A nutritional supplement is a product intended to enhance the diet, containing ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, or amino acids. While most supplement labels list the precise amount of each ingredient, some products group multiple components under a single entry known as a proprietary blend. This practice causes confusion for consumers seeking transparency. Understanding how these blends are legally defined and structured is necessary for evaluating a product’s potential value and effectiveness.
How Proprietary Blends Are Defined on Supplement Labels
A proprietary blend appears on a supplement’s “Supplement Facts” panel as a collective entry, often with a fanciful name like “Performance Matrix” or “Metabolic Complex.” The label must disclose the total combined weight of all ingredients within that specific blend in milligrams or grams. However, the manufacturer is not required to list the individual weight of each ingredient that makes up the total blend. This structure is legally permissible under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA).
The law mandates that all ingredients must still be listed, but they are presented in descending order of predominance by weight within the blend. For example, the ingredient with the highest concentration will be listed first, and the one with the lowest will be last. This arrangement allows the company to protect its specific formulation as a trade secret while providing a general overview of the components. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can access the exact formula during facility inspections, but this information remains confidential from the public.
The Problem of Hidden Dosages
The primary issue with proprietary blends is that the lack of specific dosage information prevents consumers from verifying a supplement’s effectiveness. Most active ingredients, such as beta-alanine or creatine, require a specific minimum amount, often called a “clinical dose,” to produce the desired physiological effect. Without knowing the exact quantity, consumers cannot determine if the product contains enough of the ingredient to actually work.
This lack of transparency often results in products being significantly “underdosed” on their most effective components. This strategy is sometimes called “fairy dusting,” where an expensive, well-researched ingredient is included in a negligible amount solely to be listed on the label. The majority of the blend’s total weight is then composed of cheaper, less effective, or inert filler ingredients. For example, a 5,000 mg blend might contain 4,950 mg of an inexpensive amino acid and only 50 mg of a high-cost botanical extract that requires 500 mg for efficacy.
A further concern relates to safety, particularly with ingredients that have narrow therapeutic windows or known side effects. Stimulants like caffeine, yohimbe, or phenethylamines are common in performance blends, and their precise amount is often hidden. A person sensitive to stimulants or taking other medications cannot accurately gauge their total intake. This lack of information can lead to unintended side effects like increased blood pressure or adverse drug interactions.
Evaluating Manufacturer Trade Secret Claims
The main defense manufacturers use for proprietary blends is protecting their unique formula, claiming it as a “trade secret” to maintain a competitive advantage. They argue that full disclosure would enable competitors to immediately create an exact, cheaper copy, undermining investment in research and development. This legal allowance in the DSHEA is intended to foster innovation in the supplement industry.
However, the efficacy and optimal dosages of many common supplement ingredients are widely documented in scientific literature. The specific amounts required to achieve a benefit, such as the 5-gram dose for creatine monohydrate, are established facts, not secrets. Critics argue that the secrecy is less about protecting a unique formula and more about hiding substandard or underdosed products.
The lack of transparency compromises the consumer’s ability to make an informed purchasing decision and assess the product’s value. While proprietary blends are not illegal, their design shifts the focus from product efficacy toward intellectual property protection. Consumers are left to trust they are receiving clinically relevant amounts of the ingredients they are paying for.