dietary supplement

noun

: a product taken orally that contains one or more ingredients (such as vitamins or amino acids) that are intended to supplement one's diet and are not considered food

Examples of dietary supplement in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

By one estimate, some 70 percent of Americans take a dietary supplement. —Dylan Scott, Vox, 7 Mar. 2025

Turmeric Turmeric is a popular dietary supplement for managing arthritis, digestive problems, and liver disease.6 However, some evidence suggests that turmeric supplements may damage the liver. —Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 3 Mar. 2025

The backlash resulted in a 1994 law that enabled the dietary supplement industry to put its products on the market without testing and to tout unproven benefits, as long as the touting doesn’t include claims to treat or cure a disease. —Arthur Allen, CNN, 26 Feb. 2025

These soft gel capsules from Nature Made are a good dietary supplement option that may also help support muscle relaxation as well as nerve, heart, and bone health. —Marilyn La Jeunesse, Glamour, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1891, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

dietary supplement

noun

: a product taken orally that contains one or more ingredients (such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, or amino acids) that are intended to supplement one's diet and are not considered food

The study is looking at whether taking daily dietary supplements of vitamin D₃ or omega-3 fatty acids reduces the risk for developing cancer, heart disease and stroke.

—Mary Brophy Marcus, USA Today

A hormone produced by the pineal gland in the brain, melatonin also occurs naturally in some foods. It therefore may be sold as a dietary supplement in the United States under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, without premarket approval from the FDA.

—Lynne Lamberg, The Journal of the American Medical Association

… batches of a dietary supplement L-tryptophan that have been implicated in a mysterious disease were produced by a genetically engineered organism.

—Leslie Roberts, Science