Natural: What Does This Mean to Us?
by Michael Lelah, Ph.D. - NOW Foods Technical Director

At NOW Foods we believe that natural products are better than synthetics for supporting optimal health and wellness. We carry both natural and nature-identical products in many different categories, including supplements, foods, and personal care products. Our natural product selection helps to differentiate us from the mass market. We also differentiate ourselves from many companies in our own industry who claim to sell natural products. However, when you read their product labels, you find a host of synthetic ingredients and additives. Elwood Richard founded NOW Foods for the sole purpose of providing affordable natural products to everyone, and we still hold true to his vision today. As a chemist, Elwood understood the dangers posed by synthetic ingredients, and moreover that health and wellness begins with products that are As Natural as Possible (SM). Since 1968, we've been delivering such products to your doorstep, and will continue to do so. We can do this because we are a family-owned company and we are not beholden to investors or shareholders.

Let’s go over just a few of the natural ingredients that you will find in NOW products:

Bovine Chondroitin: Chondroitin sulfate is a key ingredient in the fight for joint support. Clinical studies demonstrating efficacy are based on bovine Chondroitin (from cow). However, Chondroitin is more cheaply available from porcine (from pig) and chicken sources. NOW does not use the unproven pig and chicken forms, which are prevalent in the market.

CoQ10: CoQ10 is a particularly important antioxidant. However, there are two forms: the naturally produced fermented trans-CoQ10 form and the synthetic, cheaper cis-form. The trans form is the form found in your body, while the cis-form is chemically different. NOW only sells the natural all-trans form of CoQ10.

L-Amino Acids: The natural form of most amino acids is the L-form, (Glycine and Taurine have only a single form with no "L" designation. Synthetic forms are the D-form or the DL-form. There is some evidence that the D and DL forms are toxic or less bioavailable. NOW Foods does not sell the mass produced synthetic forms; only natural L-Carnitine, L-Arginine, L-Lysine, etc.

Fish Oil Purification: Our fish oils are almost all molecularly distilled. This physical separation and purification process produces the best quality fish oil, free of harmful levels of heavy metal contaminants and pesticides. A common concern with fish oils is mercury content. NOW fish oil is mercury-free. Compare!

Natural Vitamin E: Synthetic vitamin E (dl-alpha-tocopherol) is chemically and physiologically different from the natural family of Vitamin E isomers, which consists of 4 tocopherols (including d-alpha-tocopherol) and 4 tocotrienols. NOW only sells the natural “d” forms of Vitamin E.

Organic: Organic products are the most natural. No pesticides, herbicides or fungicides are used in cultivation. This is good for our environment, and NOW is taking measures to increase our selection of organic products.

Oxidation: Some natural products will oxidize when stored. To keep this from happening, we include silica-gel packs to remove moisture, and in some cases use Ageless® anti-oxygen packets, which reduce oxidation and keep the product in the bottle as fresh and natural as possible.

While it is important to know what is included in every bottle of supplements, it is equally important to assure what is not included and why. NOW Foods has the quality standards, lab expertise and GMP infrastructure to guarantee exactly what you won't find in any of our products. The following items ARE NOT FOUND in any NOW products.

Alcohols: NOW does not use any alcohols in foods. Only grain alcohol - ethanol - is used in some of our liquid extracts. No synthetic alcohols are used.

Aluminum: We do not use aluminum in our formulas, as it has been associated with Parkinson’s disease. Most of our products are formulated/tested to be aluminum-free. Some of our clays and trace mineral formulas naturally contain aluminum and we declare this on our labels.

Chlorinated Compounds: Chlorinated organic compounds are not found in nature. These compounds are toxic and very dangerous. PCBs and dioxin are examples. Sucralose is another example. NOW Foods does not formulate with chlorinated compounds.

Ephedra and Bitter Orange: The FDA has banned Ephedra. But even during the years when Ephedra was legal, NOW Foods never sold Ephedra, as we have always been concerned about its abuse, not about its proper use. Today, bitter orange is commonly used as a substitute for Ephedra in many formulas. NOW Foods does not use bitter orange in our formulas.

Excipients: NOW does not use common mass market multivitamin excipients like hydrogenated oil, talc, Crospovidone, Butylated Hydroxytoluene, Chromic Chloride, Hypromellose, Nickelous Sulfate, Polysorbate 80, Sodium Metavanadate, Sodium Silicaluminate, Sorbic Acid, Triethyl Citrate, Glucose, Polyethylene Glycol, or Lactose Monohydrate. These excipients are designed to make manufacturing processes more efficient and less expensive, but products containing these synthetic excipients can no longer claim to be natural, which is one of the many reasons we don't use them.

