Natural Health R&D

After 15 years in the dietary supplement industry, I've landed here in the product development group at Swanson. It's our job to research and develop the new health products you see every month in your Swanson Health Products catalog and online at swansonvitamins.com.

My career has given me the opportunity to engage in many aspects of the natural products business, from merchandising and marketing to customer service and now, to the creation of the products themselves. It's a dynamic industry with its share of challenges and controversies. But if ever there was a worthwhile endeavor it is Swanson's mission of "bringing wellness to the world".

This blog gives me a chance to share with you an insider's perspective on dietary supplements and issues related to natural health care. It also gives you an opportunity to learn about upcoming new products and let us know about items you would like us to research. Plus, I'll get to share dispatches from the road as we travel the country and the world in search of new ingredients to enhance our lives and help us live well, naturally.

Ever wanted to know what vitamins, supplements and healthy foods the employees at Swanson Health Products use? Here’s your chance to peek inside an employee order and find out (and win it all)!

Most people are surprised to learn that after 15 years at Swanson Health Products, I still only take one or two supplements regularly. Vitamin D, of course, due to our Northern location, and a multivitamin. Active One is a no-frills capsule with everything I need.

What also surprises people is that Swanson...Read More »

Last month we introduced Dr. Stephen Langer’s Russian Rejuvenator with ultra-pure Dihydroquercetin (DHQ) , an all natural health product that really has no equal in the United States at this time. We called it the Russian Rejuvenator based on the Russians' decades of experience using DHQ, particularly in combination with Vitamin C as found in our formula.

In Russia this complex—DHQ plus Vitamin C—is known as a general restorative, detoxifying antioxidant and can be found in almost every corner...Read More »

Back in the 1960s an unassuming man from Japan took up residence on the East coast of the United States and quietly started a revolution. His name, Michio Kushi, became synonymous with the era’s movement toward natural foods, holistic wellness and peaceful philosophy—all of which came together in what is known as Kushi Macrobiotics.

John Lennon was an admirer. So was Dr. Benjamin Spock. Hundreds of people made a pilgrimage to the Kushi home to learn from him. Mr. Kushi taught his simple, balanced...Read More »

I recently became reacquainted with an old friend, the Utne Reader. For over 20 years this magazine, which bills itself as “the best of the alternative press,” has been publishing forward-thinking original articles and reprinting the best under-the-radar journalism from small magazines and newspapers throughout the country. In my college years and early wide-eyed professional days I read it religiously. Then I grew up, got cynical, and lost touch with that “We can change the world!” enthusiasm.

Lu...Read More »

The product development and purchasing groups here at Swanson Health Products are gearing up for one of the industry’s largest trade shows in October. Every year thousands of manufacturers and suppliers meet with scientists, investors and retailers at SupplySide.

In advance of the event, organizers announced the recipients of the annual Scientific Excellence Awards, which recognize companies and their ingredients that demonstrate leadership in “science/research methods, scientific breakthrough,...Read More »

Swanson Health Products sets itself apart from other discount health supplement companies by providing a variety of natural health options, from very basic and cheap vitamins and supplements to truly top-of-the-line health products that feature advanced nutraceutical ingredients.

For instance, over a decade ago we teamed up with the Italian firm Indena to bring you a line of herbs that go beyond mere standardization. The Indena Phytosomesin our Swanson Ultra line are among the most clinically...Read More »

Ever wondered what makes one natural health solution a dietary supplement while another is classified as a pharmaceutical drug? And what about these new terms: nutraceutical, functional food, medical food? The answers are murky and, I’m afraid, they’re about to get even murkier.

Take, for example, Lovaza, Glaxo Smith-Kline’s new blockbuster Omega-3 prescription for high triglycerides. It’s just fish oil, right? Not according to GSK. They go to great lengths to point out that “you can’t get it at...Read More »