this doesn’t convince you then what about…
Bioavailability. What Is It?
It is the extent to which a supplement can be broken down and actually used by the body. Your supermarket variety vitamin is manufactured using the least expensive ingredients which means they’ll be in a form not easily broken down by the body. They also contain a lot of fillers and binding agents (these are substances used to make the pills stick together and be big enough to swallow). But if your body can’t break the vitamin down and can’t use the form it’s given, you will not benefit from taking it and you will effectively and literally be flushing your money down the toilet.
Compare this to pharmaceutical grade vitamins. In a pharmaceutical grade vitamin the nutrients are metabolized at a rate of 80-95 mg. out of 100 mg. These measurements are known as a result of rigorous testing and independent verification by third parties. They are also coated so that they are released into the proper section of your gastrointestinal tract for maximum absorption. And if this doesn’t convince you…
An Illuminating Example
Remember when I mentioned value for money? Well consider this: imagine a supermarket vitamin tablet contains 100mg of an ingredient. This weight will also contain the binders and fillers to make it hold together. So maybe the actual vitamin or mineral is 15mg of the 100 mg. Don’t forget that the form will be one not readily broken down. Now compare this to a pharmaceutical grade vitamin in which 99% of the ingredient must be what is stated on the label. This means you would have to take eight times as many supermarket to get the same dosage as a pharmaceutical grade vitamin. So, as your perusing the shelves and reach for the nearest (and cheapest) multimineral supplement, multiply the cost by eight and them ask yourself whether pharmaceutical grade seem expensive.
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