At Village Compounding Pharmacy, we strive
to provide the best products available. It is our policy to stand
behind the products we sell and the medications we make 100 percent.
For this reason we carry very few vitamin lines. The vitamin line
we have carried the longest is Thorne Research, established in
1984. Thorne Research provides a truly hypoallergenic product, and
was the first line of hypoallergenic products. Every Thorne
Research product is developed in capsule or powder form. This
allows Thorne to exclude excipients such as: flowing agents, diluents,
sugars, preservatives, and lactose. Thorne Research prides itself
in NOT using magnesium stearate, palmitic acid, or stearic acid as
flowing agents. Thorne vitamins maintain an advantage because each
nutrient particle is not coated with a complete layer of saturated fat.
Without the coating, nutrients are available to be immediately absorbed
by the patient. Magnesium stearate and stearic acid (flowing agents)
have melting points about 50°
higher than a human’s normal
body temperature. Also the addition of any stearic/palmitic acid
during the manufacturing process of any dietary supplement product can
have an adverse impact on both solubility and bioavailability of the
nutrients. By disallowing the use of product-compromising flowing
agents, Thorne Research faces a considerably more difficult
manufacturing process. But because of the dedication to their
consumers they refuse to use any agent which will inhibit the best
absorption available. Thorne must have twice the number of
machines, manufacturing rooms, employees, and support equipment than
other companies to produce the same number of bottles as most
competitors. Many companies have tried to duplicate the Thorne
Research manufacturing process, but none have been successful.
When Thorne fills additional space in a capsule, only those
hypoallergenic ingredients they have utilized for the past 20 years are
added: magnesium citrate, aspartic acid, leucine, or silicon dioxide.
With Thorne Research’s outstanding
background you can see why they are one of the nation’s top vitamin
companies and why we have chosen to carry them at Village Compounding
Pharmacy.
What are the 5 markers of quality in a
nutritional supplement company?
1.1) GMP-certified manufacturing
facilities
2.2) Comprehensive scientific
evaluation of ingredients
3.3) Comprehensive safety
reviews
4.4) Human clinical evaluation
to document predicted safety and efficacy
5.5) Advanced scientific staff
and facilities
In understanding the 5 markers of
quality in a nutritional supplement company, we will evaluate
Metagenics, a tier 5 vitamin
company and a line we sell at the pharmacy.
GMP-certified manufacturing- Good
Manufacturing Practices certifications are a great marker of
quality. High quality companies are inspected and certified by
one or more of the following companies: National Nutritional Foods
Association (NNFA), NSF International, US Pharmacopoeia (USP), and
Therapeutic Goods Administration of Australia (TGA). Most
nutritional supplement manufacturers are not officially
GMP-certified because it is very expensive to actually hold a GMP
certification. Without such a certification you cannot be sure if
the manufacturer is adhering to GMP requirements. Metagenics
holds three certifications from NNFA, NSF, and TGA.
Comprehensive scientific evaluation
of ingredients- There are significant differences in individual
ingredients. The lower the cost of the end product most likely
the lower cost of the ingredients. Ingredients are the most
important part of a product. If an inferior ingredient is
chosen for a superior formula the final product will be inferior.
Sophisticated scientific analysis is required to identify the
quality difference. Metagenics analyzes each ingredient on at
least 8 different aspects. They are: price, assay methodology, assay
method, product identity, hyperforin, hypericins, adulteration, and
heavy metals. The only ingredients Metagenics chooses are the
ones with complete assays, correct assay method, confirmed identity,
hyperforin, and hypericins, no adulteration, and very low heavy
metal evaluation. Superior ingredients make superior formulas work
properly.
Comprehensive safety reviews-
Comprehensive safety reviews of ingredients are also essential to
high quality nutritional supplements. Low cost suppliers often do
not spend the time or money to conduct adequate literature reviews
for safety, or devote qualified professionals to review this
literature. This partly explains how they can supply products
at a lower cost. The people at Metagenics know that cutting
corners on safety can have long-reaching effects on the health of
the patients taking supplements and because of this Metagenics knows
it is imperative that all safety measures are met fully.
Human clinical evaluations- Human
clinical evaluations are used to prove the potential effectiveness
of a nutritional product, to test safety and effectiveness, and help
determine if products produce adverse taste or tolerance concerns.
These studies are an expensive and time-consuming endeavor that
demonstrates a commitment to the health of the patients.
Metagenics has sponsored over 50 human clinical trials and
university studies, and over 200 articles from Metagenics’
scientists and clinicians have appeared in medical science journals.
Each year more than 50 individual case management studies are
conducted at the Functional Medicine Research Center (FMRC, the
research arm of Metagenics) utilizing Metagenics formulas. A
very high standard in the professional segment of the nutritional
supplement industry.
Scientific staff and facilities-
An advanced scientific staff and sophisticated research facilities
are necessary to achieve true quality. A competent and dedicated
scientific staff is essential for the time-consuming, detailed work
required to help establish the safety and effectiveness levels of
the nutritional products produced by Metagenics. The staff at
Metagenics consists of persons from many scientific disciplines,
such as, genomics, proteomics, molecular biology, nutritional bio
chemistry, ethnobotany, food technology, formulation chemistry, and
clinical research. Metagenics’ staff utilizes these advanced
scientific disciplines to achieve true industry-leading quality.
Very few companies allocate the resources for an in-house staff of
this caliber, as well as the state-of-the-art facilities for them to
conduct their research.
Metagenics is an
industry leader because it has invested in the people and facilities
necessary to have all 5 components of true quality.
Perque LLC was founded
and developed by Dr. Russell M. Jaffe in 1987. Dr. Jaffe is
trained in internal medicine, clinical pathology, immunology, and
biochemistry. He has set a goal to develop the most advanced
formulas possible. Perque’s Well Guard™
philosophy promises that only the most active, specific forms of
nutrients shown beneficial in clinical studies are selected for use.
Perque has many guarantees so you can be confident in Perque’s
superiority. Some guarantees are:
Every Perque product provides 100%
potency and activity for its entire shelf life.
Every ingredient used in a Perque
product is pharmaceutical-grade or better.
By using high quality manufacturing
processes, all Perque products, including tablets, dissolve rapidly,
eliminating digestive irritation.
Full label disclosure is provided for
all Perque Products – no hidden or inactive ingredients.
The most bio-available transporters are
used to insure 100% uptake and deliver direct results.
All Perque products are allergen and
contaminant-free and do not contain wheat/gluten, corn/zein/starch,
dairy/casein/whey/milk derivatives, yeast, soy, sulfate, phosphates
(other than coenzymes), and preservatives.
Perque products do not contain
genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Every Perque product is produced
following or exceeding the FDA’s pharmaceutical GMP regulations.
Third-party chemical bioassays (tests)
are performed on all formulas to ensure that the quality ingredients
are still active in the products even after production.
Because of Perque’s high quality and
guarantees, they are considered to be a fifth tier
vitamin/supplement. Fifth tier is the highest quality
available. Not only do we at Village Compounding Pharmacy stand
behind Perque vitamins and supplements, but Perque LLC has enough
confidence in their own product that they offer a 100% unconditional
money-back guarantee. Due to special formulation and extremely high
quality ingredients Perque products are only available through
doctors and healthcare professionals.
