What are “Other Ingredients” and Are You Okay to Take Them?
Once you’ve passed the nutritional facts on the ingredient list, you run into this jumble of a mess called “other ingredients”. From soy lecithin to magnesium stearate, there is a long list of ingredients compiling in your products, but what exactly are they? Are they harmful? Or are they completely worthless? This guide will breakdown what the other typical ingredients are in your supplement, from pills to powders.
Pills
Pills come in all sorts of shapes and sizes these days and for multiple different purposes. They can range from tiny little Vitamin D softgels to HUGE horse-sized tablets like Calcium. The typical pill will have some animal byproduct in there that holds the pill together, but there are plenty of vegetarian and vegan options out there for pills as well.
Capsules
Anytime you pick up a bottle for a supplement, look at the type of pill it is. If it says “capsule”, assume that there is some type of animal-based product that is bonding the pill together. Magnesium Stearate is the most common of the “other” ingredients. It comes in an animal-based form as well as a plant-sourced form. It is a white powder used to help with the release of the ingredients.
Another common ingredient is silicon dioxide for animal-based capsules and silica for veggie capsules. These are known as “anticaking” agents. Certain powders are susceptible to clumping together easily, and these are designed to pull the moisture away from the product instead.
The capsule itself has to be created by some type of material. Capsules are usually made of one of two things. Gelatin is used for normal capsules and vegetable cellulose is used for vegetable capsules.
They are meant to be easily broken down materials in the stomach. Our body will usually recognize these as proteins, and break them down as so.
Tablets
Some articles will say that tablets never absorb into the body. This is partially true. Specific parts of tablets do not absorb into the body and are not designed to.
For instance, microcrystalline cellulose is designed to help compact supplements into tablets. It is formed to hold the tablet together, but will then pass through the body without any issue.
Also common is the glazing agent. You have probably had some pills that taste absolutely rancid. On the other hand, some pills are incredibly easy to swallow and almost impossible to choke on. This is due to that glaze, which is commonly called the pharmaceutical glaze. There is also the option to add a flavoring to the glaze to keep the supplement from tasting bad.
Tablets are the most notorious for adding in “extra” other ingredients. Many companies will start to throw in anything possible so there are as many ingredients as possible. This is generally done for marketing purposes.
Always check the other ingredient list and if it is more than 5 to 6 ingredients for tablets it may be best to put it back on the shelf.
Softgels
Softgels are one of the trickiest when trying to create a vegetarian-friendly product. Most softgels consist of gelatin, which starts in a powder form and is then mixed with a combo of water and glycerin to form a plastic-feeling outside. Glycerin can come from either animal byproduct or vegetable sources. Creating gelatin-based softgels is the easiest and cheapest to manufacture, which is why it is so widely used.
The alternative to gelatin-based softgels is cornstarch and carrageenan (which comes from algae). This route is considered the vegan-friendly form. Or, shoot for one that consists of beeswax which is considered the vegetarian-friendly form.
Chewables and Gummies
Chewables and gummies will typically hold the second-highest amount of other ingredients (after powders), due to the products needed to create the chewable, as well as the sweeteners needed to make them taste appealing. It will usually consist of a thickening agent first. Whether it be a syrup or “gum” (instances like xantham or guar are the most common), it is necessary to hold the gummy or chewable together.
Sweeteners used in chewables and gummies can range from a simple sugar like sucrose or fructose to the higher end of juice concentrates or xylitol. Everyone has their own preference when it comes to sweeteners. I recommend finding one that you know will be easy on your stomach and you feel okay taking daily. A bit of experimentation can help you determine which sweetener works best for you.
Powders
Powders can go one of two ways, they either have literally zero other ingredients in them, and are straight to the base ingredient, or they have more other ingredients than other products. An excessive amount of other ingredients is sometimes used to prevent clumping, add flavoring, adding emulsifiers.
Many protein powders, pre-workouts, and other powdered sports supplements have a significantly higher amount of ‘other’ ingredients in comparison with other products on the market. Protein powders will tell you what type of protein it contains, the type of sweeteners used, the type of probiotics that are in it, the digestive enzymes included, and so on. The ingredients can pile on.
One thing that is commonly found in these products is soy lecithin. Soy lecithin is not the same as soy protein or other phytoestrogens, as it has been filtered out. It is instead an emulsifier that is meant to help stabilize foods for shelf-life longevity. It does not increase estrogen, however, it can still cause allergic reactions to those that are allergic to soy.
Make your own decision when picking out your powders on how many extra ingredients are in it. If it is a single ingredient, aim for as little extra as possible. If it is a blend of different ingredients, keep an open mind and look through the other ingredients just to be safe.
Liquids
Liquids can be broken down into the combination aspect or the individual ingredient list as well. You’ll have combo products like multivitamins or immune boosters, or tinctures that consist of just the herbal extract itself. It depends on the aspect that one is looking for.
Thick Liquids
I call these thick liquids because they are just that, thick liquids. They are usually loaded with ingredients and the other ingredients will consist of thickening agents as well. These are things like your multivitamins, joint supports, or probiotics.
They will have purified water in them that will be used to liquefy the ingredients inside. These thicker liquids will also usually have potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate, which are both used as natural preservatives. Since these are flavored liquids, they typically have shorter shelf lives, and the preservatives are used to prolong that life.
These are considered safe for consumption and will typically just absorb the potassium and sodium as electrolytes.
Tinctures
Tinctures are the simple ingredients of the liquid. They will consist of one to maybe two ingredients that serve a single purpose. Most of these are now made with purified water and come in a milliliter serving size. There are still some companies that use organic alcohol in their product, but that is not as widely used anymore. It is not enough to get someone drunk and is still considered safe for daily use.
Be wary of a tincture that is comprised of more than those ingredients, as that usually means higher dilutions.
Make an Informed Choice
With this guide, going into the store should be less stressful when picking up your supplements. There is plenty of fear-mongering in the supplement industry, and this can be difficult to decipher what is true and what is not. Always keep in mind that most ingredients found in the ‘other’ ingredients portion of a label are meant to be inactive and not absorbed, and are usually there to benefit rather than harm.
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