We thank Mr Jeffrey Hah for his feedback (Regulate sale of health supplements, Feb 3).

While health supplements are not subjected to pre-market approvals and testing in view of the fact that their ingredients are generally recognised to be safe and not meant to treat or prevent diseases, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has imposed safety and quality requirements on such products.

These include prohibition of medicinal ingredients and limits on heavy metals. Dealers must ensure that their products meet the stipulated safety and quality requirements and that the claims are not false or misleading. 

We note Mr Hah’s suggestion for HSA to implement third-party testing of health supplements. To clarify, HSA does conduct regular surveillance of health supplements in the market, including sampling of products for testing to check that they comply with safety and quality requirements.

In addition, HSA has issued guidelines on testing requirements for health supplements, which include third-party or in-house testing. To ensure that health supplements do not contain hidden risks, HSA has recommended testing to be performed on every batch of types of products that are at higher risk of adulteration, before they are marketed.

HSA also closely monitors adverse event reports and sales of illegal health products, and investigates feedback from consumers. We issue press releases on products that are unsafe, have quality issues or make false claims, and direct the removal of these products from the market.

Strong enforcement actions are taken against unscrupulous dealers. Since August 2022, HSA has established a database of safe and good quality health supplements for consumers to refer to, which can be found at www.hsa.gov.sg/vns-list

Consumers are advised to be cautious when buying health supplements, especially from online platforms without local retail presence. They should buy them from reliable sources like pharmacies, reputable retailers or websites with an established retail presence in Singapore. They should also be wary of products with exaggerated or misleading claims. When unsure of the right product for a particular need, they should consult a doctor or pharmacist.

Lee Hui Keng
Director (Covering)
Complementary Health Products Branch
Health Products Regulation Group
Health Sciences Authority