Our nutritional supplements

In health more than any other sector, the ‘cheapest’ inevitably ends up costing more. Poor quality supplements may be less expensive but in the long run, your health will pay the price.

Clear, transparent and documented information is the key to making educated choices. There are so many schools of thought and fanciful theories on nutrition-related matters that we have always made scientific information an absolute priority. But this no easy task. Nutrition and biochemistry are complex subjects which are difficult to communicate in lay language without compromising on scientific rigour. It’s why so few health professionals attempt it, forcing consumers interested in nutrition to search almost surreptitiously for information themselves.

We make around 60% of our products in the United States and 40% in Europe. Despite the unfavourable exchange rate, the American market remains by far and away the global benchmark for nutritional supplementation and we develop many products there that we simply wouldn’t be able to in Europe. Our main distribution centre is in the Netherlands, with a second centre in the US. Our administration and customer services have been located in Luxembourg for more than 15 years. This set-up is admittedly rather complex but it gives us flexibility, resilience and reliability.

The most common dietary allergies involve foods that feature widely in our diet, such as eggs, milk, nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, cashew nuts…), shellfish, peanuts, celery, etc. These are all included on an EU regulations list of common allergens, and we are committed to alerting customers when they are present in our supplements.

As we are keen to offer you natural-source ingredients, some of our supplements unsurprisingly contain ingredients included on this list. Our krill oil supplement obviously contains shellfish, just as our excellent supplement Celery 3nb contains celery seeds. That’s precisely why they’re so popular.

Rest assured, however, that you’ll never find any synthetic allergens in our excipients.

Since we first entered the European supplementation market 33 years ago, we at SuperSmart have placed innovation and excellence at the heart of our operations. Over the years, this fundamental principle has allowed us to sustain an exceptionally diverse catalogue of supplements. You’ll find:

At SuperSmart, you’ll never find:

• Wild claims or undeliverable promises. It can sometimes take months, or even years, to resolve certain health problems using supplementation. Dietary supplements do not treat diseases.
• False testimonials (one of the clearest signs of charlatanism). In 2018, we decided to use an independent consumer review service called TrustPilot, the leading company in the field. They ensure that the reviews left by internet-users are 100% authentic and reflect genuine purchasing experiences. In order to maintain complete transparency, we are not permitted by TrustPilot to modify these reviews: you can therefore have complete faith that the comments made about each of our dietary supplements are legitimate. More information on TrustPilot.
• Snake oil or products based on marketing. We’re committed to offering effective supplements supported by sound scientific evidence.

Unlike the excipients added to processed foods, those used in medicines and dietary supplements are needed:

Most capsules are made from a compound called hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC), ‘recognised as safe’ for food use by the FDA and the European Union (1). Though its name sounds somewhat unnatural, it actually comes from plant cellulose, and no chemical additives or animal-source products are used in its processing (thermogelation).

Our choices are primarily motivated by the results of research though we also draw on natural and traditional medicines, which are currently booming. Once discredited, they are now seen as pioneering and are being considered more and more by the scientific community. Research is not just highlighting the mechanisms of action of the various medicinal plants that make up their pharmacopoeia, it is validating the foundations behind them. Thus recent research has shown that traditional systems of medicine were right when they supported the idea of a strong and complex relationship between mind and body: there is an indisputable link between our state of mind and the secretion of various substances (hormones, proteins, neurotransmitters) that affect our long-term health. And this link is sufficiently strong that stress and depression are associated with a significantly-increased risk of cancer.

As a general rule, breaking open a capsule or crushing a tablet does not cause any serious problems, though it’s not ideal. It usually means the active substances inside are released faster – increasing the risk of side effects – and that the body does not absorb the ingredients as efficiently.