Dietary Supplement Products

Supplements are more than just ingredients

A dietary supplement seems like a pretty simple concept: Find a few herbs or ingredients that have some sort of effect on the body then sell them to anyone who is looking for that effect.

But when you start to look at it closer it isn’t this simple.

Consumers typically focus on the ingredients in a supplement and the claim being made on the label.

Supplement companies on the other hand look at the whole product including all of the following factors:

Size of the box/container

Price Point

Dose

Cost per dose

Doses per package

Color of the package

How the product looks compared to competitors products on the shelf

Shelf life

Industry saturation for the product category

This is just a short list of items a typical supplement company might consider when making a new product. As you can see, the ingredients and what they might do isn’t on here. This is because all supplement companies typically have access to the same ingredients so the ingredients themselves are never going to be the big selling feature.

Getting the packaging and the story about the product right is what will make or break a supplement.

In todays Philife podcast Brad Pilon and I discuss supplement packaging and how it’s just as important and maybe more important than the ingredients in a supplement.

Listen to the podcast here -> Supplement Packaging

John

Posted by johnbarban in supplements

13 Responses to “Dietary Supplement “Products””

Six Pack Abs Blog Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 11:53 am
My fitness mentor Mike told me something which I find is a good rule for eating — “Anything substance which is marketed as being something that builds muscle or burns fat doesn’t do it.”

This is because for all the foods that actually DO build muscle and burn fat, there’s no commercial incentive to market them because they’re commodities (chicken breast, brown rice, broccoli, etc).

I find this to be incredibly true…all the guys I know who are ripped either take NO supplements, or take minimal supplements. But I know dozens of guys who have closets full of the latest supplements, but look like crap.

-Dan
Bart Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
True, i tried protein shakes and they did nothing
when i started to eat less and work harder i am seeing results
It contradicts everything but it is true
usernametooshortnowitstoolon Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
I disagree with both of you.

I know ripped guys who do take a lot of supplements. Does it mean the supplements made them ripped though? From just knowing this, not necessarily, but when we look at the science and research, we know the answer is no.

How do you know the protein shakes didn’t do anything for you? This is hard to believe since the science and research indicates that protein shakes work because protein is protein. You saw results because you ate less and worked harder, NOT because you stopped taking protein shakes.

Just because we know something to be true doesn’t mean that every illogical argument that supports this truth is true.
usernametooshortnowitstoolon Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:53 pm
Clarification on “protein is protein”:

Practically speaking, complete protein is complete protein. You guys know what I mean.
Joshua Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:42 pm
I agree with user. Furthermore, I think of protein powder as an invaluable tool as protein powder is relatively cheap and, despite what many say, can be quite satiating when mixed into more of a “protein pudding” with less solvent. For instance, I can mix up 3 scoops of chocolate protein powder, 1/4 cup of shredded coconut, a 2 tbsp of PB, and a raw egg/2tbsp halfnhalf (solvent), and a banana to make a rather satisfying 670cal meal.
usernametooshortnowitstoolon Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:03 pm
I still have most of the 15 pounds of All The Whey peanut butter isolate that I bought before I discovered Brad Pilon’s “How Much Protein,” but I’m not throwing it away because it’s still a good source of protein. Only problem is that I don’t like the taste lol. Price per pound though, it’s one of the cheapest sources of protein out there. I also can’t do more than one shake as even the isolate disturbs my lactose-intolerant stomach if I have too much. I usually mix with almond milk, which makes it tolerable, whereas mixing with water alone is punishing. I could try a banana, but I hate washing dishes, and even much more so, the blender!
Bart Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:04 pm
usernametooshortnowitstoolon,

If the minimum required protein to grow muscles is between 70-120 grams what is the point to stuff yourself with WHEY or anything if you can get those grams from real food. And yes assuming the protein quality is good it will be just as food , but eating too much of it just makes you look fat and probably thats why there are no visible results.(at least in my case) The only time i can justify protein supplement is when you dont have access to real food and you must get that minimum.

What about VITAMINS SUPPLEMENTS ???
Josh B Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:29 pm
You guys are arguing about nothing, sounds like something you’d read on a BB.com forum.

Bottom line is OTC supplements do very little to enhance your physique since it’s diet and exercise that do all heavy lifting. If someone is in great shape, it’s because their diet is spot on and they have a well designed workout plan, they are on drugs, have awesome genetics, or a combination of any of the three. NOT because they take protein, NO, and creatine etc.

The sad part is, all of you already know this stuff.

And this is not even what John’s post is about! :slaps forehead:
usernametooshortnowitstoolon Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
Josh B, reread our posts. That’s not what we’re arguing about (at least I’m not).
usernametooshortnowitstoolon Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
Bart,

1. As I said in my post, I got all that whey BEFORE I discovered “How Much Protein.”
2. Who said whey protein isn’t “real food?”
3. Eating too much protein doesn’t make you fat. Eating too many calories does.
4. Some people don’t like eating protein, e.g. meat, beans, etc., so don’t meat that 70 gram minimum. But even if they did, again, there’s nothing wrong with preferring whey over chicken. It doesn’t matter where you get your amino acids/protein from.
5. No one is saying that whey is better than other sources of complete protein, so there is no need to demonize it. Yes, we all know that a PWO shake is unnecessary and that you don’t need more than 70-120 grams of protein a day.
6. My brother’s fiance is a nutritionist at a hospital and she says that vitamins are scam unless you are truly malnourished because the vitamins and minerals in the pill compete against each other for the same receptor, so you’ll hardly be getting any benefit. Or something along those lines (again, this what she said).
Aditya Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 3:08 pm
Off Topic but I had to post this. Seems interesting!

http://www.youtube.com/user/UndergroundWellness#

Let me know whats going on here!
Cooper Says:
May 12th, 2010 at 7:15 pm
I’m in agreement with Bart. I just can’t see how anyone would take that stuff after knowing the truth. In my opinion, no protein shakes taste good. I used to take them when I believed the “6 meals per day” propaganda because it was so hard to eat 6 meals of meat and veggies.

I think it was John that said in one of his podcasts that a lot of work has to go into trying to make protein supplements taste “ok” because in the real world all protein sources come coupled with plenty of fat which enhances the flavour. I’d much prefer a nice fatty piece of meat, cheese or even nuts than waste calories on that tasteless crap.
Adam J Says:
April 7th, 2012 at 10:09 am
@Cooper what would you recommend besides 6 meals a day? Are you talking about intermediete fasting/warrior diet?

Dietary Supplement “Products”

13 Responses to “Dietary Supplement “Products””

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