Believe it or not, the Food & Drug Administration (F.D.A.) does have some control over Dietary Supplements. “Good Manufacturing Practices” or “GMP’s” are practices and the systems required during pharmaceutical manufacturing, quality control, and testing of pharmaceuticals or drugs including active pharmaceutical ingredients, diagnostics, foods, pharmaceutical products, and medical devices. These practices and systems can also be used in the Dietary Supplement Industry also.
GMPs help to guide different aspects of production and testing that can impact the quality of a product. Many countries have legislated that pharmaceutical and medical device companies must follow GMP procedures, and have created their own GMP guidelines that correspond with their legislation. All concepts are designed to safeguard the health of the patient as well as producing good quality supplements, medicine, medical devices or active pharmaceutical products.
In the United States, a pharmaceutical drug needs to be manufactured in a condition which does not violate current good manufacturing guidelines. Therefore, complying with GMP is a mandatory aspect in pharmaceutical manufacturing.
Dietary Supplements are NOT under the same mandatory guidelines, but can choose to be in order to prove that their products are of the highest quality.
All Good Manufacturing Practice guidelines follow a few basic principles;
-Manufacturing processes are clearly defined and controlled. All critical processes are validated to ensure consistency and compliance with specifications.
-Manufacturing processes are controlled, and if there are any changes to the process, they are evaluated. Changes that have an impact on the quality of the drug or supplement are continually validated.
-Instructions and procedures are written in clear language. (Good Documentation Practices)
-Operators are trained to carry out and document procedures.
-Records are made that show that all the steps required by the defined procedures and instructions were in fact taken and that the quantity and quality of the drug or supplement was as expected. Any deviations are investigated and documented.
-Records of the manufacturing (including distribution) that enable the complete history of a batch to be traced back to the source of sale or supply.
-The causes of quality defects are investigated, and appropriate measures are taken with any defective drugs or supplements to prevent recurrence.
GMP guidelines are not instructions on how to manufacture the products, but are simply general principles that must be observed during the manufacturing process.
GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES AND SUPPLEMENTS
As stated above, Dietary Supplement companies are NOT required to use GMP’s and 98% of them do not. Life Force International is a Whole Food Supplement company that is GMP Certified and part of the 2% that do use these practices to give proof of the high quality products they manufacture.
When it comes to supporting your health with supplements like Life Force International’s, quality is key: that’s why Life Force International adheres to strict safety and quality standards known as Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) in its manufacturing processes. Life Force wants to ensure the safety and integrity of the products along with its customers getting top quality in the Life Force Product Line.
Life Force rigorously tests each raw ingredient and finished batch of products to ensure the highest quality and purity possible by its in-house team of quality-control professionals and scientists, and a by third-party testing facility to ensure the utmost consistency.
In addition, its state-of-the-art, 100,000-square foot manufacturing facility at the Home Office enables Life Force to make the Life Force products you enjoy where it can closely monitor each step of the manufacturing journey – from processing proprietary ingredients, to bottling, to your doorstep.
With the recent radiation poisoning that occurred in Japan, there has been some scare associated with the safety of sea vegetables that people consume for its super nutritional content. Body Balance, the flagship product of Life Force, contains sea vegetables and aloe vera. One should rest at ease when ordering Body Balance because of the GMP’s that are used at Life Force. EVERY batch of sea vegetables that are used are tested 3 times for any radioactivity levels and would never make it into production if there were any signs of radioactivity. Secondly the sea vegetables are harvested from the Arctic Ocean which have the most pristine waters in the world. Body Balance is a Whole Food Supplement that is safe from radiation poisoning.
Bottom line, when searching for a quality Whole Food Supplement, please make sure that you choose a dietary supplement company that uses Good Manufacturing Practices. This way, you know for a fact, that you have the highest quality of supplements that you can find.
Health Disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. The statements and products are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any diseases.
