Nutrition Powders & Drinks More Accurately Labeled Than Nutrition Bars, But Unapprove

ConsumerLab.com Finds Nutrition Powders & Drinks More Accurately Labeled Than Nutrition Bars, But Unapproved Food Ingredient Seen in Some

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- ConsumerLab.com announced
today that 24 of 26 nutrition powders and drinks that it recently evaluated
met their label claims for carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. This is in
stark contrast to ConsumerLab.com's announcement in October, 2001 that 60% of
nutrition bars tested did not meet their label claims. Nutrition powders and
drinks, often consumed as shakes, are commonly used for dieting, general
nutrition, body building and to enhance athletic performance. Annual sales of
nutrition powders and drinks grew 16% in the past year to $971 million in
traditional U.S. retail channels alone according to Information Resources,
Inc. (Chicago, IL).
Two nutrition powders failed to pass ConsumerLab.com's review, because
they contained the herbal ingredient "stevia," which is a non-sugar sweetener
but has not been approved for food use in the U.S. due to inadequate safety
data. Stevia can only be sold in the U.S. as a dietary supplement. The two
products that contained stevia were labeled as foods, not supplements.
Tod Cooperman, M.D., President of ConsumerLab.com commented, "Aside from
the two products that should have been labeled as supplements because they
contained stevia, the results were a welcome relief from the many problems we
recently found with nutrition bars, where the full carbohydrate content was
often hidden from consumers. The drinks and powders tend to contain about
half the amount of carbohydrate and fat as nutrition bars and generally twice
the amount of protein per serving. In fact, people using some of these
powders and drinks as their primary source of nutrition should make sure that
they are getting enough fat and carbohydrate from other foods."
The complete list of products that passed the review, as well as
ConsumerTips(TM) on buying and using nutrition powders and drinks are now
available to ConsumerLab.com's online subscribers at
http://www.consumerlab.com. General findings and examples of approved
products are also available free from the Web site. Similar information is
also available for other popular vitamin, mineral, herbal, and other
supplements as well as nutritional products. Other ConsumerLab.com Product
Reviews scheduled for release in coming months include weight loss/slimming
supplements, potassium supplements and products containing botanical sources
of omega-3 &-6 fatty acids (ALA and GLA). ConsumerLab.com's Guide to Buying
the Best Vitamins, Herbs and Supplements is scheduled for publication later
this year. ConsumerLab.com also offers an Athletic Banned Substance Testing
program. To further assist consumers, ConsumerLab.com licenses its flask-
shaped CL Seal of Approved Quality (see The CL Seal) to manufacturers for use
on products that have passed its evaluations.
ConsumerLab.com is a leading provider of consumer information and
independent evaluations of products that affect health and nutrition. The
company is privately held and based in White Plains, New York. It has no
ownership from or interest in companies that manufacture, distribute, or sell
consumer products. Subscription to Consumerlab.com's Product Reviews is
available online. Parties interested in purchasing comprehensive Product
Review Technical Reports, licensing content, or requesting testing of
additional products may contact Lisa Sabin, Vice President for Business
Development, at lisa.sabin@consumerlab.com.

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