Fluoride: Sodium Fluoride is used to prevent tooth decay and is present in most of our water supply. There is increasing evidence that Fluoride is unnecessary, potentially harmful, and used excessively. NOW does not formulate toothpastes and mouthwashes with Fluoride.

Genetic Modification: NOW is opposed to genetic modification, because there are real and unknown harmful effects. Unfortunately, much of the world’s supply of corn and soybeans is genetically modified which is why we continue to offer more products that are certified GMO-free. When we say certified we mean thorough and complete documentation from the source farm to your door, which is also referred to as identity_preserved (IP). In some cases ingredients we use are GMO-free, but do not have complete documentation, so we don't declare products with these ingredients to be GMO-free, unlike others. Keep in mind that testing doesn't necessarily insure that an ingredient's source is non-GMO, as certain fractions such as lecithin and vitamins C & E can be derived from GMO crops yet contain no detectable GMO's.

Heavy metals: Natural botanicals may contain background levels of heavy metals because heavy metals are naturally occurring in soil and water. We test all of our herbal ingredients and products to ensure that their heavy metal content is within recognized safe levels. A concern with fish oils is mercury content. NOW fish oils are purified by molecular distillation or similarly effective processes and are mercury-free.

Hormones: NOW Foods does not sell androstenedione, estrogen, testosterone, or DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). These are all steroid and/or anabolic supplements that may have potentially harmful side effects.

Hydrogenated fats and trans-fats: Hydrogenation is a chemical process where unsaturated fats (vegetable oils) are chemically modified to make them more solid at room temperature. Artificial trans-fats are a particular form of these chemically modified fats. These man-made fats are unhealthy and have contributed to the obesity of America. NOW does not formulate our products with either of these fats.

Irradiation: Irradiation is used to kill bacteria. But irradiation also has side effects, transforming the natural components in herbs and botanicals into unnatural molecules. NOW conducts microbiological tests, and rejects ingredients where this test indicate sterilization by irradiation.

Microbial contamination: Many natural ingredients contain naturally occurring low levels of microbes. However, high microbial contamination and contamination with pathogens and aflatoxin are potentially unsafe. We have an in-house state-of-the-art microbiology lab staffed with professional microbiologists that test our materials and products against microbial contamination.

Parabens: These synthetic chemicals are widely found in personal care products as preservatives. Many brands that prominently declare themselves to be natural use parabens - making their claim untrue. NOW Foods does not formulate its Personal Care products with Parabens.

Pesticide Residues: We use pesticide-free products as much as possible. Our Panax ginseng is pesticide-free. Roots are most susceptible to contamination by pesticides. As described earlier, our fish oils now are primarily molecularly distilled, then tested for pesticides.

Peak E free Tryptophan: NOW Foods has demanding specifications for our L-Tryptophan products. All of our L-Tryptophan products are free of detectable levels of Peak E. Peak E contamination was linked to a disabling autoimmune illness in 1989. NOW audits all its sources of L-Tryptophan and tests every lot for contamination. If any Peak E is found, the lot is rejected.

Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) and Propylene Glycol (PPG): PEG is antifreeze. PPG is in the same family. NOW Foods does not use any PEG or PPG in our supplements, and is replacing the PPG in our deodorant stick. All of our health and beauty products will soon be PEG- and PPG-free.

Polysorbate 80: a PEG derivative, is used in many formulas to increase bioavailability. This petroleum-derived synthetic ingredient is not used in any of our products. Did you know that many enhanced delivery CoQ10 formulas contain Polysorbate 80? Our CoQ10 formulas do not contain Polysorbate 80.

Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids: Some natural herbs contain these alkaloids which are hepatotoxins (liver toxins). These herbs include comfrey and butterbur. Our butterbur is free of pyrrolizidine alkaloids, and we do not sell comfrey for internal use.

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS): This nasty, toxic synthetic surfactant is also widely used in personal care products such as shampoos and oral products such as toothpaste. NOW Foods does not use SLS.

Titanium Dioxide and Phosphates: These synthetic ingredients are widely used as excipients in supplements. Excipients are ingredients that have no nutritional value, but have been added to improve processing or add color. NOW minimizes the use of these additives. In fact, most of our CoQ10 softgels are formulated to be free of titanium dioxide - a rarity in the market.

 

At NOW Foods, we take natural seriously. This is our life, our business and our area of expertise. We hope that after reading this you will have a better understanding of the great lengths we go to in ensuring that NOW products are the most natural and affordable on the market. As always, we welcome any input and suggestions from you that can help us improve our product line. 

Michael Lelah - Technical Director