Sublingual Vitamin Delivery Dialogue

A recent Question-and-Answer (Q&A) section in the Honolulu Star Bulletin Health section brought up a couple of interesting dietary supplement topics relative to delivery systems. The questions are posed and answered by authors Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S., and Alan Titchenal, Ph.D., C.N.S., nutritionists in the Department of Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii-Manoa.

The first question tackles the differences in nutrient absorption between sublingual and pill/capsule/ingestible  supplements, with the response featuring an example of how  studies comparing sublingual and swallow-able vitamin B12 supplements showed no difference in either resultant blood levels of B12 or in homocysteine-lowering.

While the authors use this B12 example to suggest there are no absorption advantages of one supplement delivery method vs. another, they use the second question to note sublingual and spray delivery methods might have advantages convenience for those people who find it difficult to swallow pills. They recommend consumers compare the nutrient content of various forms of the same supplement, so they are sure to get what they expect; they also advise these sublingual and spray products tend to be more expensive than their pill/capsule counterparts.

Intranasal spray vitamin delivery is also discussed as a viable alternative to vitamin B injections. The one such product mentioned in the article is a prescription B12 nasal spray. This products prescription positioning brought up the topic of the regulatory status of dietary supplements in sublingual or spray form. As the authors noted, FDA has stated only products intended for ingestion can be legally marketed as dietary supplements in the United States. The agency has, in fact, written warning letters to companies, telling them: Topical products and products intended to enter the body directly through the skin or mucosal tissues, such as transdermal or sublingual products, are not dietary supplements. For these products, both disease and structure/function claims may cause them to be new drugs.