How to read a supplement label (before you trust one)

Supplement labels are designed to be skimmed. Most people see one ingredient they recognise on the front and buy. Here is what to look at instead — and the words that should make you turn the pouch over.

1. Ignore the front. Read the back.

The front of a pouch is marketing. The Supplement Facts panel on the back is the part with rules attached. Everything that matters is there: serving size, what's in each serving, and how much of it.

2. Check the serving size first

Every number on the panel is per serving, not per gummy. If a serving is two gummies and you take one, you're getting half of everything listed.

3. Be suspicious of "proprietary blend"

A proprietary blend lets a brand list a long line-up of impressive ingredients with a single total weight. You see the names. You don't see how much of each one is in there — which means some of them may be present in amounts too small to matter.

4. Know what "equivalent" means

Plant ingredients are often described as an equivalent of the fresh or raw plant, because concentrating a plant shrinks it. That's a normal way to express it — as long as the brand is clear about it. We describe Voost as 4,000 mg per serving equivalent of beet root, and we say "equivalent" everywhere we use that number, so you know exactly what it refers to.

5. Look at what's left out

Sugar, artificial colours and fillers rarely make it onto the front of a pouch. Check the "other ingredients" line. Voost gummies are sugar-free, vegan, non-GMO and gluten-free.

6. Read the small print with the asterisk

In the US, a supplement can describe how an ingredient supports the body's normal function — "supports healthy circulation" — but it can't claim to treat or cure a disease. Any brand promising to fix a medical condition is telling you something important about itself.

The thirty-second test

Turn it over. Find the serving size. Look for a blend. Check for sugar. If a brand makes any of those hard to find, that's your answer.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Individual results may vary.