BSNA is aware that a survey is currently being undertaken by the Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances (ACBS) and the NHS England Patient Safety team, looking at whether there are any safety concerns with Nutritional Borderline Substances (NBS).

Our Members take safety concerns very seriously and supports accurate reporting. This includes ensuring that any safety incidents are reported via the official routes, and not just via the survey. 

Regulations

BSNA is concerned that within the survey it states:

"Healthcare products which do not fall into a specific area of regulation are referred to as ‘Borderline Substances’. This term is used when a product is not regulated as a medicine, or food and may be described as a cosmetic or food supplement."

BSNA would like to reassure healthcare professionals that NBS, otherwise known as Foods for Special Medical Purposes (FSMPs), are strictly regulated and must be in compliance with the specific and robust legislation (Retained Delegated Regulation 2016/128) along with general foods legislation, which takes precedence if no specific requirements are set within the FSMP legislation. Reference to food supplements is also confusing and misleading in this context, especially since they also have their own specific regulation (The Food Supplements (England) Regulations 2003).

To find our more about how FSMPs are regulated, please read the Complete Nutrition Magazine article 'Foods for Special Medical Purposes, from Regulation to Reimbursement', which can be accessed here.