Commentary: An Impossible Dream? Integrating Dietary Supplement Label Databases Needs, Challenges, Next Steps

Abstract Integrating ingredients in databases of dietary supplements (DS) involves harmonizing terminology describing ingredients, expressing amounts in a common fashion, and using interoperable description systems to link ingredients to related drug, food and other DS databases. Harmonizing ingredient descriptions facilitates calculation of bioactives in DS and allows estimation of their impact on the dietary, nutritional and health status of individuals and populations. Achieving greater DS integration is not an impossible dream, but many challenges exist within and between countries including variations in legislation governing their definition, scope, regulation and labeling. Next steps begin domestically and then proceed internationally. These include harmonizing definitions of constituents and units between terminologies for DS and food databases and employing technological advances in database architecture, computer software and hardware that facilitate database integration and interoperability. Thus, data in one application can be converted into a form that can be accessed by receiving applications.