Supplements
36 articles for Supplements
Can pain medications and antibiotics interfere with the absorption of nutritional supplements?
Thorne is not aware of any contraindications in the current medical and technical literature that indicates that pain medications and antibiotics can interfere with the absorption of the nutrients in nutritional supplements. However, if you still have questions, then you should consult with your health-care practitioner.
Are minerals natural or synthetic?
When minerals are used as ingredients in nutritional supplements they can be in their original natural form or they can be obtained by synthesizing the original natural form to obtain a more potent or purer form of the original mineral.
Silica versus silicon versus silicone, what's the difference?
In nature, silicon is usually found linked up with a pair of oxygen molecules, and forms the compound silicon dioxide, otherwise known as silica. Thorne’s silicon dioxide does not contain any free silica. Silicon dioxide (silica) is very different than silicone, which is a synthetic polymer used in sealants and adhesives and personal-care products like antiperspirants.
What does it mean when it says that an ingredient is synthesized?
Some ingredients used in nutritional supplements are converted from their original natural form. In such cases, we say the ingredient has been “synthesized.” The starting material can be simpler molecules, such as amino acids or fatty acids. After a synthesized ingredient is received at Thorne, it is inspected for identification to verify that it is what it is supposed to be. It is also tested to verify that it does not contain any contaminants. Generally, there is no trace of the original starting material, even though the synthesized ingredient is molecularly identical to the starting material from which it was originally derived. If the raw material is from a potentially allergenic source, then Thorne always informs the customer of this fact, although the synthesized material is refined with sufficient purity to not cause an allergic reaction.
How do you avoid cross-contamination of other products when a Thorne product contains an ingredient that is a known allergen?
Thorne maintains thorough Standard Operating Procedures for cleaning validation, which outline how to clean and sanitize all product- and non-product-contact surfaces to ensure cross-contamination doesn’t occur. After Thorne manufactures a product that contains a known allergen, we perform comprehensive cleaning and sanitization procedures that remove all allergenic protein from the production area. After this cleaning is completed, the entire production room and the equipment in it are swabbed and tested for the allergen to verify there is no allergen protein remaining. This ensures there will be no cross-contamination between ingredients and products that contain known allergens and those that do not.
What makes Thorne decide to reformulate a product?
Although reformulating a product can occur for a number of reasons, the most common reason is that new research shows that a different formulation will enhance the product's benefits. Other reasons include a particular ingredient no longer being available or Thorne's inability to source an ingredient that meets our purity specification for it, in which case a reformulation is necessary to replace or remove that ingredient from the formula.
Why does a Thorne product sometimes change color?
Color variance is normal for some products, especially products that have botanical ingredients. One reason for color variance is that Thorne does not use unnecessary fillers that are typically used to keep products uniform in appearance. So for a natural ingredient, depending on the time of year it was grown and harvested, color variance is not uncommon; for example, a botanical ingredient can be bright yellow in one lot and pale yellow in the next lot. Color changes can also occur as a result of changing the product's formula or changing the raw material supplier. However, if you have a particular concern about a product's color or appearance, then please contact us.
How soon before I feel something from my supplements?
Every individual is unique and every ingredient has a different "mechanism of action" for how it works in the body. Some ingredients can provide a relatively fast result, such as with pharmaGABA for managing stress, or melatonin for promoting sleep. Other ingredients, such as those in Thorne’s multi-vitamin/mineral products, are for preventative health and general wellbeing, so an immediate response would not be expected. However, for many Thorne products, if you experience an overall sense of wellbeing, such as improved mood, and that is the specific indication of use for which you are taking the product, then you are realizing the intended benefit.
Why don't you use black pepper in your Meriva products?
We don’t use black pepper because it can irritate the gut mucosa in some individuals. Because of Meriva's superior absorbability, we don’t need black pepper to enhance its absorption.
Is Thorne regulated by the FDA?
Thorne is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Thorne must comply with the FDA's regulations for manufacturing and labeling our dietary supplement products. In addition, all of our product literature and our website content must comply with FDA regulations. The FDA also requires Thorne to label the presence of allergens and to respond properly to reported adverse events.