For the dedicated life extensionist, maintaining a regimen of life extension vitamins and nutrients is expensive and time-consuming. Prices vary widely, and suppliers are hard to find. This article discusses where and how to obtain vitamins and nutrients at a reasonable price. It neither makes a judgment as to quality, nor does it recommend a particular supplier. There are many domestic mail-order suppliers of vitamins and nutrients. Some, such as Home Health, the Life Extension Foundation (LEF), Life Services Supplements (seller of Durk & Sandy products), NutriGuard Research, and Vitamin Research Products, offer their own product line or a limited number of lines. Others, such as Beyond the Century, Indiana Botanic Gardens, L&H Vitamins, and Nature's Distributors, are discount distributors of products from a wide range of producers. Some, such as LEF, offer discounts to members who pay annual fees. Local sources include numerous health food stores, supermarkets, and the Apothecary Nutritional Pharmacy, in Bethesda. It really pays to compare prices among health food stores because their suppliers' prices differ greatly. Your supermarket may well offer the more common vitamins and minerals in quantity for a reasonable price. The Apothecary offers a variety of multiple formulations. Its Green Vibrance is virtually identical in composition and price to LEF's Herbal Mix. Domestic mail order suppliers of prescription drugs include College Pharmacy, the Apothecary, and the Mail Order Pharmacy. For many exotic nutrients and substances such as "smart drugs" and natural hormones, drug companies have not sought or obtained Food and Drug Administration approval to market for prescription or over-the-counter use in the United States. There are four reasons: FDA defines anything that affects the body (other than food) as a drug; it takes $250 million to obtain FDA approval for a new substance as a prescription or over-the-counter drug; to be approved, a new drug must be shown to be safe and "effective" against a disease; and aging does not qualify as a disease. These substances are called "unapproved substances." Many life extensionists import unapproved substances from overseas for personal use. Due to budget constraints, FDA personnel only monitor (inspect a sample of) mail importations. It is prudent to order unapproved substances from abroad with a prescription for a three month supply or less so that your mail can pass muster if inspected. This is particularly true of substances that might be classified as "controlled substances" under Drug Enforcement Administration regulations at 21 CFR 1308.14. Overseas suppliers include the Alzheimers Buyers Club, Baxamed Medical Center, In-Home Health Services, Interlab, Libertarian Solutions, the Life Extension Buyer's Club, and Quality Health. Different suppliers offer the lowest prices for different nutrients; however, because shipping costs are so high, you will probably save if you order multiple products from one supplier. LEF has obtained discounts for its members with the Alzheimers Buyers Club, Libertarian Solutions, and the Life Extension Buyers Club. You can obtain unapproved substances domestically if you a) obtain a prescription and b) find a domestic pharmacy that has a manufacturing source for the raw material and can "compound" the substance. Domestic pharmacies with good sources include College Pharmacy, the Apothecary, and the Mail Order Pharmacy. Domestic Suppliers. Apothecary Nutritional Pharmacy 5415 Cedar Lane Bethesda, MD 20814 301-530-0800 Beyond the Century P.O. Box 713 Greenville, ME 04441 800-777-1324 Home Health 949 Seahawk Circle Virginia Beach, VA 23452 Indiana Botanic Gardens P.O. Box 5 Hammond, IN 46325 800-644-8327 L&H Vitamins 32-33 47th Ave. Long Island City, NY 11101 800-221-1152 Life Extension Foundation P.O. Box 221920 Hollywood, FL 33022-9120 800-841-LIFE Life Services Supplements 3535 Highway 66, Bldg. 2 Neptune, NJ 07753 800-542-3230 Nature's Distributors 16508 E. Laser Drive #104 Fountain Hills, AZ 85268 800-624-7114 NutriGuard Research P.O. Box 865 Encinitas, CA 92023 619-942-3223 Prolongevity, Ltd. 10 Alden Rd., Unit 6 Markham, Ontario L3R2S1 Canada 800-544-4440 Vitamin Research Products 3579 Highway 50 East Carson City, NV 89701 800-877-2447 Domestic Pharmacies. Apothecary Nutritional Pharmacy 5415 Cedar Lane Bethesda, MD 20814 301-530-0800 College Pharmacy 833 N. Tejon St. Colorado Springs, CO 80903 800-888-9358 Mail Order Pharmacy 3170 North Federal Hwy. Suite 104B Lighthouse Point, FL 33064 800-822-5388 Overseas Suppliers. Alzheimers Buyer's Club post fach CH-8911 O. Ritterswil Switzerland Baxamed Medical Center Realpstrasse 83 4054 Basel Switzerland In-Home Health Services P.O. Box 3112-CH-2800 Delemont Switzerland Interlab, Inc. BCM Box 5890 London, WC1N 3XX England Libertarian Solutions GPO Box 12496 Hong Kong Life Extension Buyers Club c/o Life Extension Foundation P.O. Box 221920 Hollywood, FL 33022-9120 800-544-4440