Swallowing It: How Australians are spending billions on unproven vitamins and supplements. The figures are startling - seven out of every ten Australians take some form of vitamin or supplement. We spend more, out of our own pockets, on complementary medicines than we do on prescription drugs. Spruiked by sporting heroes, acting icons and celebrity chefs, the industry is worth over four billion dollars. But there is little evidence that many of these products actually work. Many pharmacies have shelves stacked high with vitamins and supplements, prominently displayed at the front of their shops, often sold in tandem with proven pharmaceuticals. Australians are often choosing these complementary medicines as insurance against a bad diet or to ward off sickness, but the benefits are highly contested. The spotlight is now being placed on the industry, with the regulator drafting changes to the way these products are sold and a government review examining whether or not pharmacies should stock them. The program investigates how these products are regulated and marketed in Australia and whether the credibility of chemists is threatened by selling them.

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