How to Read a Supplement Facts Panel

Almost every question worth asking about a supplement is answered on the back of the bottle, in a box most people never read carefully.

Why the panel is the only part that counts

The front of a bottle is marketing. The Supplement Facts panel is a required disclosure with rules governing what appears and how. When the two tell different stories, the panel is the document with obligations behind it.

Start with serving size

Everything else on the panel is expressed per serving, and a serving is not always one capsule. If the serving size is two capsules and the bottle holds 60, that is a 30-day supply, not 60 days. Products sometimes list impressive-looking amounts that turn out to require three or four capsules to reach.

Then check servings per container

Multiply by serving size and you have the real cost per day. This is the number to compare across products, not the price per bottle.

Look for standardisation, not just plant names

This is where most of the useful information hides. "Turmeric root extract 200 mg" tells you almost nothing. "Turmeric root extract (95% curcuminoids) 200 mg" tells you there are 190 mg of the active compound.

Watch for ratio extracts written as 4:1 or 10:1. These describe how much raw plant went in, not how much active came out, and they are usually far weaker than a standardised extract of the same weight.

Do the arithmetic against the research

Once you know the active content, look up what studies actually used. This single step disqualifies a great many products. An ingredient can be excellent and still be present in an amount no trial has ever tested.

Read "Other Ingredients"

The line below the panel, in smaller type, and frequently the most consequential. Gelatin capsules are not vegetarian. Allergens appear here. So do fillers and flow agents.

Treat proprietary blends as unverifiable

A blend gives one combined weight for several ingredients, which makes it impossible to know how much of anything you are getting. Sometimes there are legitimate formulation reasons. Sometimes it hides a generous dose of something cheap and a trace of the ingredient on the label.

Compare the panel with the sales page

The check almost nobody performs. Open both and confirm that every ingredient advertised actually appears on the panel. Our label check on this product is what happens when that comparison turns up a mismatch.