Are you taking the vitamins you intended? Or are they fakes?! A patient at our office recently discovered that he had been taking fake MacuHealth supplements purchased from Walmart online. He shared this photo showing just how convincing the fakes look; there are only subtle differences in packaging!

What’s in the fakes? That’s the scary part; we don’t know!! MacuHealth’s website has a page for reporting fakes so they can help online retailers purge them from their listings, but fakers are resilient and keep popping back up. To make sure you get the REAL vitamins you are intending to purchase, take these steps:

1. Buy directly from the manufacturer, your doctor’s office, or at a physical store. Online retailers like Walmart and Amazon allow third-party vendors to list their products indistinguishably from the real deal.
2. Be suspicious of any price that’s significantly better than what it retails for on the manufacturers’ website.
3. If you do purchase supplements online, compare your packaging closely to make sure there are no differences in font style, color, or layout! The differences will be subtle but you can notice the font style is different with the real MacuHealth bottle on the left versus the fake from Walmart on the right.

Supplements are an essential part of the American Medical Association’s recommended care for patients who have a variety of ocular conditions, including macular degeneration and dry eye. Be sure that you are taking legitimate supplements by only purchasing from the manufacturer directly or from a trusted source like your doctor’s office or a retail store that purchases supplements directly from the manufacturer.

To ensure you’re taking the right eye vitamins for your needs, schedule an appointment at TrueVision Eye Care! Our doctors can recommend high-quality, trusted supplements tailored to your needs. Book your visit today!